Bitcoin (BTC) hit $77,000 on Friday as business intelligence company Strategy’s corporate treasury returned to profit.

Key points:

• Bitcoin reaches its highest level since May 26 as it revisits $77,000.
• Price returns above the cost basis for Strategy’s BTC corporate treasury at $75,385.
• Around 11% of the BTC supply constitutes a new band of support below $68,000.

Strategy out of the red with Bitcoin at highest since May

Data from TradingView showed new local highs above $77,400 prior to the week’s final Wall Street open.

BTC/USD one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Now up around 20% in 48 hours, BTC/USD saw little by way of consolidation as it reclaimed a key level for Strategy, the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin treasury company. Data from monitoring resource BitcoinTreasuries puts the cost basis for Strategy’s holdings of 840,447 BTC at $75,385, currently with a year-to-date gain of approximately $450 million.

Strategy Bitcoin treasury cost basis data. Source: BitcoinTreasuries

As Cointelegraph reported, between Aug. 3 and Aug. 9, Strategy opted to sell a small portion of its treasury worth 1,690 BTC to repurchase 1.15 million shares of its STRC preferred stock for $108.6 million. The move represented the company’s fourth Bitcoin sale of 2026.

Concerns over the long-term viability of the company’s Bitcoin investment thesis accompanied the sales, something that the subsequent BTC price run-up should help alleviate, independent crypto analyst William Clemente suggested.

“Not only should Saylor/Strategy fears have been abated for a while once he showed that he was willing to sell BTC to rebuy STRC, but now after this price impulse they are even more over-collateralized by their BTC holdings,” he wrote on X, referring to former CEO Michael Saylor.

In an interview with Fox News earlier in August, current CEO Phong Le stated that Strategy would return to buying Bitcoin before the end of the year.

New BTC buy wall sits below $68,000

Amid misgivings over the durability of Bitcoin’s volatile upside move, analysis from onchain analytics platform Glassnode revealed a new safety net forming below $70,000.

Related: Bitcoin has ‘largely purged’ froth that preceded 50% drop from $126K: BlackRock

Some 3.44 million BTC now have an onchain cost basis, also known as realized price, between $58,000 and $67,000. Of this, 2.23 million BTC — equal to around 11% of the total supply — was added over the past 11 weeks.

“It’s the densest cost-basis cluster below spot — a key potential support zone on any retracement,” Glassnode cofounder Rafael Schultze-Kraft commented on X.

Bitcoin UTXO realized price distribution data. Source: Rafael Schultze-Kraft on X.com

BTC/USD broke through several key resistance levels this week, including its 200-day simple moving average (SMA) at $68,967, a key target to reclaim to end the long-term BTC price downtrend.

Key takeaways

• Pepe has gained 25% this week, including a combined 22% advance over the previous two days.
• Seven whale transactions worth more than $1 million each occurred Thursday, the highest number since March 16.
• Exchange supply fell by 1.45 trillion PEPE, while top non-exchange wallets added 3.54 trillion tokens since August 12.

Pepe maintained its bullish momentum Friday after gaining a combined 22% over the previous two trading days.

The frog-themed meme coin is up approximately 25% this week as whale accumulation, declining exchange supply, and rising speculative activity strengthen its near-term outlook.

PEPE has also reclaimed several important technical levels, opening a potential path toward its 200-day exponential moving average at $0.00000363.

Whale transactions reach highest level since March

Large investors appear to be returning to Pepe as its price recovers from recent lows. Santiment recorded seven PEPE transactions worth more than $1 million each Thursday, the highest daily total since March 16.

The increase in high-value transfers indicates renewed activity among whales, although large transactions can represent either accumulation or distribution.

Changes in wallet balances, however, suggest that major holders are accumulating tokens while the amount of PEPE available on exchanges declines.

The supply of PEPE held on cryptocurrency exchanges has fallen to 81.30 trillion tokens from 82.75 trillion on August 12.

The 1.45 trillion-token decline reduces the amount of PEPE immediately available for trading and potential sale.

Meanwhile, leading non-exchange addresses increased their combined holdings to 84.04 trillion PEPE from 80.50 trillion over the same period.

That represents an increase of 3.54 trillion tokens, reinforcing signs of fresh demand from large-wallet investors.

