Bitcoin price saw a short rebound above $93,000 today before bulls lost momentum late in the day and prices retreated towards multi-month lows around $90,000.
Total crypto market cap, however, had accumulated some gains but later receded to the $3.2 trillion mark with less than a 0.5% move on the downside.
Sentiment remained shaky at best, which explains why Bitcoin failed to spark a decisive rally and reclaim a higher support. The crypto fear and greed index was flashing ‘extreme fear’ at 15 after ticking up 4 points.
Altcoin rallies were constricted to a handful of mid-cap tokens based on project-specific developments.
Why is Bitcoin price down today?
Bitcoin initially rallied to an intraday high of $93,668 but faced resistance and quickly lost momentum, setting the tone for the rest of the session.
Early buying looked like a standard dip reaction that often appears after a sharp selloff, similar to what played out last year when aggressive buyers stepped in near $80,000 and later rode the move to record highs.
This time, however, the rebound failed to hold, and many perceived it as the start of a dead cat bounce as sellers returned the moment the price pushed into overhead supply.
One reason for the early strength today was the improvement in derivatives metrics.
CoinGlass data showed futures open interest rising 1.10% in the last day to about $140 billion, a sign that traders were once again using leverage after the heavy wipeouts seen earlier in the week.
At the same time, liquidations eased sharply. The 24-hour tally dropped to $271.93 million based on the latest CoinGlass dashboard, with $163.86 million hitting long positions and $108.07 million hitting shorts.
That figure is far lower than the liquidation waves that followed the tariff shock earlier this week, when daily totals climbed above $600 million.
Lower liquidations usually help markets find a short-term floor because exchanges are no longer forcing large position closures.
Even so, sentiment cracked again when Bitcoin failed to clear the $93,500 zone.
The rejection was followed by another pocket of long liquidations as short-term traders were caught leaning too aggressively into the rebound.
With fear readings stuck at extreme levels and buyers unwilling to defend the move, the price slipped back toward the earlier lows.
Macro conditions did not make things easier as renewed concerns over the proposed tariff measure backed by President Donald Trump, which threatens import duties of up to 500% on countries that continue trading with Russia, weighed heavily on risk assets.
The shock from that announcement has already triggered severe volatility since mid-November, leading to large forced unwinds across major tokens.
Analysts warn that if the measure advances, the crypto market could see another 10 to 20% drawdown as global trade uncertainty drives investors into defensive positions.
In the meantime, hopes for a December interest rate cut have faded as inflation concerns linger and Federal Reserve officials maintain a firm tone.
Rising energy costs tied to trade disruptions could further complicate the inflation outlook, reducing the appeal of high-risk assets like Bitcoin.
Reports also point to softer institutional flows into spot Bitcoin products since October, which has left the market without a strong buffer of long-term demand.
Will Bitcoin price go up?
When referring to Bitcoin’s 24-hour liquidation heatmap, traders seem to be positioned heavily between $93,000 and $94,500, where large clusters of previous liquidations remain stacked. This range has now become a key resistance zone.
Bitcoin 24-hour liquidation heatmap. Source: Coinglass.
Earlier attempts to reclaim this area were rejected swiftly, triggering fresh long liquidations and exposing the fragility of the bounce.
Unless Bitcoin clears this band with strong follow-through, upside moves are likely to remain capped in the near term.
On the downside, the $90,000 level continues to act as tentative support.
Liquidation activity has thinned out below that point, suggesting that while some buyers may be stepping in cautiously, the floor is still vulnerable.
A break below $90,000 could drag prices further toward $88,000 or even $87,000, where additional liquidity may reside.
For now, Bitcoin is trading in a compressed range between $90,000 and $94,500. The upper bound has shown to be a tough ceiling, while the lower edge is being tested repeatedly.
If bulls manage to reclaim $94,500 and hold above it, the next leg higher could target the $96,000 to $97,000 zone.
If sellers stay in control and force a drop below $90,000, more downside could open up quickly as longs continue to unwind.
On the technical side, the situation appears fragile as a number of market analysts continue to flag concerning signals.
AlejandroBTC, a well-followed crypto analyst, noted that Bitcoin has slipped below a multi-week rising wedge pattern, a structure that often precedes sharper downside moves when it breaks to the lower end.
“Technically, this points to ~30K,” the analyst said, alongside the illustration below.
BTC-USDT 1-week price chart. Source: AlejandroBTC on X.
Meanwhile, on chain analytics platform Glassnode drew attention to the fact that $BTC has “broken below the 0.75 cost basis quantile,” a level that has historically marked bear market territory.
Bitcoin supply quantities cost basis model. Source: Glassnode on X.
