Ethereum (ETH) is approaching a pivotal derivatives deadline as billions of dollars in options contracts near expiration, placing the $3,000 price level firmly in focus for traders. While traders are betting on a move higher, Ethereum’s near-term price action remains uncertain. The outcome of this options expiry could help shape ETH’s next big move, either to the upside or down to lower levels—particularly as investors reassess their expectations following November’s volatility and choppy conditions. The price of Ethereum is currently sitting above $2,900 as a massive options expiration worth roughly $6 billion approaches. This event is expected to play a major role in shaping short-term price action and could influence investor sentiment heading into 2026. Ethereum Options Set To Expire This Friday Data from the derivatives platform Laevitas show that $6 billion in ETH options will expire on Friday, 26 December, with call positions outnumbering puts by more than 2.2 times. Despite this imbalance, bears still hold the edge unless Ethereum’s price moves decisively above $3,100. Related Reading: Ethereum Exchange Supply Just Crashed To New Lows, Why This Is Bullish For Price Earlier this year, many traders had positioned for Ethereum to surge significantly by year-end. However, those bullish expectations were undermined by a massive November decline, leaving ETH’s current options expiry vulnerable to further downside pressure. While call options still dominate Open Interest (OI), many of these positions would expire worthless if the Ethereum price fails to recover and push higher. This creates a fragile setup and leaves the market in a delicate position, where overly optimistic bets could quickly unwind if key price levels do not hold. Notably, the $3,100 price level has emerged as a critical pivot ahead of the options expiration set for this Friday. Traders have called this level “max pain,” as it represents the price at which the most options contracts would expire worthless. A close below this zone could give bears control and potentially open the door to further price declines. On the other hand, a clean break above $3,100 could flip momentum rapidly. Presently, around $3.8 billion in ETH options are expected to expire on Deribit, the world’s largest Bitcoin and Ethereum options exchange. In addition, more than $23.6 billion in Bitcoin options are scheduled to expire on Friday, potentially adding significant volatility to the already fragile market. Analyst Expect Further Volatility For Ethereum With the massive $6 billion Ethereum options expiry on the horizon, traders appear to be bracing for significant market volatility, as the event could trigger a sharp, decisive move in ETH’s price. Separately, crypto analyst Ted Pillows anticipates further volatility for ETH if its price moves in either of two key directions. Related Reading: Major Ethereum Metric Just Hit A New All-Time High – Can Price Reclaim $3,000? He says that Ethereum is currently in a no-trading zone; however, volatility could occur if the price reclaims the $3,000 level or retests the $2,700-$2,800 zone. Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com
The FSTB and SFC concluded consultations on virtual regimes and plan to introduce new bill to LegCo next year.
Crypto derivatives trading surged to $86 trillion in 2025, averaging $265 billion per day, as Binance captured almost 30% of global volume, CoinGlass reported.
Zhao urged the blockchain industry to adopt new security measures, including scam address blacklist, after an investor lost $50 million to an address poisoning scheme.
Can a digital asset like XRP realistically sit at a few dollars if it is expected to serve as an important liquidity layer for the global financial system? That question is at the center of a growing debate around XRP’s market value and is the basis of comments shared on X by Jesse of Apex Crypto. His argument challenges the idea that XRP can function as a worldwide liquidity instrument through Ripple’s framework while maintaining a relatively low valuation around $3, which he says doesn’t make sense. The Liquidity Argument Behind XRP’s Valuation Debate XRP’s price history shows a clear ceiling that it has struggled to overcome. Since launch, the token has never sustained a move above the $4 level, with its highest recorded peak sitting around $3.65 in mid-July. Recent weeks have been even more challenging, as XRP has been trading under $2 with the entire crypto market going through a weak phase. Related Reading: $130 Million XRP Fumble: Analyst Reveals What Went Wrong Despite this, some bullish analysts continue to speculate about scenarios where the price revisits the $3 region. That outlook, however, was directly challenged by Jesse of Apex Crypto, who asserted that even a $3 valuation fundamentally misses the point of what XRP is designed to become. Jesse’s position is built around XRP’s intended role in global finance. According to him, if XRP grows into a primary liquidity source for cross-border settlements like it was intended to be, then a valuation around $3 would not align with that responsibility. In his video commentary, he questioned what XRP would ultimately be backed by or pegged to, pointing to a structure tied to vast pools of global financial assets. These include fiat currencies, potential central bank digital currencies, and even commodities such as gold or silver. He noted that such a framework would imply that the total value represented by XRP tokens would correspond to the combined value of these underlying assets. In simple terms, if roughly 