Bitcoin reached a new all-time high of $111,970 on May 22 before pulling back to around $106,000
Analysts suggest current consolidation is a “healthy pause” before another upward movement
Court decisions on Trump’s tariffs and upcoming Fed interest rate decision on June 18 may impact price action
Despite $6.2 billion in ETF inflows during May, price hasn’t seen proportional rise
Bitcoin dominance increasing while altcoin market has stagnated for three weeks
Bitcoin has entered what experts describe as a consolidation phase after reaching a new all-time high of $111,970 on May 22. The cryptocurrency has since pulled back to trade around $106,000, according to recent market data.
Nick Forster, founder of onchain options protocol Derive, told Cointelegraph that this sideways movement doesn’t necessarily signal bearish sentiment. Instead, he views it as “a healthy pause” that gives “the market time to digest recent gains and gear up for the next phase.”
The leading cryptocurrency has performed well over the past month, gaining more than 11.5% in a 30-day period. This positive trend comes despite the current consolidation phase.
Market analysts are divided on price targets for the coming year. Bitcoin researcher Sminston With predicts BTC could gain between 100% to 200%, suggesting a cycle peak between $220,000 and $330,000. Meanwhile, crypto trader Apsk32 offers a more conservative estimate, targeting $220,000 for 2025.
Recent legal developments may be influencing Bitcoin’s price action. The US Court of International Trade’s May 28 decision to block President Trump’s sweeping tariffs temporarily eased inflation concerns. However, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled on May 29 that Trump could continue with his tariff regime under emergency powers while appealing the trade court’s decision.
Institutional Interest vs. Market Reality
Perhaps most interesting is the disconnect between institutional investment and Bitcoin’s price. Despite massive inflows into Bitcoin ETFs – over $6.2 billion into BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust in May alone – Bitcoin’s price hasn’t risen proportionally.
The trading week ending May 23 saw spot Bitcoin ETFs record a total of $2.75 billion in inflows. Forster attributes this phenomenon to “the nature of ETF investments, which often involve institutional investors seeking exposure without immediate impact on spot market prices.”
This suggests that institutional money is steadily entering the Bitcoin ecosystem but hasn’t fully expressed itself in the spot price yet.
Q3 Performance Expectations
Historically, the third quarter has been a weaker period for Bitcoin performance. Since 2013, Bitcoin has averaged only a 6.03% gain in Q3, according to CoinGlass data. This contrasts sharply with Q4, which has delivered an average return of 85.42% over the same period.
However, Forster suggests that 2025 might break this pattern. “The potential for favorable regulatory developments and continued institutional interest may support stronger performance in Q3,” he said.
The upcoming Federal Reserve interest rate decision on June 18 is expected to be “pivotal” for Bitcoin’s price trajectory in the near term.
While Bitcoin continues its upward trend, the altcoin market has struggled to keep pace. Data shows that the altcoin market has stagnated for almost three weeks, suggesting capital flow is directed primarily into Bitcoin.
The Bitcoin Dominance chart, which tracks BTC’s share of the total crypto market cap, shows an uptrend since 2023. This indicates that Bitcoin’s capitalization is growing faster than the altcoin market.
The altcoin market cap has lacked a strong trend in May, hovering around the $1.2 trillion mark. Combined with rising Bitcoin Dominance, this signals that altcoins are not seeing outstanding capital inflows.
Tether reserve data further supports this trend. Despite reaching a peak of $43.696 billion in February, falling Tether reserves throughout 2025 indicate dwindling buying power in the broader crypto market. This helps explain the slowdown in altcoin market growth while Bitcoin continues to rally, likely driven by institutional interest through ETFs.
For Bitcoin investors, the current consolidation appears to be a temporary pause rather than the end of the bullish cycle. With continued institutional interest and potential favorable regulatory developments, Bitcoin may be preparing for its next leg up.
Bitcoin is trading at approximately $106,000 at the time of publication.
This articles is written by : Nermeen Nabil Khear Abdelmalak
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