Bitcoin and Ethereum: Prolonged consolidation in focus

Market overview

The crypto market capitalisation has recovered to $2.38 trillion, rising by around 2.5% over the past 24 hours — most assets on the watchlist are trading in positive territory. Today’s top performers include Avalanche (+6.6%), Cardano (+5.0%) and Ethereum (+3.8%). Among the few underperformers are IOTA (−1.3%), VeChain (−0.9%) and Bitcoin Cash (−0.6%). 

Bitcoin has risen again to $69K, confirming the support seen over the last three months amid consolidation following the downturn. A slight upward tilt in the bullish trend should not lead to undue optimism, as a similar pattern was observed for two months leading up to the end of January, followed by a fresh downward momentum. A repeat of this pattern this time suggests a decline to $50K.

Ethereum has surpassed $2.1K and is consolidating above its 50-day moving average. The coin has moved into the region above $2K, increasingly breaking away from the long-term trend line. Cautious buyers should pay attention to how the coin behaves near the previous local highs at $2.2K and $2.4K. A confident rise above these levels would signal a breakout from consolidation and the potential start of a bull market.

News background

Major mining company Riot Platforms sold 3,778 BTC ($290 million) in the first quarter at an average price of $76,626 per coin. The company is accelerating its business pivot towards supporting artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Bitcoin’s current stability may indicate the formation of a base for further growth, according to MN Trading founder Michael van de Poppe. He says the key signal will be the price reaction when an attempt is made to break out of the current range.

Following the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in 2024, Bitcoin ceased to react to central bank decisions after the fact and began to anticipate macroeconomic trends in advance, notes Binance Research. This reflects the growing influence of institutional investors employing a traditional approach to trading.

According to Artemis, the Ethereum blockchain recorded a record number of transactions in the first quarter since its launch — 200.4 million transactions.