During past cycles, this band has acted as an important gauge of investor positioning, and “reclaiming and holding above it has been key to restoring bullish structure,” Glassnode added.
Some of the more optimistic voices weren’t too convinced either. Crypto analyst Kans did not rule out a relief bounce toward $107k but wasn’t sure it would last. See below.
I expect a relief bounce toward the $107K $BTC region, but I can’t be much more optimistic than that at the moment.
What do you guys think?
At the same time, whales seem to have started accumulating, as highlighted by fellow trader and crypto commentator Rekt Fencer.
Bitfinex whales are quietly adding MASSIVE $BTC longs.
They did this before every major reversal.
Do they think the bottom is in?
This buying pressure could help absorb some of the ongoing sell-side flow, limit further downside, and provide the momentum needed to reclaim the key support area around $94,000.
A sustained move above that level could open the doors for a broader recovery toward the $96,000 to $97,000 zone, especially if it triggers liquidations from overexposed short positions and restores confidence among sidelined traders.
When writing Bitcoin price was hovering a little over the $90,000 mark, with roughly 2% losses on the day.
Top altcoin gainers of the day
The total market capitalization of all altcoins rose from $1.39 trillion to $1.45 trillion earlier in the day, before giving up most of its gains and settling at $1.4 trillion at press time.
This pullback came amid continued weakness in investor sentiment toward altcoins, driven largely by Bitcoin’s failure to reclaim the $100,000 level after it lost the critical psychological support last Friday.
According to the Altcoin Season Index, which gauges the relative strength of altcoins compared to Bitcoin, a reading of 30 was recorded at the time of writing.
This suggests that the market is still firmly in a Bitcoin-dominant phase. Historically, altcoin seasons are signaled by index readings above 75, indicating a shift in momentum toward altcoins.
Ethereum (ETH), the largest altcoin by market capitalization, traded within a narrow range between $3,000 and $3,200, ending the session with no net change.
Among other major altcoins, Solana (SOL), XRP (XRP), and Hyperliquid (HYPE) fell by 1%, 2%, and 5% respectively.
Some of the top laggards of the day included Decred (DCR), which dropped 10.2%, while Internet Computer (ICP) and Canton (CC) both declined by 6%.
On the positive side, Starknet (STRK) and MYX Finance (MYX) led the daily gainers, each rising 34%. AB (AB) followed with a gain of 14.6%, helping to partially offset the broader weakness across the altcoin market.
Source: CoinMarketCap
Starknet: Starknet’s rally today comes amid a growing amount of tokens being staked on the network. Nearly 900 million STRK, or about 20 percent of the circulating supply, have been staked on Starknet.
As more STRK tokens are locked up, they are effectively removed from the circulating supply, helping to reduce selling pressure and support stronger price action in the market.
The Starknet network is also attracting investors looking to build and deploy Bitcoin-native applications.
Institutional platform Anchorage Digital is the latest major player to expand support for BTC staking on the network, a move that could open the door to deeper Bitcoin integration across Starknet’s DeFi ecosystem.
Continued development and expansion across the Starknet ecosystem, especially the growing number of decentralized applications on the network, is drawing in more developers eager to build on its infrastructure, which in turn is building investor confidence in its long-term potential.
MYX Finance: For MYX Finance, its gains are tied to strength in its underlying fundamentals. Notably, the DeFi protocol has posted new all-time highs in revenue and fees during the fourth quarter.
Derivative traders have also contributed to the rally, with open interest climbing steadily and reflecting a dominant bullish sentiment.
The rise in open interest in the MYX futures market, supported by a positive funding rate, suggests that market participants are leaning towards more bullish bets on the token.
Another major development that supported this gain is the recent Chainlink integration.
The partnership has brought enhanced data reliability and investor confidence to the protocol, driving renewed momentum and broader interest in the MYX token.
AB: AB’s rally was supported by a string of developments that have strengthened its ecosystem and investor outlook.
Catalysts include the launch of AB Wallet 2.0.0 on both the App Store and Google Play, marking a major milestone in the project’s push toward mobile accessibility and broader user adoption.
The updated wallet introduces a more intuitive interface, smoother cross-chain operations, and sets the stage for upcoming features like USD1 yield generation and additional DeFi services.
It follows on the heels of AB Chain’s strategic partnership with the Trump-family-backed World Liberty Financial, under which its USD1 stablecoin was deployed on the AB Chain network.
USD1’s integration has elevated AB Chain’s role as a DeFi and payments hub, enabling faster, zero-fee, and cross-chain stablecoin transfers, key features that have likely appealed to both retail and institutional users.
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