Bitcoin slid again Tuesday after a large holder dumped coins and price broke a key technical level. Below we explain the facts, parse the on-chain signals, and show why this pullback could still be part of a broader 2025 rally — not its end.
What happened — the quick facts
Bitcoin fell about 2.6% over 24 hours to roughly $109,628, briefly slipping under the prior all-time high near $109,300. Traders say a large sell order from a “whale” pressured prices and pushed BTC under the 100-day exponential moving average (EMA) — a widely watched technical support.
That move triggered liquidations of leveraged long bets (CoinGlass reports ~$500M liquidated since Sunday), and stirred short-term selling from investors who had bought in during the recent rally.
Technical warning signs — but not a guaranteed collapse
Several technical metrics flashed red:
- Daily BTC price broke below the 100-day EMA, which some traders view as a sign that near-term momentum has softened.
- RSI divergences and lighter trade volumes point to weakening upside conviction.
- Large stop clusters around $103K could act as further downside targets if selling intensifies.
Traders such as Cryptorphic warned the breach could open a path toward $103K. But historical context matters: since 2023, Bitcoin’s bull cycles have included repeated 20–30% drawdowns before resuming upward trends, so a corrective leg wouldn’t be unusual.
On-chain moves and the whale story
Blockchain analytics point to concentrated activity: one whale reportedly moved 24,000 BTC (~$2.7B) onto Hyperliquid over the past nine days; about 18,142 BTC (~$2B) was sold and rotated into Ethereum (~416,598 ETH), per analyst MLM. Another entity sold 670 BTC to open a leveraged long on ETH.
These flows suggest some large players are rotating from BTC to ETH — either to lock profits or to chase the stronger recent performance in Ether. That rotation can help explain why Bitcoin’s strength faded while ETH pushed to new highs.
Liquidations, new buyers, and crowd psychology
The liquidation cascade compounds price pressure: newer entrants (holding BTC under a month) faced unrealized losses and started selling, amplifying the decline. Yet market microstructure can flip quickly — once short liquidity is exhausted, the path for a short squeeze opens.
“BTC downside liquidity has been hunted. Now, it seems shorts will be liquidated next,” noted trader BitBull — a reminder that liquidity dynamics can equally reverse direction.
Ethereum’s spotlight — why whales are buying ETH
Ethereum outperformed recently after comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell fueled hopes for lower rates. ETH rallied strongly (up ~220% since the April low) and has attracted whale interest — both as a speculative play and as an allocation away from BTC during profit-taking.
Fresh interest in ETH can compress BTC dominance in the short term, but it also signals broader capital rotation within crypto markets rather than a wholesale abandonment of Bitcoin.
Two fresh insights
1) Macro isn’t the whole story. Stocks rallied after Powell hinted at rate cuts, yet BTC didn’t rally as much — suggesting crypto’s correlation to risk assets is real but nuanced. Liquidity events and concentrated whale flows can decouple crypto prices from macro catalysts for short stretches.
2) Rotation could be healthy. Large moves into ETH reflect diversification across digital-asset plays (staking, DeFi, L2 growth). That rotation can support overall market breadth, which historically precedes the next bullish phase rather than signaling a full market top.
What traders and investors should watch next
- Price action at $103K–$100K: Weakness through these levels would increase odds of a deeper correction.
- On-chain whale flows: New large BTC outsales or ETH accumulation windows can shift narrative quickly.
- Liquidation heatmaps: Where leveraged positions are clustered will reveal likely volatility hooks.
- Macro events: Fed commentary and real-world liquidity shifts remain tail risks for crypto moves.
Bottom line: The $109K dip is a meaningful correction — and discomforting for bulls — but it sits within a broader 2025 uptrend that has absorbed deeper drawdowns before. Whether this is a short pause or the start of a larger retracement depends on follow-through selling, macro moves, and whether whales continue to rotate into other tokens like ETH.
