Bitcoin’s 5% spike higher Monday driven by short-covering, not fresh buying, says analyst.

Make us preferred on Google

What to know:

• Bitcoin shook off a weekend slump, rising nearly 5% on Monday to above $69,000.
• An analyst says the move was driven largely by a short squeeze and leveraged positioning, aided by macro turmoil and a reversal of outflows from spot bitcoin ETFs.
• Market data show rising open interest and large liquidation clusters around $65,000 and above $70,000, underscoring that the rally may be fragile without stronger spot demand.

After dipping over the weekend as the U.S. began strikes against Iran, bitcoin BTC$66,352.16 shot higher on Monday, at one point nearing $70,000 before pulling back to the current $69,000.

While any rally in bitcoin is welcome by the bulls, today's move comes after a relentless months-long slide that has halved the price and weighed on sentiment. One analyst suggests Monday's quick gains carry the hallmarks of a positioning squeeze, with traders who had bet on further downside forced to unwind those trades as prices rose.

“This is clearly a flushing of shorts due to the confluence of the Iranian attacks causing a rebalancing across the whole capital stack with bitcoin having a tailwind from a reversal of spot bitcoin ETF outflows,” said Mark Connors, chief investment officer at Risk Dimensions. In other words, macro shocks triggered repositioning across markets, and bitcoin benefited as some investors rotated back into risk, and recent spot bitcoin ETF outflows slowed or reversed.

A short flush can create sharp, fast rallies. When traders who borrowed to bet on falling prices rush to close their positions, they must buy back the asset, adding fuel to the move. That dynamic can push prices higher than fundamentals alone would justify, at least in the short term.

“This is not a signal of the march back to $100,000 and through the very important 75,000 resistance,” said a cautious Connors In his view, the rally does not yet mark a decisive break from the broader downtrend. Key resistance levels remain overhead, and without sustained spot demand, the bounce could stall as quickly as it began.

Market positioning data underscores his caution and shows how tightly wound the derivatives market has become.

Data from CoinGlass’ liquidation heat map shows a $218 million cluster of positions that will be liquidated if price tumbles to between $65,250 and $64,650, which was the base from which Mondays' rally began.

This, coupled with open interest rising by 6% over the past 24 hours while price increased by 3.8%, suggests the move is backed by leverage rather than spot buying, leading a number of traders to take profits at the psychological $70,000 level of resistance.

On the other hand, a break above $70,000 would trigger around $90 million worth of short liquidations — likely enough fuel to challenge February’s high of $72,000.

More For You

Nasdaq follows Cboe joining world of 'binary bets' as prediction market craze hits Wall Street

The exchange has filed a proposal with the SEC to list yes-or-no bets on the Nasdaq-100 amid continued demand for prediction markets.

What to know:

• Nasdaq asked the SEC to approve listing binary options tied to the Nasdaq-100 and its micro index, allowing traders to make yes-or-no bets on index moves.
• The proposed contracts, priced between 1 cent and $1, would pay a fixed amount if a specified condition is met and expire worthless if it is not, mirroring prediction-market mechanics.
• The move highlights how traditional exchanges and crypto platforms alike are adapting prediction-style trading formats within U.S. securities and derivatives regulations amid growing interest in event-based markets.

Vitalik Buterin unveils plan to curb Ethereum block builder centralization

1 hour ago

Battle for Bitcoin's soul opens as first block supporting 'clean-up' proposal is mined

2 hours ago

Weekend warriors: How HyperLiquid became retail’s bear market playground

2 hours ago

Crypto world faces growing pressure to relent on stablecoin rewards to win bigger prize

3 hours ago

Nasdaq follows Cboe joining world of 'binary bets' as prediction market craze hits Wall Street

3 hours ago

Bitcoin surges above $68,000 amid muted stock market reaction to Iran war

4 hours ago

Tom Lee's Bitmine boosts ether holdings to 4.47 million tokens with $98 million ETH purchase

4 hours ago

Strategy purchased more than $200 million in bitcoin last week

6 hours ago

Iranian crypto outflows jump 700% minutes after U.S.-Israeli airstrikes, Elliptic says

5 hours ago

Battered bitcoin could find solace in war-led 'debasement' trade

7 hours ago

SpaceX’s $780 million bitcoin stack now down to about $545 million ahead of IPO filing

Mar 1, 2026

Polymarket attracts record trading 'world' volumes as U.S.-Iran bets top $529 million

Mar 1, 2026

In this article

BTCBTC$66,352.16◢0.22%