06.04.2026 05:17

Bitcoin surged by roughly 3 percent on Monday, climbing to $69,120—the highest level it has reached in more than a week. Traders emerging from the Easter break were buoyed by growing optimism that a cease‑fire could soon be negotiated in Iran, a development that forced short sellers to cover roughly $196 million of positions in the last 24 hours.

Ethereum led the rally among the top altcoins, jumping 3.7 percent to $2,130, its most impressive daily gain in the past week. Solana followed with a 2 percent rise to $82, while XRP and Dogecoin added 2.2 percent and 1.7 percent, reaching $1.34 and $0.093 respectively. The broad-based upturn lifted the total cryptocurrency market capitalization back above the $2.5 trillion mark.

The immediate catalyst was an Axios report indicating that the United States, Iran, and a coalition of regional mediators were discussing a potential 45‑day cease‑fire that might eventually end the six‑week conflict. Further relief came from news that additional vessels had successfully navigated the Strait of Hormuz, even as former President Trump threatened to target Iranian power plants beginning Tuesday.

Liquidation figures reveal how the market entered the weekend. Out of $273.8 million in 24‑hour liquidations across 81,819 traders, short positions accounted for $196.7 million, while longs absorbed $77.1 million—an almost 3‑to‑1 ratio that shows a heavy bearish bias before the break. The biggest single loss was a $10.17 million ETH‑USDT short on Binance. Bitcoin’s price swung between $66,634 and $69,350, a $2,700 range that snapped the most vulnerable short bets.

Data from Santiment over the weekend indicated that social‑media sentiment had become the most negative since the war began, with five bearish posts for every four bullish ones. In line with the crypto market’s tendency to rebound sharply from extreme pessimism, that dour sentiment set the stage for the pronounced bounce witnessed on Monday.