Bitcoin, with the symbol BTC, reached a 12-week peak of $79,399 before encountering a wall of sellers during Monday's Asian morning session, thereby halting its ascent towards the $80,000 mark for the first time since January. At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $77,705, reflecting a 0.4% decline over the past 24 hours, after having touched $79,399 around 09:00 IST and subsequently experiencing a sharp reversal throughout the Asian session. Other cryptocurrencies such as Ether, Solana, and BNB also witnessed declines of 2.4%, 1.9%, and 1.2%, respectively, with values of $2,329, $86, and $630. The rally that propelled Bitcoin to its highest level since January 31 lost momentum by mid-morning in Singapore.

This development followed a report by Axios that Iran had proposed a new plan to the U.S. for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, contingent upon the lifting of the U.S.

naval blockade, which has led to a delay in nuclear talks. The news sparked a positive reaction in Asian equities, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising 1.7% and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing reaching a record high with a 6% surge.

Meanwhile, Brent crude pared its initial 2.5% gain to close 1% higher at $106.50 per barrel. Initially, Bitcoin moved in tandem with the broader risk-on sentiment but later diverged.

According to Rachael Lucas, an analyst at BTC Markets, the rejection at $79,399 can be attributed to the fact that $80,000 is a critical level where many recent buyers are nearing breakeven, historically leading to selling pressure as traders exit positions that were previously underwater. Despite this, Bitcoin has seen a 16% increase in April, positioning it for its first double-digit monthly gain since May 2025.

Additionally, Strategy has purchased $3.9 billion worth of Bitcoin this month, marking the firm's largest monthly accumulation in a year, as per Bloomberg. The funding rates for perpetual futures across major exchanges remain negative on a 7-day basis, standing at -0.13% according to Coinglass, indicating that shorts are still paying longs to maintain their positions. This setup can lead to a squeeze if the spot price can hold above the $79,000 level, which has now been rejected three times. With the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank set to announce policy decisions this week, alongside the release of earnings reports from the four largest U.S.

companies by market capitalization, either of these events could provide the necessary catalyst for Bitcoin's price movement. Without such a catalyst, the repeated rejection from the $79,000 level may define the current trading range rather than precede a breakout.