Bitcoin is revealing a pattern in the past few months - settling for a few weeks on a level that seems reasonable, creating an expectation for a rebounce - then finding another bottom. This time, BTC sank toward $6,500, fulfilling predictions of touching $6,200. But some see it heading as low as $4,000, or even $3,500, in what looks like a protracted bear market with not enough fresh buyers.
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Bitcoin (BTC) crashed mid-week, going from 7,200 down a precipice to $6,800, then lower. BTC is down more than 13% this week, settling at $6,591.17. There seem to be even less hopes that BTC could bounce from these levels, as trading volumes are slimmer now.
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Trading volumes for BTC hover around $4.7 billion in the past 24 hours, as Bitcoin trading is mostly supported by the Japanese Yen. Japanese markets have a 58% share of all deals, and USD and Tether (USDT) volumes have stagnated. Bitcoin’s dominance in terms of market capitalization rose to 39.6%, as altcoin unraveled faster.
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Ethereum (ETH) is at $505.87, holding onto its usual level, as it is somewhat decoupled from BTC. Still, the asset is down more than 13% this week, and the Ethereum network is still seeing congestion issues. ETH is now more uncoupled from Bitcoin, with more than 20% of trading happening against Tether (USDT), while adding volumes in USD and other direct currencies. This has helped ETH keep a part of its position.
Ripple (XRP) is still struggling, down to a lower range of $0.55, after losing 18% this week. Additionally, XRP trading volumes have tightened to 340 million in 24 hours, quite far from the December hype levels of $8.5 billion.
Bitcoin Cash (BCH, BCC) remains unstable, wiping out more than 22% of its value within a week, to $869.56. The asset is seeing marketing and technological change, but its closeness to Bitcoin is now affecting the price in a negative way.
EOS (EOS) is one of the best performers this week, completing the feat of launching a blockchain and verifying it in the community vote in the past three days. EOS is still down more than 22% this week, to $10.24, as price remains heavy and could not keep abote $11 for long.
Litecoin (LTC) crashed below $100 for the first time since the rapid climb at the end of last year. LTC is also tied up to the fate of BTC, and now that the climb has slowed, the asset is not attracting so much speculation. Predictions of $500 are far into the future, and a price of $50 is seen as possible if the bear market continues.
Stellar (XLM) holds up surprisingly steady at $0.23, remaining flat, but also seen as one of the promising platform coins. The asset slid more than 18% net this week, and the short recovery was not enough.
Cardano (ADA) had another spike and drop, ending up a net 19% lower this week, to $0.19. The coin has been largely forgotten, with no immediate news of updates or milestones. ADA has a mainnet running, but the project’s functionalities are still incomplete, and are complex and possibly too far in the future for an immediate price effect.
IOTA (MIOTA) has been added to Bitpanda for a direct fiat on-ramp, especially suitable for European buyers. MIOTA is down more than 25$ to $1.25, as all eyes were on EOS.
TRON (TRX) saw positive news this week, but the general downtrend on the markets kept the price depressed. TRX is stagnant at $0.045, down a net 22% this week.
NEO (NEO) crashed to a lower range, after losing a bit for weeks. This week, NEO was among the bigger losers, sliding by nearly 25% to $39.79. NEO seems to be in a slow freefall, taken for granted as a utility coin, as dramatic airdrops no longer apply.
DASH (DASH) had a loss of 15% this week, to $261.61. The coin is also moving sideways, as it is seen as too expensive to buy up in what looks like a protracted bear market.
Monero (XMR) is down the charts, at $129.43, wiping out another 20% of its value. XMR showed its prices near $500 were a one-off phenomenon, and the coin is back to being a solid asset with a large community, but not seen as rising to exorbitant levels.
NEM (XEM) lost more than 20% this week to $0.19, and remains locked within a range of a few cents. There is very little hype, despite NEM being a platform coin - other assets are stealing the spotlight.
Every time a rapid shakedown happens, there are even less hopes of a fast recovery for the markets. Another crazy bull run was expected in May or June, but for now, overly enthusiastic investors are realizing there are no guaranteed moves on the market. Still, compared to last year, the crypto market is immensely more active, both in terms of asset composition and trading volumes.
Doubts are being raised that when fiat investment fails, Tethers and other assets are always there, to give a semblance of active trading. It seems like the markets are in for a longer than expected ice age, where speculation still happens, but price records are quite far, and trading relies on smaller fluctuations.
This article appeared first on Cryptovest
