The price of Bitcoin surged back above the $70,000 mark on Saturday, recovering from a significant decline earlier this month. This rebound was fueled by U.S. inflation data that came in lower than expected, which helped boost risk appetite across various markets. The recovery follows a challenging period marked by billions in realized losses and ongoing investor apprehension.
At the time of reporting, Bitcoin was trading near $70,215, reflecting an approximate 2% increase over the previous 24 hours with daily trading volume close to $43 billion. This movement places Bitcoin just under its seven-day peak of $70,434 and pushes its total market capitalization beyond $1.4 trillion once again.
The recent upward momentum followed January’s Consumer Price Index release showing inflation rising by 2.4% year-over-year—slightly below the anticipated 2.5%. This softer inflation figure has strengthened expectations that the Federal Reserve might start reducing interest rates sooner than previously forecasted—a scenario typically favorable for higher-risk assets such as cryptocurrencies.
Market sentiment shifts were also evident in prediction markets: traders on Kalshi raised the implied probability of an April rate cut to 23%, while Polymarket’s pricing similarly climbed throughout the week.
Bitcoin Price Trends and Related Stock Movements
The weekend rally in Bitcoin prices also positively impacted crypto-related equities. On Friday alone, Coinbase (COIN) shares jumped by 18%, while MicroStrategy (MSTR) rose about 10%, as investors increased their exposure to digital assets once more.
This surge occurred despite Coinbase facing challenges from a tough earnings report that included a Q4 loss amounting to $666.7 million due primarily to declining trading revenues.
Meanwhile, MicroStrategy remained closely linked with Bitcoin’s price fluctuations but continued emphasizing its long-term treasury strategy. The company revealed another purchase exceeding 1,100 BTC this week and reported significant quarterly losses largely driven by mark-to-market adjustments on its holdings—highlighting potential balance-sheet risks associated with aggressive positioning.
Bitcoin has endured a difficult few months; after peaking above $120,000 last October it sharply declined into mid-$60,000 territory amid prolonged downward pressure spanning several months.
The sell-off intensified at February’s start when BTC fell below an important psychological threshold at $70,000.
K33 Research suggested that this drop toward around $60,000 might represent a “local bottom,” citing capitulation-like signals seen through volume trends, funding rates levels, options market positioning patterns and ETF flows data points.
Nonetheless,the recent rally hasn’t fully dispelled underlying concerns within investor communities—the Crypto Fear & Greed Index remains entrenched in “extreme fear” territory reminiscent of conditions during both last year’s bear market phase and major industry collapses previously witnessed across crypto sectors alike.