Βitcoin – BTCUSD trades 0.03% lower at 9,683 making fresh weekly lows today but stopped at the 9,600 mark. Many analysts believe that the launch of Bakkt, a physically-settled Bitcoin futures platform pressured the cryptocurrency markets. Bitcoin capitalization now is 174.7 billion having lost over 6 billion the last week; while the market capitalization of the top 100 cryptocurrencies is down to 255.8 billion, today’s BTC volume is 15.8B.
The BTCUSD technical analysis picture is neutral to bearish now, as the price trades below the 100 and 200-day moving average. Bitcoin looks trapped inside a descending triangle and a test of the recent lows at 9.358 looks posible. Immediate support for bitcoin stands at 9,600 today’s low and then at 9,365 the low from August 30. On the upside, strong resistance now stands at 9,782 today’s high, while I expect extra pressure from sellers at 10,413 the 200-day moving average. Bulls will add to long positions if BTC breaks above the top (9,782); the take profit target must be set at 10,400 resistance, while a protective stop might be placed at 9,600. Bears can take a bet and enter a short position if BTC breaks below the triangle support.