Amid the bearish impression circling the cryptocurrency market lately, a prominent crypto analyst has revealed a recent trend for Bitcoin (BTC), which will help bolster the continuation of its price rally.

What Bitcoin Needs To Sustain And Expand Its Rally

A cryptocurrency analyst known as Ali recently shared this crucial information with the entire cryptocurrency community on December 18, 2023. The analyst took to X (formerly Twitter) to highlight what Bitcoin needs to maintain its upward trajectory.

Ali said the crypto asset experienced a dip in network growth over the past month, which raised concerns about the stability of BTC’s recent price move to $44,000.

He added that creating new Bitcoin addresses must expand to guarantee a robust continuation of its rally. This will provide the much-needed support for the crypto asset to maintain its bullish momentum. 

The post read:

There’s been a noticeable dip in #Bitcoin network growth over the past month, casting doubt on the sustainability of $BTC’s recent move to $44,000. For a robust continuation of the bull rally, it’s crucial to see an uptick in the number of new $BTC addresses. This would provide the needed support for sustained bullish momentum.

BTC needs further investor and institutional support to sustain its rally. A chart accompanied the crypto analyst’s X post to support his projection further.

This prediction means further corrections may be a scenario for the digital asset. This is because of the discrepancy between the creation of new addresses and the current price increase of Bitcoin.

Nonetheless, approving a Bitcoin Spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the US might create an avenue for more institutional investment, thereby reversing this trend.

As of the time of writing, BTC was trading at $40,980, indicating a decrease of over 2% in the past 24 hours. According to CoinMarketCap, its market capitalization decreased by the same percentage in the past 24 hours.

Digital asset prices have increased by 146% in the last year, demonstrating amazing growth throughout this timeframe. Its performance over the same year exceeded 73% of the leading 100 crypto assets, putting it among the top performers.

The Crypto Asset Fell Below Its Crucial Supply Area

Ali has also shared another post on X showing that Bitcoin has witnessed a dip below its key supply zone. The analyst pointed out that the zone ranges from $41,200 to $42,400, of which the asset has recently fallen below this range.

He added that 1.87 million addresses in this region have accumulated about 730,000 BTC. With this decline, these holders may sell the token to reduce losses.

The crypto analyst also highlighted a potential decline to the next demand zone ranging from $37,500 to $38,700. Meanwhile, about 1,28 million addresses in this region have accumulated 553,000 BTC tokens.

A crypto founder recently gave his opinion on the future trajectory of the XRP price, and XRP holders will like this one as he predicts that the crypto token will hit $22. He also gave a timeline of when it will hit this price level.

When XRP Price Will Hit $22

In a YouTube interview with Zach Rector, Patrick Riley, the founder of Reaper Financial, mentioned that XRP will hit $22 at the peak of the next bull run. He further stated that the crypto token will hold above $10 in the next bear market after that bull run. The next bull run has been projected by many to occur in 2024, meaning that XRP could hit $22 next year. 

Riley sounded so optimistic about the future of XRP. This isn’t surprising, considering that Reaper Financial is built on the XRP Ledger. The $22 price prediction isn’t the only bold assertion that the crypto founder made. He also foresees XRP surpassing Bitcoin at some point, although he didn’t give a particular timeline for that. When that happens, he believes that will see XRP materialize as the global reserve currency. 

He alluded to the dollar failing and many possibly looking to cryptocurrencies for succor. There is a general belief that cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin, can act as a hedge against inflation. However, going by Riley’s prediction, XRP instead of Bitcoin will be the go-to token. 

Talks about Inflation and the declining value of the US dollar have been discussed much of late. Renowned economist Peter Schiff recently warned that the fall of the US dollar was imminent and that the country’s economy is going to take a hard hit. Many believe that this could be a great avenue for cryptocurrencies to swoop in and save the day. 

