Bitcoin has been confined to a tight trading band between $62,000 and $66,000 for five consecutive weeks, struggling to find a decisive directional bias. As of 7:30 a.m. on August 12, bitcoin was trading at $63,650 (approximately 90 million won), down 0.46% over the prior 24 hours. The cryptocurrency had briefly rebounded to $64,416 (roughly 91 million won) the previous afternoon before surrendering all gains and slipping back toward the $63,000 level.
According to crypto-focused media outlet CoinDesk, bitcoin has oscillated within the $62,000 (about 88 million won) to $66,000 (about 93 million won) corridor throughout the summer. Paul Howard, senior director at trading firm Wincent, noted that "recent bitcoin price action reflects a structure where steady ETF inflows are being offset by over-the-counter selling from miners and Strategy (MSTR)," adding that crypto trading volumes have fallen to their lowest in three years, preventing a decisive breakout in either direction.
Analysts at Bitfinex echoed this view, observing that while ETFs and corporate bitcoin treasury holdings represent two pillars of price-insensitive demand, selling pressure from corporate treasury management operations has been neutralizing that support. This explains why bitcoin managed only a roughly 2% gain last week despite robust ETF inflows and generally favorable conditions across risk assets.
Jeff Anderson, Asia head at crypto liquidity provider STS Digital, assessed that "liquidity scarcity has reached an extreme during the summer months, leaving conviction lacking on both the upside and downside." He noted that "implied volatility has fallen sharply as both buyers and sellers await clarity on monetary policy direction and progress on the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act." Anderson added that "a breakout from this range in either direction could be followed by a significant move."
Geopolitical uncertainty surrounding the Strait of Hormuz also contributed to bitcoin's bearish tilt. Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, who has been mediating ceasefire negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, told Bloomberg that the two nations were nearing "some form of agreement," but hardline rhetoric continued from the Iranian side. Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, declared that "the Strait of Hormuz will never be opened until the United States changes its attitude and accepts Iran's conditions."
