Bitcoin Hovers Near $82k as Demand and Profits Dip

Key Moments

Market Overview

Bitcoin traded near $82,000 as soft spot demand and sustained selling interest weighed on its price. The proportion of the circulating supply in profit declined to 68.2%, while the realized profit-to-loss ratio slipped to 41.8%, pointing to a reduction in realized gains relative to losses and indicating that profit-taking has moderated.

With significant options positions nearing expiry and a broader deleveraging trend in equity markets, Bitcoin faced the prospect of increased volatility and a potential further downside move.

Glassnode Sees Easing Sell Pressure but Weak Spot Demand

Blockchain analytics firm Glassnode reported in a Monday note that selling pressure in Bitcoin has moderated, but demand in the spot market has remained subdued, leaving the asset without a clear driver for a sustained rebound.

According to the firm, spot cumulative volume delta (CVD) declined 24.7% over the week, moving from -$67 million to -$83.6 million. This deeper negative reading indicated that market participants continued to sell on centralized exchanges. At the same time, Bitcoin’s price momentum weakened by 20%, sliding from 45 to 36 and moving closer to the lower end of its historical range.

Despite this, spot trading activity held steady. Spot volume edged up 2.1%, rising from $5.4 billion to $5.5 billion.

“This steady turnover suggests that overall market participation remains stable without signalling any sudden exhaustion or breakout attempts from current levels,” Glassnode wrote.

Derivatives Point to Cautious Positioning

In the derivatives market, indicators also reflected a moderation in selling behavior, although traders stayed conservative in their positioning. Glassnode noted that perpetual futures CVD improved by 36.9%, climbing from -$891.1 million to -$562.7 million.

Even with this recovery, the metric remained below its lower band, implying that more aggressive market participants still leaned toward selling rather than buying.

Futures open interest eased slightly from $36.5 billion to $36.4 billion, a modest 0.3% decline.

“The metric is positioned in the upper part of its range, indicating that participation remains elevated despite the minor reduction in active contracts across derivatives venues,” the report stated.

Bitcoin Profitability Metrics Weaken

On-chain profitability gauges showed a further cooling in profit-taking. Over the past seven days, the share of Bitcoin supply held at a profit decreased from 70.1% to 68.2%, leaving roughly two-thirds of circulating coins still in the black.

Net unrealized profit and loss (NUPL) dropped from 10.5% to 9%, signaling a decline in paper gains across the market. The realized profit-to-loss ratio fell to 41.8%, highlighting that realized profits have shrunk relative to realized losses.

Glassnode’s figures indicated that as prices softened, holders became less inclined to lock in gains, which in turn reduced immediate selling pressure from profitable investors. Nonetheless, short-term holders continued to show elevated unrealized gains compared with the indicator’s historical range.

Key On-Chain and Derivatives Metrics

Cross-Asset Shifts and Volatility Outlook

Market dynamics in traditional assets also showed signs of rotation. QCP analysts observed on Monday that investors have moved away from semiconductor names toward more defensive areas such as healthcare and banking. Over the same period, the FTSE has outperformed technology-heavy U.S. equity benchmarks. At the same time, there has been no confirmed indication that institutional flows have been redirected directly into cryptoassets.

BTC’s implied volatility stayed below its one-year average across all tenors, which may have contributed to Bitcoin trading within a relatively contained band. QCP cautioned that this calm backdrop could fade as options contracts reach expiry, potentially leaving Bitcoin more vulnerable to market shocks and new catalysts.