Bitcoin market sentiment recently climbed above 89 on an index tracked by CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost, reaching its highest level since March 2024 before cooling down.
Darkfost said the reading briefly entered the “extreme greed” zone as Bitcoin rose. He later noted that sentiment had eased while Bitcoin continued trying to hold its current price.
His comparison with March 2024 refers specifically to the sentiment measure he tracks. It should not be treated as the current reading for every crypto sentiment index.
For comparison, Alternative.me’s separate Crypto Fear & Greed Index recently stood at 63, which falls in the “greed” category. The index was at 56 the previous day, 73 a week earlier, and 29 a month earlier. Alternative.me bases its index on factors including Bitcoin volatility, trading activity, social media interest, Bitcoin’s market share, and search trends.
The two indicators measure market mood in different ways. Darkfost’s reading shows the recent high reached by his tracked measure, while Alternative.me provides a separate snapshot of current sentiment. Neither indicator shows how much Bitcoin investors have bought or sold, and neither provides a specific price target.
Darkfost warned that extreme sentiment levels are worth watching because they can appear around periods when markets change direction. However, his comments do not confirm that Bitcoin has entered a reversal.
Bitcoin was trading near $77,300 during the latest CoinGecko price check. Its 24-hour range was roughly $76,400 to $79,600, leaving the price below the top of the daily range.
Recent price action has added to the uncertainty. Bitcoin recently moved below $78,000, while traders continued watching support levels around the mid-$70,000 range.
Earlier market analysis suggested Bitcoin could remain below $82,000 ahead of the Federal Reserve’s September meeting. Those earlier support and resistance levels were based on market conditions at the time and do not guarantee future price movements.
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have also shown weaker demand recently. During the Sep. 8–11 trading week, the funds recorded about $462.7 million in net outflows. Each of the four trading sessions ended with net withdrawals.
Thursday saw the largest outflow at about $282.7 million, while Friday’s withdrawal was much smaller at $13.2 million. ARK 21Shares’ ARKB recorded the largest weekly outflow among individual Bitcoin ETFs at about $234.2 million, while BlackRock’s IBIT saw around $52.5 million in net outflows.
ETF flows provide another way to track investor activity, but they measure something different from sentiment. Net outflows show that more money left the listed funds than entered them during the period, but they do not explain every Bitcoin price move.
U.S. inflation data is also part of the market picture ahead of the Federal Reserve’s next meeting. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that consumer prices increased 3.4% over the year in August, matching July’s annual rate. Prices excluding food and energy increased 0.3% during August and 2.4% from a year earlier.
The Federal Reserve is scheduled to hold its next policy meeting on Sept. 15–16. Investors will be watching the decision closely, as changes in expectations around interest rates can influence Bitcoin and other risk assets.
For now, Bitcoin is facing a mixed market picture: sentiment recently reached extreme levels before cooling, the price remains below $80,000, and U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs have recorded several days of net outflows. These signals show changing investor mood, but they do not by themselves confirm the direction of Bitcoin’s next major move.
