Bitcoin stalls below $69K as THIS caps BTCs upside: What happens now?

Bitcoin

Bitcoin stalls below $69K as THIS caps BTCs upside: What happens now？

Bitcoin [BTC] has continued to trade within a range-bound region, with the price failing to make a decisive move above the $68,009 level in recent sessions.

Although certain indicators and on-chain metrics have shown moderate activity, the broader market structure suggests that Bitcoin could face renewed pressure that may push it back toward the lower end of its established range.

Market bias remains bearish

One of the key signals reinforcing this structural outlook is the Buy/Sell Pressure Delta.

As the name suggests, the Delta measures whether buyers or sellers dominate market activity. At present, the Sell Delta continues to outweigh the Buy Delta, indicating sustained selling pressure.

A negative or red Sell Delta reflects periods when selling volume exceeds buying volume, typically keeping price action suppressed.

Until the Delta moves toward the neutral (zero) level or flips positive into the green zone, downside pressure is likely to persist.

Source: Alphractal

Joao Wedson, founder of Alphractal, recently noted that even if Bitcoin experiences a short-term rebound, the absence of confirmation from the Buy Delta would weaken the sustainability of such a move.

“Until then, bears still maintain control over the price, and if this pressure continues, price is likely to decline further in the coming months. Even if temporary rallies occur at 72k, 74k, or 75k.”

More hurdles ahead

In the near term, Bitcoin faces additional resistance.

At the time of writing, liquidation data from Alphractal highlights a significant liquidation cluster around the $69,000 zone.

Liquidation maps identify price levels where a concentration of leveraged positions could be forcefully closed, often intensifying volatility.

With Bitcoin trading around $68,085, a dense liquidation cluster above current price levels could act as a short-term sell-side barrier. When price approaches such zones, volatility often increases as positions unwind.

Source: Alphractal

Data from CoinGlass also shows weakening momentum across derivatives markets.

At press time, Futures trading volume had declined 48% to $31.97 billion, while Options volume had fallen even further, down 59% to approximately $992 million.

A sharp decline in volume during a modest price uptick typically suggests that the rally lacks strong conviction and may struggle to sustain upward momentum.

If price advances into the $69,000 liquidation cluster, the likelihood of a sharp rejection increases. Such a move could trigger a surge in volume as leveraged positions are liquidated, potentially accelerating downside pressure.

For now, a clear price barrier continues to limit Bitcoins short-term upside, at least until sentiment decisively shifts in favor of buyers.

Bitcoin reshuffling underway

Despite the lack of a decisive breakout, on-chain data points to a gradual expansion in Bitcoins ownership base.

In practical terms, this reflects an ongoing redistribution of supply across wallet categories. Specifically, supply held by large holders appears to be declining, while smaller addresses increase their share.

This observation stems from the Network Distribution Factors (NFD), which track supply concentration among large holders, particularly the top 0.01% of addresses.

Source: Alphractal

Recent data shows a continued decline in this segments share, suggesting distribution from larger entities to smaller wallets that are accumulating.

Such redistribution phases often occur after extended bull cycles, when large holders gradually reduce exposure following significant accumulation periods.

Until this rebalancing process stabilizes, Bitcoin may continue to face subdued price pressure.