Bitcoin Clears 50-Week Hurdle as Traders Eye New Bull Market: Analyst

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: $BTC) has closed above its 50-week moving average for the first time in about ten months, giving traders hope that the latest rebound can turn into a broader bull market.

"Its first weekly close above the 50-week moving average in about ten months has changed the debate. Now, it's not just about whether the bottom is in, but if a new bull market is starting," Alice Liu, head of research at CoinMarketCap, told Cryptoprowl.

Bitcoin is currently trading at $85,206, up nearly 6% over the past day. Total crypto market capitalization also climbed 5% over the same period to $2.89 trillion, while the Fear & Greed Index moved to 77, signaling "Greed."

The rally is also showing signs of fresh positioning rather than being driven mainly by short sellers getting squeezed, according to Liu. Bitcoin open interest rose 8.8% over seven days to $55.7 billion, putting it at the 92nd percentile of the past 90 days. Liquidations remained at the 43rd percentile.

CoinMarketCap said the difference matters because traders are adding leverage as prices rise rather than being forced into the market by a short squeeze.

Still, the move has not yet been backed by strong institutional flows. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded just $6.1 million in combined net inflows across five sessions, although the latest session brought in $433 million.

"Individual fund movements were therefore considerably larger than the overall net figure. This points to investors rotating between issuers rather than making a broad directional decision on Bitcoin exposure," Liu wrote.

The rally is also spreading to other major cryptocurrencies. Ethereum (CRYPTO: $ETH) gained 6.05% over seven days, while Solana (CRYPTO: $SOL) rose 10.3%, both outperforming Bitcoin.