Bitcoin’s latest upswing is being driven largely by traders in the Asia-Pacific region! Interestingly, U.S. and European sessions continue to drag prices lower.
The shift appeared during a period of contained leverage and rising institutional ownership. Corporate Bitcoin holdings climbed above one million BTC, giving long-term holders a larger influence on market behavior.
Asia keeps Bitcoin above water
There’s a clear divide in Bitcoin’s [BTC] performance between regional trading sessions.
The APAC session has delivered around 2% cumulative returns, while both the U.S. and European sessions have stayed in negative territory, dropping to roughly -3% and -4% respectively.
Source: X
The pattern has been consistent: Asia lifts prices each day, and Western trading hours erase those gains just as quickly.
So this has left APAC as the only region providing meaningful upward pressure, effectively keeping Bitcoin from sliding deeper.
Leverage looks high…but only in dollars
Bitcoin’s Open Interest profile varied depending on the measurement.
Source: Alphractal
According to Joao Wedson, CEO, Alphractal, Aggregate Open Interest in USD hit new peaks this cycle, climbing past $70 billion at the top.
Source: Alphractal
But COIN-denominated OI never revisited its 2022 highs of around 500,000 BTC. The market’s dollar size expanded, but traders didn’t pile into leverage the way they did in the previous run.
Source: Alphractal
A closer look at Bybit proves this, too.
BTC typically cooled whenever Bybit’s Open Interest approached the 60,000–62,000 BTC zone. Current positioning sat below that threshold, showing subdued leverage among speculative traders.
Corporate treasuries as a backbone
Corporate Bitcoin holdings have exploded from 197,000 BTC in January 2023 to roughly 1.08 million BTC at press time. That’s a 448% jump, and this growth went up high through late 2024 and 2025.
Most of the increase came from large, publicly listed companies steadily adding BTC to their balance sheets. This is a demand base that wasn’t present in previous cycles.
Source: Glassnode
This matters because it changes how Bitcoin reacts to weakness in Western trading hours.
With over 1 million BTC now sitting in corporate treasuries, a significant portion of the supply is effectively locked away. As a result, Asia’s buying pressure isn’t working alone.
Long-term institutional holders are now helping keep the market in check, even during volatile sessions.
Final Thoughts
- Asia’s steady buying and rising corporate Bitcoin holdings are now the strongest forces supporting BTC.
- With leverage contained, Bitcoin’s structure looks healthier even as U.S. and EU sessions drag prices down.
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