Saylor calls for bitcoin balance as price sinks 21% in four weeks

Bitcoin fell 14% this week to $62,698 as of 06:00 UTC Thursday as Saylor urged supporters to prioritize adoption over ideological purity, CoinDesk data shows.

"The market faces a genuine test of conviction," Paul Howard, senior director at liquidity provider Wincent, said. "The lack of fresh triggers and the movement of liquidity into other tech sectors such as AI indicate we have further volatility ahead."

The selloff accelerated through the week, with bitcoin briefly dropping below $62,000 on Thursday and triggering more than $1.5 billion in leveraged crypto liquidations over 24 hours, Coinglass data shows. Long positions accounted for $1.2 billion of the total, with over $800 million in bitcoin longs and $386 million in ether positions wiped out. U.S.-listed spot bitcoin ETFs recorded their 13th consecutive day of outflows Wednesday, with $50 million exiting and bringing the total outflow streak past $3.2 billion, according to Sosovalue. The 30-day implied volatility index BVIV climbed to 53.17, its highest level since April 2, as demand for protective options rose.

The $60,000 level represents the next major support, with analysts at Material Indicators noting the 200-week moving average sits in that region. A break below that threshold would bring $58,000 into focus, while some traders are already discussing $50,000 as a potential floor this year, according to Howard.

Saylor's call for balance

Saylor, the executive chairman of Strategy — formerly MicroStrategy — made the remarks as the company faces scrutiny over its first-ever disclosed bitcoin sale earlier this week. The sale, combined with the Mt. Gox trustee moving 10,422 BTC worth $739 million to a new wallet on Tuesday, has added to selling pressure in a market already starved of fresh triggers.

Liquidity rotates to equities

The broader macro environment has compounded bitcoin's woes. Global equities continue to hit fresh records, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 closing at all-time highs on Tuesday as the artificial intelligence trade intensified. The MSCI All Country World Index also set a fresh record, while SpaceX reportedly seeks $135 a share for a $75 billion initial public offering — drawing capital away from crypto markets.

"Bitcoin is facing competition for capital as equity markets continue to outperform, with both crypto-native investors and traditional asset managers being pulled toward stronger equity narratives," the trading desk at QCP Capital said.

Ether fell to $1,761.80, down 4.9% in 24 hours, while Solana's SOL dropped to $68.90, extending weekly losses to more than 15%. XRP traded at $1.17, down 3.8%, and Dogecoin slid to $0.0921. The CoinDesk 20 Index, a broad measure of the crypto market, fell 6.9%.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.