Bitcoin (BTC) price slips, but BTC dominance is on the rise.

Sizable purchases by Strategy and the spot BTC ETFs highlight institutional investors' appetite for Bitcoin.

Bitcoin (BTC) price slipped further on Friday, extending losses for a third straight day as it struggled to break above $97,900. Some traders were disappointed that even strong institutional inflows were not enough to keep bullish momentum going. However, several encouraging signs suggest a new all-time high for the token in 2025 could still be in the making.

Here are some of the key takeaways for the past week:

Bitcoin dominance rises above 70% amid slew of new tokens

Bitcoin’s dominance over the broader cryptocurrency market surged to 70%, its highest level since January 2021. This happened despite a wave of new token launches, including several top-50 projects like SUI, Toncoin (TON), PI, Official Trump (TRUMP), Bittensor (TAO), Ethena (ENA), and Celestia (TIA).

Such high dominance lessens the appeal of riskier altcoins for new market entrants, especially as they are juggling several macroeconomic concerns like the US-China trade war, global inflation, and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Meanwhile, the spot Bitcoin ETFs saw net inflows of $4.5 billion between April 22 and May 2. At the same time, the increasing appetite for Bitcoin futures signaled growing institutional adoption, regardless of whether the leverage was used for downside protection or bullish bets.

According to CoinGlass, the total open interest in Bitcoin futures markets reached 669,090 BTC, a 21% increase since March 5. Even after Bitcoin’s price crashed to below $75,000 in early April, demand for leveraged positions remained strong. The open interest in BTC futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) alone exceeded $13.5 billion, showcasing substantial institutional demand.

What’s hindering BTC price recovery?

Several factors explain why Bitcoin struggled to break above $100,000 again. Traders who bought the token in anticipation of the US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill on March 6 grew increasingly frustrated as the government never disclosed its BTC holdings or announced plans for further purchases.

Moreover, similar state-level Bitcoin bills kept failing, with the latest setback occurring in the US state of Arizona. A bill that would have allowed state agencies to invest a portion of their funds in Bitcoin was ultimately voted down by members of the House Appropriations Committee on May 4.

The lack of government action amid a nearly 40% correction in Bitcoin price from its record highs in late 2024 pushed several institutional investors to reduce their exposure to crypto. At the same time, the lack of new capital for Saylor’s Strategy was another factor that traders kept highlighting.

After rumors swirled for months about a capital increase, Strategy announced plans to sell up to $1 billion in convertible preferred stock to raise capital. However, Strategy later doubled its plans, announcing an $84 billion capital increase to fund further Bitcoin purchases.

Since investors were previously uncertain about Strategy’s ability to mobilize additional capital, the announcement of a large-scale plan reduced some of this risk.

Is a new all-time high in 2025 still possible?

Over the past three months, gold outperformed most assets, rising 16%, while Bitcoin slipped 5% and the S&P 500 corrected by 6.5%. This challenged the narrative of Bitcoin being an uncorrelated asset as the cryptocurrency failed to decouple from the S&P 500 amid rising economic risks. The global trade war pushed investors to favor fixed-income assets and cash positions.

Bitcoin’s recent drop to $94,000 was particularly noteworthy given that Strategy, a US-listed company, announced the acquisition of 1,895 BTC on May 5.

Nevertheless, the key elements for a BTC bull run above $100,000 appear to be in place.