After a record-breaking streak of drops, Bitcoin snapped a 12-day slide, briefly clawing its way back above $20,000 and leading the cryptocurrency market in a rapid turnaround.
The world’s most valuable cryptocurrency rose 12% on Sunday, recouping much of its losses following a sharp collapse on Saturday that brought the token as low as $17,599. Bitcoin even surpassed $20,000 for a brief moment before falling back to $19,990 as of 3:15 p.m. in New York. Ether, which had fallen as low as $881 during the selloff, has risen 22% to $1,100, while alternative coins such as Avalanche and Solana have also seen gains.
The crypto market is infamous for its violent swings, especially on weekends when movements are amplified, and the last two days’ whipsaw delivered the latest example. Analysts warn that Sunday’s respite could be fleeting: The overall tone is still negative, with monetary tightening creating macro headwinds and crypto crises fueling fears of escalating turmoil. Analysts warned that the reprieve could be fleeting. Despite the rebound on Sunday, Bitcoin remains down about 40% this month and more than 70% from its all-time high in November.
According to CoinGecko, Bitcoin volume reached $40 billion in 24 hours through midday Sunday New York time, which is higher than average for the weekend. Volumes were $25.6 billion and $22.5 billion on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
Bitcoin’s drop on Saturday put the coin below $19,511, the all-time high it attained at the end of its previous bull cycle in 2017. Bitcoin has never fallen below the the previous cycle high in its nearly 12-year trading history. According to Katie Stockton, managing partner and founder of Fairlead Strategies, the coin also broke past a technical support threshold of $18,300. She noted that weekly losses below that level would raise the likelihood of a drop below the next support level of $13,900.
A short-term, “counter-trend” technical signal, according to Stockton, “provides some hope that a rebound will materialize shortly.” However, she warned against buying the decline since “momentum is highly negative.” Other viewpoints on cryptocurrency $20,000, according to Twitter, is a major pivot point that might give support if retaken and held in the coming days; alternatively, it could serve as a market ceiling.
