Price analysis

Bitcoin and select altcoins are witnessing profit-booking on rallies, increasing the likelihood of a short-term pullback.

Bitcoin’s (BTC) rally has been taking a breather for the past few days but its strong rally in 2023 has not gone unnoticed. A survey of United States financial services companies by crypto firm Paxos showed that 99% of the firms were putting as much or more focus on crypto projects this year as compared to previous years.

Analysts are increasingly bullish on Bitcoin and the crypto space in 2024. Bitwise senior research analyst Ryan Rasmussen made ten predictions for the crypto industry in 2024 in an X (formerly Twitter) post on Dec. 13. He believes Bitcoin will soar to $80,000 in 2024 and “more money will settle using stablecoins than using Visa.”

Along with crypto-specific issues, expectations of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve in 2024 are adding to the bullish sentiment. Arthur Hayes, the former CEO of crypto exchange BitMEX, reiterated his bullish view on crypto in an X post on Dec. 14. He said that the fiat was “a filthy piece of trash” and there was no reason not to be long crypto.

Read more

Bitcoin and altcoins are trying to find support at lower levels, indicating that the sentiment remains positive, and that traders are buying the dips.

Bitcoin (BTC) has failed to rebound sharply following the fall on Dec. 11, suggesting selling pressure on relief rallies. Glassnode data shows that short-term holders (STHs), entities holding Bitcoin for 155 days or less, sent $1.93 billion worth of Bitcoin to exchanges on Dec. 11 and $2.08 billion on Dec. 12. The last time single-day selling crossed the $2 billion mark was way back in June 2022. This shows that speculators are in a hurry to dump their holdings.

However, lower levels are attracting buyers. Trading resource Material Indicators suggested that “institutional sized” bids could be seen but added that it was unclear if it was accumulation or a short-term trading opportunity with dips being purchased and rallies being sold.

Cointelegraph contributor Marcel Pechman analyzed derivatives data and said that Bitcoin remains on track to hit $50,000 despite the recent correction. He added that chances of “cascading liquidations” were low as the correction seems to have been “primarily driven by the spot market.”

Read more