Bitcoin (BTC) price action has remained in the $60,000 to $70,000 range over the past two months as leverage-dominant trading, feeble spot demand and continued losses by short-term holders prevented gains from maintaining momentum.
Collectively, these market events create the current volatile setup where Bitcoin price stability depends more on futures positioning than on fresh capital inflows, which explains why BTC’s price remains volatile at its current range.
Bitcoin futures are leading the price trend
According to Wintermuteactivity in the perpetual futures market continues to outpace the share of spot transactions on major exchanges. The perp to spot volume ratio increased to 15 times (15X), indicating price control mainly through leveraged positioning. Funding rates are fluctuating between positive and negative values ​​without trending, indicating a lack of direction among futures traders.
Meanwhile, funding rate volatility fell to 2.9%, down from the 5% range in 2025, signaling lower swing trades in futures positioning. Traders still employ leverage, but without much conviction.
Together, they point to a collapsible market structure in which investors trade in narrow ranges and financing has no sustainable trend. This reflects indecisive and short-term leverage flows as the dominant force in the market.
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Lack of demand in the BTC spot market puts pressure on short-term holders
Spot demand for bitcoin has not increased, contributing to price instability. 30 days apparent demand The price tag is -60,000 BTC, which means more coins are flowing out than are being accumulated.
Stablecoin inflow spot exchanges are often used as a sign of future purchasing power, and the figure currently stands at nearly $452 million. The level is near a two-year low, reflecting narrow novel capital entering the market.
Short-term holders are putting another layer of pressure on BTC. The cohort’s realized price, or average cost of entry, is approximately $85,800. With Bitcoin trading well below this level, many recent buyers are suffering unrealized losses.
Bitcoin researcher Axel Adler Jr explained that two indicators show how it affects their behavior. The Short-Term Holder Profit Produced Ratio (SOPR) tracks whether coins are sold at a profit or a loss.
A value below 1 means the coins are being sold at a loss. Currently, the SOPR CPK index has remained below 1.0 for over 110 days, showing constant loss realization.
At the same time, the short-term holder’s year-over-year (YOY) realized price dropped to -5.35%, which is the first negative reading since the bear market in 2022. This confirms that the losses are not short-term and have been ongoing for the past few months.
When investors are underwater, the tendency to sell on petite rallies and entry positions adds pressure and limits growth, keeping the overall BTC market structure unstable.
Related: Bitcoin Sales Cool Off as BTC Price Focuses on 60K dollars
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