Blockchain

The Bitcoin price has been moving sideways over the past few weeks, although it saw a volatility spike in the last 24 hours. However, the cryptocurrency remains stuck as sentiment turns negative, and more and more traders expect another re-test of critical support.

As of this writing, Bitcoin (BTC) trades at $26,200 with a 3% profit in 24 hours. The cryptocurrency recorded a 2% profit the previous week and was the best performer in the crypto top 10 by market capitalization.

Why Is The Bitcoin Price Likely To Re-Test Critical Support

According to trading desk QCP Capital, the crypto market is about to enter its final quarter with a large option expiration event set for September 29th. These events are often a source of high volatility as major players hedge their positions, roll out contracts for future expiration dates, etc.

In addition, the trading desk points to late September as days with a lot of confluence between macroeconomic forces and their Elliot Wave count, signaling bearish price action. The Elliot Wave indicator attempts to provide a price trajectory for an asset by considering market psychology and investor sentiment.

QCP Capital believes that Bitcoin is moving and will likely correct into the $23,000 area to complete the trajectory corresponding with a Wave B, per the Elliot Wave theory. The crypto trading desk stated:

Based on both blueprints, we expect an imminent final decline to close out the quarter at the lows (Chart below). The crypto and macro events calendar also lines up with this view, with a concentration of upcoming bearish events that only turn neutral from mid-October onwards. This includes a likely higher-than-expected CPI tomorrow and a more-hawkish-than-expected FOMC next week (…)

Moreover, other bearish factors coincide with this potential bearish price action, such as the Mt. Gox Bitcoin unlock and the event surrounding the failed crypto exchange FTX. The bearish trajectory, QCP Capital argues, could prolonged into mid-October this year.

If the BTC price completes this trajectory, then the market would have hit bottom, and Bitcoin could begin to recover from a long winter. For late 2023 and 2024, the trading desk is more optimistic:

(…) while our theory implies a bottom soon after the supermoon early next month, we think the true bottom will come in mid-late October when the bad news cycle has run its course. We nonetheless remain bullish following that, into year-end and Q1 next year.

Cover image from Unsplash, chart from QCP Capital and Tradingview

The XRP price enjoyed a significant rise following Judge Analisa Torres’s ruling in favor of Ripple against the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). However, a crypto analyst has explained why the token is unlikely to enjoy such a similar trajectory till the year runs out.

XRP Price To End 2023 On A Low

In a tweet shared on his X (formerly Twitter) platform, Jungle, a prominent figure in the XRP community, stated that he doesn’t “believe the end of 2023 will be great for XRP.” However, it is not only XRP that he believes will end on a low as, according to him, “crypto in general” will not enjoy so much success in the remaining months of this year.

Jungle’s belief stems from the fact that many consumers are currently experiencing financial difficulty, so they might not be looking to invest in cryptocurrencies. He also mentioned the fact that the Federal Reserve keeps hiking interest rates in a bid to keep inflation down. This move ultimately curbs consumer spending, with many only focusing on what they consider necessary.

He projects that the financial market will take more hits before the year runs out and states that crypto “will not be immune from the pain.” According to him, now doesn’t feel like a “great time for growth,” further dampening the hopes of anyone who might have had a positive outlook for the crypto market for the remaining months of this year.

Jungle’s comment comes at a time when the crypto market is experiencing low trading volume across the board, which suggests that traders aren’t actively participating in the market. One reason could be that they have little or nothing to invest in the market, so they would rather stay out for now. 

Light At The End Of The Tunnel

Jungle, however, mentioned that there are positives to look forward to for XRP and the crypto market in general. He noted that Judge Torres’ ruling, alongside a stablecoin on XRPL and an AMM capability, will spark significant growth for the ripple ecosystem. 

He has also singled out certain factors and events that could drive up the crypto market’s value in the coming year. One of these events is the SEC approving the pending ETF applications by certain traditional financial institutions. An approval from the SEC will see institutions like BlackRock, Fidelity, and ARK Invest onboard a new class of investors to the crypto industry. 

