Bitcoin Surges Toward $80,000, Liquidating Over $4 Billion in Bearish Bets

Bitcoin surged toward $80,000 on Friday, extending a three-day rally that has liquidated more than $4 billion in bearish bets and pushed the cryptocurrency to a three-month high. [...] For now, however, the rally has continued even as one of its original macro tailwinds has weakened. That leaves spot and ETF demand as the clearest test of what comes next. As the pool of vulnerable short positions shrinks, further gains will increasingly depend on investors continuing to buy Bitcoin at higher prices rather than on forced covering alone.