Bitcoin’s Price Slump Continues – Why Wall Street Isn’t Biting (And What Comes Next)

Bitcoin’s bleeding—again. The king of crypto has shed another 5% this week, dragging it further from its 2025 highs. Yet institutional money remains conspicuously absent from the buy-side. What gives?

The big money paradox

Hedge funds that piled in during the 2024 ETF frenzy are now sitting on their hands. Trading desks report order books thinner than a DeFi whitepaper. Even MicroStrategy—Bitcoin’s cheerleader-in-chief—hasn’t announced a fresh purchase since May.

Technical breakdown

The $60K support level just got shattered like a weak seed phrase. Next stop? Analysts eye the $52K–$55K range—a zone that last held when TradFi was still pretending NFTs were ‘just JPEGs.’

Silver linings playbook

Retail OI is climbing on derivatives exchanges—usually a contrarian indicator. And let’s face it: when Wall Street loses interest, that’s historically been the best time to accumulate. Just ask anyone who bought during the 2022 ‘crypto winter.’

The smart money’s waiting for clearer regulatory signals—or more likely, until their risk models finish backtesting. Meanwhile, Bitcoin does what it always does: volatility as a service, now with extra schadenfreude for the suits.

STH realized price breached – Can $99 hkold the line?

Bitcoin has dipped below the STH realised price at $99k, marking a potentially critical shift in market sentiment. This level represents the average acquisition cost for BTC bought within the last 155 days – A cohort that often fuels near-term momentum.

Slipping beneath this threshold has usually aligned with periods of market weakness or reset.

Source: Alphractal

In fact, the latest chart from Alphractal highlighted the STH-MVRV ratio dipping close to 1 – A sign of reduced short-term profit margins.

If this zone fails to hold, we may be staring down a deeper correction before the next wave of conviction buyers step in.

Old money stays on the sidelines

Bitcoin’s OG whales, the ones who truly MOVE markets – aren’t biting yet.

On-chain data revealed that transaction volumes exceeding $100,000 have been stuck in neutral territory, mimcking the same subdued activity last seen in 2020.

Source: Alphractal

Unlike the 2021-2022 bull run, during which whale transfers spiked dramatically, the ongoing cycle lacks that telltale surge of conviction from legacy holders.

Without their participation, Bitcoin’s latest move risks being built on thinner liquidity and weaker support.

A tale of momentum and support

Finally, the technicals didn’t seem to offer much relief either.

Bitcoin’s RSI slipped to 41.5, hovering NEAR oversold territory, while the OBV continued to decline – A sign that buying pressure has been weakening, despite the price attempting a minor bounce.

Source: TradingView

At the time of writing, the price seemed to be struggling below the 50-day SMA, further reinforcing the short-term bearish bias.

Despite a slight intraday uptick, there’s little to suggest a strong reversal is in play. Unless volume picks up meaningfully and RSI reclaims strength, BTC’s recent drop could evolve into something more sustained.