Bitcoin’s move above $30K represents a ‘shift in sentiment,’ analysts say

A clear sentiment shift is taking hold, Blockworks was told, with increasingly bullish sentiment following in the wake of the fake ETF announcement last week

article-image

Thongden Studio/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

On-chain metrics are flashing signs of resiliency for the world’s largest digital asset, bitcoin (BTC), as individuals continue to hold onto their coins in the face of broader market uncertainty.

The asset is into its fifth consecutive daily win, setting a fresh three-month high above $30,900, Blockworks data shows.

Total open interest for bitcoin options contracts across Bybit, Binance, OKX and Deribit has reached levels not seen for more than two months, at just over $6.46 billion.

Liquidations for BTC futures jumped to a total of $31.5 million on Sunday, CoinGlass data shows. Even still, activity has remained relatively uneventful compared to last week’s Oct. 16’s $100 million wipeout on the false approval announcement of a US spot bitcoin ETF.

“While the ETF news was proven to be fake, there has been a clear shift in sentiment from ‘if’ to ‘when’ in terms of whether the SEC will approve any applications in the next few months,” Berkeley Cox, derivatives analyst at Zerocap told Blockworks.

This shift was further echoed in the options market on Sunday, where the 25 delta skew has tilted towards bullish territory, a position not observed since January’s surge, Cox noted.

Given the continued rise in front-end implied volatility (IV), long calendar options strategies may become increasingly appealing. Market participants are focusing on the prospect of ETF approval — or at the very least, a spike in volatility — by late December to early January, Cox said.

According to CryptoQuant’s Exchange Depositing Transactions for BTC, based on a seven-day moving average, total deposits to centralized platforms have fallen to their lowest levels since May 21, at just above 34,600 BTC.

The analytics firm believes a higher value indicates more individuals are willing to sell to the spot market while conversely, a dip lower indicates users are holding onto their coins and are expecting a future price rise.

“There seems to be no eminent selling pressure from long-term holders despite the $30,000 price tag,” a spokesperson for CryptoQuant told Blockworks.

Loading Tweet..

Meanwhile, declining active addresses can point to participants seeking to hold onto the asset rather than utilize it as a medium of exchange or transfer it to exchanges during periods of profit-taking, Blockworks was previously told.

The total number of active addresses when viewed over a seven-day average has dipped to the lowest point Since Dec. 28, data shows.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

  • Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
  • Empire: Start your morning with the top news and analysis to inform your day in crypto.
  • Forward Guidance: Reporting and analysis on the growing intersection of crypto and macroeconomics, policy and finance.
  • 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox. Market highlights, data, degen trade ideas, governance updates, token performance and more.
  • Lightspeed: Built for Solana investors, developers and community members. The latest from one of crypto’s hottest networks.
  • The Drop: For crypto collectors and traders, covering apps, games, memes and more.
  • Supply Shock: Tracking Bitcoin’s rise from internet plaything worth less than a penny to global phenomenon disrupting money as we know it.
Tags

Upcoming Events

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research Report Templates.jpg

Research

Bluefin possibly stands at an inflection point. The token is near an all-time low yet the protocol’s spot volume market share and derivatives exchange usage have been increasing month over month since its November launch. Given its current market position and the upcoming upgrades (for both Bluefin and SUI), there may be upside potential before the increased supply growth in December. However, strong opposition from existing competitors (like Cetus and Suilend), as well as new entrants (like Aftermath), pose key challenges to Bluefin’s medium-term success.

article-image

What Grayscale’s watching going into the second quarter and why crypto had a rough start to the year

article-image

Sol’s price drop was partially triggered by one of the year’s more chaotic memecoin events

article-image

Are digital assets just part of “normal” finance conversations now?

article-image

It’s a busy week as DC prepares for confirmations and policies that may have major impacts on crypto

article-image

NFT collection Azuki is releasing anime-inspired decks for a physical trading card game

article-image

Fidelity is planning a stablecoin launch, FT reports, as more companies flock to the digital-dollar business