100 billion XRP were expected to support or represent liquidity linked to trillions of dollars in global assets, then a single-digit price per token would appear mathematically inconsistent. From this perspective, XRP’s valuation would need to reflect the scale of the assets it helps move. Institutional Adoption Versus Price Reality The valuation debate is much more complex when placed alongside Ripple’s growing institutional footprint. Ripple has continued to expand partnerships with banks, payment providers, and financial institutions across multiple regions, which strengthens the case that its technology is gaining traction within traditional finance. Related Reading: Dogecoin Price Could Rally If It Reclaims This Fibonacci Level At the corporate level, Ripple’s valuation and funding activity point to strong confidence from large investors, a factor Jesse of Apex Crypto believes should provide a valuation floor for XRP. However, XRP’s market price has not mirrored this institutioacnal momentum. Even with XRP-related investment products gaining attention and steady inflows, the price action is still limited, and the cryptocurrency might continue trading at low valuations in the near term. Featured image created with Dall.E, chart from Tradingview.com
Market data showed shrinking participation across NFTs, with fewer buyers, sellers and transactions signaling fading speculative interest.
2025 delivered a brutal lesson in market structure for Bitcoin. The year began with political momentum and drifted into a summer of aggressive policy signals. Yet, it snapped into one of the sharpest boom-to-bust sequences in the asset’s history. By December, the price had round-tripped, leaving the asset flat for the year. But the flat […]
The post Bitcoin’s 2025 review: The “violent transformation” hidden behind the year’s deceptively flat price chart appeared first on CryptoSlate.
Bitcoin whale deposits to Binance fell sharply in December, a shift CryptoQuant framed as a constructive near-term signal because it implies less immediate sell-side supply moving onto the market’s biggest exchange venue. Bitcoin Selling Pressure Is Fading For Now CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost wrote on Dec. 24 that “the latest data shows a clear decline in Bitcoin inflows to Binance coming from whales over the month of December.” He said monthly whale inflows dropped from roughly $7.88 billion to $3.86 billion, “effectively being halved within just a few weeks,” calling it “a significant slowdown in BTC deposits to Binance by the largest holders.” The bullish read is mostly mechanical. Exchange inflows are not the same thing as selling, but they are a prerequisite for selling at scale, and Binance remains the dominant exchange in exchange-related flows in CryptoQuant’s framing. Darkfost put it plainly: “In the current environment, the observed trend remains constructive. Binance continues to capture the largest share of exchange-related flows. When inflows from influential participants such as whales decline on this platform, it generally suggests a reduction in their selling pressure.” Related Reading: Bitcoin Price Trading Near ‘Fair Value,’ Says On-Chain Model He also cautioned that a downtrend in aggregate deposits does not eliminate the risk of sudden, market-moving transfers. “That said, this broader trend does not rule out the occurrence of occasional significant movements,” Darkfost wrote. “Some inflows can still impact the market, even if they remain relatively isolated.” As an example, he pointed to a recent $466 million spike across the 100 BTC to 10,000 BTC cohorts, alongside more than $435 million in inflows coming specifically from the 1,000 to 10,000 BTC range. Related Reading: The Macro Conditions For Bitcoin In 2026: Analyst Breaks Them Down Those bursts matter because they can reintroduce volatility even if the baseline is calmer. “These sudden movements are a reminder that whales retain the ability to influence volatility at any time, even within a broader slowdown,” Darkfost said, adding that when large holders “move thousands of BTC in single transactions,” they can trigger sharp moves “whether through sudden volatility spikes or deeper corrections, depending on the volumes deposited and potentially sold.” BTC Whale Capitulation On Pause A separate CryptoQuant update on Dec. 23 echoed the idea that the most acute stress may have eased. “Whale Capitulation on Pause,” the firm wrote, saying realized losses from “new whales” “significantly impacted the price drop from $124K to $84K.” Since the recent low, CryptoQuant said, those realized losses “have declined and are now flat.” Put together, the message is that one key source of near-term supply pressure,large deposits onto Binance,has cooled, while the realized-loss impulse tied to “new whales” is no longer intensifying. The caveat is the same one Darkfost emphasized: the market can look quiet in aggregate and still get rattled by a handful of large deposits if whales decide to move size again. At press time, BTC traded at $87,792. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
A new report by blockchain analytics firm AMLBot has revealed major differences in how the two largest stablecoin issuers, Tether and Circle, handle the freezing of crypto assets linked to illegal activity. According to the report, between 2023 and 2025, Tether froze around $3.3 billion worth of USDT, while Circle froze about $109 million in …
Bitcoin ETF performance stayed negative on Christmas Eve as a short final US trading session produced another $175 million in net outflows.
