Bitcoin Retreats From 12-Week Peak as Sellers Intervene at $79,400

Bitcoin, with the symbol BTC, reached a 12-week high of $79,399 before encountering a wave of sellers during Monday's Asian morning session, thereby halting its ascent 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, following a sharp reversal during the Asian session. Other notable cryptocurrencies, such as Ether, Solana, and BNB, also experienced declines of 2.4%, 1.9%, and 1.2%, respectively. The rally that propelled Bitcoin to its highest level since January 31 lost momentum by mid-morning in Singapore. This upward push was initially driven by a report from Axios regarding Iran's proposal to the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, contingent upon the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade, which has delayed nuclear talks. Asian equities responded positively, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising 1.7% and the emerging markets index reaching a record high, while Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing saw a 6% surge to an all-time high. Meanwhile, Brent crude pared its earlier 2.5% gains to a 1% increase at $106.50 per barrel. Bitcoin initially followed the risk-on trend before diverging. The rejection at $79,399 can be attributed to a clean technical explanation. According to Rachael Lucas, an analyst at BTC Markets, the $80,000 mark is where many recent buyers are approaching breakeven, historically leading to selling pressure as traders exit positions they had been holding at a loss for weeks. Bitcoin has seen a 16% increase in April, on track for its first double-digit monthly gain since May 2025. Strategy has purchased $3.9 billion worth of Bitcoin this month, the largest monthly accumulation in a year, as per Bloomberg. Funding rates on 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, a structural setup that could lead to a squeeze if spot prices can hold above the $79,000 level, which has now been rejected three times. With the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank set to make policy decisions this week, and megacap tech earnings including the four largest U.S. companies by market cap, either the Fed or a single earnings beat could provide the catalyst the Bitcoin market has been lacking. Without such a catalyst, the third rejection from $79,000 in eight sessions begins to define the range rather than precede a breakout.