Bitcoin
The fall in Bitcoin value over the week was about 3%. For now, $45,000 remains unattainable for the world’s largest cryptocurrency. Although the majority of the seven trading sessions (four) were in the green, the week's dynamics were defined by a 5.81% drop on Monday, December 11th.
Source: tradingview.com
One of the main events of the past week was the speech of the head of the US Federal Reserve System (FRS), Jerome Powell.. In his report on December 13, he said that the key rate remains unchanged – 5.25%. At the same time, Powell emphasized that he sees further tightening of monetary policy as unlikely. However, if the economy demands it, the Fed may raise rates. Thus, by and large, the high-ranking official admitted that anything could happen in the future. This inspired investors to raise the price of BTC to $43,000, but it didn’t go much further.
Events are unfolding around ETFs. Although the next window for spot exchange-traded funds for Bitcoin and Ether won't be until January, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to receive applications for more such products.. Financial company First Trust has applied for a Bitcoin buffer ETF. This innovative instrument is designed to protect a certain percentage of the investor’s funds when the asset price falls.. The information was shared by Blomberg Intelligence analyst James Seyffart on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
From the point of view of technical analysis, Bitcoin experienced a slight correction, which, in general, was expected. Long-term situation for BTC still looks bullish. The price is above the 50-day (indicated in blue) and 200-day (indicated in yellow) moving averages. Continued growth can be expected after breaking through the resistance level near $44,700, and the support level is last week’s low – $40,181.
Source: tradingview.com
The fear and greed index decreased by two points compared to last week.. Current value is 70. This still speaks to the dominance of greed over fear among Bitcoin holders.
Ethereum
The price of ether has fallen by almost 4% over the past week.. At a minimum, it even dropped below $2,150, but then returned above $2,200. Four trading sessions turned out to be negative, and three were positive.
Source: tradingview.com
There was no news this week that would give investors positive news. The SEC continues to delay the deadline for making decisions on cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds associated with the second largest cryptocurrency by capitalization. On December 13, it became known that the regulator had extended the period for reviewing the application to open the Invesco Galaxy Ethereum-ETF. It was filed on November 8. The SEC was originally expected to take 45 days to reach a verdict.. But it was not there. The commission decided to double the review period to 90 days.. The new deadline for the decision is February 6, 2024.
This week, an interesting study was published by representatives of the University of Cambridge. Scientists compared the amount of electricity consumed by the Ethereum network with that of some large companies and even real estate.. The results were quite remarkable. Ethereum consumes 7 gigawatt-hours, which is only 0.3 GWh more than the Eiffel Tower. But large companies consume ten and even tens of times more electricity: Deutsche Bank – 423 GWh, American Express – 202.73 GWh, Netflix – 123.15 GWh. Among buildings, the Dubai skyscraper Burj Khalifa has the highest electricity consumption – 243.4 GWh.
According to technical analysis, it is too early to draw conclusions that the bullish trend has changed to bearish. Of the last nine weeks, only two were in the negative zone, and then by less than 5%.. The support level of $2,140.8 has not been broken, which indicates the strength of buyers. The same as finding the price above the 50-week moving average (indicated in blue). If you don’t currently have ether in your hands, then it is reasonable to make further purchases if the resistance level is broken – $2,403.1.
Source: tradingview.com
Cardano
The dynamics of the Cardano cryptocurrency from December 7 to December 15, 2023 turned out to be more impressive in comparison with Bitcoin and Ethereum. The coin gained more than 17%. Cardano has been showing positive dynamics for nine weeks in a row.
Source: tradingview.com
What caused this movement? If we talk specifically about the ending week, then, starting from January 10, network activity increased. This is especially true for large players. The number of transactions on the Cardano network exceeding $100,000 on December 14 exceeded the figure on December 10 by more than 38%. This data is provided by the IntoTheBlock analytical platform.
There is also positive news from cryptocurrency developers. It has become known that the Cardano Foundation has launched a new Identity Wallet, compatible with the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). The wallet will provide the ability to interact with decentralized applications (DApps). It supports several different identification and accounting standards. The main focus is on interconnectivity, which will allow for seamless interaction between blockchain ecosystems.
From a technical analysis perspective, Cardano is in a bullish trend. This is confirmed by the fact that the price is above the 200-day moving average (indicated in yellow). However, it has been going on for quite some time.. The longer the coin rises, the higher the likelihood of a correction. The RSI indicator has been in the overbought zone (bearish omen) since December 6, which is typical for markets with a pronounced trend. It’s not worth focusing on it without taking other factors into account.. It is possible to say that bears have reigned in the market only after breaking through the support level of $0.51. Further growth can be expected if the resistance level around $0.68 can be overcome.
Source: tradingview.com
Thus, the growth of Bitcoin and Ethereum gave way to a correction. At least short term. Other altcoins, in particular Cardano, continue their gallant march to the top. This is facilitated by the increased activity of large players and innovations within the platform itself.
This material and the information contained herein do not constitute individual or other investment advice. The editors' opinions may not coincide with the opinions of the author, analytical portals and experts.