Bitcoin opened 2020 with a bang, rising by as much as 32 percent in January as investors appetite for safe-haven assets grew. However, the price rally is now looking to fizzle.

The bitcoin-to-dollar exchange rate has dipped by circa 9 percent after registering a local top near $9,200. The pair on Friday tested $8,216 as intraday support, hinting risks of an extended downside move that could push the price into a medium-term bearish channel.

The BTC/USD exchange rate eyes a crash towards $6,000 | Source: TradingView.com, Coinbase

The Descending Channel, as shown in the chart below, could gravitate bitcoin towards the redded support area having a baseline near $6,000.

A top market analyst believes bitcoin is less likely to hit the $6,000 level.

YouTuber Sunny Decree explained in one of his latest reports that the cryptocurrency, at best, would fall in the range defined by $7,239 and $7,957. From there, it could rebound towards its prevalent resistance levels, mainly the blacked 200-daily moving average wave in the chart above.

Mr. Decree cited the range after testing it against Volume Profile Visible Range (VPVR) an indicator that finds support/resistance levels based on the trading activity around them over a specific period of time. The analyst noted higher volumes near the $7,957-support, showing traders became highly active around the level.

VPVR ranges serving as a crucial support level for bitcoin | Source: Sunny Decree

Similarly, the $7,239-support showed slightly lesser but yet higher trade activity, allowing Mr. Decree to rule the area between it and $7,957 a potential pullback range.

I would personally, strongly that bitcoin is going to bounce somewhere between the [said levels] to the upside, he said, adding that it could push the price towards $10,500.

The prediction left a lot of burden on VPVR to prove itself as a reliable tool. A quick search across TradingView.com showed that many leading traders have used the proprietary indicator to predict support/resistance based on high and low volumes zones/nodes.

Fractal analysts have a different say when it comes to predicting the next bounce back. They have long analyzed the cryptocurrencys price behavior based on its historical performances. Renowned trader Haejin, for instance, sees a lot of similarity between bitcoins current downside actions and the ones noted during the 2018s crypto winter.

The analyst thinks bitcoin would not only fall towards $6,000 but would extend its plunge to as low as $3,300.

Bulls, on the other hand, have Halving as a contradictory historical indicator to refute Haeijins bearish prediction. They believe the supply shock alone could send bitcoin back to its glorious all-time high of $20,000.

More:
Less Chance that Bitcoin Will Crash Towards $6K, Top Analyst Explains Why - newsBTC

Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio attends China Development Forum 2019 at the Diaoyutai State ... [+] Guesthouse on March 23, 2019 in Beijing, China.

Billionaire investor and Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio was interviewed by CNBC as part of their coverage of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday morning. During the interview, Dalio painted a picture of the global economy that sounds quite similar to the supporting evidence Bitcoin investors often provide in terms of their bullish scenarios for the cryptocurrency.

While his general thesis on what will happen with the economy in the coming years matches up with what many Bitcoin holders think, Dalios advice for those worried about tough economic times ahead is to turn to gold, rather than Bitcoin, as a safe haven asset.

According to Dalio, the global economy is facing a serious issue in that an economic downturn would be an especially problematic situation for central bankers due to the lack of tools that are available to use, with interest rates already at or near historical lows in many places around the world.

Were in a spot in monetary policy where you can no longer stimulate the same way you did before, said Dalio.

Additionally, Dalio sees larger budget deficits on the way. In his view, newly-printed money will be used to pay for this increased spending. Dalio added that this scenario does not necessarily mean there will be an acceleration of inflation, as the new money could be funneled into financial assets.

The way it works is: They print money, they buy a bond, they give it to the seller of the bond, and they buy other financial assets, said Dalio.

However, Dalio stated that the attractiveness of government bonds to investors could decline in the coming years, creating new questions regarding what works best as a store of value.

When you get negative-yielding bonds or something, youre approaching a limit, said Dalio. We are approaching a limit that will be a paradigm shift, I think.

In terms of the possibility of an economic downturn during the next U.S. Presidential term, Dalio claimed, Its going to happen.

When this economic downturn occurs, Dalio is of the belief that turning to cash wont be the best option.

You cant jump into cash, said Dalio. Cash is trash . . . because theyre going to print money.

This same sentiment is behind many of the bullish Bitcoin price scenarios that have been espoused over the past couple of years.

