Bitcoin tops $62K as whales accumulate 270,000 BTC

Bitcoin rose above $62,000 after large holders bought about 270,000 bitcoins, erasing roughly $130 million in short positions. The token reached an intraday high of $62,137, up about 3% over 24 hours after recovering from a local low near $57,735 two days earlier.

The rally began early Thursday, when bitcoin briefly cleared $62,000 and tested the $61,000 level several times before peaking around 3:55 a.m. EST. By early afternoon the price had retreated to about $61,600 but remained higher on the day. Bitcoin’s market capitalization climbed from just over $1.2 trillion to nearly $1.24 trillion, and the wider crypto market reached about $2.2 trillion.

Derivatives markets saw heavy liquidations as leveraged positions were forced out. Data from Coinglass showed more than $606 million in leveraged positions were liquidated in a recent window. Short positions accounted for the largest share, with roughly $130 million of short bitcoin bets wiped out in a 24-hour span and about $50 million in long positions removed. Short bets composed nearly $400 million of the total liquidations.

On-chain metrics flagged a large accumulation by major holders. Crypto analyst Scott Melker wrote, “270,000 Bitcoin accumulated by whales at $59,000. The largest single accumulation spike ever recorded on-chain. Bigger than the COVID bottom. Bigger than the FTX bottom.” Melker also noted spot bitcoin ETFs recorded about $4.5 billion in net outflows in June.

Other market commentators offered a different view. Analyst Aralez projected that a worsening global environment and a drop in the S&P 500 could trigger panic selling, prolong negative sentiment and increase volatility.

Earlier in the week, trading showed bitcoin holding above $60,000 after erasing intraday losses and testing key technical levels. Market participants are monitoring equity markets and macroeconomic indicators for signs of sustained buying or renewed downside pressure.