Bitcoin Holds Firm as Tech Stocks Slide; Traders Reassess $70K Bull Case

Bitcoin Holds Firm as Tech Stocks Slide; Traders Reassess $70K Bull Case

Bitcoin demonstrated resilience over the past week, holding up better than many risk assets even as investors pulled back from parts of the technology complex. While BTC failed to reclaim the level above $65,500, it still managed to rebound after the weekend and traded through $65,000 on Monday—highlighting a growing disconnect between the world’s largest cryptocurrency and broader market moves.

That relative strength comes as market participants remain cautious in Bitcoin derivatives. Perpetual funding and options positioning suggest large players have been more focused on limiting downside than pressing for an aggressive upside push toward $70,000. At the same time, macro pressures—especially rising Treasury yields and renewed geopolitical risk—have been feeding a broader risk-averse tone across markets.

Key takeaways

Bitcoin’s perpetual funding rate sat near neutral at around 8% on Monday, while trader behavior remains oriented toward hedging rather than leverage.

Bitcoin’s spot strength amid declines in AI-linked equities points to continued decoupling from traditional risk assets.

Deribit data shows a 30-day options put-call delta skew of 13% on Monday, indicating premium pricing for downside exposure versus upside calls.

Rising US Treasury yields and weaker tech sentiment have pressured sentiment broadly, even as BTC found support.

Derivatives signal hedging focus despite BTC strength

Bitcoin’s derivative tape did not mirror the weekend’s price firmness. According to the article’s metrics from Laevitas, the Bitcoin perpetual futures annualized funding rate was at roughly the 8% neutral mark on Monday, unchanged from a week earlier. When funding runs above 12%, it typically reflects elevated demand for bullish leverage; the last time that threshold was observed was July 10, indicating that leverage appetite has cooled since then.

The options market added another layer of caution. The piece cites Deribit data (via Laevitas) showing the Bitcoin 30-day options delta skew at 13% on Monday. Under neutral conditions, the metric is expected to sit between -6% and +6%. The move from the prior week’s 19% reading suggests slightly less intensity in bearish demand than before, but the still-positive skew implies that puts (downside) continued to trade at a premium relative to calls (upside).

In practical terms for traders, these indicators point to a market where large participants and makers are not fully committing to a sustained rally. That can matter because when hedging costs remain elevated, upside follow-through can be harder to sustain—particularly if macro factors keep risk appetite in check.

Tech weakness, Treasury moves, and the case for “decoupling”

The article links Bitcoin’s comparatively stable performance to sharp sell-offs in parts of the AI and broader semiconductor/technology landscape. It notes declines across companies including IBM, SanDisk, Oracle, ARM, SpaceX, and Intel, alongside a rise in US Treasury yields. The connection is reinforced by the piece’s reference to TradingView data for the Nasdaq-100: Nasdaq-100 futures dropped below 28,800 on Friday for the first time in five weeks, while BTC showed relative strength over the weekend.

Meanwhile, macro pressures have been pushing yields higher. The article states that the US 5-year Treasury yield rose to 4.33% on Monday, up from 4.22% two weeks earlier. It also notes that gold has been trending downward since mid-May, underscoring that the deterioration in global growth outlook and ongoing Middle East geopolitical tensions have weighed broadly across asset classes.

This is where the “decoupling” narrative strengthens: even as traditional risk proxies weakened and the market priced higher returns for holding government bonds, Bitcoin found its way back toward $65,000. In the article’s framing, the move supports the idea that BTC may be responding more to liquidity and monetary-base expectations than to equity beta alone.

Strategy’s cash raise helps ease BTC-sell-pressure fears

One near-term factor highlighted in the article is corporate positioning involving Strategy. It points to Strategy’s reported raise of $263 million in cash by selling common stock during the prior week, linking it to easing concerns that the company might be forced into selling Bitcoin.

The market focus is understandable. The article notes that investors had grown anxious about Strategy’s $1.76 billion annual dividend payout to its preferred perpetual equity shareholders, alongside $2.6 billion of convertible debt maturing in 2028 and 2029. According to the piece, Strategy raised cash reserves to $3.22 billion with the stated goal of reducing uncertainty related to unrealized Bitcoin losses reflected on its balance sheet.

Why this matters for broader traders: when a prominent Bitcoin-linked corporate holder strengthens its liquidity buffer, it can reduce perceived forced-selling risk. Even if BTC derivatives show caution, improved balance-sheet confidence can help stabilize spot demand during periods when sentiment elsewhere is deteriorating.

Geopolitics and the upside catalysts investors still watch

The article connects the risk environment to geopolitics and policy. It states that US President Trump vowed to retaliate against Iran following a missile strike that killed US soldiers in Jordan, pushing risk assets “on high alert.” In such conditions, traders often scramble for hedges, which can help explain why Bitcoin’s derivatives metrics leaned toward downside protection rather than fresh bullish leverage.

Still, the piece argues that Bitcoin’s ability to hold near $65,500 strengthens the case for continued separation from traditional markets—particularly if monetary conditions remain supportive. It also identifies a potential trigger for upside if macro and corporate signals shift: weak corporate earnings could keep pressure on traditional equities while potentially redirecting attention toward crypto, with the article specifically flagging the AI sector as a place where disappointment could deepen.

For readers, the key is to watch whether the derivatives caution persists as price tests higher levels. If funding and delta skew move closer to neutral while BTC maintains support, it would suggest hedges are becoming less necessary and a rally attempt could gain traction. If, instead, skew and leverage indicators worsen alongside renewed equity stress, BTC’s decoupling could remain more fragile than it appears on the surface.

This article was originally published as Bitcoin Holds Firm as Tech Stocks Slide; Traders Reassess $70K Bull Case on Crypto Breaking News – your trusted source for crypto news, Bitcoin news, and blockchain updates.

Source: Bitcoin Holds Firm as Tech Stocks Slide; Traders Reassess $70K Bull Case