Crypto Price Analysis 12-31- BITCOIN: BTC, ETHEREUM: ETH, SOLANA: SOL, STELLAR: XLM, CARDANO: ADA, APTOS: APT, BITTENSOR: TAO
Bitcoin (BTC) continued to slide despite signs of an attempted recovery reaching an intraday high of $94,804 during early trading hours before a rapid decline dropped it to a low of $91,788. BTC is trading at $92,317, down almost 1.33% in the past 24 hours.
Market watchers and traders expecting a bullish end to the year in which BTC remains above $100,000 were left disappointed by recent performances, as it failed to maintain momentum and end the year on a bullish note.
Almost all cryptocurrencies are in the red as the year draws to a close, with Ethereum (ETH) down nearly 2% and Ripple (XRP) down almost 5%. Solana (SOL) is down just over 1%, while Dogecoin (DOGE) is down 2.40%. Cardano (ADA), Tron (TRX), Avalanche (AVAX), Toncoin (TON), Chainlink (LINK), Hedera (HBAR), Polkadot (DOT), and Stellar (XLM) also reported substantial losses. The crypto market cap is down almost 2% and currently sits at $3.23 trillion.
A Look Ahead
The crypto market experienced unprecedented growth and adoption in 2024. It also saw record capital inflows from institutional buyers, pushing prices higher. The approval and launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs and Donald Trumps election victory propelled Bitcoin (BTC) past the $100,000 milestone, as it set a new all-time high of $108,268, proving its value does not have a ceiling. Market experts believe BTCs bull run could continue in 2025, and possibly spill over to major altcoins as the market matures.
2024 also had several key narratives like meme coins and AI tokens. According to analysts, both sectors are set for further interest from market participants. In a report published by Bitwise, analysts also predict the Real World Asset (RWA) sector will cross $50 billion in 2025. According to the report, tokenized RWAs accounted for less than $2 billion three years ago. Venture capital firm ParaFi has also aligned its predictions with Bitwise, stating the RWA market could grow to $2 trillion by 2030. Edward Mata, CEO and co-founder of Brickken said in an interview,
RWA is going to matter a lot to key players. Big players like BlackRock and JP Morgan are jumping in to provide just what we need for the RWA space to matter. I see AI agents embedded in the process. Bitcoin as a treasury could be cemented in different countries. From the technological point of view: RWA and AI agents are two key narratives for the coming year.
Meanwhile, meme coins have been one of the best-performing assets of 2024, with the trend set to continue in 2025. Dario Lo Buglio, Chief Technology Officer at Brickken stated,
Meme coins could fade away with some time or experience some growth next year. Maybe it can find a place for itself in the market. It is a trend, we welcome trends and embrace them.
Markets End Year In The Red
Ripple (XRP) led losses in crypto as it dropped by 5% thanks to a stronger dollar that weighed down on global assets, including Bitcoin (BTC). Several other altcoins also reported losses, with Dogecoin (DOGE), Ethereum (ETH), and Solana (SOL) registering declines between 2% and 3%. US equities also registered a sharp decline as investors trimmed their positions amid growing uncertainty heading into the new year. BTC has historically moved in the opposite direction of the US Dollar Index. The Dollar strengthened ahead of Donald Trumps inauguration in late January, with the President-elect promising several policies to help the economy.
Bitcoin (BTC) Price Analysis
Bitcoin (BTC)s extended decline continued as it slipped below $93,000 on Monday, with the asset struggling to build momentum. BTCs decline comes after the Federal Reserves hawkish comments about a Bitcoin strategic reserve and weaker-than-expected inflation forecast for 2025. While the Fed implemented an anticipated rate cut of 25 basis points, it predicted only two rate cuts in 2025 against the expected four, dampening investor enthusiasm. BTCs drop to a low of $91,268 marks a 15% decline from its all-time high earlier this month, with technical indicators predicting a further decline.
BTC declined despite MicroStrategy acquiring another batch of 2,138 BTC to bring its total holdings to 446,400 BTC. Tether also added to its BTC holdings, purchasing 7,630 BTC to bring the value of its holdings to $7.7 billion. Others, including Marathon Digital and Riot Platforms, have also added to their reserves. BTCs decline can be attributed to profit-taking by investors taking profits around the $100,000 level.
