Bitcoin Rally Near $75K Stalls as Profit-Taking and Weak Derivatives Demand Cap Upside

Bitcoin has climbed nearly 10% this month, but its upward momentum has stalled near the $75k level over the past 48 hours. The slowdown comes even as U.S. equities continue to hit record highs, highlighting a divergence between traditional markets and crypto sentiment.

On-chain data suggests that investors are increasingly taking profits into strength. A key metric, the realized profit/loss ratio, shows elevated profit-taking activity, with the 30-day exponential moving average at 1.16—well above the neutral threshold. This indicates holders are actively selling into recent price strength.

CryptoQuant data also shows that roughly $1.14 billion in profits were realized during a brief surge toward $76,000, marking one of the largest single-day profit-taking events this year.

Mixed Exchange Demand and Weak Conviction

Market activity is uneven across exchanges. Buying pressure appears concentrated mainly on Binance, while Coinbase and other platforms show weaker demand, according to Glassnode data.

At the same time, funding rates remain slightly negative, suggesting traders are still cautious rather than aggressively positioning long. Options markets reinforce this view, with a consistent bias toward put contracts across multiple timeframes, signaling demand for downside protection.

Taken together, profit-taking, fragmented spot demand, and defensive derivatives positioning suggest Bitcoin is pausing at resistance rather than entering a new breakout phase.

Disclaimer

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. Cryptocurrency trading involves risk and may result in financial loss.