Making A Case For XRP

In a more recent video on his YouTube channel, Zach Rector made a case for XRP instead of Bitcoin as the future of finance. He hinted at how the transaction fees on the Bitcoin network affect its utility, as many are unable even to afford to transact on the network. Therefore, he believes that XRP is in a “better to change the world” and possibly the global financial structure.

Indeed, many believe that XRP is in a better position because of the transaction speed and fee of the network. The XRP ledger is said to be able to process 1,500 transactions per second and settle them in three to five seconds. Transaction cost on the network also stands at 0.00001 XRP, which is way below the average gas fee on the Bitcoin network. 

At the time of writing, XRP is trading at around $0.6, down over 3% in the last 24 hours, according to data from CoinMarketCap. 

Bitcoin is walking back on some of its gains over the past few days. The number one cryptocurrency by market cap might be on the verge of a more significant retracement, which could push it back to the $30,000 zone.

As of this writing, Bitcoin (BTC) trades at $40,950 with a 2% loss in the past 24 hours. On the weekly chart, the cryptocurrency records a 3% loss, with all tokens in the top 10 by market recording a similar performance, except for Avalanche (AVAX).

Bitcoin Hits Local Top? Bull Run Slows Down

Over the weekend, Bitcoin was rejected from the critical resistance level at $43,500. According to a pseudonym analyst, as the BTC price dropped to its current levels, a significant player placed a “substantial resistance block.”

The chart below shows that the selling order is 1,562 BTC, or around $7 million. It also shows thick support for BTC as the bullish momentum fades.

In other words, Bitcoin might slow down, but the area around $40,000 could provide critical support for a potential bounce. The analyst stated on the increasing selling orders appearing on the books:

Massive resistance added on BTC Binance Spot. This is what a top looks like. A substantial resistance block of 1562 BTC has just arrived in the order books.

BTC Whales On The Move

While many believe that the market can absorb the spike in selling pressure, crypto analytics firm Material Indicators showed that Bitcoin is losing the support of major players. Over the weekend, players selling orders above $1 million “dumped” their positions.

The firm has been warning traders about this possibility by arguing that the recent bullish price action was a strategy to suck in liquidity from retail investors. Once this smaller player jumped in, whales began to “distribute” or sell their coins into the rally.

In that sense, the firm set a potential local top for BTC at $45,000. Keith Alan, one of Material Indicators senior analysts, stated the following on the current price action:

The good news is, at some point the market does flip to accumulation, and prices moving lower will get us to that point. As bad as it looks for bulls right now, I’m not expecting a straight line down. Time to exercise some patience and see how things develop from here.

Cover image from Unsplash, chart from Tradingview

The Dogecoin price action has had quite a disinteresting year than most would expect from the biggest meme coin. Despite currently being up around 77% from its bear market lows of $0.053 in June 2022, the crypto has lagged compared to top cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana so far in 2023. 

On the bright side, DOGE’s on-chain metrics have exploded recently, pointing to a potential rebound on the horizon which could see Dogecoin spike to new highs.

Dogecoin Market Overview

DOGE has grown exponentially from its first days as the only meme coin in the crypto industry to now being the 10th-largest crypto asset in terms of market cap. According to Galaxy Digital, DOGE is worth almost two times as much as Wyndham Hotels & Resorts and almost as much as Nissan with its current market cap of $13 billion. However, Dogecoin had a rough 2023, underperforming compared to the major cryptocurrencies. 

At the time of writing, Dogecoin is trading at $0.09109, 87% down from its all-time high of $0.7315. DOGE is now 940 days into its current bear market, 217 days less than the historical average. According to a report from Galaxy, this extended bear run has only happened twice in DOGE’s lifetime. 

In the last two cycles, the meme coin went on 1,192 days and 1,117 days of depressive price action, reaching more than 85% below previous all-time highs. 

