Bitcoin, with the symbol BTC, reached a 12-week high of $79,399 during overnight trading before encountering significant selling pressure in the Asian morning session on Monday, halting its advance towards the $80,000 mark for the first time since January. As of Monday morning, Bitcoin was trading at $77,705, representing a 0.4% decline over the past 24 hours, after peaking at $79,399 around 09:00 IST and then sharply reversing direction throughout the Asian session. Meanwhile, Ether experienced a 2.4% decline to $2,329, Solana dropped 1.9% to $86, and BNB decreased by 1.2% to $630. The rally that pushed Bitcoin to its highest level since January 31 lost momentum by mid-morning Singapore time.

The upward push was triggered by a report from Axios stating that Iran had proposed a new plan to the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with nuclear talks postponed until after the U.S. naval blockade is lifted. This news sparked a surge in Asian equities, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising 1.7%, the emerging markets index reaching a record high, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing climbing 6% to set its own record.

Brent crude oil prices also increased, paring earlier gains of 2.5% to achieve a 1% gain at $106.50 per barrel. Initially, Bitcoin followed the risk-on trend but then diverged. The rejection at $79,399 can be explained by technical factors.

According to Rachael Lucas, an analyst at BTC Markets, the $80,000 level is where many recent buyers are approaching break-even, which historically leads to selling pressure as traders exit positions they held at a loss for weeks. This month, Bitcoin has seen a 16% increase, putting it on track for its first double-digit monthly gain since May 2025. Strategy has purchased $3.9 billion worth of Bitcoin this month, the firm's largest monthly accumulation in a year, as reported by Bloomberg. Funding rates for perpetual futures across major exchanges remain negative on a 7-day basis, at -0.13% per Coinglass, indicating that shorts are still paying longs to hold positions.

This structural setup can lead to a squeeze if the spot price can hold above the $79,000 level, which has now been rejected three times. The Federal Reserve and European Central Bank are set to make policy decisions this week, and the earnings reports of the four largest U.S.

companies by market capitalization are also expected. Either the Fed's decision or a strong earnings report could provide the catalyst that the Bitcoin market has been lacking.

Without such a catalyst, the third rejection from the $79,000 level in eight sessions may define the current range rather than precede a breakout.