The crypto takes a breather after growth

Market overview

The crypto market capitalisation has changed little over the past 24 hours, hovering around $2.57 trillion, with assets moving in different directions. Markets are likely to prefer a wait-and-see approach ahead of decisions by the Bank of Canada, the Fed, the ECB and the Bank of England over the next couple of days. Officially, markets are expecting a hawkish tone, so a focus on the economy could spur active buying.

The sentiment index plummeted to 26, falling below last week’s lows, reflecting a return of fear to the markets. The inability to hold above 50 since September remains a key sign of bearish sentiment.

Over the past two days, Bitcoin has lost approximately $4K from peak to trough at $75.6K, but on Wednesday, it turned higher, attempting to consolidate above $77K. Thus, Bitcoin has broken out of its upward trend but has not yet confirmed a reversal; therefore, we can only note a slowdown in growth at the 50% mark of the January-February decline.

News background

The $80K level remains an important psychological barrier, around which a large volume of options is concentrated, GSR notes. QCP Capital considers $82K to be a key resistance level.

Bernstein regards Bitcoin’s February low of $60K as a “clear bottom” and expects a “higher and structurally longer bull cycle” going forward. The main driver of optimism remains a steady inflow of capital from institutional investors.

Bitcoin is no longer merely an “interesting asset” for companies seeking to remain competitive, Tim Draper, founder of venture capital firm Draper Associates, stated. According to him, firms must hold a portion of their reserves (5–15%) in BTC to avoid being financially irresponsible towards their shareholders.

Patrick Witt, Executive Director of the US Presidential Council on Digital Assets, announced an “important statement” regarding the US strategic Bitcoin reserve, which will be made in the coming weeks.

Bitmine, the largest publicly traded corporate holder of Ethereum, announced the acquisition of over 5 million ETH over 10 months, at an average cost of $2,369 per ETH. The company’s reserves have reached nearly 5.08 million ETH, representing 4.21% of the Ethereum supply.