Whale accumulation near a market swing low can indicate that influential holders expect a recovery. Continued buying and declining exchange balances could therefore support further gains, provided broader market sentiment remains favorable.

Demand is also increasing in the derivatives market. PEPE futures Open Interest climbed to a three-month high of $250 million, up from $209 million the previous day, according to CoinGlass.

The $41 million increase represents growth of approximately 19.6% and indicates that traders are opening new positions or adding exposure to existing contracts.

PEPE’s Open Interest-weighted funding rate stands at 0.0095%. The positive reading shows that long-position holders are paying short traders, reflecting a bullish bias.

However, rising Open Interest and positive funding can also increase liquidation risks if the price reverses sharply. Meme coins are especially vulnerable to volatility when speculative positioning becomes crowded.

Pepe price targets the 200-day EMA

PEPE’s near-term technical outlook has improved after its latest rally pushed the token above the 50-day EMA at $0.00000283 and the 100-day EMA at $0.00000300.

The meme coin has also surpassed its June 15 high of $0.00000314, clearing another important resistance level.

The next major barrier sits at the 200-day EMA near $0.00000363. Because PEPE remains below this long-term trend indicator, the broader technical structure has not yet turned decisively bullish.

A confirmed breakout and sustained close above $0.00000363 could strengthen the recovery and open the path toward the May 10 high at $0.00000459.

The Moving Average Convergence Divergence line has crossed above its signal line and moved further into positive territory.

A bullish histogram has also emerged above the zero line, indicating that buying momentum is strengthening.

If PEPE fails to overcome the 200-day EMA, traders may begin taking profits following the sharp weekly advance.

The 100-day EMA at $0.00000300 and the 50-day EMA at $0.00000283 could provide initial support during a pullback. A decisive decline beneath both indicators would weaken the bullish outlook and expose the July 8 low at $0.00000255.

A Hong Kong appeals court has upheld a 56-month prison term for Ma Zhihao after investigators linked ransom payments from a human trafficking operation to a crypto exchange account registered in his name.

Caixin reported on Aug. 20 that the Hong Kong Court of Appeal rejected Ma’s request for a reduced sentence, leaving intact the punishment imposed over his role in a scheme that lured victims to Southeast Asia with fake job offers before some were confined and forced into scam operations.

Blockchain transaction records became a key part of the prosecution after Hong Kong police traced a ransom paid by the family of one victim. Investigators found that roughly 9,527 Tether (USDT) had been transferred to a cryptocurrency wallet specified by the criminals.

Police then tracked 8,127 USDT from the ransom to an exchange account opened using Ma’s real name and Hong Kong identity documents, according to Caixin. The funds were converted into roughly HK$63,000 and sent to Ma’s personal HSBC bank account.

The Court of Appeal said the transaction trail supported the finding that Ma had participated in the scheme and received proceeds from it. Judges also said his punishment would have been substantially heavier had the District Court not been restricted by its seven-year sentencing limit.

Blockchain records tied the ransom directly to Ma

The case involved five victims who were recruited between 2021 and August 2022 through false employment and business offers circulated on platforms including Facebook, Telegram and Instagram.

Recruiters advertised jobs at Cambodian casinos, assignments involving the purchase and transport of luxury handbags from Thailand, and work carrying expensive watches, according to case details reported by Hong Kong media. Some offers promised payments reaching tens of thousands of Hong Kong dollars.

Once a victim accepted an offer, members of the network helped arrange passports and airline tickets. After arriving in Southeast Asia, victims could instead have their phones and travel documents taken before being moved to compounds controlled by criminal groups.

One 20-year-old victim responded to a Telegram advertisement offering HK$20,000 for travelling to Thailand and buying luxury goods for resale in Hong Kong. After arriving in August 2022, he was transported to Myanmar’s KK Park, where criminals told him that he had been purchased and demanded $20,000 for his release.

His girlfriend eventually transferred more than 9,500 USDT, worth about HK$75,000 at the time, to secure his return. Investigators later followed most of that cryptocurrency through the blockchain to the exchange account associated with Ma.

The transparent transaction history gave police a record connecting the ransom wallet, the exchange account and the subsequent withdrawal into the traditional banking system.

