Bitcoin climbed back above the $80,000 threshold on Thursday, extending its recent sharp rebound as U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs continue to draw steady inflows, tech stocks surge, and risk appetite improves across markets. Contrary to earlier assumptions that capital would need to rotate out of AI-focused equities to fuel crypto gains, both AI stocks and Bitcoin are currently benefiting simultaneously from the broader risk-on environment.
During the session, Bitcoin rose as much as 3% to $80,844.8 before paring some of those gains. Earlier this week, the cryptocurrency had already surpassed $80,000 for the first time since May, with record-scale leveraged short liquidations serving as a major catalyst for the rapid price advance. As the rebound gains traction, the funding backdrop for Bitcoin is showing clear signs of improvement. Data compiled by media sources indicate that U.S.-listed Bitcoin ETFs have recorded cumulative net inflows exceeding $2.6 billion over the past eight trading days, pointing to renewed institutional demand for Bitcoin exposure. Meanwhile, Wall Street firms are once again issuing more optimistic price forecasts for the cryptocurrency, marking a notable shift in sentiment compared with previous months.
Another noteworthy signal is emerging from U.S. crypto trading venues. Data shows that Bitcoin's price on Coinbase (COIN.US), the largest U.S.-based crypto exchange, has regained a premium relative to its price on Binance, the world's largest platform, for the first time in roughly three months. Lacie Zhang, research analyst at Bitget Wallet, noted that this may indicate institutional allocation through ETFs is returning, while overall demand on U.S. trading platforms is also improving, although it has not yet reached exceptionally strong levels.
Bitcoin's move above $80,000 comes alongside a sharp rally in U.S. technology shares. Following Nvidia's (NVDA.US) robust business outlook, confidence in the AI investment cycle has been significantly bolstered, lifting the broader tech complex. This development challenges a previously popular narrative that Bitcoin would need investors to pull funds from high-flying AI stocks and rotate into crypto assets to trigger its next leg higher. At least for now, there appears to be no clear either/or dynamic between the two asset classes. AI-related stocks and Bitcoin are both benefiting from the resurgence in investor risk appetite.
For cryptocurrencies, which are highly dependent on market narratives and trading momentum, this is particularly important. Rising prices themselves can improve investor sentiment and attract short-term traders back into the market, thereby boosting trading volumes and generating fresh buying pressure. After months of price declines and subdued market mood, the restoration of investor confidence could itself become part of the momentum driving Bitcoin's continued rebound.
However, Bitcoin remains well below its all-time high. The cryptocurrency set a record of approximately $126,000 in October last year before undergoing a sharp correction. This week's reclaim of $80,000 indicates that prices have clearly moved off their earlier lows, but there is still a significant gap to the historical peak. More importantly, the latest move above $80,000 shows that Bitcoin's upward momentum has not dissipated immediately following the initial wave of short squeezes. While the earlier surge was largely fueled by forced covering of leveraged short positions, whether the price can genuinely hold or extend beyond $80,000 will increasingly depend on proactive buying demand from investors rather than technical buying driven by short covering.
Tim Meggs, CEO of LO:TECH, suggested that Bitcoin could continue to climb over the weekend, while the shortened trading week ahead typically implies lower market liquidity, which could actually amplify price swings. He believes liquidity will be a key factor determining Bitcoin's next directional move.
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