Bitcoin’s recent slide has exposed an uncomfortable gap in its price structure - one that could matter far more than short-term sentiment.
Instead of treating the $70,000-$80,000 area as a natural support zone, crypto analyst James Van Straten argues it is one of the least developed price regions Bitcoin has ever traded through. In simple terms, the market never really built a foundation there.
Key Takeaways
The $70,000-$80,000 Bitcoin range has very little historical price consolidation.
Bitcoin moved through higher levels too quickly to build strong support.
CME futures data shows far fewer trading days in this zone than lower ranges.
On-chain data suggests limited holder cost basis in the $70K-$80K area.
Bitcoin moved too fast at higher levels
When Bitcoin surged to new highs earlier this year, it didn’t linger. Price discovery happened rapidly, with the market accelerating through upper levels instead of consolidating. That speed now matters, because markets tend to fall back toward areas where trading history is thin.
After topping out in October, Bitcoin spent much of December oscillating above $80,000 before slipping lower. That move brought it into a band that looks solid psychologically, but weak structurally.
Futures data reveals missing support
Van Straten reviewed five years of CME Bitcoin futures data to map where Bitcoin actually spent time trading. The contrast across price levels is stark.
Between $70,000 and $79,999, Bitcoin logged just 28 trading sessions. Even the $80,000-$89,999 range saw fewer than 50 sessions. These numbers are tiny compared with lower ranges, where Bitcoin spent hundreds of days grinding sideways.
For example, the $30,000-$50,000 zone acted as a long-term battleground across 2023 and 2024, allowing buyers and sellers to repeatedly test those levels. That repetition is what turns a price into support.
On-chain data confirms the imbalance
The lack of structure is not limited to futures markets. On-chain data tells a similar story.
According to Glassnode, the UTXO Realized Price Distribution shows very little Bitcoin supply last changed hands in the $70,000-$80,000 range. That means relatively few holders have a cost basis there.
When prices revisit such zones, there are fewer natural buyers defending their entry points, increasing the risk of volatility.
Why this range now matters
Van Straten’s takeaway is not that Bitcoin must collapse, but that skipping consolidation has consequences. Strong trends are often built on boring price action – long periods where markets pause, absorb supply, and establish balance.
If Bitcoin continues correcting, the $70,000-$80,000 region may need time to evolve from a pass-through zone into a true base. Without that process, any attempt to push higher could struggle to hold.
Structure before direction
From a technical perspective, the next phase may be less about direction and more about patience. Bitcoin has already proven it can reach higher prices. What it hasn’t proven yet is that those levels are stable.
According to Van Straten’s analysis, whether Bitcoin can slow down and build support where little exists today may determine how durable the next leg of the cycle ultimately becomes.
At the time of writing BTC is trading around $88,500.
