Bitcoin briefly climbed to $81,455 overnight, marking its highest price since May 15, before pulling back as Nasdaq futures weakened while gold and silver extended their gains.

BTC was last trading around $79,850, down roughly 0.5% over the past 24 hours after reaching the overnight high. The move brought Bitcoin back to levels last seen in mid-May, when it was rejected near $82,800 and subsequently fell toward $57,000.

The broader market picture remains supportive for Bitcoin. Gold rose 0.2% Friday, while silver gained more than 2%. Nasdaq 100 futures declined 0.3%, continuing a divergence that has emerged since the U.S. Treasury announced its bond buyback program on Aug. 19. Bitcoin has gained approximately 26% since that announcement.

Altcoins have struggled in comparison. Most major tokens fell between 2% and 3% since midnight as traders continued to favor Bitcoin. The Altcoin Season Index remains at 34/100, indicating that market leadership is still firmly concentrated in BTC.

Derivatives Market Shows Mixed Signals

Crypto futures markets have seen considerable repositioning over the past 24 hours, but little evidence of a strong new directional bet. Total open interest has remained slightly above $140 billion, while trading volume climbed nearly 10% to $222 billion.

Short trades represented around 51% of taker activity, giving the market a modest bearish tilt.

Solana futures continued to attract fresh positioning. SOL open interest increased to 70.88 million tokens, the highest level since early July, according to CoinGlass. However, its 24-hour open-interest-adjusted cumulative volume delta has turned negative, suggesting sellers are becoming more aggressive and increasingly using market orders.

CC posted the biggest increase in futures open interest among altcoins, with positioning rising more than 5% in 24 hours to 328 million tokens. The figure is approaching its March record of roughly 340 million, potentially leaving the asset vulnerable to larger swings if traders begin unwinding positions.

CC’s CVD remains slightly positive, however, indicating that buyers still have a modest advantage in its spot and derivatives activity.

Most other tokens are showing negative CVD readings, with CC, TRX and HYPE among the exceptions. The broader data therefore points to continued selling pressure outside a handful of stronger assets.

Monero is showing a different type of risk. Annualized perpetual funding rates for XMR have climbed to 67%, reflecting the high cost paid by leveraged traders maintaining long positions. Such elevated funding suggests bullish positioning has become increasingly crowded.

Bitcoin Options Remain Tilted Toward Calls

Despite Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s scheduled Jackson Hole speech, Bitcoin volatility expectations have continued to decline.

The 30-day Bitcoin implied-volatility gauge, BVIV, has fallen to 41% from a recent high of 50%. The decline suggests options traders are not expecting Warsh’s remarks to create a major volatility shock.

Options activity on Deribit also remains skewed toward bullish contracts. Bitcoin calls dominate the latest volume rankings, with the $85,000 call expiring Sept. 26 recording the most activity. Ether options are showing a similar preference for calls.

TRUMP Surges as Altcoins Consolidate

The TRUMP memecoin jumped 24% over the past 24 hours to roughly $2.80, emerging as the strongest performer of the day despite the absence of a clear catalyst.

Open interest in TRUMP futures has risen 57% over the past week to $188.72 million, according to CoinGlass. The increase suggests that leverage is helping fuel the latest move as traders add bullish positions.

Solana slipped 2.6% since midnight UTC to around $106, giving back part of its 18% weekly advance. SOL moved above $100 last week for the first time since February and has held that level, although its upward momentum is beginning to weaken.

Zcash declined 2.4% but remains roughly 41% higher over the past week. After benefiting heavily from last week’s short squeeze, ZEC is now showing signs of consolidation following its sharp rally.

Monero bucked the wider market trend, rising 2.2% since midnight to about $464 and extending its seven-day gain to 12.8%.

With the Altcoin Season Index at 34/100, Bitcoin continues to command the market’s attention. A convincing break above $82,000 could provide the next major upside catalyst, while failure to clear that level may keep BTC and altcoins in consolidation mode.