While Dalio agrees with Bitcoin proponents in terms of the potential issues with holding cash in the near future, the billionaire investor disagrees that the cryptocurrency would be a proper alternative as a store of value.

In Dalios view, a global portfolio with a certain amount of money put into gold as an additional diversifier will be the best option for investors to deal with the economic downturn that he foresees happening in the coming years.

If you want to oversimplify a portfolio, you probably want stock in the technology, disrupting companies and some gold, said Dalio.

When asked if Bitcoin should also be included in this portfolio, Dalio said no.

There are two purposes of money: a medium of exchange and a store-hold of wealth, explained Dalio. And Bitcoin is not effective in either of those cases now.

In Dalios view, Bitcoin is simply too volatile to act as a proper store of value, and over the long term, he sees more potential in something like Facebooks Libra project. That said, there is reason to believe the level of centralization found in Libra and various central bank digital currency projects would actually have a positive effect on Bitcoin.

But also: Who is going to do the buying? added Dalio. Central bankers and others. What are they going to hold as reserves? What has been tried and true? Are they going to hold digital Bitcoin? Theyre going to hold gold. That is a reserve currency, and its been a reserve currency for a thousand years.

Despite Dalios comments, data from the second half of 2019 appears to show Bitcoin has made progress in terms of becoming viewed as a digital gold by market participants. A potential continuation of this trend is one of the five key Bitcoin stories to watch in 2020.

That said, while a survey from last week indicated more financial advisors are looking to add Bitcoin and other crypto assets to client portfolios in 2020, this is still a rare point of view among institutional investors. However, an improving regulatory environment around Bitcoin is one of the reasons an analyst has stated theres a 60% chance for a Bitcoin ETF approval to occur in 2020.

Additionally, a variety of factors have already led one industry executive to predict a $50,000 Bitcoin price by the end of the year.

See more here:
Billionaire Investor Sees Major Flaw In Bitcoin Investment Thesis - Forbes

Bitcoin prices on Friday are plunging after marking their highest levels in over two months, hurt by an improving outlook of the eurozone economy, the stronger dollar, and none the least the Coronavirusoutbreak in China.

The benchmark cryptocurrencys spot rate fell by 1.66 percent to $8,246.14 as of 11:20 UTC today. At the same time, its futures listed on Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) slipped 1.49 percent to trade at $8,245. The moves downhill put bitcoin at the risk of closing this week in red, its first negative session since January 6.

Bitcoin ends winning streak as demand fades at local top | Source: TradingView.com, Coinbase

Bitcoins losses appeared as investors appetite in risk-on markets improved on Friday, for they brushed aside fears of the economic impact of the Coronavirus and embraced more-than-expected manufacturing data from Germany and France.

The European stocks rose higher, with the Stoxx Europe 600 surging 0.9 percent. Chinese markets were closed due to the Lunar year celebrations, but Hong Kongs Hang Seng jumped 0.2 percent ahead of the afternoon trade.

Futures linked to the US three key markets also surged after the World Health Organization (WHO) refused to recognize Coronavirus as a global epidemic.

Concerns over a potential outbreak earlier this week had prompted Chinese equities to register their worst daily session in near-eight months. It had further sent the three leading risk-on markets in the US down.

As global equities fell against the fears of a Coronavirus outbreak, investors didnt look at so-called safe-havens as hedges.

Gold, for instance, remained marginally stronger this week after registering 0.12 percent gains. Nevertheless, the yellow metals spot rate was down 3.36 percent from its local top of $1,611.34 an ounce. Analysts at the Wall Street Journal said that Gold is due to end its winning streak owing to favorable economic data and strengthening the US dollar.

Bitcoin, whose correlation with Goldtouched four-year high after an escalationin the US-Iran conflict, remained down for the very same reasons. The cryptocurrency failed to behave as a safe-haven asset against Coronavirus, partially because investors remained glued to risk-on markets.

The S&P Global Ratings, on the other hand, has warned a potential virus outbreak could erase 1.2 percent off from Chinas GDP this year. The move could increase investors appetite for havens like Gold, which, more or less, could also prompt some to speculate on Bitcoin.

The cryptocurrency has started 2020 on a gaining note and is now looking to undergo a supply cut in May 2020. Analysts believe scarcity alone could send it up to as much as $100,000.

