Bitcoin, with the symbol BTC, reached a 12-week high of $79,399 before encountering selling pressure during Monday's Asian morning session, which halted its ascent towards the $80,000 mark for the first time since January. On Monday morning, Bitcoin was trading at $77,705, marking a 0.4% decline over the past 24 hours, after reaching $79,399 around 09:00 IST and subsequently experiencing a sharp reversal throughout the Asian session. Meanwhile, Ether decreased by 2.4% to $2,329, Solana fell by 1.9% to $86, and BNB dropped by 1.2% to $630.
The rally that propelled Bitcoin to its highest level since January 31 lost momentum by mid-morning in Singapore. 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.
Asian equities responded positively to the news. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose by 1.7%, the emerging markets index reached a record high, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing surged by 6% to its own record. Brent crude pared its earlier 2.5% gains to a 1% increase at $106.50 per barrel. Bitcoin initially followed the risk-on trend but then diverged.
The rejection at $79,399 can be explained technically. According to Rachael Lucas, an analyst at BTC Markets, the $80,000 mark is where many recent buyers are approaching break-even, which historically leads to selling pressure as traders exit positions they had been holding at a loss for weeks. Bitcoin has gained 16% in April and is on track for its first double-digit monthly increase since May 2025.
This month, Strategy has purchased $3.9 billion worth of Bitcoin, according to Bloomberg, marking the firm's largest monthly accumulation in a year. 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. Both the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank have policy decisions this week, and the earnings of the four largest U.S.
companies by market capitalization are scheduled to be released. Either the Fed's decision or a single earnings beat 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 range rather than precede a breakout.