After cryptocurrencies showed rapid growth in the second half of October and early November 2023, Bitcoin and then altcoins began to move sideways.
Bitcoin
From November 24 to December 1, the price of Bitcoin changed slightly, adding about 2.6%. On December 1, BTC surpassed $38,500. At the same time, the trend towards a slowdown in volatility is obvious: in only one of seven trading sessions did the change in value exceed 2%.
Source: tradingview.com
The week for Bitcoin was relatively normal, so there were no price jumps. The hype around ETFs continues to gain momentum. On November 29, another company filed an application for a spot Bitcoin exchange fund in the United States. It turned out to be the Swiss management organization Pando Asset. It is not yet clear when and whether at least one or several spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds will be approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). According to Bloomberg analyst James Seyffart, the nearest window for this to happen is from January 5 to January 10, 2024.
Obviously, large players are also in anticipation of some serious movements in BTC. This is evidenced by the size of open interest (the number of active futures and options on Bitcoin). Since October 15, it has grown by 43%, from $11.8 billion to $16.89 billion.
Source: coinglass.com
Even more impressive numbers for Bitcoin on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). There, the growth rate was more than 100%, an investor under the pseudonym JJcycles shared information on the social network X (formerly Twitter).
Technical analysis shows that over the past three weeks there has been consolidation among Bitcoin investors. But on December 1, the price broke through the resistance level of $38,500. If we manage to gain a foothold higher, this level will become support.. The current support level is around $35,000. For bulls, a good help is if the price is above the 50-day moving average (indicated in blue), as well as the RSI indicator above 50:
Source: tradingview.com
The fear and greed index continues to rise. Compared to last week’s figure, it added another 5 points and is 71 as of December 1. This demonstrates the predominance of greed over fear.
Ethereum
Ethereum, like Bitcoin, has shown modest dynamics over the past seven days, adding a little more than 0.5%. The second largest cryptocurrency by capitalization has not yet managed to gain a foothold above $2,100 and overcome the annual maximum of $2,140.8.
Source: tradingview.com
Ethereum did not have any joyful or sad shocks this week.. ETF applications are still being processed. At the same time, the SEC, in a statement dated November 30, acknowledged receiving an application from a large financial company, Fidelity.
The ChatGPT-4 neural network presented several scenarios for forecasting the price of ether for the fourth quarter of 2025. The bearish scenario assumes that the price of ETH will be $1,500. The neural network considers legislative pressure on the crypto industry and high competition to be the main growth problems that may arise.. According to the neutral scenario, the cryptocurrency will be valued at $2,500 at the end of 2025, that is, 16% higher than now. Bullish Forecast sees ETH price at $3,500 (67% higher than December 2023). ChatGPT4 calls the main reason for this movement the Bitcoin halving, which will cause an increase in BTC. Well, since the two largest cryptocurrencies are correlated, the growth of one will cause an increase in the price of the other.
Well-known analyst and trader Ali Martinez is positive about Ethereum. In his opinion, an important stage was the overcoming of ETH resistance between $1,982 and $2,044. Martinez believes that there are not many obstacles ahead, and solid support from below will allow Ether to reach new yearly highs.
From the point of view of technical analysis, the picture has not changed over the week. Ethereum is still sideways between the resistance levels of $2,140.8 and support levels of $1,906.7. It is worth noting a slight decrease in volatility. Since November 22, the ATR indicator has decreased by 16%: from 86 to 72.
Source: tradingview.com
Algorand
For a change, let's take a look at the cost of the Algorand cryptocurrency. From November 24 to December 1, 2023, it grew by 3.54%. At the maximum on November 26, the price was even higher and amounted to $0.136. But then I fell. In general, the week saw equality between bullish and bearish investors: four positive trading sessions versus three negative ones.
Source: tradingview.com
The main news for the altcoin was the conclusion of a partnership between the project team and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). As a result of this cooperation, a blockchain academy should appear in early 2024. A major focus will be to familiarize UNDP staff with applications that use this technology.
From the point of view of technical analysis, Algorand went into a sideways movement – after an upward trend from mid-October to mid-November, when the growth was more than 70%. Interestingly, in the last week the coin formed a so-called “golden cross” – a situation when the fast 50-day moving average (indicated in blue) crosses the slow 200-day moving average (indicated in orange) from bottom to top. This is usually considered a bullish signal. However, it will be possible to speak with confidence about the continuation of the bullish trend only after overcoming the resistance level of $0.15. Support is at $0.123.
Source: tradingview.com
Conclusion
In short, the crypto market is waiting for significant news. For now, the value of cryptocurrencies remains virtually unchanged. The entire industry is waiting for at least some ETFs for spot bitcoin and ether to be issued in the United States.
This material and the information contained herein do not constitute individual or other investment advice. The opinion of the editors may not coincide with the opinions of the author, analytical portals and experts.