Bitcoin rebounded above $69,000 on Friday, up 11% from 15-month lows below $60,000, as focus shifted from forced liquidations to fresh dip bids. The rebound suggests institutional demand is activating where leveraged positioning finally cracked. The bounce followed a Thursday slide to roughly $59,000 that liquidated more than $1.1 billion in Bitcoin longs. CoinGlass data showed total crypto liquidations near $2.6 billion over 24 hours, with longs about $2.15 billion. The move extended the drop from the Oct. 6, 2025 all-time high of $126,000 to about 50%, resetting positioning fast. Traders eye $58,000 next.
Buying the dip
Binance’s Secure Asset Fund for Users, an insurance fund launched in July 2018, bought another 3,600 BTC worth about $250 million at approximately $65,000 per coin. SAFU’s purchase provides a visible, rules-based bid that can stabilize market microstructure during stress. Binance said it intends to convert $1 billion of SAFU reserves into Bitcoin over 30 days. The first batch of 1,315 BTC, worth roughly $100 million, was bought earlier in the week, leaving $565 million still to be converted. The accumulation has become a proxy signal for institutional dip appetite and confidence going forward.
Crypto hedge funds and U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs were also flagged as active during the drawdown. Professional allocators appear to be increasing BTC exposure even as price action remains fragile. Bitwise data showed aggregate market beta across global crypto hedge funds hit its highest level in two years as Bitcoin weakened, according to European Head of Research André Dragosch. He added that record ETF trading volumes on Thursday, paired with only moderate net outflows, implied there was “lots of dip buying” by U.S.-based spot Bitcoin ETFs as well, even amid volatility and headline risk.
Technicals now concentrate attention on the $58,000 to $62,000 band, with $58,000 increasingly framed as the last line of defense. Market participants are converging on long-term moving averages as an enterprise-grade risk control benchmark. Trader Jelle said Bitcoin is testing prior cycle highs and is bouncing slightly so far, but must hold that area to avoid a deeper correction. MN Capital founder Michael van de Poppe linked $58,000 to the 200-day SMA and said Thursday’s $10,000 drop was the largest volume candle on record, consistent with capitulation events, with $58,000 aligning to 200-week MA.
