Bitcoin slipped toward $64,000 on Tuesday after a fourth failed attempt to hold above $65,000, though the cryptocurrency remains marginally higher on the week. Ether and XRP led losses among major tokens as broader market sentiment stayed subdued.

Price Action

Bitcoin reached a 24-hour high just above $65,300 before sliding through the Asian trading session. Ether fell over 2% to $1,878, and XRP dropped nearly 2% to $1.01 — the worst weekly performer among major tokens at minus 6%. Solana edged under 1% lower to $76 but leads the week with a 3% gain. BNB held at $600 with a 2% weekly advance.

Three majors moved against the trend. Hyperliquid's HYPE rose almost 2% to $55, tron gained slightly to 33 cents, and dogecoin was marginally higher at 7 cents.

The crypto sentiment index sits at 30, firmly in the "fear" zone, where it has remained since mid-July.

Whale Accumulation

Despite the weak price action, on-chain data shows large holders continuing to accumulate. The number of wallets holding at least 10,000 BTC has climbed to 90, a six-month high, according to analytics firm Santiment. That represents a 7.1% increase over eight weeks.

Since July 29, wallets in the 10 to 10,000 BTC range have added approximately $1.5 billion worth of bitcoin. Meanwhile, smaller "micro" wallets have been shrinking throughout August — a divergence Santiment attributes to the Coldcard hardware wallet exploit and continued delays to the Clarity Act legislation in the U.S. Senate.

This pattern of supply rotating from smaller holders to large investors has historically preceded major price moves.

What's Next

Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, noted that bitcoin has tested $65,000 for four straight days without a surge in buying, but also without significant selling — which he interprets as a buildup of short positions above that level rather than profit-taking.

The key level to watch is $70,000, where bitcoin's 200-day moving average sits. Clearing that threshold would put bitcoin above the range where buyers and sellers contested through March and April.

Broader markets are providing little tailwind. U.S. 10-year Treasury yields rose six basis points on Monday to 4.71%. Brent crude held at $87.73 after a 5% jump following renewed geopolitical tensions with Iran. Gold rose for a third session above $4,400 an ounce.

U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs took in $865 million across five sessions through August 7, before a provisional outflow of $91 million on Monday. Wednesday's U.S. CPI inflation report will be the next major data point for rate-sensitive assets.