Bitcoin edged closer to $72,000 on Wednesday, refocusing attention on the "air pocket" — a thin supply zone between $72,000 and $80,000 where relatively few coins last changed hands. According to Glassnode, only about 1% of the circulating Bitcoin supply is held within this price band. With so few holders positioned there, the market faces limited resistance if prices push decisively through.
How the air pocket forms
Glassnode's UTXO Realized Price Distribution (URPD) metric maps where current Bitcoin holders acquired their coins. The $72,000-$80,000 range shows a stark gap — historically, Bitcoin has spent very little time trading there. In practical terms, this means a breakout above $72,000 could trigger a relatively swift move to $80,000, as selling pressure is far lighter than in more densely populated price zones.
Two historical precedents
The first example dates to November 2024, when Bitcoin surged rapidly after Donald Trump's U.S. presidential election victory, blasting through the $72,000-$80,000 corridor almost without pause. The second occurred earlier this year: Bitcoin fell from around $80,000 to $70,000 in late January, then slid further to roughly $60,000 by Feb. 6 — a decline that unfolded in just days. Both episodes confirm that when prices enter this zone, movement tends to be fast and directional.
Support built below
CoinDesk Research notes that during Bitcoin's recent consolidation between $60,000 and $70,000, more than 400,000 BTC were accumulated. This heavy buying has created a solid support base. If Bitcoin breaks above $72,000, the path toward $80,000 appears relatively unobstructed; if it fails, the risk of a deep retrace is limited by the accumulated supply below.