First Mover Asia: Cryptos turn green on red-letter Russia news

Bitcoin increased to nearly $45,000 and major altcoins rose as well after the world's 11th-largest economy announced it would regulate instead of ban cryptocurrencies.

Good morning. Here’s what’s happening:

Market moves: Bitcoin steadied above $44,000, and the broader crypto market ended in higher.

Technician's take: BTC buyers have defended intraday support levels, although upside appears limited.

Prices

Bitcoin (BTC): $44,475 +0.6%

Ether (ETH): $3,241 +3.4%

Top Gainers

Top Losers

There are no losers in CoinDesk 20 today.

Markets

S&P 500: 4,587 +1.4%

DJIA: 35,768 +0.8%

Nasdaq: 14,490 +2%

Gold: $1,833 +1.3%

Market moves

Bitcoin (BTC) traded steadily above $44,000, following news that the Russian government decided to regulate cryptocurrencies instead of ban them.

At the time of publication, the oldest cryptocurrency is changing hands above $44,475, up less than a percentage point over the past 24 hours, according to CoinDesk data. Meanwhile, ether, the second-biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, was trading at above $3,241, a 3.4% increase over the same time period.

One analyst said bitcoin’s gains came after the Russian government released a document on its official website late Tuesday setting principles for crypto regulation.

“What makes this decision all the more important is that the central bank also is on board,” Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA the Americas, wrote in his newsletter. “Russia appears poised to recognize cryptocurrencies as a form of currency. Anytime a major [b]itcoin country embraces cryptos, that is great news for the cryptoverse.”

As CoinDesk reported, the Russian government’s plan received support from its central bank, which had earlier called for a ban on crypto mining and trading. The development also came not long after India took a step toward crypto legalization with a tax on digital asset transfers.

Following bitcoin, most cryptocurrencies tracked by CoinDesk also ended in the green on Wednesday.

Moya added that as bitcoin’s price has steadied, many retail traders have started feeling more comfortable investing in alternative cryptocurrencies (altcoins).

Moya said the market will need “a major catalyst” or fresh new capital to send the No. 1 cryptocurrency by market capitalization above $50,000.

Data complied by CoinDesk shows that bitcoin's trading volume across centralized exchanges on Wednesday was down from a day ago.

(CoinDesk/CryptoCompare)

Technician's take

Bitcoin daily price chart shows support/resistance. (Damanick Dantes/CoinDesk, TradingView)

Bitcoin (BTC) is recovering from a slight pullback on Wednesday as buyers maintain intraday support levels. The cryptocurrency was trading around $44,500 at press time and could face resistance at $46,800.

BTC is up 3% over the past 24 hours and, on average, spot trading volume is starting to rise, albeit still below January highs, according to CoinDesk data.

For now, technical indicators are improving and do not signal extreme overbought conditions. That could keep buyers active into the Asian trading day so long as immediate support at $42,000 holds.

The downward-sloping 50-day moving average, currently at $42,689, is gradually turning upward, which could indicate a bullish shift. Still, upside appears limited given negative momentum on longer-term charts.

Important events

 8 a.m. HKT/SGT (12 a.m. UTC): Australia consumer inflation expectations (Feb.)

China M2 money supply (Jan. YoY)

China new loans (Jan.)

5 p.m. HKT/SGT (9 a.m. UTC): European Commission releases its economic growth forecasts

 9:30 p.m. HKT/SGT (1:30 UTC): U.S. consumer price index (Jan. MoM/YoY)