Live updates: Traders say bitcoin sell-off from $65,000 points to thin volume, not panic selling
ARP Digital’s Yusuf Fakhro said bitcoin’s weakness reflects stalled participation more than forced selling, with ETF flows turning negative, CME open interest back at 2023 levels and Strategy idle for a fifth straight week.
Bitcoin's descent from $65,000 saw a lack of selling activity rather than panic, according to traders. The market's decline closed the week at around $62,600, falling short of reclaiming the $65,000 mark. Yusuf Fakhro, a partner at Bahrain-based ARP Digital, attributes the drop to the market's plumbing rather than external factors like the Federal Reserve's decisions.
The ETF bid, which fueled July's recovery, has stalled, switching to net outflows of nearly 4,000 BTC. The overall market has become quiet and dormant, with July logging the lowest average daily spot volume since November 2023. The CME open interest is at 2023 levels, and perpetual-futures positioning has stalled near 300,000 BTC.
The biggest structural buyer, Strategy, has paused its Bitcoin buying for the fifth consecutive week. The Federal Reserve's July 29 meeting maintained interest rates, providing no easing signal that could have acted as a catalyst for bulls. The week's catalyst was the exploitation of a Coldcard firmware flaw, which drained about 1,367 BTC, worth roughly $89 million, from self-custodied wallets.
Some holders have since moved their coins back onto exchanges and into regulated products, bringing Bitcoin's price to near $62,700 on Monday, marking a 3.5% decline over the week.
Written by urgent.news from CoinDesk's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
