Bitcoin Faces Resistance at $80,000, Analyst Sees Temporary Setback

Bitcoin, currently trading at $77,684.42, is struggling to break through the $80,000 threshold due to intense selling pressure, despite a surge in stablecoin liquidity, ETF demand, and a risk-on attitude in the equity market, which may delay but not prevent a potential breakout. The cryptocurrency briefly surpassed $79,000 during Asian trading hours before retreating to trade below $78,000, resulting in a 0.4% loss over the past 24 hours. Other major cryptocurrencies, including Ether, XRP, and Solana's SOL, have also experienced declines, with broader market benchmarks falling over 1%. According to Alex Kuptsikevich, FxPro's chief market analyst, the $80,000 level is acting as a short-term barrier due to concentrated sell orders, which have prevented the coin from advancing further. However, Kuptsikevich believes the pullback is temporary and consistent with the broader uptrend that began in late March. On-chain and ETF data support this view, with Binance recording a net inflow of roughly $3.4 billion in stablecoins this month, indicating fresh capital waiting to enter the market. Institutional demand remains strong, with U.S.-listed spot bitcoin ETFs attracting $2.44 billion in investor money this month. Nevertheless, security risks in decentralized finance (DeFi) continue to weigh on sentiment, with the SUI-based lending platform Scallop being exploited, resulting in a loss of approximately $142,000. This adds to a growing list of attacks this month, including the Drift and KelpDAO exploits, which have led to estimated losses of $623 million in April alone. In traditional markets, WTI crude oil prices remain above $90 per barrel, with Brent above $100, threatening to destabilize the global economy with high inflation.