Bitcoin price may consolidate as $2.2b options expiry looms, analysts warn

As Bitcoin flirted with the $70,000 mark on Monday morning, analysts at Bitfinex issued a cautionary note, suggesting the rally might be short-lived due to an impending significant options expiry.

Bitfinex analysts predicted in a note that they expect “potential further downward pressure” on the price of Bitcoin (BTC) as the monthly expiry of around $2.2 billion is set to occur on Aug. 2.

They suggest this event could cause Bitcoin to stall or even pull back slightly from the $68,000-$69,000 resistance zone. Despite the risk of a pullback, the analysts highlight that leveraged long positions are currently more influential than spot market activities.

“[…] thus while the market is in a firm higher timeframe uptrend, a short-term price decline or range is likely, and if the options market positioning is any indication, directional trades, especially leveraged should be avoided,” Bitfinex noted.

On Monday morning, Bitcoin briefly traded at $70,000, a level not seen since June 7, before losing all momentum and trading below $67,000 by the afternoon trading session.

Broader macroeconomic environment

Regarding the broader macroeconomic environment, Bitfinex analysts described the economic outlook as “cautiously optimistic.” They highlighted that the housing market remains a “drag on growth” due to higher-than-expected median house prices affecting existing home sales.

As previously reported by crypto.news, July has historically been a positive month for Bitcoin. This year, the cryptocurrency gained over 15% in the last 30 days and recorded more than $19 billion in year-to-date inflows, marking a new record. Data from CoinShares shows Bitcoin products received nearly $520 million in capital between July 22 and July 26, pushing Bitcoin’s inflows past the $3.6 billion mark for the year.