Bitcoin hovered near a three-week peak, but escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran limited further gains sparked by Tuesday’s softer-than-expected inflation data.
Bitcoin (BTC) at $65,260 and ether (ETH) moved sideways during Asian and European trading hours after rallying on weaker U.S. inflation figures.
Although bitcoin remained up more than 3% over the past 24 hours, it slipped 0.6% since midnight UTC as concerns grew over tanker activity in the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier, it touched a three-week high around $65,200.
Ether mirrored the trend, holding a 5% daily gain despite a 0.8% dip since midnight. It reached $1,895 on Tuesday, its highest level since June 3.
U.S. equities also advanced, with Nasdaq 100 futures rising 0.53% and S&P 500 futures gaining 0.22%.
In the altcoin space, selective strength emerged. PUMP climbed 8.5% since midnight, supported by strong investor demand following a token unlock.
Derivatives positioning
Bitcoin derivatives showed little change overall. Open interest edged up to $17.3 billion, though the increase was modest. The three-month annualized basis remained at 3.8%, while funding rates stayed within a 0%–8% annualized range across exchanges, pointing to ongoing consolidation.
Options data turned more bullish, with the 24-hour call-to-put ratio rising to 66/34 from 58/42 previously. The one-week delta skew held steady around 15%. Meanwhile, the at-the-money term structure stayed in contango, with near-term implied volatility at 32%–33% and longer-term levels near 42.5% through mid-2027—suggesting a stable environment with a slight upside bias.
Coinglass reported $357 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, with shorts accounting for 81% and longs 19%. Ethereum led with $132 million in liquidations, followed by bitcoin at $118 million. Binance’s liquidation heatmap points to $63,500 as a key downside level to watch.
Token trends
CoinMarketCap’s Altcoin Season Index slipped to 46/100 on Wednesday, reflecting the relative strength of bitcoin and ether.
WLFI fell about 1% since midnight, dragging on the index despite broader market resilience.
Hyperliquid (HYPE) continued its upward momentum, gaining 4% since midnight and extending its trend of higher highs and higher lows, with a potential move toward a new all-time high above $78.
Meanwhile, LIT—HYPE’s rival—lost steam after a strong run, rising just 0.5% as profit-taking emerged near its record high of $2.76.
Zcash (ZEC) also stood out, surging more than 10% over the past day before stabilizing around $557.