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Bitcoin is Tanking Despite Coronavirus Fears, Showing Lack of Characteristics as Safe Haven - newsBTC

With its 2.1 bitcoin (BTC) puzzle still unsolved, a Phemex co-founder has offered a few clues to help in cracking the code. The crypto derivatives trading platform is one of the new entrants in the market, going live late last year with an operational presence in Singapore.

In a letter published on the Phemex website on Thurday (January 23, 2020), Max Wong, co-founder of the crypto derivatives exchange platform offered a few clues for the 2.1 BTC puzzle put out earlier in the week.

The hints provided by Wong are:

The first 21-digit prime found in consecutive digits of e is: 957496696762772407663

The private key you derive from Satoshis portrait is a big integer, not Wallet Import Format (WIF)

The filename of the picture is irrelevant

The next step involves converting some words from the portrait, without I/O, into a 27-digit number

Go back to step 4) again if you cant figure it out.

Wong also provided further clarification for the bitcoin puzzle. The actual wallet address tied to the puzzle contains 1.1 BTC. The person or persons able to crack the code will receive this prize plus an additional 1 BTC bonus deposited in a Phemex trading account.

The Phemex co-founder also confirmed that participants in the retweet thread that leads to the solving of the puzzle get a $100 trading bonus deposit in a Phemex account. Wongs letter also mentioned the companys wish to reveal either the name or Twitter identity of the eventual winner for the sake of transparency.

As at press time, the bitcoin puzzle remains unsolved. Previous crypto puzzles have taken various time intervals before being cracked.

For Wong, Phemex hopes that participating in solving the bitcoin puzzle will help to foster greater cooperation within the crypto community. As part of the letter, Wong noted that in trying to crack the code, people are exploring fundamental Bitcoin concepts like cryptographic encryption which helps to broaden the appeal of cryptos in general.

Wongs letter also stated that the company hopes that the solver of the puzzle will be open to representing the company as a brand ambassador.

Do you think you have what it takes to crack the Phemex 2.1 BTC puzzle? Let us know in the comments below.

Images via Shutterstock, Phemex.

The rest is here:
Bitcoin Puzzle Worth 2.1 BTC STILL Unsolved, Find New Clues Here - Bitcoinist

Twitter has blocked the popular XRP Tip Bot, which allows users to send XRP to one another by tweeting a string of commands. The platform is designed to give users an easy way to reward one another and support content creators.

The social media giant says @xrptipbot violated Twitters rules. When the account holder asked for clarity on the citation, Twitter responded that the account will not be restored.

Hello, It has come to our attention that your Twitter account is in violation of the Twitter Rules, specifically the policy on Impersonation. Impersonation is pretending to be another entity in order to deceive, and is strictly prohibited. This account has been suspended and will not be restored.

The XRP Tip Bot launched in October of 2018 and is owned by Wietse Wind, the founder of Ripple-backed XRPL Labs. According to a real-time tracker, 861,315 payments totaling 2,177,155 XRP, currently worth about $484,364, have been sent through the platform since its inception.

Twitters decision to ban the account comes amid reports that the tech company may implement a tipping platform of its own as well as rumors that it will integrate Bitcoin.

In February of last year, Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey said he loves the idea of giving users on Twitter the ability to tip with BTC.

Square Crypto, a subsidiary of the payments company Square, recently announced the release of a software development kit for Lightning a Bitcoin scaling solution designed to increase the speed and lower the cost of sending BTC.

Featured Image: Shutterstock/spainter_vfx

See original here:
Twitter Blocks XRP Payments Platform Amid Rumors of Bitcoin (BTC) Integration - The Daily Hodl

Since Bitcoins genesis block was first mined, the cryptocurrency has been caught within a whirlwind that has allowed BTC to post gains that defy historical precedent.

Although the past couple of years have tempered the excitement surrounding the cryptocurrency, it is important to note that multiple bullish factors are fast approaching on the horizon, and the combination of these factors suggest that BTC could be en route to setting fresh all-time highs.

One interesting factor that should be noted is that the convergence of two key trendlines formed over the past five years coincides strikingly close with the cryptocurrencys upcoming mining rewards halving event signaling that fireworks could be imminent.

