Following a surge to a 12-week high of $79,399, Bitcoin experienced a sharp reversal during Monday's Asian morning session, as sellers stepped in to halt the rally that had positioned the asset for a potential run to $80,000 for the first time since January. Bitcoin's price had reached $77,705 by Monday morning, marking a 0.4% decline over 24 hours. This downturn occurred after the cryptocurrency had climbed to $79,399 around 09:00 IST, only to sharply reverse course throughout the Asia session.
Meanwhile, Ether declined 2.4% to $2,329, Solana fell 1.9% to $86, and BNB slipped 1.2% to $630. The rally that had propelled Bitcoin to its highest level since January 31 lost momentum by mid-morning Singapore time. The initial upward push was driven by a report from Axios indicating that Iran had proposed a new plan to the U.S. to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with nuclear talks delayed until after the U.S.
naval blockade is lifted. Asian equities responded positively, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising 1.7%, the emerging markets index reaching a record high, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing surging 6% to its own record. However, Bitcoin's attempted move upward was short-lived, and it eventually broke away from the risk-on trend. According to Rachael Lucas, an analyst at BTC Markets, the rejection at $79,399 can be attributed to the fact that $80,000 marks the point where many recent buyers are approaching breakeven, which historically leads to selling pressure as traders exit positions they had been holding at a loss for weeks.
Despite this, Bitcoin has seen a 16% increase in April, 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 largest monthly accumulation in a year, according to Bloomberg. The funding rates on perpetual futures across major exchanges remain negative on a 7-day basis at -0.13%, as per Coinglass, indicating that shorts are still paying longs to hold positions. This structural setup could 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 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 may define the range rather than precede a breakout.