Bitcoin RSI Hits 85 as Analysts Compare Structure to 2024 Rally
Bitcoin (BTC)
Editor:
Eugene Serbin
bitcoinethereumnews.com reports that Bitcoin’s daily relative strength index has climbed above 85, a level analyst Sykodelic notes has never occurred during a bear market. This reading appeared as the asset traded above $81,000 this week, prompting comparisons to the rally that began in November 2024. Sykodelic pointed to ten years of price history to argue that such high RSI values mark either the top of a major uptrend or the start of a new one.
The analyst stated, “Never in Bitcoin’s history has it ever tagged 85+ in a bear market,” adding that even at $10 in 2011, the metric did not appear in a downturn. Sykodelic described the current price action as “vertical accumulation,” noting that the structure gives traders few entry points while price works through resistance without large pullbacks. Derivatives activity has also surged, with Arab Chain reporting that Bitcoin open interest on Binance reached $9.54 billion, a three-month high.
CryptoQuant provided a cautiously bullish view, raising its Bull Score from 30 to 80 on August 25 while noting the fastest monthly increase in apparent spot demand since late December 2025. Despite rejecting the $81,000 high by roughly $3,000, Bitcoin remained up nearly 14% over the seven days leading to its trading near $79,000. The asset is still approximately 38% below its October 2025 record of just over $126,000. CryptoQuant noted that a daily close above the 365-day moving average, currently near $83,000, is needed for further confirmation of the trend.
How the market reacted
Whalio's own Binance spot order flow for BTC, measured when this story was written up on 27 August 2026. Not the outlet's figures.
Whalio’s spot data shows Bitcoin trading at $79,023.75 with a 24-hour buy ratio of 49.9%, indicating a near-even split between buyers and sellers. Short-term pressure is slightly more balanced, with the 1-hour buy ratio at 48.0% and the 4-hour ratio at 47.1%, suggesting buying pressure is not currently building aggressively. The volume delta reflects this balance, showing a net outflow of -$4,773,887 over the last hour and -$19,235,282 over four hours. Over the full day, the volume delta stands at -$903,088, while the cumulative volume delta (CVD) at the close is -$69,880,309. This negative delta indicates that despite the high volume of $1,148,236,056, sellers have been slightly more aggressive than buyers in executing trades. Net buying occurred for only 9 of the 24 hours, with a total of 4,284,527 trades recorded.
The latest daily buy ratio of 46.7% sits at the 18th percentile of the last 322 days, against a median of 49.2% - weaker buying than most days.
Twenty-four hours later
What BTC did over the 24 hours after the story broke. The market moves for its own reasons; this is what happened, not what the story caused.
Was that an ordinary day?
The same Binance spot measurements for BTC, averaged over the days leading up to the story.
Over the preceding week, the average buy ratio was 51.6%, meaning today’s 24-hour ratio of 49.9% is 1.7 percentage points lower than the weekly average. Volume during this period was also subdued, trading at just 0.54 times the average weekly volume. While the coin saw a 14.0% price increase over eight days, the current day’s volume is significantly lower than the weekly norm. The total volume delta for the eight-day period was positive at $445,688,281, contrasting with the negative delta seen in the most recent hours. This suggests that while the weekly trend remains bullish, the immediate trading session is experiencing a pullback in momentum compared to the broader week.