The biggest single-day exit came from BlackRock’s IBIT, which saw $91.37 million leave the fund. Grayscale’s GBTC followed with a $24.62 million outflow.
XRP remains in a $1.85–$1.91 range, with strong selling near $1.90 and consistent bids near $1.86, suggesting a potential decisive break ahead.
Crypto hackers took social engineering to a whole other level this year, and advances in artificial intelligence mean scams are about to get even harder to detect.
Elon Musk added that “triple-digit” economic growth could even be possible by 2030; however, some Bitcoiners worry about a 2026 bear market.
The number of crypto deals reportedly skyrocketed this year and hit a record total value of $8.6 billion, led by Coinbase’s record-breaking acquisition of Deribit.
Such sudden price changes are often due to thin liquidity and can be exacerbated by fewer active traders during quieter hours.
An on-chain pricing model for Bitcoin suggests that the cryptocurrency is currently neither overvalued nor undervalued, trading right around its “fair value.” Bitcoin Is Trading Near Its On-Chain Fair Value In a new post on X, cycle analyst Root has shared an update on how Bitcoin is looking from the perspective of the On-chain Value Map. This BTC valuation model was created by Root using three on-chain metrics: Realized Cap, Liquid Supply, and Coin Days Destroyed. Related Reading: XRP Retail Turns Fearful Again—A Classic Contrarian Setup? First, the “Realized Cap” is a capitalization model that calculates the cryptocurrency’s total value by assuming that the value of each token in circulation is equal to the spot price at which it was last transacted on the blockchain. In simple terms, what this indicator reflects is the amount of capital that the investors as a whole used to purchase the BTC supply. The second metric, the “Liquid Supply,” tracks the part of the BTC supply that’s held by investors who often move their coins. Basically, this is the supply that’s likely to return back into circulation, rather than being “HODL’d” Finally, the “Coin Days Destroyed” (CDD) measures the number of coin days being reset across the network. A “coin day” is a quantity that 1 BTC accumulates after 1 day of dormancy. When a token carrying some number of coin days is transacted, its coin days counter resets back to zero, and the coin days that it was holding are said to be “destroyed.” The CDD is useful for spotting periods where long-term holders are participating in distribution. These diamond hands hold for long spans, so they naturally accumulate a large amount of coin days, which, when destroyed, produce a spike in the CDD. Now, here is the chart for the On-chain Value Map shared by Root, which combines the data of all these Bitcoin indicators to define a few different valuation levels: As displayed in the above graph, Bitcoin spiked above the “overvalued” level as it set its all-time high (ATH) back in October. Since then, the cryptocurrency has notably declined, with its price returning to the level corresponding to “fair value” on the model. Related Reading: Bitcoin Perps Heat Up Again As Leveraged Longs Rise Thus, it would appear that, at least from the perspective of the On-chain Value Map, the asset is currently neither undervalued nor overvalued, but pretty much neutral. Given this trend, it remains to be seen which direction the coin will head from here. BTC Price Bitcoin has been in a phase of consolidation since its low in November, but its price hasn’t diverged much from the On-chain Value Map’s fair value during this period. Currently, it’s trading around $87,600. Featured image from Dall-E, BitcoinStrategyPlatform.com, chart from TradingView.com
Some Polymarket users reported that their accounts had been breached and drained, which the prediction market blamed on a third-party provider.
Evernorth's significant losses highlight the volatility and risk inherent in cryptocurrency investments, impacting investor confidence and market stability.
The post Ripple-backed Evernorth faces $220M drawdown as XRP struggles appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Dragonfly’s Rob Hadick says “there’s a lot of room” in crypto for more than one blockchain as networks race to win market share of tokenized assets.
Blockchain tokenization is radically expanding the definition of money, enabling anyone to trade, save, and spend in virtually any asset they like, says Kraken’s Mark Greenberg.
