Bitcoin’s recent rally pushed the cryptocurrency to retest the $122,000 level before facing a pullback. At the time of writing, BTC is trading at approximately $119,053, marking a short-term correction after reclaiming significant highs earlier in the week.

The move comes as traders and analysts watch closely for signs of market strength or weakness at current price levels. One metric drawing attention is Binance’s share of global trading volume.

According to CryptoQuant analyst BorisVest, the exchange’s dominance in trading activity provides valuable context for interpreting Bitcoin’s performance at all-time highs (ATHs).

By comparing volume distribution across exchanges during previous ATH periods, the analysis seeks to determine whether the broader market is participating in the rally or if activity is concentrated on a single platform.

Related Reading

Bitcoin Exchange Volume Concentration and Market Signals

BorisVest’s review found that during the first ATH in 2024, global market volumes were elevated, and Binance’s trading activity was more than double that of all other exchanges combined.

When Bitcoin retested its ATH later that year, overall market volumes increased across multiple platforms, yet Binance maintained its lead in total trading share.

In contrast, when Bitcoin set a new record in mid-2025, total market volume did not show a significant increase compared to previous rallies. While Binance still recorded nearly twice the trading volume of other exchanges combined, the absence of a wider market volume expansion raised concerns.

The analyst noted that historically, ATHs supported by broad volume growth tend to indicate stronger market conviction. A lack of participation from other exchanges could signal potential challenges in sustaining higher prices over the coming months.

On-Chain Patterns Suggest Gradual Market Progress

In a separate assessment, CryptoQuant analyst Avocado onchain examined Binary Coin Days Destroyed (CDD), a metric tracking the movement of long-dormant coins. The indicator recently turned lower after a brief rise, with Bitcoin’s price trading within a sideways range.

Historically, increases in Binary CDD have been linked to selling pressure from long-term holders, often leading to corrections. However, current market conditions, shaped by changes in custody solutions, over-the-counter trading activity, and institutional investment strategies, make interpreting CDD spikes more complex.

Avocado onchain highlighted that in recent cycles, Binary CDD rises have been followed by either prolonged sideways trading or moderate corrections.

The current data supports what the analyst describes as a “stair-step” rally, where the market advances gradually while cooling short-term speculative activity. This pattern, if sustained, could prevent rapid depletion of buying momentum and allow for more stable long-term growth.

Related Reading

Other on-chain data suggests that selling from long-term holders remains subdued, indicating limited pressure to exit positions at current price levels.

This aligns with the view that while near-term movements may be range-bound, the broader trend still holds the potential for future upside, contingent on broader participation and sustained investor demand.

Featured image created with DALL-E, Chart from TradingView

Bitcoin’s USD spot market posted a coordinated 3.65% gain over the past 24 hours, with trading activity dominated by Coinbase and price moves unfolding in lockstep across the major USD venues.

The session analyzed by CryptoSlate, on Aug. 11, 09:40 CEST, provides a clear look at where USD liquidity sits and how it shapes the flow of the market.

Coinbase, Kraken, Bitstamp, and Binance’s BTCUSD pair saw a combined $981.93 million in rolling 24-hour USD volume.

These four exchanges capture the core of Bitcoin’s USD spot market. Binance is the largest exchange globally in terms of total crypto volume, but most of its trading is in USDT and other stablecoin pairs, while Coinbase, Kraken, and Bitstamp handle the bulk of direct USD volume.

Including Binance’s BTCUSD pair alongside the three USD-heavy venues gives a fuller picture of price formation and liquidity in the dollar-denominated segment of the market.

Coinbase handled the bulk of this with $544.47 million, more than half the total. Kraken followed with $207.70 million, Bitstamp with $174.86 million, and Binance trailed with $54.90 million. This imbalance means the center of gravity for USD price discovery rests firmly with Coinbase.

Most large trades in this market will either pass through Coinbase directly or anchor their pricing to it. Kraken and Bitstamp add meaningful secondary depth, while Binance’s USD pair plays a minor role compared to its much larger USDT markets.

Prices across the four moved together, showing a strong, consistent upward push. Coinbase ended the period at $121,782.48, up 3.53%. Kraken closed at $121,762.00, up 3.49%, Bitstamp at $121,763.00, up 3.50%, and Binance at $121,598.17, up 4.10%.

The equal-weighted average price across the venues climbed from $117,435.57 to $121,726.41. Daily ranges were wide but orderly: Binance led with a $5,388.18 swing (4.62%), while Bitstamp and Coinbase both moved about $4,679 (3.98%), and Kraken’s range was $4,571.70 (3.89%).

The spark for the day’s rally hit at 04:00 CEST, when all four venues recorded their largest five-minute session gains. Prices at that moment were separated by just $113.62 from top to bottom, a sign of how closely aligned the books were when the move began.

