Bitcoin faced renewed pressure after U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs posted $635 million in net outflows on May 13, alongside liquidations of about $77.95 million in BTC long positions over the past 24 hours. Finbold’s machine-learning forecast averages $79,264 for Friday, May 22, 2026, versus a stated current price of $79,920, while traders watch whether BTC can regain $80,800 as a key near-term level.

Marathon Digital Holdings (MARA) has reportedly sold about $1.5 billion in Bitcoin, offloading roughly 20,880 BTC at an average price near $70,137 per coin, and said it will not buy additional mining hardware as it shifts focus toward AI infrastructure. The company's Bitcoin holdings were described as falling from 38,689 BTC to about 35,303 BTC, with proceeds used to repurchase convertible notes and reduce total debt from $3.3 billion to $2.3 billion.

Bitcoin's weekly chart is being read as entering a redistribution zone after earlier distribution and range phases. The same three-stage structure appeared after the 2021 peak and preceded a steep decline, while BTC was cited at $79,800 at the time of writing. The analysis argues a repeat of a 78% drop from current levels would imply prices below $25,000, though it says any move is not guaranteed.

Bitcoin broke below $80,000 after hotter-than-expected US inflation data and briefly dipped to $78,725 before rebounding to around $79,500. The move has concentrated leverage near $78,000, where a further drop could trigger about $1 billion in long liquidations, while a rebound toward $80,458 could put roughly $640 million of shorts at risk. Spot demand indicators have softened alongside reported spot Bitcoin ETF outflows of more than $800 million this week.

Bitcoin’s monthly chart showed BTC at $79,246, up 3.80% with 13 days left in the candle, after trading between $76,320 and a May high of $82,850. Bulls are focused on the long-term rising channel and the monthly SMA50 at $58,969 holding, while a separate Head and Shoulders read targets roughly $59,000 if the neckline retest fails. The next monthly close is framed around $83,000 to negate that bearish setup or below $76,320 to reinforce it.

On May 14, 2026, Bitcoin slipped under $80,000 as the U.S. April PPI came in at +6.0% and President Donald Trump met Xi Jinping in Beijing alongside executives including Elon Musk and Jensen Huang. The same day, the U.S. Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair by a 54–45 vote, while the Senate Banking Committee began marking up the Clarity Act.

U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a $635 million net outflow on Wednesday, coinciding with a broader risk-off move after hawkish messaging from the Bank of Japan. Bitcoin slid more than 2% over 24 hours to $79,400, while the pullback was accompanied by over $500 million in crypto liquidations and pushed five-day ETF net outflows to $1.26 billion.

On May 13, Bitcoin fell through $80,000 and printed an intraday low of $78,759.70 while the S&P 500 set a fresh all-time high. The same session saw QQQ rise 1.06% and Nvidia gain 2.84%, highlighting a rally concentrated in cash-flowing megacaps rather than liquidity-driven assets. Analysts argue this split leaves BTC vulnerable when liquidity tightens and ETF flows and derivatives positioning remain weak.