Bitcoin’s price recovery extended into a third week, rallying to $74,509, a level not seen since Feb. 4. While markets remain reluctant to confirm whether or not Bitcoin has bottomed, the cryptocurrency is up 22.5% from its Feb. 6 low at $60,000 and data points to renewed appetite from institutional investors as a potential key player in the current bullish breakout. 

Over the last week, Michael Saylor’s company, Strategy, the largest public holder of Bitcoin, purchased 22,237 BTC for $1.57 billion. 

According to a report from Bloomberg, 

“Inflows to exchange-traded funds suggest a return of institutional confidence. Net flows for the 12 US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs topped $763 million last week, a third consecutive week of inflows.”

On Monday, Metaplanet, a Tokyo-based public company that established Japan’s first corporate Bitcoin treasury, announced that it had raised $255 million in a “private placement” for a new instrument that aims to purchase more Bitcoin. Metaplanet CEO Simon Gerovich said the raise would provide the “additional firepower on our march towards 210,000 BTC.” 

Adding to the institutional Bitcoin demand narrative, Bitfinex analysts said that “Bitcoin is approaching this week’s FOMC meeting on March 18 with renewed momentum, and has decisively reclaimed the $70,000 level.” The report noted Bitcoin’s market structure had “improved meaningfully” even though BTC has “yet to secure a breakout above local range highs.” 

According to Bitfinex analysts, the absorption-to-emissions ratio (AER) highlighted institutional investors “absorbing nearly five times the daily miner supply,” and this, combined with rising BTC futures open interest, indicated that the market was beginning to mirror “healthier” structures seen earlier in the year. 

When asked whether Bitcoin had bottomed and if institutional capital flows were responsible for the price upswing, Hyblock analysts said that “following the sharp drop, the market entered a consolidation phase where open interest declined, shorts used more margin, and both spot and perpetual CVDs pointed to selling pressure.” 

The analysts added that:“Over the past month, that regime (sellers) has shifted. Traders have started increasing leverage on the long side, open interest is rising, and the perps CVD has turned positive while spot flows remain weak. This suggests the push toward the top of the range is largely being driven by derivatives positioning rather than spot demand.”