Bitcoin (BTC) shrugged off Strategy's largest Bitcoin sale to date this week, recovering to trade near $64,000 even as Michael Saylor signaled more disposals could follow. The muted reaction marks a shift from earlier this year, when a similar move by the world's biggest corporate Bitcoin holder triggered sharp selling across the market.
Top Regulated Brokers
Bitcoin's Most Famous Holder is Now a Seller
Strategy confirmed it sold 3,588 BTC for roughly $216 million between June 29 and July 5, using the proceeds to fund dividends on its preferred stock and top up its cash reserve, which stood at $2.55 billion. The sale came in below the company's $75,476 average cost basis, and it followed a newly disclosed "BTC Monetization Program" that authorizes up to $1.25 billion in Bitcoin sales, roughly 20,000-21,000 BTC at current prices, to keep the dividend machine running.
Strategy sells $216M in BTC. Source: Michael Saylor
This is the pattern that has investors watching closely: a company that built its entire identity on "never sell" is now treating small, programmatic sales as a normal cash-management tool. Yet the market's response tells a different story than the last time this happened. When Strategy sold just 32 BTC in late May, Bitcoin fell sharply, from roughly $74,000 to under $58,000, as traders read it as a symbolic break from Saylor's doctrine. This time, the BTC/USD pair dipped only briefly before climbing back above $64,000.
BTC/USD 1-hour chart. Source: TradingView
Several factors explain the bulls’ shake off. First, the sale is tiny next to Strategy's 843,775 BTC treasury, about 4% of total supply, so it isn't a signal that the company is unwinding its position.
Second, the move had already been flagged via the June 29 filing, removing much of the surprise. Third, Bernstein analyst Gautam Chhugani has argued that Strategy remains a net buyer overall this year, acting as a stabilizing force even as ETF demand weakened.
Strategy "continues to be a net buyer in the market," analyst Gautam Chhugani wrote in a note on Monday, adding:
“Strategy's Bitcoin buying has been a balancing force in the market where leading U.S. Bitcoin miners have been net sellers as they accelerate their pivot to AI data centers.”
Finally, over $450 million in short liquidations hit the market this week, forcing bearish traders to cover and mechanically pushing BTC price higher, an effect that tends to amplify recoveries once selling pressure fades.
US-Based Spot Bitcoin ETFs Flip Positive
The other pillar behind Bitcoin's bounce is the ETF market. After a brutal stretch that saw ten straight days of outflows totaling $2.73 billion, US-based spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a $221.7 million inflow on July 2, their strongest single session in two months. Fidelity's FBTC led the rebound, while BlackRock's IBIT continued bleeding, suggesting rotation rather than a broad return of confidence. A further $265.7 million of inflows followed on Monday, coinciding with Bitcoin's push to above $64,000.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs flows chart. Source: SoSoValue
History offers a useful comparison: earlier this year, a $753 million single-day inflow snapped a shorter four-day outflow streak and helped stabilize the price back above $98,000 in mid-January.
The mechanism is mechanical rather than sentimental, since redemptions force institutional investors to sell spot Bitcoin, and creations force them to buy it, with flow-driven activity estimated to explain close to 45% of weekly price swings this year. That is why even a modest reversal matters more than its dollar size suggests.
Still, caution is warranted. Year-to-date outflows remain near $5.4 billion, and analysts note that a single positive session doesn't offset months of redemptions. The test now is whether inflows persist through the coming weeks, particularly around the July 28-29 Federal Reserve meeting and the mid-July inflation print, both of which could swing rate-hike expectations and, with them, ETF flows.
Bitcoin MACD Sends a Bullish Signal
Momentum indicators are adding to the case for a near-term floor. Bitcoin's MACD has produced a bullish crossover, with analyst Frank Fetter noting the MACD line has crossed above its signal line, typically read as a shift toward positive momentum. The hourly MACD improved further after the short squeeze, and even the three-day MACD is inching toward a bullish cross.
Bitcoin’s MACD flips positive. Source: X/Frank Fetter
That said, traders are urged to exercise caution. Past cycles show weekly MACD crossovers can appear well before an actual market bottom forms, sometimes preceding further drawdowns rather than confirming a reversal. The BTC/USD pair still trades below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, with the 50-day near $65,500 acting as the key level bulls need to reclaim to validate the bullish case.
My Take on Bitcoin
Taken together, the fading sell-off reaction to Strategy's sale, the tentative return of ETF inflows, and the emerging MACD bullish cross paint a market that has stopped panicking but hasn't yet confirmed a durable turn. For now, $63,000 remains the line bulls are defending, and holding it is the prerequisite for any move back toward the $65,000-$67,000 zone.
Ready to trade our analysis of Bitcoin and Strategy? Here’s our list of the best MT4 crypto brokers worth reviewing.