Leading cryptocurrencies fell further on Thursday, while oil prices surged as investors feared Iran conflict could escalate after President Donald Trump’s address.
| Cryptocurrency | 24-Hour Gains +/- | Price (Recorded at 9:20 p.m. EDT) |
|---|---|---|
| Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) | -1.71% | $66,760.21 |
| Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) |
-3.85% | $2,052.15 |
| XRP (CRYPTO: XRP) | -2.19% | $1.31 |
| Solana (CRYPTO: SOL) | -1.84% | $79.33 |
| Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) | -1.50% | $0.09032 |
Crypto Sees Increased Bearish Pressure
Bitcoin wobbled in the range between $66,000 and $67,000 after retreating from the $68,000+ territory on Wednesday night. Ethereum failed to break over $2,070 amid heavy resistance from the bears. Trading volume for the second-largest cryptocurrency dipped 14% over the last 24 hours.
Shares of Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ:MSTR) and Bitmine Immersion Technologies Inc. (NYSE:BMNR) closed down 2.95% and 1.22%, respectively.
Nearly $400 million were liquidated in the past 24 hours, predominantly bullish long positions, according to Coinglass data.
Notably, over $500 million in Bitcoin short positions on Binance risked liquidation if the apex cryptocurrency reclaimed $70,000.
Open interest in Bitcoin futures rose 1.47% in the last 24 hours. A rise in open interest with a decline in spot price usually implies that short bets are being built up.
Top Gainers (24 Hours)
| Cryptocurrency (Market Cap>$100 M) | Gains +/- | Price (Recorded at 9:20 p.m. EDT) |
| edgeX (EDGE) | +11.94% | $0.7661 |
| Plasma (XPL) | +11.90% | $0.1183 |
| Algorand (ALGO) | +9.28% | $0.1117 |
The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $2.30 trillion, following a drop of 2.19% from the previous day.
Dow Falls, Oil Shoots Up
Stocks were a mixed bag on Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 61.07 points, or 0.13%, to close at 46,504.6. Conversely, the S&P 500 gained 0.11% to end at 6,582.69, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 0.18% to finish at 21,879.18.
Oil prices shot up sharply, the West Texas Intermediate crude futures surging nearly 12% to top $113 per barrel after Trump escalated war threats against Iran during his Wednesday night address.
The Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange will be closed on Friday in observance of Good Friday.
‘Supportive Setup’ Ahead?
Blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant noted that Binance’s Ethereum reserves have fallen to 3.3 million ETH, dipping below February 2024 lows. At the same time, stablecoin balances, including Tether (CRYPTO: USDT) and USDC (CRYPTO: USDC) have continued to climb.
“From a market perspective, that combination usually points to easing immediate sell-side pressure and stronger conditions for spot demand if buyers begin deploying stablecoin balances,” CryptoQuant added. “If this trend continues, it could create a more supportive setup for price expansion.”
Widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader Ali Martinez stated Bitcoin could be in for a final shakeout, providing “one of the best opportunities” to build your position.
Martinez added that a historical “death cross” in the 50-day and 200-day simple moving averages could trigger a 40%-50% drop, potentially dragging Bitcoin to $33,000.
Image via Shutterstock/ noamgalai
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