Bitcoin was above $82,000 in the prior business week before a sharp rejection pushed it down by more than $7,000 to a monthly low of $75,000 overnight. The pullback has been attributed to potential sell-side flows to exchanges, macro uncertainty tied to the incoming Fed chair, and renewed worries around U.S.–Iran military escalation.

Over the past 24 hours, crypto markets turned broadly lower as total capitalization fell more than 2% to about $2.53 trillion, triggering $574.28 million in liquidations with roughly 90% from long positions. Bitcoin slid about 3% into the $75,000 area, erasing around $55 billion in market cap, while Ether dropped 4%. The move followed the SEC's delay of a tokenized stock trading exemption framework and Kevin Warsh being sworn in as the new Federal Reserve chair.

Strategy chairman Michael Saylor said the firm could sell some Bitcoin between now and the end of 2026, marking a shift from his earlier "never sell" messaging. He said Strategy is running programmatic models and managing equity, credit, and cash with the aim of maximizing Bitcoin per share by 2033.

Bitcoin fell back under $78,000 after failing near recent range highs, and Glassnode says options positioning still points to caution. The data highlights lower implied volatility, persistent demand for downside hedges, and a short-gamma area around the mid-$75,000s that could intensify weakness if price drifts lower. BTC was last noted at $76,744 at press time.

Bitcoin slid on Friday evening to $75,120, posting a 2.8% daily drop and extending weekly losses to about 5%. In the past 24 hours, long liquidations hit $209 million versus $4.7 million for shorts, while total crypto liquidations reached $577.9 million. Spot bitcoin ETFs also saw $36.29 million in outflows during Friday's session.

Bitcoin derivatives positioning is rebuilding after an roughly eight-month deleveraging stretch, as Binance futures open interest moved back above its 180-day moving average. The shift was flagged by CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost, who said the contraction started after the October 10 event and later began to reverse in early May. BTC was trading at $77,479 at press time.

Kevin Warsh was sworn in as Federal Reserve chair on May 22, completing the leadership handoff after Jerome Powell's chair term ended May 15. The FOMC also unanimously chose Warsh to lead its rate-setting committee, following Senate confirmations on May 12 and May 13 that set his chair term through May 21, 2030, and his Board term through Jan. 31, 2040.

Bitcoin is trading below $80,000 and hovering around the $77,000 area after failing to hold above a recent $82,000 high. XWIN Research Japan argues that Kevin Warsh's takeover as Federal Reserve Chair could shift the policy backdrop and points to the Coinbase Premium, exchange netflows, and leverage conditions as early indicators of how institutional demand and risk appetite may react.