Worryingly for traders, BTC seems to be trading on a downward trajectory, having formed a head and shoulders pattern, typically associated with a bearish reversal. After surging to an all-time high on December 17, BTC declined rapidly. By December 20, it dropped to an intraday low of $92,072 before recovering to settle at $98,124. However, sellers remained in control as BTC dipped to 95,303 at the end of the previous weekend. BTC remained in the red as it started the previous week with a drop of 0.50%, going below $95,000 and settling at $94,830. However, it recovered on Tuesday, rising over 4% and moving to $98,677. BTC continued to push higher but could not go above the 20-day SMA and ultimately settled at $99,409 after an increase of 0.74%.
Source: TradingView
With sellers active at this level, BTC registered a sharp drop on Thursday, falling almost 4% to $95,691. BTC slipped below the 50-day SMA on Friday after registering a fall of 1.52% and settling at $94,241. The weekend began with the price registering an increase of almost 1%. However, it was back in the red on Sunday, dropping nearly 2% and settling at $93,475. BTC continued to fall on Monday as sellers dragged the price below $93,000 after a drop of almost 1%. The current session sees BTC marginally down as buyers and sellers struggle to establish control.
If BTC drops below $92,000, it could go as low as $90,000. However, some technical indicators suggest a drop of almost 20% is on the cards. If that happens, the price could go well below $80,000.
Ethereum (ETH) Price Analysis
Ethereum (ETH) is trading sideways between $3,200 and $3,500 as it struggles to go above the 50-day SMA. ETH briefly dipped below the 50-day SMA on Friday (December 20) when sellers dragged the price to a low of $3,096. However, it recovered from this level to register an increase of 1.62% and settled at $3,470. Sellers established control over the weekend as ETH fell below the 50-day SMA on Saturday, dropping to $3,337. Sellers retained control on Sunday as ETH dropped almost 2% and settled at $3,279. The price recovered on Monday, registering an increase of 4.27% and settling at $3,419, and continued to push higher on Tuesday, going above the 50-day SMA and settling at $3,491.
Source: TradingView
With sellers active at this level, ETH could only register a marginal increase on Wednesday as buyers lost momentum. Sellers took control on Thursday as the price fell by 4.62%, going below the 50-day SMA and settling at $3,333. Buyers attempted a recovery on Friday but were unsuccessful, with ETH ultimately registering a marginal decline. Buyers took control on Saturday as ETH registered an increase of just over 2% and settled at $3,402. However, ETH was back in the red on Sunday, dropping 1.46% to $3,352. The current week began with a marginal increase and a jump in volatility. However, the price is back in the red during the ongoing session, trading around $3,343.
Solana (SOL) Price Analysis
Solana (SOL) dropped below $200 on December 19, falling to $193 after dropping just over 6%. It fell to a low of $175 the following day before recovering to settle at $194. The following weekend saw SOL continue declining, dropping almost 7% on Saturday and 0.55% on Sunday to settle at $180. Despite the strong bearish sentiment, SOL started the previous week on a positive note, rising by 5.30% on Monday to settle at $189. The price continued to push higher on Tuesday, moving to $197 after an increase of almost 4%. With sellers active for around $200, SOL could only register a marginal rise on Wednesday. With buyers losing momentum, SOL was back in the red on Thursday, dropping 4.57% to $188.
Source: TradingView
Sellers retained control on Friday as SOL dropped to $184 after a failed recovery. However, it registered an increase of over 6% on Saturday and moved to $195 before falling back in the red on Sunday and ending the weekend at $189. SOL experienced considerable volatility on Monday as buyers and sellers struggled to establish control. Buyers ultimately gained the upper hand as SOL rose by 0.72% and settled at $191. The current session sees SOL down by 1.33% and trading around $188. If selling pressure persists, SOL could drop to $180.