The Bitcoin Halving coming up in the first half of 2024 is another event that Jungle has predicted will help drive up the crypto market’s value. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies’ value is expected to rise significantly once the Halving occurs.

Co-founder of Delphi Digital Kevin Kelly had previously noted that Bitcoin’s Halving was a key metric in determining when the next bull run would happen as he noted then that the last two halvings occurred 18 months after BTC bottomed and 7 months before it broke to a new all-time high (ATH). 

Transferred Funds By Hackers Are Estimated At $4.8 Million

On September 11, the hacker first transferred 520,000 MATIC tokens, worth over $266,000, which were bridged to the Avalanche blockchain. Some hours later, 300 BNB tokens valued at approximately $61,500 were sent to an externally owned address labeled “0x695…”. 

Before these recent transfers, the hacker had bridged $4.5 million to different Bitcoin blockchain addresses. This was reported by the blockchain security company Arkham on September 7. The total amount transferred, now at $4.8 million, only constitutes 1.2% of the total $41 million stolen by the hackers.

The Stake hackers exploited the platform by gaining access to the private keys of the platform’s Binance Smart Chain and Ethereum hot wallets. 

According to the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Lazarus Group from North Korea – known for its involvement in various cybercrimes, including hacking and cryptocurrency-related attacks, might be behind this exploit. 

The Total Amount Of Money Lost Due To Hacks And Scams Has Exceeded $1 Billion

The recent hack of $41 million from Stake has contributed to the cumulative losses from cryptocurrency hacks and scams in 2023. As a result of this incident, the total losses in the cryptocurrency industry have now surpassed the $1 billion mark.

Before the Stake attack, CertiK had reported the total losses to be approximately $997 million at the end of August. But for August alone, CertiK reported that exit scams resulted in approximately $26 million in losses. Flash loan attacks accounted for $6.4 million, and exploits caused losses of $13.5 million.

The cybersecurity firm verified that these combined losses exceeded $45 million for the past month. However, with several attacks occurring in the past two weeks, the overall figure has now crossed the $1 billion threshold. 

For instance, a prominent cryptocurrency investor lost $24 million of staked Ether (ETH) in a phishing attack on September 6. Additionally, Vitalik Buterin’s X (formerly Twitter) account was compromised on September 9, and the hacker used it to trick several individuals into participating in a nonfungible token scam, resulting in a total loss of $691,000.

Considering these incidents, in addition to CertiK’s previous estimate from August, the total losses due to cryptocurrency-related incidents would now exceed at least $1.04 billion.

Other recent incidents include a withdrawal involving Pepe coin (PEPE), resulting in a loss of $13.2 million for investors. Also, a security vulnerability was exposed on the Balancer platform, resulting in damages totaling $2.1 million.

In a concerning development, popular crypto exchange CoinEx is believed to have fallen victim to a suspected hack, resulting in significant losses from its Ethereum (ETH), TRON (TRX), and Polygon (MATIC) hot wallets. The incident, which unfolded on Tuesday, has sparked an ongoing investigation into the security breach.

Alarming Depletion Of CoinEx ETH Reserves

According to reports by Colin Wu, a prominent cryptocurrency journalist, CoinEx reportedly lost a staggering 4,946 ETH and 354,762 TRX as part of the ongoing drain from the exchange’s wallets. 

The total value of the funds lost surpasses $27.8 million, adding to the growing list of high-profile cryptocurrency exchange breaches. In his latest update, Colin Wu stated:

CoinEX is moving the affected hot wallet assets to the cold wallet address 0xf54…7E5d. CoinEX wallets currently hold $97.83 million in assets, of which $89 million are stored in the cold wallet address 0xf54…7E5d, mainly ETH worth $51.7 million and USDT $18.23 million. 

