The US-driven rally in April is losing momentum. The Coinbase Premium, which measures the difference between the price of Bitcoin on Coinbase and offshore exchanges, has turned negative for the first time since early April, according to CryptoQuant data. This metric had been consistently positive from April 8 to April 22, during which time Bitcoin's price rose from $66,000 to a local high of $78,000. However, the premium has been declining since its peak on April 22.
As Coinbase is often used as a proxy for US institutional and dollar-denominated flows, a persistent negative reading suggests that American investors are now paying less than the rest of the world, indicating either more aggressive selling or a lack of buying interest. On-chain data reinforces this narrative, with the 7-day sum of Bitcoin Realized Loss reaching $5.97 billion on April 24, as Bitcoin traded near $78,000. This spike in realized losses implies that sellers are disposing of coins purchased at higher prices, with CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr.
noting that this cohort likely entered the market between $80,000 and $95,000 in late 2025 and early 2026, and is now using the April bounce as an exit opportunity rather than a reentry point. The combination of these datasets suggests that US institutional buyers are slowing their purchases on Coinbase, while holders are increasing their selling activity. With Bitcoin recently trading around $76,000, traders are watching to see if the Realized Loss metric will continue to decline as the supply of underwater coins is worked through, with the reading already falling to $4.7 billion by April 28, indicating a potential thinning of the seller cohort.