Although DOGE is now trading 543 days above its 2022 low, it is still underperforming in comparison to the last two cycles. In the first cycle, it took DOGE 977 days to climb to reach its all-time high from the 2015 low. Similarly, it took only 423 days to jump from its 2020 lows to the current all-time high. 

What’s Next For DOGE?

Things started to change in the middle of October 2023, as the wider crypto market entered into a bullish sentiment. The crypto has been on a run since then, recently pushing its price over $0.1 for the first time this year to register a yearly high of $0.1018. 

This growth can also be attributed to Doginals (DRC-20 tokens), Dogecoin’s equivalent of BRC-20 tokens. These Doginals have grown massively since their launch in May, with a cumulative market cap of $100 million. At the same time, Dogecoin has seen a massive influx of new and active users, something it lacked for the majority of the year. Over 282,000 non-zero balance addresses were added in the past 30 days, while holders are bearing down.

Dogecoin has now retraced from above the $0.1 mark and is now trading at $0.09109. If these metrics continue their upward trend into 2024, DOGE could see a price turnaround to break above the $0.1 level and push to $0.2 for the first time since 2021. According to data from IntoTheBlock, there are 235,150 addresses waiting to make a profit at around the $0.1 price level.

An analyst has revealed the level of XRP might observe a pullback following the latest rejection in the cryptocurrency’s price.

XRP Has Seen Rejection At Mid-line Of An Ascending Parallel Channel

As explained by analyst Ali in a new post on X, XRP has appeared to have been moving inside an Ascending Parallel Channel recently. An “Ascending Parallel Channel” refers to a pattern in technical analysis that’s used for identifying uptrends and potential reversal points for any asset’s price.

As the name already suggests, the pattern involves two parallel lines that make up the “channel” within which the price action is mostly contained. The upper line is made by connecting higher highs, while the lower one strings together higher lows.

At the upper line, the asset might be more likely to feel some resistance and get rejected back inside the channel, while the lower line could provide support to it.

In the scenario that the price makes a breach of these channel lines, a sustained break might take place. Naturally, a breakout above the upper line would be a bullish one, while that below the lower one could signal the continuation of the bearish trend.

Like the Ascending Parallel Channel, there is also the “Descending Parallel Channel,” which is obviously a pattern used whenever the market is showing a clear trend towards the downside.

Now, here is the chart shared by Ali that shows an Ascending Parallel Channel that XRP has been stuck inside for quite some time now:

As is visible in the graph, XRP’s price top back in July of this year coincided with a temporary break above the upper line of this Ascending Parallel Channel pattern. Since this rejection, the asset hasn’t yet been able to revisit the level.

In the chart, the analyst has also drawn a third line: the mid-point between the two parallel trend lines of the pattern. This line has also appeared to have acted as resistance for XRP during the duration it has traveled inside the channel, as it has often hit local tops on interactions with it.

Recently, after bottoming out at the lower level following the earlier rejection, the asset climbed towards this middle line and made a retest of it. The coin appears to have been rejected from it, however, as it has been sliding down since then.

“After facing rejection at the channel’s mid-line, XRP might see a pullback toward the lower boundary, around $0.55,” explains Ali. At the time the analyst had posted the chart, the asset had been trading around $0.618, but since then, it has observed a further 5% drawdown.

With the coin continuing to show decline, it would appear possible that it might go all the way to the $0.55 level Ali has pointed out, before finding a potential reversal. From the current price, such a drop would suggest a decrease of over 6%.

XRP Price

XRP has plunged towards $0.585 today as the cryptocurrency market as a whole has seen red returns.

Although the market is experiencing an enormous pullback from its month-long rally, a few outliers continue on their upward march. Stacks (STX) is one of the few altcoins that stemmed the bearish tide and even went against the grain of the market. According to Coingecko, the token is up nearly 21% in the weekly timeframe.

However, STX is starting to feel the pressure. As of writing, the token is already down 3% in the past hour. This brings the question of whether STX bulls can continue the rally or will falter along with the others. 

