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Bitcoin (BTC) held near the $78,000 level on Thursday, even as spot trading activity jumped sharply—an early sign that the latest rally may be losing some momentum as traders turn cautious around a short-term peak.
As of 10:26 a.m. Korea Standard Time on April 23 (9:26 p.m. ET on April 22), BTC was changing hands at $78,123, up 2.47% on the day. Despite the strong daily gain, the coin’s intraday pace cooled, with the daily change rate slipping to -0.13% after several sessions of advances, pointing to a brief consolidation phase rather than a clean breakout.
Trading volume surged to roughly $49.65 billion, up 36.69% from the prior session. The combination of higher price and higher volume typically signals ‘liquidity inflow,’ but the muted follow-through suggests the market may be rotating into shorter-term positioning—buyers stepping in, while sellers begin to defend resistance near recent highs.
Recent daily performance underscores that pattern. Over the last five sessions, BTC posted a drop of 2.49% on April 19, followed by gains of 2.75% (April 20), 0.64% (April 21), and 2.45% (April 22), before easing slightly on April 23. The sequence resembles a rebound that is now encountering profit-taking and tighter risk management.
Broader markets were also firmer. The S&P 500 rose 1.05% to 7,137.90, while gold climbed 0.04% to 4,755—an unusual instance of both risk assets and traditional hedges moving higher at the same time, reflecting mixed macro positioning rather than a single dominant narrative.
Technical indicators offered a similar split across time frames. The daily MACD remained positive at 2,010, consistent with an ongoing short-term uptrend. However, the weekly MACD was still negative at -6,894, albeit improving versus the prior week—suggesting the rally has strengthened tactically, while the longer-term trend has not fully flipped.
Market structure data showed capital continuing to concentrate in Bitcoin. BTC dominance rose to 60.00%, up 1.60 percentage points, indicating relative strength versus altcoins and a preference for perceived ‘higher-quality liquidity’ amid uncertain follow-through.
Sentiment, meanwhile, shifted into outright risk-on territory. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index climbed to 61, entering the ‘greed’ zone, signaling that upside expectations have become more widespread. Yet public attention softened slightly, with Google Trends interest falling to 60 from 64 the day before—hinting that enthusiasm may be more trader-driven than retail-led in the immediate term.