A widely followed crypto trader who accurately predicted the bottom for Bitcoin (BTC) in 2018 believes that one altcoin is on the verge of a massive move to the upside. Pseudonymous analyst Bluntz tells his 228,700 followers on the social media platform X that liquid-staking service provider Lido DAO (LDO) is ready to soar after […]
The post Top Trader Who Nailed 2018 Bitcoin Bottom Says One Catalyst Could Send Ethereum-Based Altcoin Rallying ‘Hard’ appeared first on The Daily Hodl.
XRP price is down today like other top crypto assets, as traders anticipate a Federal Reserve rate hike this week.
XRP (XRP) price is down today, mirroring trends elsewhere in the cryptocurrencymarket as traders await the Federal Reserve rate decision in the week.
On July 24, XRP price dropped 8% to $0.68, underperforming the crypto market's 3.5% decline on the same day. The XRP/USD pair declined amid growing expectations that the Fed would raise interest rates by 25 basis points in its July 25-26 meeting.
A higher rate environment is considered bad for cryptocurrencies like XRP. As a result, some traders have rotated out of high-cap cryptos to seek shelter in safer assets like the U.S. dollar, selling at the peak of the Ripple-led market rally on July 13.
For instance, XRP's price climbed 75% on July 13 but was unable to extend its gains above $1. Since then, the token's price has fallen by 28%. On the other hand, the U.S. dollar index (DXY) bounced nearly 2% in the same period.
Meanwhile, the correlation coefficient between DXY and XRP was -0.79 on July 24 compared to +0.25 on July 13, showing a greater likelihood of XRP dropping further if the dollar keeps rising in the coming months.
From a technical standpoint, XRP has entered an overbought correction stage after its weekly relative strength index (RSI) climbed to 72, its highest level since April 2021, last week.
The bear scenario will have XRP price decline toward $0.59 in July or early August. This level was support during the July 2021-January 2022 session and is also the 0.236 Fib line of the token's Fibonacci retracement graph (drawn from the $1.15-swing high to the $0.30-swing low).
Related: XRP price can fall 40% by September — Fractal analysis
Conversely, a decisive close above the 0.382 Fib line near $0.77 could have XRP retest $1 resistance to gain around 30% from current price levels.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
On-chain and technical indicators also hint at more pain for Bitcoin and Ethereum for the remainder of 2022.
Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum's native token, Ether (ETH), started the week on a depressive note as investors braced themselves for a flurry of rate hike decisions from central banks, including the U.S. Federal Reserve and Bank of England.
On Sep. 19, BTC's price has failed to regain the $20,000 psychological support zone. The BTC/USD pair slipped by 6.5% to around $18,250, while ETH dropped 4% to approximately $1,280.
Their gloomy performance came as a part of a broader decline that started in mid-August, wherein BTC and ETH wiped a total of 28% and 37% off their market valuation, respectively.
This week, the Fed and a number of its global peers will potentially attack rising inflation by further raising interest rates.
Data compiled by Bloomberg suggests that the U.S. central bank, alongside Sweden's Riksbank, the Swiss National Bank, Norway's Norges Bank, the Bank of England, and others, will raise lending rates by a combined 500 basis points, or 5%.
The market's riskier assets have reacted negatively to these upcoming policy meetings.
Last week, MSCI's flagship global equity index, ACWI, which combines developed and emerging market stocks, fell 4.25% to nearly $84. At its peak, the index was trading for $107.39 in November 2021. Interestingly, Bitcoin and Ethereum peaked in the same month at $69,000 and $4,950, respectively.
Therefore, this growing correlation against the prospect of global rate hikes could continue to pressure BTC and ETH lower despite their growth-oriented narratives.
#Ethereum Merge resulting in downside teaches us a valuable lesson.
— Kevin Svenson (@KevinSvenson_) September 18, 2022
The global macro environment supersedes everything.
If the global markets were generally bullish, then the Merge would have resulted in a pump. But it didn't.
This goes for #Bitcoin as well.
Instead, investors may seek safety in low-volatile assets, including the U.S. dollar and government bonds.
For instance, the U.S. dollar index, a barometer to measure the greenback's strength, rose by 0.5% to 110 on Sep. 19 after its highest weekly close since 2002.
Similarly, six-month U.S. Treasury notes yield 3.79% if held until maturity, thus offering investors a safer investment alternative with guaranteed returns in the short term. Similarly, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield has surpassed its June high when Bitcoin dropped to yearly lows.
Other shorter-dated and longer-dated T-bills yield similar returns.
A mix of on-chain and technical indicators further hints at an imminent price crash in Bitcoin and Ethereum markets.
First, the Bitcoin Spent Output Age Bands (7-10 years), which tracks spent BTC and bundles them into categories depending on their age, showed the movement of more than 5,000 BTC on Sep. 4. MACD_D, a user at the on-chain analytics platform CryptoQuant, argues that this is typically bad news for the price of Bitcoin.
"If the holder, which held BTC in its seventh year, moves more than 5,000BTC, there could be a strong downward trend in the future," the verified user wrote, stressing:
"This indicator showed signal 7 in the past and fell 6 times except for 1 (07 Feb '21) The fact that the long-term holder moved the BTC means that there will be an unusual price movement in the future."
The user also highlighted a recent rise in Ether dominance to over 20%, noting that it typically hints at a bubble that's about to pop. Excerpts:
"When #BTC is simply transverse, the excessive rise of Ethereum creates a bubble. In particular, if the ETH dominance rises by more than 20%, it provides a good timing to enter the short position."
Related: Goldman Sachs’ bearish macro outlook puts Bitcoin at risk of crashing to $12K
From a technical standpoint, Bitcoin has entered the breakdown stage of its prevailing "bear flag" pattern, now eyeing an extended decline toward the flag's profit target at around $14,500 in 2022.
Meanwhile, Ether has also been breaking out of a symmetrical triangle. As a result, ETH price could drop toward $750 if the bearish continuation pattern plays out, along with weakening technicals for the ETH/BTC pair as well.
In other words, a 40% ETH price crash is on the table before the end of the year.
The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.
