Bitcoin holds above $100,000, driven by institutional flows: analysts

Institutional flows and “buy-the-dip” sentiment spurred Bitcoin’s run to $104,000 as most short-term holders entered unrealized gains after April’s lows, Glassnode said in a weekly report .

Following the drop to $75,000 on April 9, gradual accumulation phases emerged while spot BTC exchange-traded fund flows skyrocketed. Weekly average net inflows to Wall Street Bitcoin wallets peaked at $389 million per day for the week that ended on April 25. That same week saw $933 million in net inflows on April 22 , the biggest single-day performance since Jan. 17.

“ETF inflows have since cooled off to around $58M/day, but the flows show that institutional interest in Bitcoin remains relatively robust,” Glassnode experts wrote.

Exchange activity

According to the report, institutional capital flows coincided with increased buying pressure on Coinbase and subdued sell orders on Binance.

Based on the Spot Cumulative Volume Delta (CVD) — a metric that tracks net buys and sells in spot order books — Coinbase traders spent up to $54 million per day on BTC purchases sometime last month. About $71 million in daily Bitcoin selloffs on Binance declined to about $9 million daily on average.

The demand confluence between spot BTC ETFs and crypto exchange traders translated into a “stair-stepping” accumulation trend, as supply inventory dwindled at similar prices before price accelerations.

Short-Term Holders, buyers who entered the markets in the last 155 days, acquired a substantial amount of BTC between $93,000 and $95,000, the report further noted.

As such, the surge to $104,000 uplifted the STH Supply in Profit/Loss Ratio to 9.0, which meant 90% of Short-Term Holders' supply sat in profits. Glassnode suggested that the wave of unrealized gains likely triggered profit-taking from this cohort. Bitcoin has bounced between $102,000 and $103,700 in recent days as the rally cooled.

Valentin Fournier, lead research analyst at BRN, said technical indicators showed a “mild sell signal” ahead of the weekend. “The market appears overbought, but without strong reversal signals. As institutional activity typically drops over the weekend, the risk of a drift lower increases,” Fournier shared in a Friday note via email.

Still, Glassnode argued that the $93,000 and $95,000 range may serve as a buffer against massive price drops.

“This zone is likely to act as a strong support level in the event of any short-term market pullback, representing a demand zone where investors are likely to see value once again,” Glassnode analysts said.