The synchronized nature of the spike tells us that a broad catalyst affected prices, rather than a single exchange leading and the rest following.

Even in a clean uptrend, the differences between venues matter. The median spread between the highest and lowest quotes in the sample was $678.40, with a 95th percentile of $917.04. Binance’s median deviation from the average price was 42 basis points, far greater than Kraken’s 11.6 bps or Bitstamp’s and Coinbase’s ~14 bps.

That gap is more than a quirk of the data; it affects execution costs. Traders routing across all venues without price filters risk paying hundreds of dollars more per Bitcoin than necessary if they hit the wrong side of a broader market.

These liquidity patterns have knock-on effects. With so much USD flow running through Coinbase, its order book naturally acts as a reference point. Price moves there tend to ripple outward, influencing quotes on other venues, especially those that rely on aggregated feeds.

Kraken and Bitstamp, with their tighter alignment to Coinbase, reinforce the core USD price. Binance’s wider deviation in its USD pair means it sometimes moves to its own rhythm, which could be linked to internal order flow or spillover from its larger USDT markets.

Realized volatility over the 24 hours averaged 1.66% across venues. Coinbase saw the highest at 1.71%, followed by Bitstamp at 1.70%, Binance at 1.66%, and Kraken at 1.58%. The volatility figures fit the price ranges: steady upward motion rather than chaotic swings. That environment benefits traders looking to work large orders over time, but the venue-by-venue pricing differences remain a key factor in minimizing costs.

The day’s low across the sample was $116,749.76, and the high was $122,308.00, framing the session’s battlefield. The rise from bottom to top was steady and broad-based, the kind of move where spot and derivatives markets tend to reinforce each other.

The lack of sharp retracements suggests the buying was persistent enough to absorb profit-taking along the way.

Looking at this distribution, the state of the USD Bitcoin market is clear: one dominant venue sets the pace, while others help anchor the price. This means execution quality depends on knowing where the real liquidity is and which books stay closest to the market’s core.

A run like this, with a clean 24-hour rally and relatively tight clustering between large exchanges, shows efficient price discovery in action.

If these patterns hold, Coinbase’s role as the USD price hub will not be challenged soon. Kraken and Bitstamp will remain important for diversification and redundancy in pricing.

The post Coinbase held the majority of USD trading volume as BTC spiked to $122k appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Bitcoin

bulls mounted a fresh challenge to a crucial resistance level as traders looked forward to U.S. inflation data.

The top cryptocurrency rose to $122,056, testing the 1.618% Fibonacci extension originating from the 2018 bear market low and the 2022 bear market low. The 1.618% extension is derived from the “golden ratio,” a revered mathematical constant in finance, which is widely found in nature and art. Many believe it also influences human psychology and market movements.

This is the bulls’ second attempt to scale the key resistance levels. They previously penetrated the same last month, but failed to sustain gains, which ultimately led to a price pullback to lows under $112,000.

A successful hold above the “golden ratio” would cement expectations for a rally toward $140,000, the most popular call option strike on the crypto derivatives exchange Deribit. As of writing, the $140,000 call boasted a notional open interest of over $3 billion, according to data source Deribit Metrics.

However, if the bulls fail to hold their ground for a second time, it would suggest the buying pressure is insufficient, potentially yielding a deeper correction.

As of writing, BTC changed hands at $122,000, having hit a high of $122,171 during the early Asian trading hours, according to CoinDesk data.

Focus on U.S. inflation

Data due Tuesday is expected to show that the impact of Trump’s tariffs crept into inflation in July, lifting price pressures in the economy.

The core consumer price index, which strips out volatile food and energy costs, is likely to have risen 0.3% in July, according to the median projection in a Bloomberg survey of economists. In June, the core CPI increased by 0.2% from the previous month.

A hotter-than-expected inflation print may trigger market volatility, but it is unlikely to deter the Fed from cutting rates in September, according to Marc Chandler, chief market strategist at Bannockburn Global Forex. In other words, the dollar’s downtrend could continue after the CPI report, boding well for risk assets, including cryptocurrencies.

“With U.S. interest rates still at the lower end of their ranges, despite a soft reception at the U.S. refunding last week, we suspect the market is vulnerable to what may prove to be the third consecutive monthly increase in the year-over-year headline and core CPI. After the report, we suspect the dollar’s downtrend can resume,” Chandler said in the market report on Sunday.

He explained that July’s weak jobs report was a significant turning point that raised bets for a Fed rate cut, ending the dollar’s counter-trend recovery rally.

Read more: Ether Volatility Spikes on Rally as Bitcoin Edges Back Toward Record Highs