Bitcoin Surges 10% to $109,000 on Institutional Inflows and Bullish Sentiment

Investors have placed significant bets on Bitcoin following its recent record high, with the cryptocurrency surging past $109,000. This surge has been driven by a combination of factors, including rising investor confidence, institutional inflows, and bullish sentiment. The latest price increase has pushed Bitcoin's market capitalization to $2.1 trillion, marking a new all-time high for the cryptocurrency.

Prediction markets users are wagering millions of dollars on if and when Bitcoin will smash its latest price record. Many traders across various platforms believe the token will hit at least $115,000 at some point this year. According to a Polymarket contract, Bitcoin has a 93% chance of hitting $110,000 by the end of May, while the odds it climbs to $115,000 or even $125,000 sit at 49% and 8%, respectively. Bettors assessed the token’s likelihood of hitting $150,000 or $200,000 at roughly 1%.

US-based users also gambled on Bitcoin’s future price action, pouring roughly $3.5 million into a contract on the token’s year-end price. That betting pool shows Bitcoin has a more than 70% chance of hitting $125,000 by the end of 2025. The cryptocurrency’s odds of rising above $150,000 or $160,000, however, were much slimmer, resting at 37% and 31%, respectively. Meanwhile, crypto-native trading platform shows there is a 21.4% chance that Bitcoin will rise above $115,000 by the end of May 25. The market went live on Wednesday, a few hours after Bitcoin reached its latest high.

The rally in Bitcoin's price has been fueled by several key factors. Firstly, there has been a notable increase in institutional participation, with spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) seeing inflows of approximately $329 million on May 20. This influx of institutional capital has contributed to the upward momentum in Bitcoin's price. Additionally, the market has seen a significant withdrawal of liquidity from exchanges since late 2024, making the market thinner and more reactive to price movements. This low-liquidity environment has created conditions for explosive price movements, both upward and downward.

Dr. Kirill Kretov from CoinPanel attributed the recent price surge to a combination of rising leverage among traders and growing institutional inflows via ETFs and private deals. He noted that the Open Interest (OI) in BTC is pushing toward all-time highs, indicating elevated leverage in the system. This increased leverage raises the probability of violent liquidation events, which can drive significant price movements. However, Dr. Kretov cautioned that uncertainty remains high, and big players are not chasing price but rather extracting profits from volatility.

The surge in Bitcoin's price has also been accompanied by bullish sentiment among investors. Michael Saylor, whose company Strategy holds over 570,000 Bitcoin, has stated that not buying BTC at its all-time high is missing out on an opportunity. This sentiment is echoed by other analysts who predict that Bitcoin could rise to as high as $300,000 by June. The bullish outlook is further supported by the fact that Bitcoin's previous high of around $108,000 was hit earlier this year following President Donald Trump’s inauguration, indicating a strong historical precedent for price appreciation.

The rally in Bitcoin's price has also been driven by broader market trends, including a tariff truce and increased liquidity in the market. These factors have contributed to a rally that has lifted prices by about 6% in the past week, extending the upward momentum in Bitcoin's price. The cryptocurrency's price has been trading around $109,369, reflecting the strong bullish sentiment and institutional participation in the market.

In summary, the recent surge in Bitcoin's price to a new all-time high has been driven by a combination of factors, including rising investor confidence, institutional inflows, and bullish sentiment. The low-liquidity environment and elevated leverage in the market have created conditions for explosive price movements, both upward and downward. While uncertainty remains high, the bullish outlook for Bitcoin's price is supported by strong historical precedents and institutional participation in the market.