What’s more, In a concerning revelation, Julio Moreno, the Head of Research at CryptoQuant, has shed light on the peculiar behavior surrounding CoinEx’s Ethereum reserves. 

The exchange has experienced a staggering depletion of its ETH holdings, with almost 5,000 ETH mysteriously vanishing within a single hour and a total loss of approximately 40,000 ETH since May. As a result, CoinEx’s ETH reserves now stand at virtually zero.

CoinEx, however, has remained silent on the matter, refraining from issuing an official statement regarding the suspected hack. 

The depletion of CoinEx’s ETH reserves indicates a potentially grave situation, as it suggests a significant outflow of funds from the exchange. Such a rapid decline in ETH holdings may have severe implications for CoinEx’s liquidity and ability to meet customer withdrawal demands.

CoinEx’s stakeholders and the wider cryptocurrency community will closely watch how the exchange responds to these developments. Complemented by transparent communication, swift and decisive action will be vital in navigating this challenging situation and working towards a resolution.

Featured image from iStock, chart from TradingView.com 

Bitcoin appears to be in the process of forming a death cross currently. Here’s what happened to the asset the last time this pattern emerged.

Bitcoin 50-Day MA Is Moving Below The 200-Day MA Right Now

As pointed out by an analyst in a post on X, the 50-day moving average (MA) has been attempting a cross below the 200-day MA recently. A “Moving Average” is an analytical tool that calculates the average of any given quantity over a specific period of time. As its name suggests, it moves and changes alongside the quantity in question.

The main benefit of an MA is that it removes short-term fluctuations from the data, smoothing out the curve. This makes the study of long-term trends easier to perform.

MAs can be taken over any length of time, whether that be a minute or a decade. There are some periods that are particularly useful, however, like the 50-day and 200-day MAs, which are of relevance in the current discussion.

The interactions between these two Bitcoin MAs have apparently had consequences for the asset’s trend in the past, and the chart below shows how these two MAs have looked recently:

Historically, whenever the 50-day MA has dipped below the 200-day MA, the cross has proved to be a bearish one for the cryptocurrency’s price. In the above graph, it’s visible that the last time this type of crossover occurred was in January 2022.

Back then, the asset had been on its way down from its November 2021 all-time high and the death cross may have cemented the asset’s fate, as a long bear-market drawdown had followed afterward.

The opposite type of crossover, where the short-term MA moves above the long-term one, has generally been a bullish cross instead, as the asset has usually enjoyed uptrends following it. This crossover had been seen earlier in this year as well, after which BTC had gone on to see some significant rise.

Recently, however, as the cryptocurrency’s price has been struggling, the 50-day MA has started to go down and has now neared the 200-day MA. If the former continues in this trajectory and completes the cross below the latter, then another death cross would form for Bitcoin.

Such a cross would be an ominous sign for the asset, as it could imply that a significant drawdown may be ahead for the coin. So far, though, the bearish cross hasn’t been fully confirmed yet.

It now remains to be seen if the death cross will be completed in the coming days, or if BTC would turn itself around before it happens, leading to the 50-day MA pulling away from the 200-day MA for now.

BTC Price

Bitcoin has gone through a bit of a rollercoaster in the past two days, as its price had first dropped towards the $25,100 level, but has since already recovered above $26,100.

A crypto analyst has presented their forecast for where they believe the Bitcoin price will be by the end of 2023. However, the end-of-year (EOY) price prediction is not the only interesting thing that the analyst talks about, with short-term expectations also included.

Hoops To Jump Through For Bitcoin Price

Pseudonymous crypto analyst Titan of Crypto took to X (formerly Twitter) to share their latest prediction for the Bitcoin price. This analysis uses the Ichimoku point of view to analyze a Tenkan Cajun (TK) death cross that appeared on the Bitcoin price chart.

The importance of this TK death cross is what happened to the digital asset’s price the previous times it has appeared. According to Titan of Crypto, this exact death cross has appeared twice in the past two years, and each time, the outcome has been bearish for the Bitcoin price.

