Bitcoin advanced overnight, climbing as much as 3.7% before surrendering part of the move, while altcoins outperformed and the “altcoin season” gauge rose to its strongest reading since January.
Bitcoin (BTC) experienced volatile price action during Asian trading hours, briefly spiking before easing back. The asset remains up roughly 2.4% since midnight UTC, changing hands near $65,600 — still within the tight range that has capped price action for the past three weeks.
Broader crypto markets showed renewed strength. Layer-1 tokens solana (SOL) and cardano (ADA) each rallied about 4.5%, while smaller-cap names including VIRTUAL, MORPHO and ETHFI posted gains exceeding 10%.
U.S. equity index futures ticked higher in tandem with digital assets. A roughly 4% surge in silver prices since midnight also points to a broader speculative bid across risk assets, rather than a rally tied to a specific news catalyst.
Technically, the average crypto relative strength index (RSI) has moved out of oversold territory and back into neutral levels, suggesting the potential for consolidation after the recent bounce.
Derivatives snapshot
Aggregate crypto futures open interest rose more than 1.5% to $93.5 billion. However, much of that increase appears to reflect higher spot prices rather than meaningful new capital entering the market.
Open interest in bitcoin and ether (ETH) futures remained largely flat over the past 24 hours. In contrast, futures linked to tether gold (XAUT) saw a 12% decline in open positions, signaling capital rotation away from gold-backed exposure.
TRX, AVAX, SOL, LINK and HBAR recorded the strongest 24-hour cumulative volume delta (CVD) readings, indicating buying demand outpaced selling across those tokens.
Bitcoin’s 30-day annualized implied volatility index (BVIV) dropped to 56%, reversing an earlier rise to 65% this week and suggesting calmer market conditions. Ether’s volatility profile mirrored the move, potentially supportive of continued stabilization in prices.
On Deribit, the $60,000 bitcoin put option has become the most actively held contract, highlighting ongoing downside hedging. Across BTC and ETH options markets, puts continue to trade at higher premiums than calls, reflecting persistent caution.
Token movers
The altcoin season indicator climbed to its highest level since early January, buoyed by broad-based strength.
AI-related token VIRTUAL led gains, jumping 15.5% since midnight and more than 20% over 24 hours, making it the top performer in the CoinDesk 80 (CD80) index, which rose 1.7%.
Restaking protocol token ETHFI advanced more than 10% after CEO Mike Silagadze hinted at the potential rollout of a stablecoin.
Morpho’s native token also extended its rally, rising 15% over the past day and bringing its 30-day gain to 45.9%.
Meanwhile, toncoin (TON) and pippin (PIPPIN) slipped into negative territory over the last 24 hours after earlier gains this week, underscoring ongoing asset rotation among traders and investors.
