Bitcoin briefly tops $70,000 before pulling back, while altcoins drive the biggest rebound in weeks.

Bitcoin briefly tested the $70,000 threshold on Wednesday before retreating, slipping back to around $68,300 in early Thursday trading after touching an overnight low near $67,700 — a swing of nearly 5% from peak to trough.

The advance represented the strongest push toward reclaiming $70,000 since the Feb. 5 sell-off, though the move ultimately stalled short of a decisive breakout.

Beneath the surface, however, momentum favored alternative tokens. Ethereum rose 8.5%, while Solana gained 6.9% and Cardano jumped 10.8%. Dogecoin advanced 8.3%. By comparison, Bitcoin’s 4.3% climb ranked among the smallest gains within the top 10 digital assets.

Such divergence often points to improving risk appetite, as traders rotate into higher-beta tokens once confidence grows that the bulk of forced selling has passed.

“The wave of forced selling is starting to clear out,” said Daniel Reis-Faria, CEO of ZeroStack. “Altcoins are outperforming again, and more of them are leading bitcoin. That suggests rotation.”

The crypto bounce coincided with a muted response to earnings from Nvidia. Although the chipmaker topped expectations, the results failed to ignite a sustained rally. Nasdaq-100 futures dipped 0.3% following the report, while Nvidia shares pared most of their after-hours gains to trade up just 0.2%.

Despite remaining the world’s most valuable public company, Nvidia flagged concerns about overheating in the artificial intelligence sector, dampening enthusiasm that had supported a recent rebound in technology stocks.

Macro conditions remain a headwind for crypto. Trading firm Wintermute observed that digital assets have tracked weakness in tech equities as capital rotates toward defensive and tangible assets. Meanwhile, crypto financial services platform Matrixport highlighted stagnant stablecoin supply as a key constraint for bitcoin’s upside. On-chain analytics provider Glassnode projected that broader liquidity conditions may not materially improve for at least six months.

In the near term, selling pressure appears to be moderating. Data from CryptoQuant shows a slowdown in sell-side flows on Binance, supporting the case for a short-term recovery. However, Bitrue cautioned that a sustained break below $60,000 could trigger a deeper slide toward the $50,000–$55,000 range, or even $47,000 if liquidation cascades intensify.

For now, the market sits between a technical bounce and a fragile broader trend — and bitcoin’s rejection near $70,000 underscores that the divide remains unresolved.