Why is Bitcoin struggling below $80K despite strong fund inflows?

It is a tough week for the cryptocurrency market as Bitcoin failed to move past the $82,600 resistance level.

The leading cryptocurrency by market cap is currently trading below $80,000, following three straight days of losses so far this week.

The crypto market sentiment is losing risk appetite amid a bullish positional wipeout in the derivatives market.

Volatility surge weighs down crypto bulls

Bitcoin is down by nearly 2% in the last 24 hours and is now trading below $80,000, triggering forced liquidations of highly leveraged bullish positions in the futures market.

This prompted a risk-off sentiment shift. 

According to CoinGlass, the total liquidations over the last 24 hours amount to roughly $370 million, led by $311 million in long liquidations. 

The largest liquidation in the same period occurred on the ETH-USDT trading pair on Binance, totaling $11.75 million.

The bearish performance has affected the sentiment in the crypto market.

CoinMarketCap’s Crypto Fear and Greed Index is at 47, down from 52 on Monday, indicating that the sentiment is gradually shifting bearish. 

However, market analysts believe that the current correction is a growth phase for Bitcoin. In an email to Invezz, Sergei Gorev, Head of risk at YouHodler, said:

“Money Inflows into funds investing in cryptocurrencies continue with highly concentrated capital flows. Most of the liquidity is still flowing into BTC. The main cryptocurrency is trying to grow again. However, the market on which growth heavily depends - and the S&P 500 index - is at historical highs."

Bitcoin price forecast: Bears could push BTC’s price lower 

The BTC/USD 4-hour chart remains bearish as Bitcoin has slipped below $80,000 once again. 

However, the leading cryptocurrency maintains a broadly constructive bias, holding well above the 50-day and 100-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs) at roughly $76,474 and $76,778. 

The market structure suggests the broader uptrend remains intact, even as the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) line sits below its signal line after a crossover on Tuesday. 

This suggests a downside-flipped momentum. Meanwhile, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) around 45 indicates that the buyers have lost control of the market.

If the bearish trend persists, immediate support would be seen at the 100-day EMA at $76,778, then by the 50-day EMA at $76,474. 

A daily candle close below these levels would bring the $70,051 support zone into play. 

However, if the bulls regain control, initial resistance would emerge at the 200-day EMA near $81,842. A daily close above would reopen the path toward fresh highs.