Bitcoin pushed above $74,000 on Friday, extending a major rally of 2026 as improving liquidity, institutional inflows and policy optimism combined with a historic short squeeze. The cryptocurrency traded near $74,700 Friday after reaching above $75,000 in Asian trading, continuing a surge that began after the US Treasury expanded buybacks of longer-dated government debt. The move helped ease yields and improve the liquidity backdrop for risk assets. The rally has real support, but one warning is becoming harder to ignore: forced short covering supplied an unusually large part of the initial momentum.