Bitcoin (BTC) has spent almost a month at or near $30,000, but this is no coincidence, new analysis claims.

In one of its Quicktake market updates on July 17, on-chain analytics platform CryptoQuant highlighted three key factors keeping BTC price action in the same place.

Bitcoin speculators in the driving seat

Bitcoin has rebuffed any attempt at a breakout for weeks on end, making casual one-year highs but always falling lower afterward.

For CryptoQuant contributor Axel Adler, this has roots — among other things — in speculative trading.

Short-term holders (STHs), he notes, have divested themselves of their holdings since April, leading to increased selling pressure above $30,000.