Calls for Bitcoin (BTC) to rally above $ 40,000 were dashed when the top cryptocurrency encountered a wall of resistance that triggered a sell-off in the early trading hours.
Data from Cointelegraph Markets and TradingView show that the price of BTC fell to $ 34,368 before falling back to its current price of $ 37,300.
Daily market performance in cryptocurrencies. Source: Coin360
It’s possible that the excitement surrounding the incoming Biden government’s announcement of a $ 1.9 trillion stimulus bill quickly turned into a buy of the rumor and sold the news event as questions about the feasibility of parts of the bill showed up.
BTC / USDT 4-hour chart. Source: TradingView
Bitcoin’s decline is also due to renewed criticism from global regulators when European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde recently stated that the top cryptocurrency was “totally reprehensible money laundering activity.” On January 15, it was announced that a British financial advisor had requested the British government and Parliament to ban cryptocurrency transactions.
Traditional markets are feeling the pressure
Harsh words from government officials weren’t the only cause of the downturn in the cryptocurrency market, as a scan of global financial markets shows signs of increasing pressure.
The S&P 500 and NASDAQ were under the pressure of the opening bell and ended the day down 0.72% and 0.73% respectively. The Dow pulled back against the bears to end the day 0.3%
A wider study of global markets found gold and silver closed 1.07% and 3.17%, while oil and the 10-year US Treasury bond lost 2.93% and 3.59%.
Altcoins keep pushing up
BTC / USD daily chart. Source: Coin360
Despite the heightened selling pressure in the market, several altcoins showed strength. Chainlink (LINK) spiked overnight and is currently trading at $ 20.50, up 13.9% in 24 hours. Cosmos (ATOM) is up 21.62% and is trading at $ 7.81.
Meanwhile, Ether (ETH) is under the same pressure as the broader Bitcoin. At the time of writing, the top altcoin is down 4.8 %% and is trading for $ 1,172.
The market cap for cryptocurrencies is now $ 1 trillion, and Bitcoin’s dominance rate is 68%.
