Talk of a “death cross” in Bitcoin on Thursday has sparked an investor sell-off down to the $7,500 line, where it met support. The digital currency was struggling at the $8,000 mark since earlier this week.
Bitcoin Down to March Lows at $7,500 Amid Bearish Pattern
Bitcoin, the most valuable cryptocurrency in the market, continues its steady drop in price ever since failing to break the $12,000 resistance in early March.
Apart from exceptions such as ERA (+45%) or Skycoin (+27%), the top 100 coins by market capitalization is down for the day as investors get gloomier potentially from talks of a “death cross” in Bitcoin. The term is used in technical analysis to describe a crossover of the 50-day moving average and the longer-term 200-day moving average, more specifically, when the 50-day moving average moves below the 200-day moving average. The pattern is often considered a bearish signal.
The 50-day moving average has already taken out the 100-day average and investors are fearing the worst as it chases the 200-day MA. Investors tend to find that technical signal quite negative, especially given the recent performance of Bitcoin as it trades steadily lower since the launch of futures.
The introduction of Bitcoin in futures trading has provided a “gold rush” towards cryptocurrencies during the last quarter of 2017 in a move that triggered a global conversation about the digital coins and blockchain. The announcement that CME Group would list Bitcoin futures sparked a break of the $7,000 area in Bitcoin. The price then kept climbing until hitting its current roof at $20,000 in mid-December as it ran out of fuel from the futures listings.
There are, however, a few arguments that can provide a less bearish stance. The last death cross pattern for bitcoin was in September 2015. Instead of a magnificent plunge, the digital coin more than doubled its value as it moved from around $230 to the $500 area in about two months.
Brian Kelly, a trader in CNBC’s Fast Money, supports a more bullish technical view as he points to an uptrend in play since August.
“Bitcoin, just like the spot FX markets, follows technicals closely, therefore these support levels gain more importance. If these levels hold, then it will confirm the uptrend from August is still valid.”
For now, the cryptocurrency sits at the $7,500 area, with the 2018 low being at $6,149. Year-to-date, the digital currency is down by 38 percent, approximately. Meanwhile, the cryptocurrency market threatens to review its market cap low of 2018, at $275 billion.