Bitcoin price tops $69,000 as U.S.-Iran ceasefire talks lift risk appetite

Bitcoin reclaimed the $69,000 level during U.S. trading after reports of 45-day U.S.-Iran ceasefire talks lifted risk appetite across crypto. The token rose 3% to $69,120 and led a wave of forced closures in bearish bets, with $196.7 million in short positions liquidated out of $273.8 million in total across 24 hours.

The advance followed discussions among the United States, Iran and regional intermediaries over a potential pause to a six-week conflict. Reports of more vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz added to the relief. Bitcoin reached its highest price in more than a week. Over the past day, it traded between $66,634 and $69,350.

Liquidation data showed traders were positioned for declines into the Easter weekend. Across 81,819 accounts, shorts accounted for nearly three-quarters of forced unwinds, $196.7 million versus $77.1 million in longs, close to a 3-to-1 ratio. The largest single liquidation was a $10.17 million ETH-USDT short on Binance. Liquidations occur when leveraged positions no longer meet margin requirements.

Gains spread to major tokens. Ether added 3.7% to $2,130. Solana rose 2% to $82, XRP increased 2.2% to $1.34 and Dogecoin climbed 1.7% to $0.093. The total crypto market value moved back above $2.5 trillion.

Despite the rebound, Bitcoin remained inside the $65,000 to $73,000 range that has defined trading during the conflict. Analysts pointed to possible resistance near $71,500 and $81,200 based on price bands and on-chain realized price metrics.

According to the CryptoQuant analyst, Bitcoin profit supply nears previous bear-market low, with about 11.2 million BTC still in profit and roughly 8.2 million at a loss. Some market experts see that as a sign the market may be getting closer to a bottom, but others say it shows rising stress rather than true capitulation, especially since Bitcoin has fallen less sharply than in earlier bear markets. A strong U.S. dollar and weak global liquidity are also seen as major reasons why any real recovery could still take time.

Traders highlighted tight ranges in select altcoins. XRP held above $1.30 with higher turnover, with price action showing higher lows near $1.30 and repeated selling pressure around $1.33. Market watchers marked $1.30 to $1.32 as support and $1.33 to $1.35 as the next area to clear.

Market participants are monitoring updates from the ceasefire talks, shipping flows through key Middle East corridors and any shifts in regional military rhetoric as inputs for near-term risk appetite in digital assets.