After a week full of turbulence, the cryptocurrency market seems to have taken a deep breath. The Fear and Greed Index has been recorded at 51 — a rare neutral zone, indicating that the forces of bulls and bears are nearly balanced.

Market Sentiment: From Fear to Neutrality — Why This Is a Crucial Signal

This is a delicate balance of expectations, where the market could swing either way. Bitcoin's dominance at 63.1% further highlights that, in times of uncertainty, the first cryptocurrency remains the anchor for capital.

Meanwhile, the total market capitalization has approached the $3 trillion mark, fueling speculation about the imminent start of a new bull cycle. Fund inflows into crypto ETFs are steadily rising, and a positive news backdrop makes a continuation of the upward trend possible in the coming weeks.

Bitcoin Moves Up Confidently While Altcoins Remain in the Shadows

Amid renewed interest in the crypto market, Bitcoin is demonstrating steady growth and is trading around $94,752.18, up 0.58%. Among the few exceptions in the altcoin market are Solana, which rose by 2.04% to $151.42, and XRP, surprising even skeptics with a sharp 7.38% jump to $2.3376.

Ethereum, by contrast, slightly declined by 0.13%, despite explosive implied volatility at 72.52 — significantly higher than Bitcoin's (50.49).

The rise in expectations for sharp movements on the ETH platform could signal an upcoming volatile season for altcoins, but for now, the Altcoin Season Index remains low at 16 out of 100, indicating Bitcoin's continued dominance. Some individual projects like Binance Coin are growing, but a broad altcoin season is not yet visible.

Derivatives in Play: Should We Expect Explosive Volatility?

Open interest in perpetual contracts has reached an impressive $509.37 billion, and futures volumes have risen to $3.21 billion. At the same time, the Volmex Implied Volatility Index is strengthening the signal for expected sharp movements, especially regarding Ethereum.

Increasing activity in the derivatives market typically precedes powerful breakouts or dramatic collapses. Judging by current investor sentiment, the bet is on the former: positive trends in spot fund inflows and overall market capitalization recovery suggest that the market is preparing for a new upward surge.

Crypto ETFs Flooded with Money: The Second Wave of Institutional Interest Begins

Since April 21, crypto ETFs have received $484.1 million, and total inflows into crypto investment products over the past week have reached $3.4 billion — the highest figure since December 2024 and the third-largest in history.

And this is more than just statistics. These inflows symbolize a profound shift in institutional investor sentiment, with digital assets again being seen as an alternative to gold and a hedge against the devaluation of the U.S. dollar.

U.S.-based Bitcoin ETFs have become the primary beneficiaries of this new wave of investments: American Bitcoin ETFs attracted more than $3 billion in a week, with BlackRock's IBIT fund accumulating half of all new investments.

This allowed the total assets under management to rise to $132 billion — a level last seen in February 2025.

Bitcoin Gathers Momentum: Is a New All-Time High Near?

Against this backdrop, Bitcoin is confidently breaking new ground. After rising more than 8% in a week, the price has closely approached $95,000, putting the long-awaited $100,000 milestone within reach.

But how realistic are these expectations? Forecasts from major market players provide a clear answer.

Standard Chartered Forecast: Bitcoin at $120,000 as Early as This Summer

In its latest study led by Geoff Kendrick, Standard Chartered makes a decisive bet: Bitcoin will set new all-time highs in the second quarter of 2025.

Kendrick explains this with the following factors:

• Redistribution of U.S. capital towards digital assets,
• Growing inflows into Bitcoin ETFs,
• Active accumulation of BTC by large players (whales).

According to their forecast, Bitcoin will reach $120,000 in the coming months and could double to $200,000 by year-end.

The key catalyst for this new rally, Kendrick notes, is institutional investment: the reallocation of funds from gold to Bitcoin is becoming the new norm for corporate and private portfolios.

Whales Accumulating Bitcoin: The Hidden Driver of Future Growth

Glassnode data confirms that since early 2025, nearly 100 new large Bitcoin holders (with more than 1,000 BTC per wallet) have appeared in the market. This is a clear signal of growing interest from major players in the first cryptocurrency.

In previous years, whales' mass accumulation of Bitcoin often preceded prolonged periods of growth. Although the identities of the new investors remain unknown, analysts agree that such scales of accumulation would be impossible without strong support from institutional money.

At the time of publication, Bitcoin was trading at $95,434.38. It has gained 15.94% over the past 30 days and is dominating the market with a 63.29% share.

Conclusion: A New All-Time High Is a Question of "When," Not "If"

Analyzing the comprehensive data—from ETF inflows and derivatives activity to whale behavior—it becomes clear that the market is preparing for a new rally stage.

In the short term, technical corrections are possible, but the strategic trend for Bitcoin remains upward.

If the current momentum continues, reaching $100,000 is within reach in the coming weeks, and the $120,000 and even $200,000 levels by 2025 look less like an ambitious dream and more like a realistic target.