Bitcoin (BTC) price could drop to $70,000 as sell-off worsens, targeting the next support level

Bitcoin options show open interest for put options with a strike price of $70,000 rose to the second-highest level

Crypto traders are now eyeing the possibility that bitcoin's sell-off worsens after the token entered a technical bear market this week.

If bitcoin were to fall to that level, it would mark another 18% drop from current levels and 35% from its all-time-high above $109,000 in January.

"Bitcoin has confirmed a short-term breakdown within the context of its long-term uptrend," a top analyst Katie Stockton, the founder of Fairlead Strategists, told Business Insider in a statement. "We would not rule out a test of secondary support near $73.8K (former resistance from 2024) before the corrective phase fully matures."

suggesting that secondary support could emerge at around $73,800, which is the prior high from 2024, if the primary support at $69,000 is breached.

The analysis comes as the total market cap of bitcoin slumped to $1.7 trillion, while the trading volume over the last 24 hours spiked 27%, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Meanwhile, the world's biggest cryptocurrency slipped into bear market territory this week, with the crypto now down around 21% from its record-high of $109,350 in January.

The coin traded around $85,821 Thursday morning.

suggesting that secondary support could emerge at around $73,800, which is the prior high from 2024, if the primary support at $69,000 is breached.

The analysis comes as the total market cap of bitcoin slumped to $1.7 trillion, while the trading volume over the last 24 hours spiked 27%, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Meanwhile, the world's biggest cryptocurrency slipped into bear market territory this week, with the crypto now down around 21% from its record-high of $109,350 in January.

The coin traded around $85,821 Thursday morning.

The sell-off appeared to be triggered by a broader risk-off move in markets, in addition to other factors that have damaged crypto investors' confidence.

According to data from Farside, spot bitcoin ETFs saw more than $1.1 billion in outflows on Tuesday, affecting bitcoin's price.

A closer look at bitcoin's options market also showed that the open interest for put options with a strike price of $70,000 was the second-highest among all contracts set to expire this Friday, according to Deribit data cited by Bloomberg.

If bitcoin were to fall to that level, it would mark another 18% drop from current levels and 35% from its all-time-high above $109,000 in January.

"Bitcoin has confirmed a short-term breakdown within the context of its long-term uptrend," a top analyst Katie Stockton, the founder of Fairlead Strategists, told Business Insider in a statement. "We would not rule out a test of secondary support near $73.8K (former resistance from 2024) before the corrective phase fully matures."suggesting that secondary support could emerge at around $73,800, which is the prior high from 2024, if the primary support at $69,000 is breached.

The analysis comes as the total market cap of bitcoin slumped to $1.7 trillion, while the trading volume over the last 24 hours spiked 27%, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Meanwhile, the world's biggest cryptocurrency slipped into bear market territory this week, with the crypto now down around 21% from its record-high of $109,350 in January.

The coin traded around $85,821 Thursday morning.