The Ethereum price has struggled to reclaim the critical $3,000 mark for the past 48 hours, raising concerns about potential declines in the cryptocurrency’s value if this essential support level is not regained by the end of the week. Analyst Predicts Further Downside Market analyst Ted Pillows pointed out on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that without a quick recovery above $3,000, Ethereum could face further downside pressures, possibly dropping toward the $2,800 range in the near term. This scenario would indicate an additional retracement of approximately 5% from its current trading price, which hovers just above $2,940. This ongoing struggle adds to the 16% decline recorded in the monthly time frame, highlighting the precarious situation for broader cryptocurrency prices. Related Reading: This Friday’s Bitcoin Options Expiry Could Shake Up The Market: What To Look Out For Another analyst, Columbus, sought to understand Ethereum’s lackluster performance relative to Bitcoin (BTC). He noted that Ethereum continues to trade below its Volume Weighted Average Price (VWAP), struggling to gain traction above this critical metric. The bounce observed from the $2,800 to $2,850 range appears more responsive than impulsive, in the analyst’s words, suggesting that while there are buying interests, conviction in the rally remains weak. Columbus further remarked that there is considerable liquidity layered overhead, particularly within the $3,050 to $3,250 zone. This liquidity has successfully capped any attempts to push prices higher. Unless Ethereum can reclaim this area and achieve consistent acceptance above it, upward movements are likely to be more about short-term rotations into supply rather than genuine trend continuation. On the downside, a failure to hold the $2,850 mark could expose Ethereum to deeper losses, potentially leading to a downturn toward lower liquidity levels between $2,400 and $2,700, where the bulk of liquidity is concentrated. Will Ethereum Drop To $1,300 In 2026? Looking further into the future, market expert CryptoBullet painted a more somber picture of Ethereum’s potential trajectory for 2026. He has introduced a new fractal model for Ethereum that suggests bearish outcomes for investors anticipating a bull run next year. In a social media post, CryptoBullet presented a daily chart of Ethereum, outlining key price targets and indicating that while a price recovery might occur in January and February, subsequent months could see a significant downturn. Related Reading: These Five Key Drivers Could Boost XRP To $5 By 2026, Claims Top Analyst According to this analysis, Ethereum’s brief recovery could falter against existing resistance levels between $3,600 and $3,800, potentially culminating in a dramatic decline to a target price of $1,385. If this fractal model mimics Ethereum’s performance in 2022, it could signify a staggering 63% drop in value for the leading altcoin. Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
After failing to turn the $90,000 area, Bitcoin (BTC) continues to move within its local range with apparent no clear direction. Some market observers have suggested that the flagship crypto will remain rangebound until next year, when its potential moment of truth will come. Related Reading: More Pain For Ethereum? Head And Shoulder Pattern Signals $2,400 Breakdown Bitcoin Takes Holiday Break On Christmas Eve Day, Bitcoin continued with its sideways trajectory, trading between the $86,000-$87,000 levels throughout the day. The cryptocurrency has been hovering within the $80,000-$94,000 levels since the late November correction, failing to break out of its one-month range despite earlier attempts. Notably, BTC’s price has been trading around the mid-zone of its range, moving between the $84,000-$90,000 levels for nearly two weeks. Analyst Ted Pillows noted that Bitcoin “is still in no trading zone,” arguing that if the price doesn’t reclaim the $90,000 resistance area, the price could risk another retest of the $84,000 support. However, if the support and resistance levels don’t break, it will continue to move within its range until the market’s momentum returns. Meanwhile, Daan Crypto Trades highlighted that December has been “a very boring month all things considered.” In an X post, he explained that there the broader crypto market had “no major narratives, no major moves. Just a lot of up days followed by down days. With alts bleeding lower in the end and BTC & ETH roughly stable.” The trader also asserted that it hasn’t been BTC’s best year despite reaching new highs this quarter. He pointed out that “this year was abysmal, especially looking at the risk adjusted returns.” Nonetheless, he noted that “during years like these, we are taking big steps towards distributing coins from OG large holders and get a more evenly spread supply. Regardless of price action in the short term, that’s always a good thing to see.” BTC To Breakout Or Breakdown In 2026? Daan affirmed that Q1 2026 will be the moment where Bitcoin can “try and prove itself” and when everyone will be closely watching the cryptocurrency’s performance to determine whether