As the analyst points out, Bitcoin had dropped an average of 20% when the TK death cross appeared both in June 2021 and January 2022, which does not bode well for the price right now. So another occurrence could see the Bitcoin price fall around 20% from its already low levels.

The analyst also points to the packed week in terms of economic announcements such as the CPI and PPI, among others, which could have an adverse effect on the crypto market depending on their outcome. Such a drop as previously recorded could easily see the price drop to $20,300 the analyst points out.

BTC Will End The Year On A Good Note

Despite the incredibly bearish outlook that has formed for the Bitcoin price, especially in the short term, it is not all gloomy, according to Titan of Crypto’s analysis. For one, the analyst does not expect the price of the digital asset to fall any lower than its already established bottom back in 2022. This means that even though the analyst sees BTC returning toward $20,000, it won’t make a new bottom.

Furthermore, the analyst also sees the cryptocurrency finishing out 2023 on a high note. In the same analysis, he points out that he expects Bitcoin to cross $30,000 by year’s end. “Overall I believe that Bitcoin is going to go up and gravitate/pass the $32k level by EOY,” the tweet reads.

Going by this forecast, even if Bitcoin does fall to $20,000, the digital asset could see a more than 30% rise before the year is out. “But this scenario hasn’t played out yet and a lot of support needs to break before hoping for such a low price for #BTC,” the analyst explains in a follow-up tweet.

Chainlink (LINK), the cryptocurrency known for its decentralized oracle network, has been facing a challenging period in recent days as it grapples with a persistent bearish trend. Despite some positive developments in the crypto space, LINK’s price has been on a downward trajectory, failing to capitalize on favorable news.

One notable event that failed to provide the expected boost to LINK’s price was the successful completion of Swift’s experimentation with Chainlink. Swift, the interbank messaging giant, had conducted trials involving Chainlink, which created a buzz in the crypto community. 

However, rather than propelling LINK’s price to new heights, it primarily generated increased social volume and sentiment among traders.

Chainlink Short-Term Support Zone Crumbles

Looking at the price charts in a new analysis, it becomes evident that LINK was unable to maintain a short-term support zone that had been established by bullish investors just last week. The weekend witnessed a decline in prices and a surge in bearish pressure, undermining the previous support.

On the 4-hour chart, a bearish order block was clearly visible around the $6.2 zone, marked in red. While Chainlink prices had briefly surged past this level on September 7 and even retested it as support, ultimately flipping it into a bullish breaker block, the bulls struggled to sustain the momentum. The persistent sell pressure over the past few weeks ultimately pushed LINK’s value below the critical $6.2 mark.

Bearish Indicators Point To Further Losses

As of now, Chainlink is trading at approximately $5.91 according to CoinGecko, marking a 0.6% decline in the last 24 hours and a 1.2% dip over the past week. Both the price action and technical indicators seem to align with the possibility of LINK facing more losses in the near future.

Moving forward, the next significant support levels to watch are at $5.7 and $5, as indicated by the higher timeframe price charts. It is increasingly likely that LINK may experience a drop to these levels in the coming days and weeks.

LINK Whales Accumulate Amid Bearish Trend

Despite the prevailing bearish sentiment, a separate report highlights a noteworthy development. Chainlink whales, holding between 10,000 and 1,000,000 Chainlink tokens, have taken advantage of the recent dip in the asset’s price, anticipating a future recovery in the altcoin’s value.

Typically, such whale accumulation tends to generate a positive sentiment among traders, as it fuels demand for LINK across various exchanges. However, it remains to be seen whether these bullish catalysts can ultimately break LINK free from its current downward trend, as social metrics continue to outshine price performance in the Chainlink ecosystem.

(This site’s content should not be construed as investment advice. Investing involves risk. When you invest, your capital is subject to risk).