Stellar (XLM) Price Analysis
Stellar (XLM) started the previous week positively as buyers attempted to reverse its recent bearish sentiment. With buyers in control, XLM registered an increase of almost 4% on Monday as it rebounded from the 50-day SMA to settle at $0.370. Bullish sentiment increased on Tuesday as XLM surged nearly 9% to $0.402 as buyers looked to push above the 20-day SMA. However, XLM lost momentum after reaching this level, dropping just over 5% on Wednesday and settling at $0.382. Sellers retained control on Thursday as XLM slipped below the 50-day SMA after falling over 7% and settling at $0.355.
Source: TradingView
XLM continued to drop on Friday, dropping 1.56% to $0.349. The weekend began with a recovery as XLM rose almost 2% on Saturday and settled at $0.356. However, it was back in the red on Sunday, dropping over 5% and settling at $0.338. The current week began with sellers retaining control as XLM dropped almost 2% to $0.331. The current session sees the price marginally down and trading around $0.328.
Cardano (ADA) Price Analysis
Cardano (ADA) fell below $0.90 last weekend, falling to $0.883 on Sunday. However, it rebounded from the 50-day SMA on Monday, registering an increase of almost 5% and settling at $0.926. Buyers retained control on Tuesday as ADA registered a marginal increase and moved to $0.936. However, markets turned bearish on Wednesday, as the price fell just over 2% to $0.916. Thursday saw ADA slip below $0.90 and the 50-day SMA to settle at $0.861 after dropping 6%.
Source: TradingView
Buyers returned to the market on Friday as ADA rose to an intraday high of $0.913 before ultimately settling at $0.876, an increase of almost 2%. ADA remained positive on Saturday, rising 1.48% and settling at $0.889. However, it was back in the red on Sunday, dropping 3.37% and settling at $0.859. The current week began with ADA experiencing considerable volatility as buyers and sellers struggled to establish control. Buyers ultimately gained the upper hand but could only register a marginal increase as ADA rose to $0.862. However, ADA is back in the red during the ongoing session, with the price down almost 2%.
Aptos (APT) Price Analysis
Aptos (APT) experienced a significant decline that dragged its price from $14.55 to a low of $8.88 at the beginning of the previous week. APT recovered from this level to register an increase of 5.36% and settle at $9.71. Sellers attempted to drag APT below $9 as it fell to an intraday low of $9.26 on Tuesday. APT recovered from this level to register an increase of $1.08% and settle at $9.81. APT encountered resistance around $10 as selling pressure weighed the price down. As a result, APT fell into the red on Wednesday, dropping almost 3% and settling at $9.54.
Source: TradingView
Bearish sentiment intensified substantially on Thursday as APT fell almost 8% to go below the $9 support level and settle at $8.80. Buyers attempted a recovery on Friday as APT rose to an intraday high of $9.29. However, it lost momentum after reaching this level, dropping below $9 and settling at $8.73. APT recovered strongly on Saturday as it reclaimed $9 and settled at $9.18, registering an increase of over 5%. However, it was back in the red on Sunday, dropping 3.37% to $8.87. The current week began with APT experiencing significant volatility as buyers and sellers attempted to establish control. The current session sees APT in the red, down almost 2% and trading around $8.72.
Bittensor (TAO) Price Analysis
Bittensor (TAO) has slipped below the $450 support level as bearish sentiment drives the price lower. TAO began the previous week on a positive note, recovering from a low of $439 to register an increase of almost 8% and settle at $484. Buyers retained control on Tuesday, rising nearly 4% to move above $500 and settle at $503. However, sentiment began changing on Wednesday as TAO registered a marginal decline after experiencing considerable volatility. Bearish sentiment intensified considerably on Thursday as TAO dropped almost 6% to $471.
Source: TradingView
Buyers attempted a recovery on Thursday as TAO climbed to an intraday high of $495. However, it lost momentum after reaching this level and dropped by 0.74% to $467. TAO registered a marginal increase on Saturday before falling back into the red on Sunday, dropping almost 3% to end the weekend at $458. Sellers retained control on Monday as TAO dropped to $452. The current session sees TAO below the $450 support level, down almost 3% and trading around $438.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
Text source: Crypto Daily™
