Bitcoin climbed back above $65,000 earlier today, reversing weeks of intense selling pressure after a sudden diplomatic breakthrough between the United States and Iran lifted a major geopolitical cloud over global financial markets.

Data from CryptoSlate shows that the flagship digital asset rose more than 3% to reach as high as $65,940, but has since retraced slightly to $65,668 as of press time. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, also advanced to $1,724 as of press time.

The market turnaround followed a weekend announcement from President Donald Trump stating that a peace agreement to end the three-month-old conflict in the Middle East had been finalized.

The agreement includes the immediate removal of the US naval blockade and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical maritime chokepoint through which roughly 20% of the world’s crude oil supply transits.

The framework for the peace deal, mediated by Pakistan, is scheduled to be formalized at an official signing ceremony in Switzerland on June 19.

Confirming the resolution, Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan’s Prime Minister, said:

“Following intensive talks, we are pleased to announce that the Peace Deal between the United States of America and Islamic Republic of Iran has been REACHED. Both sides have declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.”

Following the confirmation, the announcement quickly moved across asset classes. Oil prices fell, equity futures rose, and crypto markets recovered as traders unwound part of the war premium that had built up since the conflict began in late February.

Data from oilprice.com showed that West Texas Intermediate crude dropped nearly 5% to hover around $80 per barrel, while Brent crude slipped below $84. Both benchmarks had surged above $110 earlier in the conflict as traders priced in the risk of a prolonged disruption to energy flows.

The decline in crude prices helped ease concerns that another energy shock would feed into inflation and force central banks to keep policy tighter for longer. That shift gave risk assets, including Bitcoin, room to rebound.

Still, the recovery remains fragile. The Iran deal removed an immediate macro stressor, but it also pushed the market’s focus back to the Federal Reserve, where newly appointed Chair Kevin Warsh faces his first policy meeting this week.

Related Reading

Bitcoin price jumps towards $80,000 after Strait of Hormuz shipping route declared open

BTC’s rally triggered heavy short liquidations across the crypto market and strengthened bullish positioning in options and prediction markets.

Apr 17, 2026 · Oluwapelumi Adejumo

Selling pressure begins to ease

Bitcoin’s rebound was not driven by macro relief alone, as on-chain and fund-flow data suggest that some of the forced selling that weighed on the market earlier this month has started to cool.

Data from SoSoValue shows US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $316 million in outflows last week, marking a notable slowdown after more than $5 billion had exited the funds over the previous four weeks.

That easing became clearer last Friday, when the funds posted $85 million in net inflows, their strongest single-day positive flows in more than three weeks.

The reversal suggests that Wall Street’s aggressive unwind of long Bitcoin exposure may have reached a point of temporary exhaustion.

CryptoQuant data points to a similar shift among large holders. The firm said whale selling pressure slowed as major wallets appeared to absorb supply near the recent lows.

Its exchange whale ratio rose to 62.3% during the drawdown, indicating that large holders accounted for a larger share of exchange activity as Bitcoin approached the bottom of its recent range.

The shift was followed by a wave of withdrawals from trading venues. More than 11,400 BTC, worth roughly $750 million at current prices, were moved from exchanges into cold storage, according to CryptoQuant. By June 14, the total supply held by wallets containing at least 100 BTC had reversed a 12-day decline.

Those signals suggest Bitcoin has moved away from the most aggressive phase of forced selling and into a more balanced structure.

That matters because the recent decline was intensified by weak liquidity, ETF outflows, and derivatives positioning. When those pressures begin to ease and macro conditions improve, relief rallies can move quickly.

Bitcoin must turn relief into demand

For Bitcoin, the next few sessions will show whether today’s move marks the start of a broader recovery or another short-lived stabilization rally.

The derivatives market could help determine that outcome.

Crypto research firm 10X Research said Bitcoin’s earlier break below $70,000 triggered forced selling from options dealers who were short gamma around that level. As prices fell, dealers had to sell more of the underlying asset to hedge their exposure, adding pressure to the decline.

That positioning has now shifted lower. According to the firm, the largest negative-gamma strike on the board, worth about $1.8 billion, is now close to Bitcoin’s current spot price.

The setup could cut both ways. If Bitcoin fails to hold current levels, dealer hedging could add renewed pressure.

However, if the market breaks higher, the same mechanics that worsened the selloff could force dealers to buy into the move, strengthening the rebound.

The signal is especially important because implied volatility across major crypto assets has fallen below realized volatility. In effect, options markets are pricing in less movement than Bitcoin has recently delivered.

That leaves the market vulnerable to a sharp repricing if this week’s macro events surprise traders.

The $65,000 level is now the immediate line to watch. If Bitcoin can hold above that area and push toward $68,000 to $70,000 on stronger spot demand and improving ETF flows, the market would have a stronger case for a durable rebound.

