Bitcoin Steadies Near $65,000 After 10% Mining-Difficulty Cut; Shorts Wiped for $500M
Bitcoin clawed back ground over the weekend, retaking $63,000 after briefly dipping below $60,000 during crypto's worst week since the 2022 FTX collapse. The bounce lifted total crypto market value 2.8% to $2.26 trillion, with several large-cap altcoins outperforming. XRP rose 3.3% to $1.16, Solana added 3.7% to $66.61, and Hyperliquid's HYPE token jumped 12.2% to $64.50, leading major tokens.
Traders remain on alert as renewed Middle East tensions keep volatility elevated across both altcoins and major assets.
On the network side, Bitcoin is heading into one of the biggest downward mining-difficulty resets in its 17-year history. At block height 953,568, the automated adjustment is projected to reduce difficulty by about 9.55% to 10.3%, taking it from 138.96 trillion toward 124.25 trillion. That would be the second-largest decline this year after February's 11.16% drop, and one of the eleven steepest negative adjustments on record.
The cut follows a sharp fall in hashrate as BTC slid near $63,000, compressing miner margins and pushing older rigs offline. Analysts expect hashprice to rebound above $30 per PH/s, offering relief to miners that remain online through the adjustment.
The speed of the price recovery also squeezed bearish positioning. More than $500 million in short liquidations hit in a single session as forced buybacks accelerated the move, underscoring how crowded the short side had become after BTC fell into the low $60,000s.
Corporate accumulation returned to focus as Strategy resumed large-scale Bitcoin buying after a contentious bout of selling the prior week. The renewed purchases signaled fresh conviction from one of Bitcoin's most prominent corporate holders and helped stabilize sentiment as price regained $63,000.
Risk stress extended beyond crypto. South Korea's stock exchange briefly halted trading following a sharp drop, a circuit-breaker event that unsettled regional risk appetite. The disruption coincided with new geopolitical flashpoints in the Middle East, keeping traders cautious and price action choppy. The episode highlighted Bitcoin's continued sensitivity to broader macro conditions even as investors scrutinize network fundamentals.
In Washington, President Donald Trump renewed calls for interest-rate cuts, a stance that could support Bitcoin if easier policy boosts demand for risk assets. Analyst Michaël van de Poppe said he has rotated his entire portfolio into altcoins, arguing the selloff looks like a setup rather than a reason to exit.
COINOTAG's 42-indicator composite flags $64,780 as the key near-term resistance, scoring 78/100 on a confluence of the Fibonacci 0.236 retracement, the R1 pivot and the prior day's high. With spot around $64,508, that level is the immediate hurdle. Nearby support at $64,172 scores 77/100, backed by S2 and Fibonacci 0.214 signals.
Derivatives metrics show a slightly negative funding rate of 0.0003%, open interest of $11.96 billion, and a long/short ratio of 1.54, suggesting traders remain net long even as the Fear & Greed Index sits at 18 ("Extreme Fear"). A reclaim of $64,780 would set up a move toward $68,191; a daily close below $62,331 would undermine the bullish case and put $59,130 in view.
