Ether headed a broad cryptocurrency advance while bitcoin hovered close to $65,500 on Monday, as analysts suggested the world’s largest digital asset is likely to stay locked in a trading range despite improving sentiment elsewhere in the market.
Jeff Ko, chief analyst at CoinEx, said bitcoin’s price action has calmed and is now being constrained by a trio of macro and market forces, even as altcoins such as ether attract fresh interest. He argued that, taken together, those factors are helping to cap volatility and keep bitcoin from staging a decisive breakout.
One of the key elements, Ko noted, is the pullback in oil prices from last week’s highs after another pause in hostilities between the United States and Iran. The easing in crude has tempered some inflation concerns that had been roiling risk assets, including cryptocurrencies, and has contributed to a more stable backdrop for trading.
At the same time, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury has been edging towards 4.7%, a level Ko described as effectively doing part of the Federal Reserve’s tightening work on its own. Higher long-term yields tend to weigh on speculative assets, including bitcoin and ether, by raising the opportunity cost of holding non‐yielding instruments.
Ko also believes the Federal Reserve will be reluctant to signal any shift in policy before two key pieces of economic data arrive later this week: the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation gauge and the second-quarter US GDP reading. Until those figures are released, he expects policymakers to keep their options open, reinforcing the current period of consolidation in crypto prices.
Big tech earnings seen as crucial for crypto liquidity
According to Ko, the most significant driver for cryptocurrencies in the near term may come from outside the sector altogether, via this week’s earnings reports from some of the world’s largest technology companies. Apple, Microsoft, Meta and Amazon are all scheduled to release their latest results, and Ko said investors in digital assets should pay close attention to what they reveal.
He highlighted two elements in particular: free cash flow generation and guidance on artificial intelligence investment. Ko argued that shifts in AI spending plans and cash flow expectations at these tech giants could influence US Treasury yields and the performance of the Nasdaq, in turn shaping overall risk appetite.
Those moves, he said, would then “indirectly affect the liquidity flowing into the cryptocurrency market”, as investors reassess how much capital to allocate to higher‐risk assets such as bitcoin and ether.
Ko further stressed that, within crypto, the detail behind exchange-traded fund flows will matter as much as the headline numbers. While total net inflows or outflows into bitcoin and ether products are closely watched, he said the mix and direction of those flows across different providers and market segments could be just as telling for future price trends.
Binance maintains dominance despite repositioning
Away from price levels, Ko pointed to shifting positioning across digital asset venues since June. He said that, even as traders adjusted their exposure, Binance managed to retain a commanding presence in the market.
Data cited by Ko show Binance continuing to hold around 55% of user funds and about 24% of spot trading volumes. Despite a broader downturn that saw the tracked market record net outflows at the start of July, Binance itself attracted net inflows over the same period.
That divergence, Ko suggested, underlines how investors have been consolidating activity on larger platforms, even as total capital in the sector has temporarily ebbed. He said it also illustrates the way structural flows can differ from headline market performance, an imbalance that could become more important if volatility returns.
The analyst noted that this pattern of market repositioning, combined with Binance’s stable share, reinforces his view that bitcoin is likely to remain range‐bound for now, with ether and other major cryptocurrencies taking turns to lead shorter bursts of activity.