A New Project Enters The Fray

In an exciting turn of events, the Stacks Status X account posted an update about network congestion that happened yesterday. 

“An exciting new project bringing Ordinals and Stacks closer together launched this weekend. We’re thrilled to see it, but flagging that as a result, the network is seeing increased fees and likely congestion,” said the X account on their recent thread. 

This event is taken as a sign that Stacks is entering a painful growing phase that may or may not signal a brighter future for the network. However, running alongside this congestion is the most recent blog post of the dev team. 

An exciting new project bringing Ordinals and Stacks closer together launched this weekend. We’re thrilled to see it, but flagging that as a result, the network is seeing increased fees and likely congestion. More

— Stacks Status (@stacksstatus) December 17, 2023

According to muneeb.btc, the code for the Nakamoto Testnet (now branded as Neon) is not complete and will be launched by the end of the month. 

Nakamoto will be the update that will define the network. 

The Stacks’s Notion site announced: 

“The Nakamoto release brings many new capabilities and improvements to the Stacks blockchain by focusing on a set of core advancements: improving transaction speed, enhancing finality guarantees for transactions, mitigating Bitcoin miner MEV (miner extractable value) opportunities that affect PoX, and boosting robustness against chain reorganizations.” 

If this testnet launch betters the usability of the network and the experience of its users, it will bring a certain bullish yearend for STX.

Related Reading: Internet Computer Loses Grip On $10, But Still Inks 82% Rally – Details

Stacks Stuck In Between Two Rocks

At the time of writing, STX bulls are trying to break out of the $1.1185 price ceiling which has been held by the bears since the start of the month. If the bulls manage to take this price level, STX will continue to reach higher highs. 

However, the current market conditions might prohibit such price movements. Even with a bullish case for the yearend, the token might stabilize between $0.9594 and $1.1185 in the coming days. 

Featured image from Pixabay

VanECK’s CEO, Jan van Eck, had so much to say about Bitcoin in a recent interview. One of the highlights was his prediction as to when the flagship cryptocurrency will once again hit its all-time high (ATH) of $69,000. 

When Bitcoin Will Hit $69,000 Again

In an interview with CNBC, Jan Van Eck stated that he expects Bitcoin to hit a new ATH in the next 12 months. That means that the crypto token could reclaim its current ATH of $69,000 and possibly surpass it based on Van Eck’s prediction. Interestingly, his firm predicts that Bitcoin could witness a new ATH by November 9, 2024. 

Throughout the interview, Jan Van Eck sounded so bullish on BTC. He highlighted how he had always been a firm believer in the crypto token. He also noted that his firm was the first ETF player to have filed to offer a Spot Bitcoin ETF back in 2017. The application was, however, rejected at the time.

Asset manager VanEck’s relatively early interest in Bitcoin seemed to have been driven by their CEO as he narrated how his interest in Bitcoin grew. Van Eck mentioned how he began to listen to podcasts and went as far as reading Bitcoin’s whitepaper. Back when the crypto token was trading at $3,000, he said he had predicted that it would still do a 10x from there.

VanEck’s CEO further stated that Bitcoin is “the obvious asset that is growing in front of our eyes.” He likened Bitcoin’s growth to China’s and how the country was underdeveloped years ago but now has one of the largest economies. Therefore, he suggested that BTC is still going to attain unprecedented heights.

Nothing Like BTC 

At some point in the interview, Van Eck was quizzed about whether or not there could be something else that surpasses Bitcoin, just like it did with Gold. He responded in the negative as he stated that it is almost impossible for him to imagine some other “Internet store of value” leapfrogging Bitcoin. 

Van Eck went on to note that the macro behind Bitcoin is very strong. He also alluded to the macrocycle, especially with interest rates expected to keep falling, and how this is bullish for the crypto token. He believes that this, alongside with the upcoming Bitcoin Halving event are the factors that will make BTC outperform in the coming year. 

