Bitcoin faces selling pressure near $80,000

BTC----ETH----

Bitcoin struggled to establish a foothold above $80,000 on Aug. 26 as onchain indicators pointed to renewed selling from profitable holders, while a negative Coinbase premium suggested that US spot demand had yet to provide a sustained counterweight.

BTC/USD had risen more than 25% over the previous week, according to CryptoQuant data cited in the supplied material, but the rally stalled near the closely watched $80,000 level. The advance pushed unrealized profit and loss measures above zero for every major Bitcoin holder cohort, placing both newer and older holders back in net profit.

That condition can increase the number of coins available for sale. Holders who bought during earlier drawdowns may be more willing to realize gains once their positions return to profitability, especially near a round-number resistance level that has already rejected price.

Older coins return to circulation

CryptoQuant’s dataset showed a rise in activity involving older Bitcoin, with movement from long-held coins approaching roughly 14-week highs after the latest price surge. Such activity does not automatically mean every transferred coin was sold, but it can signal that long-term holders are repositioning or taking profits after a sharp rebound.

The spent output profit ratio, or SOPR, also rose during the move. SOPR compares the price at which a Bitcoin unspent transaction output, or UTXO, was created with the price when it was spent. A reading above 1 means coins being moved onchain were, on average, sold or transferred at a profit.

According to CryptoQuant, Bitcoin’s SOPR reached 1.48 on Aug. 22. The reading indicated that profitable spending had increased as Bitcoin climbed, matching the broader picture of holders using higher prices to distribute some supply.

A separate ratio comparing short-term holder SOPR with long-term holder SOPR briefly climbed to 1.4 as Bitcoin consolidated near $79,500. That was its highest reading since July 25, based on the supplied CryptoQuant figures. Short-term holders in this framework are entities holding Bitcoin for up to six months, while long-term holders have held for more than six months.

The ratio later declined to 0.93. The reversal suggests the relative realized performance of short-term holders improved compared with longer-term holders. The measure has trended lower since early 2025 and reached 0.62 at the end of June, its lowest level in three years, when Bitcoin traded near $58,000.

Bitcoin’s recovery from that June low has been substantial, but the onchain data suggests the rebound has also reopened an exit window for coins accumulated at lower levels. That creates a more difficult market structure near $80,000: new buyers must absorb supply from holders whose positions have moved back into profit.

US spot demand remains muted

The Coinbase premium offered another indication that the rally lacked broad spot-market participation from US-based buyers. The measure tracks the difference between Bitcoin’s price on Coinbase and the BTC/USDT market on Binance. A positive premium can indicate comparatively stronger demand on Coinbase, while a negative reading points to weaker relative buying there.

The premium remained below zero for most of 2026, according to the supplied data. It only briefly turned positive on hourly time frames when Bitcoin pushed above $78,500, before slipping back into negative territory.

By Aug. 26, the Coinbase premium stood at minus 0.015, improving from minus 0.094 at the beginning of August. The change indicates that the selling imbalance had eased, but Coinbase prices were still marginally below Binance’s BTC/USDT market.

The weak premium matters because Bitcoin’s advance came alongside heavy derivatives activity. The supplied material said more than $6.4 billion in leveraged Bitcoin short positions were liquidated during the rapid climb. Short liquidations force bearish traders to buy Bitcoin back to close positions, which can accelerate an upward move regardless of whether spot buyers are steadily accumulating coins.

That mechanism can drive fast rallies through resistance, but it tends to lose force once the most vulnerable leveraged positions have been closed. A lasting move above $80,000 would likely require stronger spot demand to absorb coins released by profitable holders and to replace the forced purchasing that helped fuel the prior week’s jump.

ETF inflows provide a limited offset

Spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded $337 million in inflows on Aug. 24, according to the supplied article. The figure showed that regulated investment vehicles were attracting some fresh capital during the recovery, even as the Coinbase premium remained negative.

A single positive day of ETF flows does not establish a durable demand trend, particularly when long-held coins are becoming more active. Persistent inflows would provide a more reliable source of buying pressure than a short squeeze, because ETF issuers generally need to acquire Bitcoin or related exposure as assets under management rise.

Price action has therefore placed several levels in focus. The $78,500 area served as a point where Coinbase demand briefly improved during the advance, while $75,000 stands as the lower support zone identified in the supplied material. A decline through that region would put the recent rebound under greater pressure.

On the upside, the 365-day moving average sits near $83,000, according to the supplied article. Bitcoin has not yet reclaimed that level, leaving the market below a longer-term technical reference point even after its sharp weekly gain. A sustained move above it would place the $90,000 area back into view, while another rejection would reinforce the evidence that profitable holders are using strength to sell.