Bitcoin and Ethereum prices today: Bitcoin’s strongest opening in months runs into a wall
Bitcoin and Ethereum prices today are moving on very different tracks. Bitcoin is still holding above $80,000 after briefly climbing above $82,500 over the weekend and touching a three-month high of $82,850 midweek, while Ethereum is sitting near $2,326.89 and remains trapped below $2,450, FXStreet and crypto.news reported today.
That gap matters because Bitcoin’s latest run looks sturdier than a quick squeeze, but it still hasn’t broken through the ceiling. Buyers have defended the big round number. They have not yet cleared the band of resistance sitting just above it.
Bitcoin price today: strong opening, familiar ceiling
Bitcoin has traded within a rising channel since the start of February and rose 2.8% last week, even as US-Iran tensions briefly rattled risk assets, FXEmpire reported yesterday. That makes this one of the stronger weekly setups the market has seen in months.
The catch is that price keeps running into the same wall. Bitcoin was rejected near the 200-day EMA at $82,049, which sits close to the 100-week EMA at $82,446, after testing the upper band of the rising channel near $82,500, FXStreet reported today.
A close above that band would matter more than the round numbers alone. Buyers would be looking toward $84,410, then $85,000, and a further push could bring $95,000 into focus, FXStreet reported today.
What is supporting crypto prices today
The main support underneath Bitcoin is still ETF demand. Spot Bitcoin ETFs logged a sixth consecutive week of net inflows last week, bringing in $622.7 million, FXStreet reported today.
Bitfinex said earlier this week that April brought in $2.44 billion in US spot Bitcoin ETF inflows, the strongest month since October 2025, and that cumulative net inflows since the January 2024 launch now stand at $58.5 billion, Bitfinex reported on May 4. It also said BlackRock’s IBIT holds approximately 812,000 Bitcoin, or roughly 62% of the spot ETF market.
That is why the rally has looked more durable than the usual crypto sprint-and-collapse routine. The demand has been steady enough to keep Bitcoin above $80,000, but not forceful enough to blow through resistance. It is support, not ignition.
Broader markets have helped too. FXEmpire said yesterday that the Nasdaq and S&P 500 hit fresh record highs this week, while 82% of reporting S&P 500 companies beat earnings estimates, and that the US economy added 115,000 jobs in April, well above the 65,000 expected, FXEmpire reported yesterday. That kind of backdrop tends to keep risk appetite alive, even when crypto is stuck in traffic.
Bitcoin strongest opening in months is meeting real resistance
The frustrating part for bulls is that the resistance is not imaginary. Bitcoin hit $82,850 midweek, then was rejected near the 200-day EMA at $82,049 and the 100-week EMA at $82,446, FXStreet reported last week. That is a tight cluster, and tight clusters usually mean sellers still have opinions.
On the downside, $80,000 is the immediate line of defense. If that slips, price could move toward $78,490, the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement from the October all-time high of $126,199 to the February low of $60,000, and then toward the mid-$70,000s, FXStreet reported last week.
The on-chain picture adds a little more caution. Daily realized profits spiked to 14,600 BTC on Monday, the highest reading since December 10, 2025, as the 27% rally from April lows pushed holders back into profit, FXStreet reported last week. Short-term holders have also been in profit-taking territory since mid-April.
FXStreet added that holders are now realizing net profits of +20,000 BTC on a rolling 30-day basis, still far below the 130,000 to 200,000 BTC thresholds linked to confirmed bull-market transitions. CryptoQuant’s analyst called that gap important, framing the move as a bear-market rally rather than a structural regime change, FXStreet reported last week.
Momentum is constructive, but not dazzling. FXStreet said the daily RSI is near 59 and the MACD remains marginally positive, which suggests buyers still have control, just with fading follow-through, FXStreet reported last week.
Ethereum price today is quieter, and that says something
Ethereum is having a much calmer session. ETH is trading near $2,326.89 and has moved between $2,250 and $2,450 for nearly a month after rebounding from its February low, crypto.news reported today.
The difference from Bitcoin is simple enough. ETH does not have an ETF flow story doing the heavy lifting. CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost said Ethereum’s estimated use ratio on Binance fell from a March peak of 0.76 to 0.57 as traders cut positions ahead of another resistance test, crypto.news reported today.
That reset is useful, but only up to a point. Lower use can reduce forced liquidations and make price action less unstable, but it does not create demand on its own. Darkfost said the reset is “not necessarily a bearish signal,” though that view depends on whether spot buyers step in, crypto.news reported today.
Crypto Patel offered a longer-range argument, pointing to Ethereum’s quarterly history and noting that ETH has never closed three straight quarters in the red, crypto.news reported today. It is a useful historical marker. It is not, by itself, a reason to chase the trade.
Bitcoin and Ethereum prices today still depend on the macro calendar
Three near-term catalysts could decide whether Bitcoin’s opening finally turns into a breakout. US CPI for April is expected to rise modestly to 3.4% year over year from 3.3% in March, FXStreet reported today. A hotter number would make rate-cut bets harder to defend. A softer one would do the opposite.
FXEmpire also said yesterday that attention is turning to US CPI and PPI later this week, plus Trump’s planned meeting with Xi Jinping and any fresh Middle East headlines tied to US-Iran peace talks, FXEmpire reported yesterday. That is a lot for one week, even by market standards.
Trump said Iran’s response to the latest US proposal aimed at ending the conflict was “unacceptable,” and oil briefly moved above $100 per barrel before easing back, FXStreet reported today. Bitcoin held above $80,000 through that spike, which fits the partial-decoupling case CryptoSlate made earlier this week.
For now, that is the shape of the market. Bitcoin has institutional support, a firmer macro backdrop than it had a few weeks ago, and a ceiling that still refuses to give way. Ethereum is quieter, lower in its range, and waiting for spot demand to show up. The rally is real. So is the wall.
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