Asset manager VanEck is one of the numerous asset managers who have applied to the SEC to offer a Spot Bitcoin ETF. With approval possibly on the horizon, the firm’s CEO believes that the Commission is likely to approve the pending funds simultaneously. His belief stems from the fact that the SEC did the same thing with the Ethereum futures ETF. 

Solana, the blockchain platform launched in 2020, has achieved a significant milestone, trailing Ethereum in 24-hour decentralized exchange (DEX) volume. This historic accomplishment has garnered widespread attention from crypto leaders and enthusiasts alike, signaling a notable shift in the dynamics of decentralized finance (DeFi).

As the news reverberates through the crypto space, additional elements of Solana’s success come to light. The celebration extends beyond DEX volume triumphs, with the entire Saga Mobile inventory selling out.

This unexpected surge in demand underscores the growing popularity of Solana-based projects. Furthermore, the meme coin BONK, associated with the ecosystem, has broken multiple records, adding a touch of exuberance to the community’s festivities.

Wow, what a day

We’ve officially SOLD OUT of Saga phones in the US! A huge thanks to everyone who’s been part of this journey

To our frens in Europe, we’ve still got a few left for you.

Stay tuned for what’s next

— Solana Mobile (@solanamobile) December 15, 2023

Solana Trails Closely Behind Ethereum

For the first time ever, Solana is inching closer to dethrone Ethereum in total decentralized exchange (DEX) volume over the last day, according to data from DefiLlama.

The data shows that Ethereum has accumulated $945 million in a single day, whereas Solana has had an astounding surge of $940 million, in second spot. As of this writing, Solana’s weekly change was 37.10%, whereas Ethereum had a decrease of more than 4%.

Solana has been growing at an impressive rate this year; earlier this month, it overtook Ethereum in the NFT sales figure. The digital currency achieved this run at a time when its future appeared unstable after the implosion of FTX and the attendant SOL sell-offs, while having the biggest growth margin among the top 15 cryptocurrencies year-to-date.

A multitude of factors played a role in reaching this significant milestone. It includes significant purchases of Solana Mobile, high trading volumes on the dog-themed joke coin BONK, and optimistic views about the Solana ecosystem.

Many have referred to this outstanding accomplishment as a rare occurrence, and Anatoly Yakovenko, the founder of Solana, expressed his surprise at reaching the enormous milestone.

Positive Achievements

The announcement of Solana’s sale of Saga Mobile is a “huge day for Solana,” according to Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire.

Raj Gokal of Solana responded to these achievements by remarking, “Incredible milestone. 6 years in, just getting started!”

CoinMarketCap data shows that BONK surpassed expectations with a spectacular gain, displaying an exponential leap of 100% within 24 hours.

#Binance will list @bonk_inu $BONK with Seed Tag applied.

https://t.co/BVs6KjrRvK pic.twitter.com/AKB6mlwnkL

— Binance (@binance) December 15, 2023

The coin’s entry onto major exchanges coincided with this exponential escalation, which excited investors wanting to experience the exhilarating rollercoaster ride.

Meanwhile, a sell-off is causing Solana’s price to startlingly buckle under its own weight. As of this writing, CoinMarketCap data shows that Solana is trading at $74, a 5.65% decrease in value.

Featured image from Pixabay

Cryptocurrency exchange Changelly has released an updated prediction for the XRP price that spans almost a decade from now. The prices in the new predictions deviate heavily from their previous predictions, and this time around, the predictions include when the XRP price will cross $10.

XRP Price Will Cross $10 In 2030

While the XRP community members remain very optimistic that the XRP price will cross $10 in the next few years, with a number of crypto analysts presenting chart data to support this, Changelly does not believe that this will happen anytime soon. In fact, for the next couple of years, the crypto exchange expects a lot of growth but double-digits is seemingly off the table.

