Bitcoin, with the symbol BTC, reached a 12-week high of $79,399 during overnight trading before encountering a wave of selling activity in the Asian morning session on Monday, thereby halting its ascent towards the $80,000 mark for the first time since January. By Monday morning, Bitcoin had dropped to $77,705, representing a 0.4% decline over the previous 24 hours.

This downturn occurred after the cryptocurrency had surged to $79,399 around 09:00 IST, only to sharply reverse its trajectory throughout the Asian session. Other notable cryptocurrencies, such as Ether, Solana, and BNB, also experienced declines, falling by 2.4%, 1.9%, and 1.2%, respectively, to $2,329, $86, and $630.

The rally that propelled Bitcoin to its highest level since January 31 lost momentum by mid-morning Singapore time. The initial surge was sparked 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.

This development led to a positive trend in Asian equities, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising by 1.7%, the emerging markets index reaching a record high, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing surging 6% to its own record. Meanwhile, Brent crude pared its earlier 2.5% gains to a 1% increase at $106.50 per barrel.

Bitcoin initially followed the risk-on move but then diverged from it. 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 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 experienced a 16% increase in April, putting it on track for its first double-digit monthly gain since May 2025.

Strategy has invested $3.9 billion in Bitcoin this month, marking the firm's 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% 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. 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, on the horizon, either the Fed or a single earnings beat could provide the catalyst the Bitcoin market has been missing. Without such a catalyst, the third rejection from $79,000 in eight sessions may define the range rather than precede a breakout.