Janice R. Andrews
Significant losses are being suffered by the cryptocurrency market, with Bitcoin seeing one of its biggest drops this year. This decline is a reflection of the faltering interest in Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and the growing unpredictability of international monetary policy.
The market took significant losses last week, which is the second-worst weekly decrease of 2024. According to Bloomberg data, the biggest decline since April occurred in the seven days leading up to Sunday, with a measure of the top 100 digital assets falling by around 5%. At 11:44 a.m. on Monday in London, the price of bitcoin fell by 4%, reaching a low of more than one month at $61,153.
The top cryptocurrency by market value has taken a significant knock, in part because US ETFs have been pulling out of the market over the past six days. Investors are becoming concerned about additional selling pressure in the near future as a result of this trend.
The declaration from the rehabilitation trustee of Mt. Gox, the Japanese cryptocurrency exchange that was hacked more than ten years ago, is just one more thing compounding the market’s problems. Repayments for Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash will begin in July, according to the trustee. Given that receivers of these repayments could decide to sell their assets, this action is predicted to intensify selling pressure.
According to Stefan von Haenisch, head of trading at OSL SG Pte, “it seems there are market participants positioning themselves short given the Mt Gox announcement.” “At the moment, cryptocurrency markets are having trouble attracting a bid.”
Additionally impacting the present market climate are concerns about the Federal Reserve’s capacity to swiftly lower interest rates from their peak of two decades ago. This uncertainty is reducing risk appetite generally, which has an impact on both traditional and digital assets.
“The current crypto market dynamic is characterized by low volatility, soft volumes, and order books getting unbalanced when prices start to move to the edges of their range,” said David Lawant, head of research at FalconX, highlighting the precarious position of the market.
Two of the most noteworthy drops are Ether and Solana, which have seen their longest weekly losing streaks since 2022 and last year, respectively. This is going on concurrently with fund providers getting ready to introduce the first US ETFs that directly invest in Ether, the cryptocurrency with the second-largest market value. Not to be outdone, Solana has recently become the darling of several hedge funds that specialize in digital assets.
Even though it hit a record high of $73,798 in March, Bitcoin is now lagging behind more conventional assets like gold, bonds, and equities. The 200-day moving average, which is now trading at about $57,500, is the attention of market experts as a possible support level for the price of Bitcoin. This was highlighted by IG Australia Pty’s Tony Sycamore, a market analyst.
According to Caroline Mauron, co-founder of Orbit Markets, a supplier of liquidity for digital asset derivatives, “a bearish mood seems to be setting in.” “Any large sell orders are being difficult for the market to process.”
There is a noticeable lack of optimism in the bitcoin market, which suggests that investors will remain cautious. A market on edge, with investors afraid of any substantial swings, is indicated by the lengthy period of low volatility and small trading volumes.
The prolonged decrease in Bitcoin and the general downturn in the cryptocurrency industry highlight the difficulties that digital assets will face in 2024. In the future weeks, the market may see challenges due to the impending Mt. Gox repayments and the ongoing monetary policy uncertainty. It is imperative that investors and other market players exercise prudence during this period of uncertainty by closely monitoring critical support levels and wider economic data.