the cycle is over or not. Other market watchers have suggested two potential scenarios for BTC’s early 2026 performance. Ted Pillows highlighted that BTC appears to be mirroring its 2021-2022 fractal, which suggests that the flagship cryptocurrency is ultimately entering a bear market. Per the chart, Bitcoin saw a significant pullback after topping in late 2021. This was followed by brief recovery period at the start of 2022 before the price continued its descending trajectory. Based on this, the analyst forecasted a rally towards $100,000 at the start of 2026 before its next leg down, which could target the $60,000-$70,000 area. On the contrary, Eljaboom pointed out that BTC could be repeating its performance from the start of the year. Related Reading: XRP ETFs Record 25-Day Streak As Price Eyes Key Resistance Level As he noted, BTC displays a multi-month falling wedge pattern on the three-day chart similar to the one that formed between Q4 2024 and Q2 2025 and led to the Q3 3035 rally. If history repeats, the cryptocurrency could retest the pattern’s lower boundary in the coming weeks before breaking out of the formation and potentially moving to new highs by Q2 2026. As of this writing, Bitcoin trades at $87,350, a 0.5% decline in the daily timeframe. Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com
An analyst has explained when Bitcoin could possibly reach a bottom, based on the historical pattern followed by its price across cycles. Bitcoin Has Tended To Take 364 Days From Major Tops To Bottoms In a new thread on X, analyst Ali Martinez has discussed about what history could hint about when Bitcoin might reach a bottom in the current cycle. “Bitcoin $BTC major cycles have followed a surprisingly consistent rhythm, both in timing and depth,” noted Martinez. Related Reading: XRP Retail Turns Fearful Again—A Classic Contrarian Setup? Below is a chart shared by the analyst that highlights some of the similarities that the last few BTC cycles have shared. As is visible in the graph, the quarterly price of Bitcoin has taken roughly 1,064 days to reach the top from the bottom of the previous bear market during the last three cycles. This is naturally assuming that the cryptocurrency’s high above $126,000 was the top for the current cycle. The distance from the top to the next bottom was also similar in the 2017 and 2021 cycles on the cryptocurrency’s quarterly chart, coming at about 364 days. “If this pattern holds, Bitcoin $BTC is now inside that 364-day correction window, which points to a potential bottom around October 2026,” explained Martinez. In the chart, the analyst has also highlighted a possible bottom target for Bitcoin, based on, once again, the pattern from the previous cycles. The 2018 bear market reached its low after a drawdown of 84.22% from the bull market top, while the 2022 bear involved a decline of 77.57%. Martinez has drawn a drawdown of 70% for the current cycle, which would put the price target at the $37,500 level. It now remains to be seen whether this cycle will follow a trajectory anything like the last cycles or if the asset will go a different direction this time around. The chart for the Bitcoin cycles is showcasing the long-term trend of the asset using its quarterly price, but what about the short-term direction? In another X post, the analyst has shared the 4-hour chart for BTC, highlighting a technical analysis (TA) pattern forming on a short scale. As displayed in the above chart, Bitcoin has potentially been following a Parallel Channel on its 4-hour price during the last few weeks. A Parallel Channel appears whenever an asset observes consolidation between two parallel trendlines, with the lower level acting as support and upper one as resistance. Related Reading: Bitcoin Perps Heat Up Again As Leveraged Longs Rise The cryptocurrency retested the lower line of this Parallel Channel last week, which led to a rebound as support held up. The asset has since returned to the middle zone of the pattern, suggesting there isn’t any clear bias in either direction right now. BTC Price At the time of writing, Bitcoin is floating around $87,300, up 0.7% in the last seven days. Featured image from Dall-E, chart from TradingView.com
XRP is testing a critical long-term demand zone below the $1.90 level as market conditions continue to deteriorate across the altcoin sector. After failing to sustain upside momentum, price action has turned increasingly fragile, with bulls struggling to defend key support levels. The structure now reflects growing weakness, reinforcing concerns that the broader market may be transitioning into a bearish phase that leaves altcoins exposed to deeper drawdowns. Related Reading: Bitcoin and Ethereum Coinbase Inflows Collapse While Binance Retains Relative Activity – Details Despite the softening price action, on-chain data is sending a more nuanced signal. A recent CryptoQuant report by CryptoOnchain highlights a sharp decline in XRP exchange reserves on Binance, even as price has continued to correct. Historically, falling exchange balances suggest that fewer tokens are being held on platforms where they can be readily sold, often pointing