- Bitcoin could be building for a bullish move as ETFs and large holders maintain positive flows.
- Market sentiment continues to slide away from greed, but selling pressure remains relatively weak.
Bitcoin [BTC] has shown a lot of sideways activity in recent days.
This is a classic scenario that supports directional uncertainty as traders wonder if it is time for a major retracement, or perhaps if BTC could rise above $100,000 before the end of December.
A lot could still happen before the end of December, but the latest Bitcoin activity could provide insights into what to expect this week.
BTC got off to a bearish start this week, with the price falling to a press-time level of $94,816. A drop of 3.44% in the past two days.
Despite the slight dip, Bitcoin ETFs started this week with net positive flows. Bitcoin ETF inflows were recorded at $353.6 million on Monday.
Although this was relatively low compared to peak days, it was slightly higher than the positive flows recorded on Friday ($320 million).
The positive ETF flows were also supported by another key observation, which underlined the potential build-up of buying pressure.
Data from IntoTheBlock shows that flows from large holders grew from 102.4 BTC to 4,670 BTC between December 1 and 2. This was after a previous decline by a significant margin from November 28.
Source: IntoTheBlock
In contrast, the outflow of large investors grew from 560 BTC on December 1 to 1,620 BTC on December 2. Notably, less than half of the BTC inflows were observed in the same period.
Is Bitcoin Demand Building for Another Big Rally?
The inflow of Bitcoin ETFs and the inflow of large holders could indicate that demand is gradually recovering. However, the prevailing demand was relatively weak and could explain why it was not accompanied by a corresponding upside potential.
Instead, Bitcoin’s price action was in line with bearish market sentiment. The fear and greed index fell from 80 to 76 over the past 24 hours, indicating a dip in bullish optimism.
Source: Alternative.me
Also in line with the above observation was the fact that open interest continued its negative side this week. This meant a drop in demand for Bitcoin in the derivatives segment.
Still, Open Interest remained largely positive, a sign that while wild demand had cooled in November, investors were in no particular rush to sell.
This implies that investors remain cautiously optimistic about bullish prospects.
Read Bitcoin’s [BTC] Price forecast 2024–2025
Nevertheless, this does not necessarily guarantee that Bitcoin holders will remain so for longer.
An extended period of weak bullish demand can lead to a build-up of bearish expectations, especially as price shifts toward more FUD.