Hong Kong police have since developed more specialized tools for such investigations. As previously covered by crypto.news, the Cyber Security and Technology Crime Bureau unveiled its CryptoTrace system in May 2025 after developing the platform with the University of Hong Kong.

CryptoTrace uses blockchain analytics and transaction visualization to help officers follow suspected illicit funds and identify connections between wallets. Police had already trained frontline officers on the system before its public unveiling, according to the earlier report.

Fake jobs sent victims into Southeast Asian scam compounds

Ma and his associates used several recruitment methods depending on the victim, with high pay serving as a recurring lure.

One man was offered work at a Cambodian casino for $300 per day with accommodation and airfare included. Another victim was persuaded to travel after receiving an offer connected to luxury goods, while a man with mild intellectual disabilities was drawn to Thailand through an online relationship and a promise involving a large cash payment.

Victims who reached the compounds faced different forms of coercion. Court proceedings described confiscated passports, threats, confinement and physical abuse, while some victims were forced to participate in online scams.

The man with an intellectual disability suffered particularly severe treatment after refusing to join fraud operations. Case details presented in Hong Kong court proceedings said he was handcuffed to a bed, subjected to electric shocks and later confined in a cage for several days. His family eventually paid HK$35,000 through Alipay before he was able to return to Hong Kong.

Another victim taken to Cambodia initially refused to conduct online scams, but Ma repeatedly pressured him and threatened the safety of the victim and his family, according to the agreed facts of the case. Cambodian authorities eventually rescued him after his mother contacted Hong Kong law enforcement.

Similar recruitment methods remain in use across Southeast Asian cybercrime compounds. On July 4, an investigation in India was opened after the family of a 24-year-old man said he had accepted a graphic design and data-entry job in Thailand before being taken to a scam compound near the Myanmar border.

Police in that case said the advertised job offered roughly 70,000 Indian rupees a month. After crossing into the compound, the man allegedly had his passport and travel documents confiscated and later told his family that captives were being forced to work long hours in online fraud operations.

Hong Kong human trafficking case followed years of recruitment scams

The Hong Kong prosecution emerged from a wave of cases reported from 2022 onward involving people recruited for supposed jobs in Thailand, Cambodia and other parts of Southeast Asia before being moved into guarded compounds.

Ma and another defendant, Cheung Man-wai, later admitted conspiracy to defraud in connection with the recruitment of five people.

During sentencing in November 2024, the District Court imposed a 56-month prison term on Ma for conspiracy to defraud after using seven years as the starting point before applying a reduction for his guilty plea. He also received a 28-month sentence after admitting a money-laundering charge, bringing his total imprisonment to 84 months, according to local court reporting.

Cheung, whose role was described as less central, received a 36-month prison sentence. The sentencing judge found that he nevertheless knew the operation involved human trafficking when he helped take one of the victims to the airport.

The District Court treated Ma as an important participant in a planned operation connected with an international criminal organization. All five victims eventually returned to Hong Kong after periods of confinement or coercion abroad.

Crypto payments have remained common in investigations involving Southeast Asian trafficking and scam networks. A February 2026 Chainalysis report found that crypto-linked trafficking payments increased 85% in 2025 across services tracked by the blockchain analytics firm, including labor recruiters associated with Southeast Asian scam compounds.

Chainalysis said tracked activity involved hundreds of millions of dollars across identified services, with stablecoins forming part of the payment infrastructure used by criminal networks and related laundering channels.

Authorities continue tracing crypto across scam networks

Law enforcement agencies have increasingly followed cryptocurrency transfers alongside bank accounts and other payment channels when investigating transnational fraud.

A July 2026 INTERPOL operation blocked illicit crypto transfers during a crackdown spanning 97 countries and territories. The operation resulted in 5,811 arrests, more than 31,000 blocked bank accounts and the interception of $293 million in illicit assets.

Thai investigators involved in the operation uncovered a laundering network suspected of processing romance-scam proceeds through cross-chain token swaps. One identified wallet had handled more than $122.5 million, according to INTERPOL data cited in the report.

Authorities identified more than 142,000 victims during the operation and used payment-blocking mechanisms to freeze suspicious fiat and cryptocurrency transfers before some funds could move further through laundering networks.

In Ma’s case, the blockchain trail led investigators from the USDT ransom payment to an exchange account carrying his identity information and then to the HK$63,000 transferred into his HSBC account, evidence the appeals court relied on when rejecting his request for a lighter sentence.