to reduced sell-side pressure rather than aggressive distribution. This divergence between price behavior and on-chain supply dynamics is particularly notable at current levels. While XRP’s chart suggests that buyers are losing control in the short term, the contraction in exchange reserves raises questions about how much selling pressure remains if price continues to slide. In past market cycles, similar conditions have preceded periods of stabilization or relief rallies, especially when broader sentiment becomes excessively pessimistic. As XRP hovers below $1.90, the coming sessions will be decisive. Whether shrinking exchange supply can offset weakening technicals will determine if XRP finds a base or extends its decline alongside the wider altcoin market. Exchange Reserves Hit Multi-Month Low as XRP Tests Key Demand Zone On-chain data is highlighting a notable shift in XRP’s supply dynamics at a critical moment for price action. According to the XRP Ledger Exchange Reserve chart, XRP balances held on Binance have dropped sharply to around 2.66 billion XRP. This represents the lowest exchange balance recorded since July 2024, signaling a meaningful contraction in the amount of XRP readily available for sale on the market. Historically, such declines in exchange reserves are interpreted as a constructive signal. They indicate that investors and larger holders are moving tokens off exchanges into self-custody, reducing immediate sell-side liquidity. When the supply available for trading shrinks, even modest demand can have a disproportionate impact on price, creating the conditions for a potential supply-driven move. This on-chain development is unfolding as XRP trades at a technically sensitive level. Price is currently testing the major demand zone between $1.80 and $1.90, an area that has previously acted as a foundation for broader bullish structure. Momentum indicators add context, with the RSI sitting in the lower range, suggesting bearish pressure is fading, though a confirmed reversal has yet to materialize. The alignment of declining exchange supply and strong technical support strengthens the case for a potential stabilization or rebound. If buyers successfully defend the $1.80 level, reduced liquid supply could fuel a sharp recovery. However, a decisive breakdown below this zone would undermine the bullish on-chain thesis and reopen downside risk. Related Reading: Gold & Silver Break Out While Bitcoin Chops: Why Capital Is Flowing Into Precious Metals XRP Tests Long-Term Demand as Weekly Structure Weakens XRP is trading near the $1.87 level on the weekly chart, extending a prolonged corrective move that has eroded much of the bullish momentum built earlier in the cycle. After topping above the $3.40–$3.60 region, price has consistently printed lower highs and lower lows, confirming a clear shift toward a bearish medium- to long-term structure. The latest weekly candles show sustained selling pressure with limited downside wicks, suggesting weak dip-buying interest at current levels. From a trend perspective, XRP has lost its key weekly moving averages. Price is now firmly below the faster weekly average, which has rolled over and turned into resistance around the $2.40–$2.60 zone. The longer-term moving averages remain well below the current price, indicating that while the macro uptrend from prior years is technically intact, momentum has deteriorated sharply. Related Reading: The Gold-to-Bitcoin Rotation Narrative Gains Strength: A Data-Driven Review The $1.80–$1.90 area stands out as a critical demand zone. This region has acted as structural support in the past and now represents the last meaningful level bulls must defend to avoid a deeper breakdown. A sustained weekly close below $1.80 would significantly weaken the broader structure and expose XRP to a move toward the $1.50 area or lower. Selling activity increased during the breakdown from $2.50, while recent weeks have shown declining volume, pointing to exhaustion rather than accumulation. For XRP to regain strength, price would need to reclaim the $2.20–$2.40 region and establish acceptance above former support-turned-resistance. Featured image from ChatGPT, chart from TradingView.com
Recent market dynamics have seen Ethereum (ETH) at the forefront of a significant decline in the altcoin sector, pushing many top cryptocurrencies below crucial price levels. Market expert CyrilXBT has taken to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to unravel the factors contributing to this downturn and explore the potential for a recovery rally in 2026. Altcoin Struggles CyrilXBT began his analysis by addressing the role of Bitcoin (BTC) dominance in the market. When Bitcoin’s dominance increases, capital tends to concentrate within the asset rather than exiting the broader cryptocurrency market. Related Reading: Expert Predicts Bitcoin Could Hit $70,000, Drawing Parallels To December 2021 Crash This indicates that Bitcoin becomes a refuge for investors seeking safety, while altcoins transform into sources of liquidity. As a result, risk compresses prior to any expansion, a pattern consistently observed in previous cycles before