On the morning of May 4, the price of the leading cryptocurrency rose to $80,500, driven by a shift in news surrounding the conflict between the U.S. and Iran.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $79,900, having increased by 2.3% over the past day.
Ethereum gained nearly 3%, XRP rose by 1.9%, while BNB and Solana increased by 2.7% and 1.8%, respectively.
The total liquidation volume in the crypto market reached $359.2 million in 24 hours, with over $300 million attributed to short positions.
According to Nick Rak, director of LVRG Research, the rise above $80,000 indicates a breakout from a resistance zone that had constrained Bitcoin over the weekend.
“The rapid breakout shifted the short-term momentum to a bullish direction and confirmed the strength of buyers following the previous pullback,” he noted.
Analyst Dominic John from Zeus Research added that the market experienced a technical short squeeze: participants who had opened short positions at a strong threshold began to close them as prices rose, further boosting the upward momentum.
Geopolitical Factors
Positive market dynamics were also influenced by news from the Middle East. U.S. President Donald Trump announced the launch of the Project Freedom initiative.
The U.S. will facilitate the passage of stranded cargo ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
Simultaneously, the U.S. leader mentioned “positive negotiations” with Tehran but warned that any obstruction to “Project Freedom” would meet with “decisive resistance.”
Brent crude oil is trading around $107 per barrel, while WTI is at $101.
Institutional Demand
Another supportive factor is the ongoing inflow into U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs, which have seen inflows for five consecutive weeks.
In April, these instruments attracted $1.97 billion—the highest amount since October 2025.
Analyst known as Darkfost also pointed out the increased activity of large players. Amid the rally of the leading cryptocurrency, the whale inflow ratio on Binance rose to 0.51.
🗞️ Whale Inflows activity resurfaces as Bitcoin pushes higher.
— Darkfost (@Darkfost_Coc) May 4, 2026
Since February 6, Bitcoin has posted a performance of around +32%, largely driven by derivatives market dynamics.
However, the macroeconomic environment has not materially improved in recent months.
The escalation… pic.twitter.com/NtzdWkMTWu
It’s worth noting that CryptoQuant specialists considered April’s Bitcoin rise to be speculative. Over the month, the price of digital gold increased by nearly 12%.