Bitcoin rose 22.7% over the week of August 17–23, climbing from around $63,000 to $77,387. During the rally, the price reached nearly $79,000. The weekly gain of $14,264 was the largest dollar-denominated increase in Bitcoin’s history, while the percentage gain was the strongest since March 2023.
Institutional Demand
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $1.92 B in net inflows for the trading week ended August 21, marking their largest weekly inflow since October 2025. Spot Ethereum ETFs attracted another $697 M, bringing combined inflows into both fund categories to around $2.6 B.
Positive flows continued across all five trading days. On August 20, Bitcoin ETFs attracted $606 M, their largest single-day inflow since early May.
Short Liquidations
Bitcoin’s sharp rise was accompanied by a massive wave of short liquidations. More than $4 B worth of short positions were liquidated over two days. On Thursday alone, around $3 B in short positions were closed, the largest one-day figure since 2021. Over the following 24 hours, the market liquidated another roughly $1.2 B in shorts.
Each forced closure required a buy order, adding further upward pressure on the price and triggering another wave of liquidations.
Strategy Returns to Profit
Bitcoin’s rise above $75,400 pushed Strategy’s Bitcoin holdings back into unrealized profit. The company holds 840,447 BTC, acquired at an average price of $75,385 per coin.
With Bitcoin closing the week at around $77,400, the value of its holdings exceeded their combined cost basis by roughly $1.7 B. During the move toward $79,400, unrealized gains temporarily approached $3.4 B.
Market Sentiment
The Fear and Greed Index rose to 78, its highest level since December 2024. After the sharp move higher, Bitcoin moved into consolidation around $77,000, while the market experienced another wave of long liquidations over the weekend.
The week ended with Bitcoin setting a new all-time record for its largest weekly dollar gain while also posting its strongest percentage performance in more than three years.