By 2024, the crypto exchange predicts that the XRP price will reach a max price of $1.11, but still expects it to stay relatively high with a minimum price of around $0.94. In the next few years, the growth is expected to continue, rising to as high as $5 in 2028.

However, for the XRP price to reach $10, investors would still have to wait another extra two years according to the report. In 2029, it predicts a maximum price of $8.07. And then finally, in 2030, Changelly expects the price to beat the coveted $10 mark.

Moving further from 2030, expectations are that the price will not fall below $10 again. Rather, it is expected to double in the next two years, hitting as high as $24.95 by the year 2032, which is nine years from now.

Expecting A Very Underwhelming 2024

The price predictions by Changelly for 2024 broken down into the individual months paints a picture of lackluster performance from the coin. The highest point expected for the XRP price puts it at only a 35% increase from the current price of $0.59 at the time of writing. The expectation given is that the highest price point would come at $0.8.

Changelly’s prediction seems to be a deviation from the norm where a number of predictions expect the XRP price to hit the high prices in the next two years. One crypto analyst known as EGRAG Crypto expects the price of the altcoins to reach $5.5. Interestingly, the analyst expects the price to hit this price in the next two weeks.

Another analyst known as Austin Hilton has also predicted that the XRP price will reach $1.5 once the SEC approves the Spot Bitcoin ETFs. According to Bloomberg analysts, these funds could be approved in January 2024, which means the XRP price could reach $1.5 in a month.

The market is currently experiencing an enormous pullback after nearly a month of continuous gains. According to Coingecko, the broader crypto market is down nearly 3% as major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and XRP drop from year-to-date highs. As the sector cools down, altcoins are pulled downward. 

Synthetix is one of the sufferers of the massive bearish pressure engulfing the market. Coingecko data shows that the token is bleeding, with the biggest drop occurring in the weekly timeframe at over 16%. 

Big Things Coming For Synthetix

Although SNX isn’t faring well within the market environment, the Synthetix dev team is hot on its tracks to remain competitive within the world of crypto.

Last week, Synthetix announced on X that they are nearing the launch of the Andromeda Release on their mainnet and the Ethereum Mainnet. 

Andromeda Release is the implementation of the Perps V3 which, according to their recent blog post, is focused on enhancing trading efficiency, usability, and resilience on the network. It will also add new features like Native Cross-Margining, Expanded Collateral Options, MEV-Resistant Liquidation Process, and many more. 

Synthetix Perps V3 is set to launch with the Andromeda Release on Base, soon to be followed by an Ethereum Mainnet version for medium to whale traders and protocols like @ethena_labs! https://t.co/72QmySbAfb

Check out the TLDR and read the blog post to learn more.
– Perps V3… pic.twitter.com/YbsFjj0Hnt

— Synthetix (@synthetix_io) December 15, 2023

The biggest add-on from the update is the deployment of Core V3 and Perps V3 on the Ethereum mainnet. 

“The Core V3 + Perps V3 release on Ethereum Mainnet represents a significant evolution for Synthetix, targeting medium to large traders and protocols in need of perps on L1,” the Synthetix team said in their blog post. 

More Pain On The Crypto Front?

Disregarding the positive internal news for SNX, the market has other plans for the token. As of writing, the bears are coming out strong, wrestling SNX bulls on the $3.59 price level. If the bears are successful in solidifying their gains, more pain could be in store for traders and investors. 

However, the upcoming implementation of Perps V3 might be able to offset this as it focuses on medium to large-scale whales to become active on the platform, thus driving more throughput to the network; but investors and traders shouldn’t disregard the broader market before making a decision. 

Right now, the market is entering its cool-down phase with cryptocurrencies reverting to more sustainable price levels. For SNX, that level is around the $3.287 price point. Once the bears hit this level, the bulls will be able to regain some ground, stabilizing the price on this level in preparation for a bigger breakout.

Featured image from Shutterstock