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<p>For several weeks now, Bitcoin has been hitting an invisible wall. After brief moves up to $79,500, BTC’s price consistently falls back below $77,000. Behind this stubborn resistance, on-chain data tells a clear story: organized sellers are slowing every upward move. When will this barrier break? Analysis.</p>
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  <h2 class="in-brief--title" id="in-brief">In brief</h2>
  <ul>
   <li>Bitcoin struggles at $77,000 despite a peak at $79,500</li>
   <li>150,000 BTC sent to exchanges by short-term holders since April 15</li>
   <li>Spot volumes at their lowest since September 2023</li>
   <li>Open interest down: 8,000–9,000 BTC of leverage removed in 10 days</li>
   <li>$604 million in liquidations recorded in 24 hours on April 30</li>
  </ul>
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<h2 id="h-bitcoin-under-pressure-when-short-term-holders-undermine-the-rebound">Bitcoin under pressure: when short-term holders undermine the rebound</h2>
<p>Since April 15, 2026, <strong>around 150,000 BTC have been transferred</strong> to cryptocurrency exchanges. This movement mainly comes from short-term holders (STH), wallets that have held Bitcoin for less than 155 days. These investors act repeatedly each time Bitcoin rises above $77,000.</p>
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<p>The numbers are clear. <strong>Over three consecutive sessions</strong>, inflows to crypto exchanges reached:</p>
<ul>
 <li>65,000 BTC</li>
 <li>54,600 BTC</li>
 <li>39,000 BTC</li>
</ul>
<p>This cascading selling pressure <strong>prevents Bitcoin from consolidating above the key $80,000 resistance</strong>.</p>
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<p>Crypto analyst Darkfost, using CryptoQuant data, highlights this structural weakness. According to him, STHs seize every opportunity to take profits during <strong>Bitcoin price increases</strong>.</p>
<p>The outcome is mechanical:</p>
<ul>
 <li>supply floods exchanges</li>
 <li>Bitcoin price stagnates</li>
 <li>buyers step back</li>
</ul>
<p>For Darkfost, this repeated short-term profit-taking is not a panic signal. Rather, it is a strategy that appears to be weighing heavily on the <strong>BTC rally</strong>.</p>
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<h2 id="h-bitcoin-and-collapsing-spot-volumes-a-market-in-apathy">Bitcoin and collapsing spot volumes: a market in apathy</h2>
<p>Beyond STHs, another signal concerns analysts: collapsing spot volumes. Trading activity <strong>has dropped to levels comparable to September 2023</strong>, a period marking the end of a long bearish phase. The takeaway: the Bitcoin market is severely lacking liquidity.</p>
<p>Major exchanges are seeing sharp declines:</p>
<ul>
 <li>Binance has lost around $25 billion in volume in one month</li>
 <li>Gate.io shows a $13 billion drop</li>
 <li>OKX has seen nearly $6 billion in volume disappear</li>
</ul>
<p>These figures reflect a <strong>clear disengagement from short-term investors</strong>.</p>
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<blockquote class="wp-block-quote">
 <p>Darkfost summarizes:<br>This contraction in volume reflects a temporary loss of interest in Bitcoin. But these periods of apathy are often where new opportunities begin to emerge.</p>
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<p>This is the <strong>paradox of current market sentiment</strong>. Falling spot volumes may signal weak momentum, but also a silent accumulation phase before a breakout.</p>
<h2 id="h-bitcoin-and-declining-open-interest-leverage-unwinds">Bitcoin and declining open interest: leverage unwinds</h2>
<p>On derivatives markets, the outlook is not more reassuring. Open interest has dropped from over 300,000 BTC to around 292,000 BTC in recent days. Over ten days, <strong>between 8,000 and 9,000 BTC in leverage has been removed</strong>.</p>
<p>Daily variations remain negative, meaning traders are not aggressively opening new long positions. For <strong>Bitcoin to sustainably break above $80,000</strong>, fresh capital inflows are needed, not just short liquidations.</p>
<p>Researcher <a href="https://axeladlerjr.com/open-interest-compressing-short-squeeze-without-new-leverage/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Axel Adler Jr.</a> notes <strong>a short-term positive signal</strong>: the 7-day liquidation oscillator turned positive, reaching +28.7 on April 30. This indicates more balanced pressure between long and short liquidations.</p>
<p>In 24 hours, total crypto liquidations reached $604 million, <strong>highlighting ongoing volatility near this resistance zone</strong>. However, the 30-day average remains slightly negative, maintaining a broader bias toward long liquidations.</p>
<p>One thing is certain: Bitcoin is navigating a zone of technical and psychological turbulence. The $77,000–$80,000 range concentrates selling pressure from short-term holders and indifference from institutional buyers. Historically, such compression phases often precede major moves, both upward and downward. The next major Bitcoin trend is forming behind the scenes. Stay tuned.</p>

Bitcoin: Profit-Taking at $77K Weighs on the Rally

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