Bitcoin price extended its sharp recovery on Aug. 21, rising above $76,000 for the first time since late May as institutional inflows and improving U.S. liquidity conditions supported the breakout.

BTC traded near $76,291, gaining almost 9% over 24 hours and approximately 19% during the previous seven days, according to crypto.news price data. The rally lifted BTC by more than $11,000 in roughly 48 hours.

The move began after BTC rebounded from the $62,000 to $63,000 region and broke through resistance around $65,000. It then cleared $70,000, paused near $72,000 and advanced through $75,000.

Bitcoin price ends weeks of sideways trading

The crypto had spent about six weeks trading inside a narrow range, with repeated attempts to move beyond $65,000 failing. The lack of direction encouraged traders to build bearish positions around the upper boundary.

Momentum changed on Wednesday when BTC climbed through several resistance levels within hours. Forced short covering accelerated the advance as traders bought BTC to close leveraged bearish positions.

As previously reported, almost $3 billion in positions were liquidated as BTC crossed $70,000. Shorts accounted for most of the liquidations, according to CoinGlass data cited by analysts.

The liquidations explain part of the rally’s speed but not necessarily its direction. Spot demand and U.S. exchange traded fund inflows also increased as BTC moved higher.

ETF inflows provide evidence of institutional demand

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded approximately $606 million in net inflows on Aug. 20, according to SoSoValue data. The total followed about $517 million of inflows on Aug. 19.

The two sessions produced more than $1.1 billion in combined net buying. The acceleration suggests institutional investors participated in the breakout rather than leaving the move entirely to derivatives traders covering short positions.

Spot Ether ETFs separately attracted about $221 million on Aug. 20. XRP funds added approximately $13 million, while Solana products received around $15 million.

In related coverage, analysts warned that continued ETF and spot demand will determine whether Bitcoin can establish lasting support above $70,000. Short covering provides temporary buying pressure because it ends once bearish positions have been closed.

The next ETF flow reports will therefore be closely watched. Continued inflows into next week would strengthen the case that institutions are adding exposure after the breakout. A rapid slowdown would leave the advance more dependent on momentum traders.

U.S. Treasury decision improves the liquidity backdrop

The U.S. Treasury Department announced on Aug. 19 that it will at least double the maximum size of liquidity support buybacks for longer dated government securities.

The maximum size will increase from $2 billion to at least $4 billion per operation. The change takes effect on Sept. 9 and will remain in place through Nov. 4, according to the department’s official announcement.

Long term Treasury yields declined after the decision, while the U.S. dollar weakened. Lower bond yields can make volatile assets more attractive because investors receive less income from government securities.

The buybacks should not be described as direct stimulus for Bitcoin. The Treasury said the program is intended to improve liquidity in longer dated bond markets. It does not create central bank money or directly purchase cryptocurrency.

U.S. political developments added to market sentiment. President Donald Trump urged Congress to pass a “fair version” of the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act during an Aug. 19 White House event involving crypto executives and federal regulators.

Trump also discussed the possibility of expanding U.S. Bitcoin holdings. However, the administration has not announced a purchase, funding mechanism or implementation timeline. Any acquisition therefore remains uncertain.

Bitcoin price faces an overheated momentum reading

The daily BTC/USDT chart shows Bitcoin trading well above its former $60,000 to $66,000 consolidation range. Volume near 13,610 BTC was higher than several recent sessions, supporting the breakout.

The Awesome Oscillator stood near 3,448 and moved firmly into positive territory. The reading indicates that short term momentum has strengthened compared with the recent sideways period.

The Chande Momentum Oscillator reached approximately 91.13. A reading that elevated signals strong buying pressure, but it also suggests that Bitcoin may be temporarily overheated after its rapid advance.

The earlier breakout placed the $65,000 to $67,000 area in focus as a deeper retest zone. The more immediate support area has since moved toward $70,000 to $72,000.

Holding above that range would preserve the current bullish structure. The next major resistance sits around $80,000 to $82,000, where Bitcoin previously faced selling pressure.

A weekly close above $75,000 would provide stronger confirmation than an intraday move. Failure to hold $70,000 could expose BTC to a larger retracement after an 18% advance in two days.