Improved Sentiment in Crypto and Traditional Finance: Will Bitcoin Traders Short Above $93K?

Bitcoin's price has been bouncing around the $90,000 mark, fueled by heightened retail investor optimism and bullish outlooks from fund managers. Notably, the head of digital asset research at VanEck pointed out a shift in Bitcoin's market cycle, indicating a prolonged bull market. Major investments by firms also signal increasing institutional interest in Bitcoin. However, resistance remains in the $90,000 to $93,000 range, raising questions about whether traders will clear impending shorts at critical price levels.

Key Takeaways

Bitcoin's price has hovered around $90,000 due to improved investor sentiment and institutional buying.
Notable Bitcoin market cycles may be changing, with a shift away from the traditional four-year pattern.
Major purchases and bullish predictions from various fund managers indicate strong institutional interest.
Resistance levels exist between $90,000 and $93,000, with significant selling pressure from larger investors.
Short liquidation points might create opportunities for price rallies above $100,000.

Bitcoin's Recent Price Movements and Market Sentiment

In the last two weeks, Bitcoin has returned to the $90,000 range. This trend comes as retail investor sentiment has improved, fund managers have reiterated their bullish expectations for a year-end rally, and a prominent strategy has been announced for a large BTC purchase.

According to Matthew Sigel, the head of digital asset research at VanEck, Bernstein remarked that “the Bitcoin cycle has broken the 4-year pattern (previously peaking every four years) and is now in an elongated bull-cycle, with more robust institutional buying counteracting any panic selling from retail investors.”

These statements follow comments from Larry Fink, the Chairman and CEO of BlackRock, who noted that sovereign wealth funds are “incrementally” purchasing Bitcoin as it has declined from its peak of $126,000. Fink stated,

On Monday, the Strategy disclosed a significant purchase of 10,624 BTC (approximately $962.7 million) at an average price of $90,615 per coin. Andre Dragosch, head of research at Bitwise Europe, highlighted that this acquisition represents the largest since July 2025.

Strategy's significant BTC purchase since July _Strategy makes its biggest BTC purchase since July. X /_Andre Dragosch

Price Resistance and Market Dynamics

While Bitcoin has seen an uptick since its low of $80,612 on November 21, it continues to face resistance in the $90,000 to $93,000 range. According to chartered market technician Aksel Kibar on Saturday,

Cumulative volume data from Hyblock offers a more in-depth perspective, illustrating increased activity from investors trading between 0 to 100 BTC, often considered retail trades. In contrast, larger trade-size cohorts—those trading between 1,000 to 100,000 and 100,000 to 1 million—seem to be taking profits, selling off during rallies in the $90,000 to $93,000 range.

Cumulative volume deltas for BTC/USDT BTC/USDT Binance, cumulative volume deltas. Source: Hyblock

Similarly, order book data for BTC/USDT (perpetual contracts on Binance) reveals a robust wall of selling starting at $90,000, thickening from $94,000 to $95,000.

Order book asks for BTC/USDT BTC/USDT (Binance), orderbook asks at 5%-10% depth. Source: TRDR.io

Conversely, liquidation heatmap data indicates the presence of short liquidity between $94,000 and $95,300, which could provide the necessary momentum for bulls to launch a push over the $100,000 mark if the market can generate sufficient catalysts to spur an increase in either spot or futures buying.

Liquidation heatmap for BTC/USDT BTC/USDT liquidation heatmap, 1-month lookback. Source: Hyblock