Featured image from Broken Chain Photography 

Amidst the constant price swings and uncertainties that plague the crypto market, stablecoins have become an invaluable asset for investors and traders. However, analysts have revealed several stablecoins that have been struggling to maintain the esteemed stability reserved for these types of assets.

Stablecoins Under Pressure

The inherent volatility of the crypto market and the persistent price fluctuations of cryptocurrencies are a constant experience in the crypto industry. Due to this, stablecoins like USDT, USDC, and DAI have long been revered as a reliable bridge between the volatility and instability of cryptocurrencies. 

However, a recent report has raised concerns about the stability of some of the most popular stablecoins. The report saw analysts from S&P Global explore the top five stablecoins including Tether (USDT), Dai (DAI) Binance USD (BUSD), USD Coin (USDC), and Paxos (USDP).  

The research paper from Dr. Cristina Polizy, Anoop Garg, and Miguel de la Mata revealed that USDC and DAI have failed to maintain their dollar peg multiple times in the last two years, as compared to other stablecoins like USDT and BUSD. 

The analysis revealed that the de-pegging events for USDC and DAI have taken place more often than those of USDT and BUSD. Circle’s USDC was named as the stablecoin with the most prolonged de-pegging event, dropping to $0.90 for 23 minutes while DAI de-pegged for 20 minutes. 

In contrast, USDT dropped below the one-dollar peg for just one minute, while BUSD has not experienced any de-pegging event since June 2021 and June 2023. 

Possible Instigations For Stablecoin De-pegging Events

March 2023 saw the fall of three prominent banks in the United States, including Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), Silvergate Bank, and Signature Bank. Due to the affiliations of these banks with the crypto industry, their collapse had a significant impact on the prices of digital assets in the space.

Circle’s USDC experienced a decline of 13% below the one-dollar mark after reports revealed that a significant portion of Circle’s cash reserves, adding up to $3.3 billion, were kept in Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). However, the stablecoin has since recovered and maintained its peg following an announcement that confirmed that the Federal Reserve would endorse the banks’ creditors. 

Subsequently, Michael Barr, a high-ranking official at the United States Federal Reserve raised concerns about the adoption rate of unregulated stablecoins like USDT and USDC, which are currently the top stablecoins by market capitalization. 

As the broader crypto market watches closely for more discrepancies in the stablecoin dollar peg, financial firms like PayPal, have launched their own stablecoins. 

Prominent platforms like Binance, and Huobi are already incorporating the new PYUSD into their crypto portfolio. In addition, monetary institutions like Visa are taking advantage of stablecoins like USDC to propel expansion into new markets.

Shiba Inu (SHIB) is in a crucial make-or-break moment. Following a market-wide altcoin slump, SHIB’s price action is being shaped by two opposing chart patterns, both of which could have significant implications for the price’s future.

A Tale Of Two Patterns For Shiba Inu

The 1-week chart for SHIB reveals a tale of two patterns. On one hand, there’s the bullish triple bottom, suggesting a potential end to SHIB’s two-year downtrend. On the other, a descending triangle, which has been in the making for over 13 months, hints at a bearish outcome. In an analysis on August 30, NewsBTC already warned of this scenario.

Yesterday, SHIB’s price dipped to a low of $0.00000697 before rebounding slightly to $0.00000722. This places it precariously above the crucial support line of $0.00000715. For SHIB to steer clear of the bearish implications of the descending triangle and to validate the triple bottom, it’s imperative that it maintains a weekly close above this price.

The triple bottom, a bullish chart pattern, is characterized by three roughly equivalent lows bouncing off a support level, culminating in a breakout above resistance. This suggests a shift in momentum from sellers to buyers. For SHIB, the criteria for a triple bottom seem to be in place: an existing downward trend precedes the pattern; the three lows are approximately equal, allowing for a horizontal trend line and a decline in volume throughout the pattern suggests weakening bearish momentum.

SHIB’s journey through this pattern began in June 2022 with its first low at $0.00000715. After a brief recovery, it hit its second low in December 2021 at $0.00000781. The third and most recent low was recorded in June 2023 at $0.0000060.