altcoins regain strength. Another contributing factor to the current turmoil is tax-loss harvesting. Cryptocurrencies are one of the few major asset classes that have seen declines compared to January 1st, with equities and gold demonstrating gains. To lock in losses before year-end, funds are actively selling off unprofitable altcoin positions, crypto exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and other high-risk assets. CyrilXBT noted that this pressure would likely dissipate as the calendar turns to the new year. Liquidity Lag And Exhausted Demand The expert further highlighted that liquidity tends to work on a lagging basis. Although the Federal Reserve (Fed) has started to inject liquidity back into the system, markets typically do not react immediately. Historically, improvements in liquidity occur first, followed by Bitcoin stabilizing, with altcoins lagging behind. Currently, the market remains in the lag phase, not yet experiencing the anticipated breakout. With low volatility, stagnant Bitcoin prices, and declining altcoins, CyrilXBT asserts that it evokes memories of previous cycles, such as the early 2019 and early 2023 recoveries. Related Reading: Ethereum Bearish Structure Meets Bullish Supply Signal – What Happens Next Overall, the drop in the altcoin market can be attributed to several interconnected factors: rising Bitcoin dominance, peak tax-loss selling, thin liquidity, exhausted demand, and the delayed effects of macro liquidity. Instead of a capitulation scenario, the expert suggests that this moment appears to represent compression—a phase that frequently precedes significant recoveries. Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
Venture partners such as Pantera, Hash3 and Variant look back on a year of regulatory shifts and uneven markets, outlining crypto’s biggest winners and losers in 2025.
As the Bitcoin (BTC) price settles below the critical $90,000 support level, discussions about the potential onset of a new bear market are growing among experts and market analysts. The market’s leading cryptocurrency, currently trading at approximately $87,370, has experienced a decline of over 30% from its all-time high of more than $126,000, drawing comparisons to past market behaviors, particularly those witnessed in December 2021. Fractal Patterns Resurface Notably, on December 24, 2021, Bitcoin was valued at around $51,700, marking a local peak before it plummeted to $34,000 by January 24, 2022. This decline represented a significant 34% drop within just one month. Related Reading: This Friday’s Bitcoin Options Expiry Could Shake Up The Market: What To Look Out For An expert analyzing the current market dynamics has applied a fractal model derived from that previous sell-off to Bitcoin’s present price. According to this analysis, there is a potential trajectory that could see the cryptocurrency move toward the $70,000 mark in the coming days. The expert argues that given the current price action and current market conditions, this scenario is plausible and suggests an additional decline of about 20% for the Bitcoin price if a similar pattern unfolds. However, without clear direction, the question remains whether this situation will unfold into a recovery above key price levels or into an extended bear market heading into the first quarter of 2026. As such, perspectives among analysts vary widely. Expert Predicts ‘Bitcoin Supercycle’ Ahead CryptoKaleo, another figure on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), posits that the current market mirrors conditions seen in the fall of 2020. Both scenarios involved Bitcoin losing a critical support level that had been established in the wake of significant market corrections, leading to a “mini-bart” scenario where the price retraced nearly all of its previous gains, eventually finding a new base. During the recovery phase after the COVID-19 crash in 2020, traditional stocks, particularly in the tech sector, significantly outperformed Bitcoin, leading many to claim that the leading cryptocurrency was fading into irrelevance. Related Reading: These Five Key Drivers Could Boost XRP To $5 By 2026, Claims Top Analyst Today, as equities frequently reach new all-time highs, a similar narrative is emerging, with some asserting that Bitcoin has become stagnant and altcoins are lacking momentum. Despite this, CryptoKaleo remains optimistic, suggesting that the present situation does not conform to the typical four-year market cycle for the cryptocurrency. Instead of a prolonged bearish phase, he predicts that when Bitcoin reaches new all-time highs in 2026, it will usher in an exciting “supercycle,” characterized by prolonged upward trends, robust altcoin seasons, and a resurgence of retail interest in mainstream cryptocurrencies. Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
The listing follows Kyrgyzstan’s passage of crypto legislation, the launch of a new US dollar–pegged stablecoin backed by physical gold, and plans to build a national crypto reserve.
Forget the hype. These are the LLMs that caught our attention in 2025—from autonomous coding assistants to vision models processing entire codebases.