Over the past few days, Bitcoins price has been oscillating between the lower and upper-$8,000 region, with this ongoing consolidation phase coming at the tail end of its recent multi-week uptrend.

Although the near-term prospects for Bitcoin remain foggy, its mid-term outlook might just be more bullish than ever, as BTC is close to reaching the apex of a massive bull flag comprised of two trendlines that have been formed over a multi-year period.

Interestingly enough, the apex of this pennant coincides precisely with the anticipated date of Bitcoins upcoming mining rewards halving in May, which suggests that this time period could be a historical pivoting point for the cryptocurrency.

5 years of trendlines perfecting coinciding with the most highly anticipated event in BTC history. Fireworks in store! Travis Kling a partner at the Ikigai Fund explained in a tweet while pointing to the below chart.

While BTC remains stuck beneath the coveted five-figure threshold at $10,000, it is difficult to realistically muse the possibility that it will soon be trading at $100,000 or more.

This may not be as farfetched as one would assume, however, as Galaxy, a popular cryptocurrency analyst on Twitter, explained in a recent tweet that a break above the descending resistance formed since the 2017 rally could lead Bitcoin straight to $100k minimum.

Breaking the green line will be what triggers the next parabolic movement that will take us to $100K minimum. Save this picture. You are not late. You are early.

It just so happens that this trendline is the same upper boundary as the one seen on the chart referenced by Kling, which signals that BTC could be just mere months away from an explosive movement to fresh all-time highs.

Excerpt from:
Five Years of Bitcoin Trendlines All Lead to This One Point; Fireworks Inbound - newsBTC

Bitcoin price failed to stay above the key $8,500 support area and extended its decline against the US Dollar. BTC price is likely to continue lower towards $8,000 or $7,880.

Yesterday, we discussed the importance of the $8,500 and $8,470 support levels for bitcoin against the US Dollar. BTC price failed to stay in the bullish zone and recently declined below $8,470.

Moreover, there was a close below $8,500 and the 100 hourly simple moving average. As a result, there was a downside extension and the price traded below $8,300.

A new weekly low is formed near $8,263 and the price is currently consolidating losses. An initial resistance for the bulls is near the $8,380 level. It coincides with the 23.6% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $8,794 high to $8,263 low.

The first major resistance on the upside is near the $8,470 level (the recent breakdown level). Additionally, yesterdays highlighted key bearish trend line is active with resistance near $8,470 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair.

Bitcoin Price

The next key resistance is near $8,500 and $8,520. It coincides with the 50% Fib retracement level of the recent decline from the $8,794 high to $8,263 low.

Therefore, bitcoin price must settle above $8,470 and $8,520 to move back into a positive zone. In the mentioned case, it could revisit the $8,800 resistance area.

If BTC price continues to slide, it could struggle to stay above the $8,200 support area. In the mentioned case, there are high chances of it hitting the $8,000 support level in the near term.

Overall, bitcoin is showing a few bearish signs and it seems an interim top is formed near $9,200. The next set of bearish targets could be $8,000 or $7,800, below which the bears might even aim $7,200.

Technical indicators:

Hourly MACD The MACD is slowly gaining pace in the bearish zone.

Hourly RSI (Relative Strength Index) The RSI for BTC/USD is now well below the 40 level, with bearish signs.

Major Support Levels $8,200 followed by $8,000.

Major Resistance Levels $8,470, $8,500 and $8,520.

Read more:
A Bitcoin Plunge To $8,000 On The Horizon, As Bulls Show Weak Hands - newsBTC

DAVOS, Switzerland Switzerlands banking industry has long been known to privately safeguard wealth, so some bankers see bitcoin as a natural fit for the nations financial sector.

Although such bankers may still be a minority, Zurich-based SEBA Bank AG opened in November 2019 with a universal banking license and a suite of services ranging from fiat storage to crypto custody, a crypto-connected debit card that automatically converts to fiat on the backend for regular shopping and crypto-trading options through the banks mobile app.

SEBA CEO Guido Bhler said the bank raised 100 million Swiss francs (roughly $103.4 million) from angel investors including Guy Schwarzenbach, founder of Black River Asset Management.

Schwarzenbach said the pricing for SEBA app trades, enabled by backend API integrations with global exchanges, offered extremely competitive pricing compared to over-the-counter trades.

What I am really excited about for SEBA is their upcoming deployment of a margin and lending business, including options and derivatives, Schwarzenbach said.

