Leading cryptocurrencies jumped on Wednesday, though analysts view the uptick as a relief bounce rather than a momentum shift.

Cryptocurrency 24-Hour Gains +/- Price (Recorded at 8:15 p.m. ET)
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) +4.32% $68,547.48
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH)
               
+8.31% $2,062.69
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP)                          +5.16% $1.43
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL)                          +10.30% $88.94
Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE)              +8.95% $0.1010

Crypto Market Rebounds

Bitcoin enjoyed a relief bounce, nearing reclaiming $70,000, while trading volume jumped 34% over the last 24 hours.

Ethereum also broke past the $2,000 resistance, accompanied by a 47% jump in 24-hour volumes, while XRP and Dogecoin were up 5.16% and 8.95%.

Shares of cryptocurrency-related companies, including Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ:MSTR)  and Coinbase Global Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN), closed up 8.86% and 13.52%, respectively.

Over $580 million was liquidated from the market in the last 24 hours, according to Coinglass, predominantly wiping out bearish short positions.

Bitcoin’s open interest rose 3.44% over the past 24 hours, although whale sentiment across key exchanges, including OKX, Bybit and Binance, remained bearish.

Despite the uptick, “Extreme Fear” sentiment persisted in the market, according to the Crypto Fear & Greed Index.

Top Gainers (24 Hours) 

Cryptocurrency (Market Cap>$100 M) Gains +/- Price (Recorded at 8:15 p.m. ET)
Power Protocol (POWER)     +33.34%     $0.9130
Polkadot (DOT)                  +32.66%     $1.67
NEAR Protocol (NEAR)            +19.51%     $3.43

The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $2.26 trillion, following an increase of 3.02% over the last 24 hours.

Stocks In The Green Too

Stocks extended their gains on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lifted 307.65 points, or 0.63%, to end at 49,482.15. The S&P 500 climbed 0.81% to close at 6,946.13, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed up 1.26% to 23,152.08.

Precious metals held steady, with spot gold rising 0.44% to $5,189 per ounce and spot silver gaining 0.30% to $89.42 per ounce.

Is This A ‘Profit-Taking’ Signal?

Blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant noted that while Bitcoin’s “structural selling pressure has eased” compared to previous months, the trend has not yet turned upward.

Bitcoin’s Fund Flow Ratio, which measures the amount of BTC moving into Binance relative to total BTC held on the exchange, stays low, implying less sell-side pressure.

“If the ratio remains low, any upward price reaction could create the conditions for a strong short squeeze. In other words, be prepared for a relief bounce,” CryptoQuant added.

Santiment, another popular on-chain research firm, noted a marked change in crowd sentiment following Bitcoin’s rally.

Discussions around BTC moving higher and FOMO buys surged, which, according to Santiment, is a “good profit-taking signal.”

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