Bitcoin (BTC) Price Drops Back Below $90,000 After Short-Lived Surge

Following a short-lived surge near the $90,000 level this morning, Bitcoin went back to the losing bracket a couple of hours after.

Bitcoin price slid further on Saturday, extending declines from the previous session as part of the cryptocurrency market's recent selloff.

Bitcoin dropped by 5.33% over the last 24 hours to $82,424 by 05:20 ET (09:20 GMT). It earlier rose to a new peak for the year at $89,277.

Bitcoin was trading at levels close to $90,000 this morning, as part of a short-lived rebound that saw the cryptocurrency’s prices recover sharply from recent lows.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency had tumbled to lows of around $70,000 on Friday, pressured by a U.S. sanctions threat on major Russian cryptocurrency exchange.

But as part of the volatility often seen in digital assets, Bitcoin prices began 2024 with gains of over 110% by February. These gains were largely driven by anticipation for a U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF, which several asset managers had applied to list.

But as these applications stalled, and with several U.S. banks cutting ties with cryptocurrency firms, Bitcoin prices began to slide again.

Cryptocurrency prices slid further on Saturday, after data showed that nearly half a billion dollars in Bitcoin was liquidated from the market.

Coinglass data showed that around $456 million in cryptocurrency derivatives positions were liquidated on February 26, as Bitcoin prices tumbled.

Most of the liquidations- around $388.66 million- were on longs, which were forced to sell as prices dropped.

Meanwhile, about $67.46 million in shorts were liquidated as prices rose unexpectedly.

8,007 BTC Aged 3 to 5 Years On The Move

CryptoQuant analyst Ja Maartun revealed that 8,007 BTC which was dormant for 3 to 5 years has recently moved for the first time.

To get hold of this data, Maartun used the Bitcoin Spent Output Age Bands (SOAB) chart. The SOAB is a metric used to analyze transactions basing spent coins per age, helping understand the activity levels of different age bands.

This data does not identify if the Bitcoin was sold, or even if they were from one single whale, but it highlights a potential trend of longtime holders to let go of their holdings amidst a potential bear market.