Bitcoin steadies at $67,000 after 9.5% weekly slide
In brief
- Bitcoin recovered 0.7% Wednesday but fell 9.5% since Sunday, trading near $67,000.
- Largest crypto trapped between February–April support after failed breakout above $81,000.
- Dip below $60,000 could trigger liquidations toward $54,000 support level.
- U.S. stocks rallied to record highs, diverging from crypto weakness.
- AI tokens NEAR, RENDER, FET each gained roughly 9% Wednesday.
The Range Trap
Bitcoin recovered 0.7% on Wednesday, but the small gain does little to offset the week's damage. The largest cryptocurrency traded recently near $67,000, firmly in the middle of a range that persisted between February and April after a failed breakout attempt above $81,000. That consolidation zone has become a ceiling, not a launching pad.
The risk below is sharp. If bitcoin tumbles below $60,000 it would probably trigger a wave of liquidations and a possible slide to as low as $54,000, a level of support dating back to both 2024 and 2021. Market pricing reflects the unease — markets now imply a 66% chance bitcoin falls below $55,000 and a coin-flip chance of sub-$50,000 prices before year-end.
Stocks Diverge, Altcoins Rally
What's unsettling traders is the decoupling. The U.S. stock market rallied to record highs again on Tuesday. That divergence is starting to trigger concerns among some crypto investors because the two asset classes have historically moved in tandem.
Ether told a similar story. Ether trades at $1,870 after rising by 0.9% since midnight UTC, although the bounce comes after a selloff that saw it reach its lowest point since February.
The one bright spot is AI tokens. NEAR, RENDER and FET all rose by around 9% on Wednesday following Tuesday's market-wide selloff, continuing a trend that's pulled capital away from core crypto assets. That rotation — away from bitcoin and ether, into sector-specific plays — suggests the market isn't panicking so much as repositioning.