However, a move back below $62,000 would weaken that setup and put the $60,000 region back in focus.

Source link

Bitcoin rose above $62,000 after the latest US inflation report gave traders enough relief to step back from a deeper test of the $60,000 level.

The move followed several days of pressure across crypto markets, where investors had been preparing for the possibility that a hotter inflation print would revive rate-hike concerns and push risk assets lower.

However, the report gave Bitcoin room to rebound, shifting the immediate question from whether the market would break down to whether the post-CPI bounce can hold.

Inflation lands close enough to expectations

The US consumer price index rose 4.2% in May from a year earlier, matching consensus expectations and marking its fastest pace in three years. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy, rose 2.9%, slightly above April’s 2.8% reading.

Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said the report came in broadly in line with expectations and the figures supported the market’s focus on persistent inflation risks tied to higher energy prices and the prospect of higher-for-longer interest rates.

That distinction shaped BTC’s market reaction. Investors had been watching to see whether the jump in prices was mostly the result of higher gasoline costs and Middle East tensions or evidence that inflation was becoming more entrenched across services, rents, and supply chains.

A broader acceleration would have been harder for traders to dismiss. It would have strengthened the argument that the Fed may need to keep policy restrictive for longer or consider another rate increase if inflation expectations begin to move higher.

While the report did not give markets a clean all-clear, it also did not deliver the kind of shock that would have made a break below $60,000 more likely.

Bitcoin rebounds from a fragile setup

Bitcoin’s reaction was sharper because the asset entered the CPI release from a weakened position.

The largest cryptocurrency had been under pressure for weeks, with research firm 10x Research noting that Bitcoin was down $21,000 over 30 days. The slide had left traders focused on whether the $60,000 area would hold as support or become the next level to fail.

That weakness reflected a mix of macro and crypto-specific pressures.

Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds had seen demand cool after helping support earlier gains. Rising yields also made non-yielding assets less attractive, while investors reduced exposure to volatile trades ahead of the inflation report.

At the same time, market leverage had also been cut down. CryptoSlate previously reported that a severe liquidation wave recently wiped out more than $10 billion in bullish long positions across the market. That forced selling reduced the speculative depth that had helped absorb earlier declines.

The options market also showed caution before the CPI release. BIT Official said put options were commanding a significant implied volatility premium over calls, a sign that traders were paying more to protect against further downside.

That defensive setup helped fuel the rebound once the report failed to produce a major upside surprise. Traders who had prepared for a deeper selloff had less reason to keep pressing the downside after Bitcoin defended $60,000.

Still, the move above $62,000 does not by itself mark a full trend reversal. Bitcoin remains below levels reached earlier in the month, and the market’s recovery depends on whether buyers return beyond a short-term relief trade.

The Fed risk remains in place

The CPI report gave crypto markets room to breathe, but it did not settle the interest-rate debate.

Headline inflation at 4.2% remains more than double the Fed’s target. Even if much of the increase came from energy, policymakers may be cautious about easing policy while price growth remains elevated.

That leaves investors focused on the composition of future inflation data. If oil prices retreat and core inflation remains contained, markets may continue treating May’s increase as a temporary supply shock. If higher energy costs feed into services, wages, or retail prices, rate-hike expectations could return quickly.

The fixed-income market had already been preparing for that risk before the CPI report. US Treasury yields had moved higher as traders reassessed whether the Fed could cut rates at all in the near term.

That backdrop remains important for Bitcoin because the asset has increasingly traded as part of the wider risk complex. When yields rise and liquidity tightens, crypto tends to struggle. When rate pressure eases, Bitcoin can rebound quickly.

The post-CPI spike above $62,000 fits that pattern because the report simply reduced the immediate risk that inflation would force traders into a more hawkish view.

The next test moves toward $64,000

Bitcoin’s immediate task is to show that the move above $62,000 can extend beyond a CPI relief bounce.

Before the report, analysts had pointed to oversold technical conditions as a reason Bitcoin could recover if inflation came in softer than feared. The rebound suggests that some traders were positioned too defensively going into the release.

The next level to watch is near $64,000, where previous resistance could test whether buyers are willing to chase the move higher. A push toward that area would suggest the market is rebuilding confidence after defending $60,000.

A failure to hold the post-CPI gains would send a different message. It would show that the rally was mainly a reaction to a less-bad inflation report rather than evidence of renewed demand.

For a more durable recovery, Bitcoin will likely need support from several areas at once. ETF flows would need to stabilize, options positioning would need to become less defensive, and broader risk appetite across equities and credit would need to improve.

The CPI report gave Bitcoin one immediate win. It kept the $60,000 level intact and forced traders to reassess the downside risk that had built before the release.

Source link