Bitcoin is on the move again.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market value surged past a symbolic milestone on Wednesday, reaching a record-breaking $112,055 on the Coinbase exchange around 3:55 p.m. ET. That’s the highest price ever recorded for Bitcoin on Coinbase, surpassing the previous high of $111,891 set in May. With this latest surge, Bitcoin is up nearly 20% since the start of the year.

The sudden move stunned traders and rekindled hopes among Bitcoin’s faithful. For weeks, prices had seemed stagnant. Then, in the span of an hour, everything changed.

According to data provider CoinGlass, the rally was triggered by the liquidation of short positions totaling nearly $280 million. In simple terms: traders who had bet against Bitcoin — hoping the price would drop — were forced to buy back their positions as the price unexpectedly surged. This “short squeeze” poured fuel on the fire, accelerating the price jump.

“High leverage liquidity,” noted one observer on X, referring to the chain reaction that occurs when highly leveraged positions get wiped out.

#BTC Liquidation Heatmap(24 hour)

High leverage liquidity.🧐🧐🧐https://t.co/Nu9kTJMzy2 pic.twitter.com/VMtsuoleME

— CoinGlass (@coinglass_com) July 9, 2025

But behind the excitement lies a more complicated picture.

Bitcoin Is Booming. But Not Buzzing

Despite the record price, Bitcoin’s trading activity remains oddly quiet. On-chain data shows that while large amounts of Bitcoin are being bought, much of it isn’t moving. Instead of being actively traded, coins are being transferred to secure “cold storage” wallets, effectively taking them off the market.

This dynamic — strong demand but little actual movement — limits the immediate upside for speculators. Prices can only go so high without a wave of new buyers entering the market.

“Somebody else is selling it,” recently said legendary short-seller Jim Chanos, known for his early call against Enron. His point? Even in a rally, someone’s cashing out.

Bitcoin, once imagined as a peer-to-peer payment system, is now behaving more like digital gold: a long-term store of value rather than a medium of exchange. For many investors, it’s a hedge, something to hold, not spend.

Meanwhile, Stablecoins Are Winning

As Bitcoin cements its status as a speculative reserve asset, another crypto category is quietly taking over everyday use: stablecoins.

Stablecoins — such as USDC or Tether (USDT) — are cryptocurrencies pegged to the value of the U.S. dollar. Unlike Bitcoin, they aren’t built for price appreciation. They’re meant to maintain a steady value and are increasingly being used in cross-border payments, Decentralization finance (DeFi), and even remittances.

In short, stablecoins are giving crypto real-world utility. Bitcoin isn’t really part of that story anymore.

A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Bitcoin hit $122K. The correct figure is $112K.