Bitcoin Price Hits $8.8K Only to Crash in a 'Logistical Move' — Trader

Bitcoin price (BTC) traded broadly lower on Oct. 11 after sudden volatility broke a sideways trend in place since earlier in the week. 

Cryptocurrency market daily overview. Source: Coin360

Bitcoin analyst prepares for range-bound trading

Data from Coin360 showed BTC/USD circling $8,350 on Friday, having jumped to a local high of above $8,770 earlier. 

The enthusiasm was short-lived, with the following crash taking the pair below its previous levels. Daily losses for Bitcoin totaled 2.3% at press time, while the largest cryptocurrency remained up 2.6% versus the same point last week. 

Bitcoin seven-day price chart. Source: Coin360

Markets broadly shook off events which commentators assumed would impact them.  Specifically, the decision by U.S. regulator the Securities and Exchange Commission to reject the latest Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) failed to dent sentiment.

Previous ETF denials had piled downward pressure on Bitcoin, suggesting markets this time had already price in a negative decision. Another major ETF offering was withdrawn by its sponsors in September, hinting at a lack of confidence in the instrument winning approval. 

For the short-term future, however, analysts assumed it would be business as usual for Bitcoin. Regulator Cointelegraph contributor and market analyst Michaël van de Poppe eyed a narrower trading corridor centered on $8,300.

“Continue the ranging for now,” he summarized in a fresh update on Friday morning. 

Van de Poppe said that $8,300, as the monthly opening price, would form support, while resistance closer to $8,500 remained “significant.”

For fellow contributor crypto trader Scott Melker, the recent activity was calculated by large bagholders. He told Cointelegraph:

“I don’t think whales stopped hunting. I just think they started hunting for liquidity to sell and short, and the $8800 area was a predictable area to do so. Pushing price up to engineer liquidity was a logistical move.” 

Altcoins shed 3% amid mixed sentiment

For altcoins, a day of underwhelming returns for Bitcoin translated into similarly lackluster performance. Trending in line with BTC, the major of the top twenty cryptocurrencies posted daily losses of 2-3%.

Ether (ETH), the largest altcoin by market cap, fell 1.7% to $186, better than most, while Binance Coin (BNB) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) lost closer to 3%. XRP also bucked the trend, staying stable at 0.7% lower.

Ether seven-day price chart. Source: Coin360

The overall cryptocurrency market cap was $226 billion at press time, with Bitcoin’s share slightly down at 66.8%.