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Points of Focus
- Bitcoin traded near $79,700 after failing to hold above $81,300.
- Coinbase Premium turned positive, signaling renewed US spot demand.
- ETF inflows remain strong, but profit-taking and a $6.16-billion options expiry complicate the $81,300 breakout.
Bitcoin (BTC) traded near $79,700 at the time of writing on Friday after an intraday push above $81,300 faded. The reversal came as the Coinbase Premium turned positive, meaning BTC traded at a higher price on Coinbase than on Binance. US spot demand is improving, but buyers have yet to hold Bitcoin above the same resistance zone that rejected the price earlier this week.
Coinbase premium improves as Bitcoin meets $81,000 resistance
CryptoQuant defines the Coinbase Premium as the price gap between Coinbase’s BTC/USD pair and Binance’s BTC/USDT pair. A positive reading points to stronger buying pressure on Coinbase. The metric moved back into positive territory on Aug. 27 after an extended period below zero, adding evidence that US spot demand has recovered from its recent discount.
Bitcoin Spot ETFs See $242 Million in Net Inflows, Extending 9-Day Inflow Streak
On Aug. 27 (ET), U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $242 million in net inflows, extending their streak to nine consecutive days. Spot Ethereum ETFs saw $235 million in net inflows, also marking nine… pic.twitter.com/JLJpZ8CGyy
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) August 28, 2026
The positive premium arrived alongside heavier selling from existing holders. CryptoQuant data showed weekly realized profits averaging $933 million, up 824% from the prior week.
Exchange inflows from coins held for one to three months rose 280%, while daily inflows from wallets holding 1,000-10,000 BTC reached 1,136 BTC. The figures show renewed US demand is meeting investors willing to realize gains, limiting the value of the premium as a standalone bullish signal.
ETF demand supports BTC, but derivatives add Friday risk
US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) logged $242.3 million of net inflows on Aug. 27, extending their streak to nine trading sessions and roughly $3.04 billion. BlackRock’s IBIT added $277.6 million, while Fidelity’s FBTC recorded $83.6 million of outflows. The split shows that institutional demand remains positive in aggregate, but the latest session was heavily concentrated in IBIT.
Derivatives add another short-term test. About $6.16 billion of Bitcoin options were due to expire on Deribit at 08:00 UTC on Aug. 28, with $3.15 billion in call open interest and $3.01 billion in puts. The 0.96 put/call open-interest ratio leaves positioning nearly balanced around a settlement taking place while Bitcoin trades close to $80,000.
The price has now rejected the same zone twice this week. Bitcoin reached about $81,240 on Aug. 25 before retreating and climbed above $81,300 again on Aug. 28 before falling back. BTC was trading near $79,700 at the time of writing, around $1,600 below Friday’s rejection high near $81,300.
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