The Shadow Of The Descending Triangle

However, the triple bottom’s bullish narrative is challenged by the descending triangle’s bearish undertones. If SHIB’s price falls below the $0.00000715 support, it could validate the descending triangle, potentially pushing SHIB towards its year-to-date low of $0.000006. A breach of this level might plunge SHIB into uncharted waters, making a new all-time low a grim possibility.

Traders often seek additional confirmation of patterns through other technical indicators. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is one such tool. SHIB’s weekly RSI currently stands at a neutral 39.8 (neutral). However, a recent dip below the 30-mark (indicating oversold conditions) suggests that the recent price drop might have been the last for SHIB.

Should the triple bottom be validated, SHIB could witness a significant rally. An immediate target to watch would be the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement level at $0.00002545, translating to a potential surge of approximately 250% from its current price.

In conclusion, SHIB’s future hangs in the balance. The coming days and weeks will be crucial in determining whether it embarks on a bullish rally or succumbs to bearish pressures.

Pepe Coin has been on a wild ride in early September, characterized by significant price volatility and a troubling dip in its performance. 

The price action of PEPE early this month followed a bearish pennant pattern, marked by two converging trendlines. This pattern typically signals indecision in the market, as buyers and sellers wrestle for control. However, the situation took a turn for the worse as the coin broke below its support trendline, increasing the pressure on the supply side.

As of the latest data from CoinGecko, the coin is trading at $0.00000067, showing a 3.9% loss in the past 24 hours and a substantial 14.4% decline over the past week. Most notably, PEPE has tumbled out of the coveted crypto top 100 list on CoinGecko.

PEPE Selling Pressure Intensifies

On September 10, PEPE suffered a bearish breakdown as it breached the support trendline. This development, coupled with a rising supply pressure across the altcoin landscape, resulted in a sharp decline in the value of PEPE. Investors and enthusiasts began to question the coin’s future as it struggled to maintain its position.

Adding to the concerns surrounding PEPE, a tweet from Lookonchain on September 11 drew attention to a peculiar event. Several investors opted to sell their PEPE holdings, swapping them for PNDC (Pandacoin). Three wallets collectively sold a staggering 1.38 trillion PEPE tokens for 600 ETH, equivalent to approximately $965,000. In a surprising twist, they reinvested 600 ETH to purchase 487 billion PNDC tokens.

We noticed that 3 wallets changed their $PEPE positions to $PNDC today.

They sold a total of 1.38T $PEPE for 600 $ETH($965K) and spent 600 $ETH to buy 487B $PNDC.

Address:https://t.co/tPT0P3KvOghttps://t.co/nKOS9H3tbGhttps://t.co/EzkRW2BuPt pic.twitter.com/f7rUHZY2jx

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) September 11, 2023

On-Chain Metrics Paint A Grim Picture

A deeper look at PEPE’s on-chain metrics reinforced the growing unease within the crypto community. Buying pressure on the meme-inspired coin remained high, which, paradoxically, contributed to the bearish sentiment. Notably, PEPE’s supply on exchanges experienced a sharp increase over the past few days, indicating a surge in selling activity. 

What Lies Ahead For Pepe Coin?

This shift occurred simultaneously with a decrease in PEPE’s supply outside of exchanges, further highlighting the rising selling pressure. Moreover, PEPE’s exchange inflow witnessed a noticeable spike, while the total number of holders declined, painting a gloomy picture for the cryptocurrency.

PEPE’s early September performance has been nothing short of turbulent. Its journey from a bearish pennant pattern to a breakdown below support has left investors and enthusiasts concerned about its future. The notable wallet activity and on-chain metrics only serve to compound these concerns, leaving the crypto community with more questions than answers about the fate of PEPE in the coming days.

(This site’s content should not be construed as investment advice. Investing involves risk. When you invest, your capital is subject to risk).

Featured image from Tallahassee Democrat