Bitcoin's recent surge from below $63,000 in early February to over $80,000 has been overwhelmingly powered by trading activity in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) and United States sessions. According to data analytics firm Velo, these two regions together contributed more than 70% of the cryptocurrency's returns during this rally.
APAC and US Lead, Europe Trails
Since February 6, APAC trading hours have generated 13% returns, the US session added 11.5%, while the European session managed only 6.5%. The divergence underscores the shifting center of gravity in Bitcoin's price discovery, with institutional inflows into US spot ETFs and surging retail activity across Asia (particularly Singapore, Hong Kong, and South Korea) driving momentum.
Europe's underperformance may reflect tighter regulatory stances and comparatively lower liquidity. As a result, traders increasingly focus on the APAC-US overlay for actionable signals.
Optimal Trading Windows: Midnight UTC and Monday Effect
Velo's quantitative analysis identifies two key patterns. First, the 00:00-01:00 UTC candle (08:00-09:00 Beijing time) recorded the highest average return of 0.10% over three months. This window captures the overlap between late US trading and early APAC activity, offering peak liquidity and amplitude.
Second, Monday emerges as the strongest day of the week, with an average return of 1.5%. The finding suggests that weekend-order flows accumulate and execute at Monday's open, often creating a directional push. For short-term traders, Monday's early hours may serve as a strategic entry point.
Bitcoin's rally is a product of concentrated activity in the APAC and US time zones. As liquidity clusters around these overlaps, price discovery becomes more efficient, and traders can better time entries using session-specific data.
Source: Velo. This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.