Why is Bitcoin Price Down Today?

The Bitcoin price has declined by 3% over the past 24 hours. This comes after Galaxy Digital recently sold off $1.18 billion worth of Bitcoin. As a result, hundreds of millions of dollars were erased in leveraged positions as cryptocurrency investors rushed to reduce their losses.

Bitcoin Price Slides Amid Galaxy Digital Sell-Off

The BTC price today has dropped by more than 3% after strong bullish runs in the market recently. This decline comes after big sell-offs by Galaxy Digital, which have impacted the entire cryptocurrency market.

Additionally, according to data from CoinMarketCap, automated sell orders were triggered when Bitcoin crashed below its 7-day simple moving average of $118,257 and broke the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement at $118,859.

With the RSI remaining above oversold territory and the MACD histogram dropping to -166, momentum indicators supported the bearish turn and suggested further declines. The psychological $115,000 mark and $116,241 are currently key support levels.

Galaxy Digital appears to be shifting its focus to Ethereum-based systems, which is indicative of a broader institutional trend toward portfolio rebalancing. CEO Mike Novogratz recently spoke on CNBC, praising Ethereum’s potential over Bitcoin and pointing to tightening supply and increasing institutional inflows as major drivers of future growth.

His comments suggest a growing preference for Ethereum’s upside in the changing cryptocurrency landscape, even though he acknowledged Bitcoin’s role as a reliable and defensive asset.

Galaxy Digital Offloads $1.18B BTC To Major Exchanges

On-chain data from LookonChain revealed that Galaxy Digital deposited over 10,000 BTC, worth approximately $1.18 billion, to major exchanges, including Binance and OKX, within a short period. This marks Galaxy Digital’s largest dump since acquiring roughly $2B BTC from a Satoshi-era whale just weeks ago.

Following the dump, the BTC price dropped by over 3% in under eight hours, with Galaxy Digital withdrawing nearly $370 million in USDT from exchanges, confirming that they had sold off most of their BTC. At the same time, according to Coinglass data, total crypto market liquidations surged past $646 million in 24 hours, wiping out around $152 million in BTC long positions alone.

Autism Capital speculated that Galaxy Digital’s move could be part of a broader portfolio rotation, possibly into Ethereum, especially after Galaxy CEO Mike Novogratz suggested ETH might outperform BTC in the coming months.

While there was an immediate decline following Galaxy Digital’s $1.18 billion Bitcoin exit, some analysts view the sell-off as a “healthy reset” rather than a long-term bearish reversal. Notably, traders shifted their focus to cash and alternative assets, resulting in a 3% decline in Bitcoin dominance. However, open interest in derivatives decreased by only 14%, suggesting that investors remain cautiously involved.