SEBA was hardly the first bitcoin-friendly Swiss bank. The private bank Falcon Group, for example, launched bitcoin management services in 2017. Matthew Blake, the World Economic Forum's monetary systems lead, described crypto-friendly, fully licensed banks as an emerging trend.

"It's something institutions can do to hedge," he said.

Likewise, the Swiss crypto startup Bitcoin Suisse has also applied for a universal banking license with the goal of offering everything from staking services to loans.

We're not applying for a banking license just to be like every other bank. We are pioneers at heart, Niklas Nikolajsen, founder and chairman of Bitcoin Suisse, said via spokesperson. We will, of course, offer cash accounts for our clients, in their own name. ... We will be able to start trading crypto securities, stablecoins and synthetics, such as mini-futures and products to short the major crypto assets.

Crypto bank

However, among such banks so far, SEBA offers a unique ability to hold a variety of many fiat currencies, including American dollars, Hong Kong dollars and Singaporean dollars, then instantly trade cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ether and Stellar lumens.

You can open an account over the phone in 15 minutes for an accredited investor, you dont have to go to Switzerland, Bhler said. Theres always going to be aspects that banks are required for, and the first one is the storage of your private key.

For Schwarzenbach, who described himself as a libertarian who runs his own Lightning Network node he made using a Raspberry Pi, bitcoin banking makes sense for the physical security benefits. He wouldnt want the risk of someone hurting him to get at his bitcoin stash.

Bhler said the young bank already serves high-net-worth individuals and institutional investors from all over the world, excluding the United States, plus a few blockchain startups.

Schwarzenbach added that open source decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms inspired by MakerDAO could eventually offer comparable financial infrastructure to both the general population and the proverbial 1 percent.

My hope is that we will be able to develop and adopt that [DeFi] infrastructure, Schwarzenbach said. And it is my expectation that standards will present themselves with market maturation.

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

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Swiss Banks Enter the Age of Bitcoin - CoinDesk

Cryptographer and computer scientist Nick Szabo, has presented in his Twitter account a study on the "risk-benefit" ratio of different assets. The study used a Sharpe Ratio over four years Hodl period.

According to this study, Bitcoin is the best positioned, maintaining an average ratio of 3 in the last four years. Behind them are the US stocks, with an average ratio of 2, and gold, which has gone from the last positions in 2016 to the third in the 2020 ratio.

The worst placed asset category is emerging currencies, which with an average ratio of -2 lags far behind the others.

The crypto board reaches the end of the week with the bears securing the market control they gained yesterday in mid-session.

The structure of the moving averages already indicated that the upward turning process that began on January 10th was going to be quite time-consuming. The magnitude of the downward movements in the second half of 2019 had separated the moving averages a lot.

ETH/BTC is trading at the price level of 0.01895and is down by -1.65%. On the 4-hour chart, the spot price is piercing the EMA50. If Ethereum loses this support, the drop will accelerate to the 0.0185 level.

Above the current price, the first resistance level is at 0.0197, then the second at 0.0200 and the third one at 0.0205.

Below the current price, the first support level is at 0.0185, then the second at 0.0185 and the third one at 0.0182.

The MACD on the 4-hour chart is supported directly by the indicator's zero levels. The moving averages are sloping downward and are moving away from it, suggesting an acceleration of the trend.

The DMI on the 4-hour chart shows the bearish-bought pair in equilibrium. Both sides of the market are above the ADX line, a setup that facilitates violent resolutions.

BTC/USD is currently trading at $8243and confirms the loss of support at $8400. The EMA50 and SMA100 averages continue to fall and forecast that the end of the downtrend could be on the first week of February.

Above the current price, the first resistance level is at $8400, then the second at $8500 and the third one at $8800.

Below the current price, the first support level is at $8200, then the second at $8000 and the third one at $7900.

The MACD on the 4-hour chart is losing its downward slope, indicating the end of the impulse phase of the movement. The terminal phase can easily take the price below $8000.

The DMI on the 4-hour chart confirms the end of the bearish momentum phase. Bears are preparing to drill down the ADX line. The bulls are very reactive to any upward movement and break the downward trend.

ETH/USD is currently trading at $156.09after finding support at the SMA100. The support point coincides with the 38.2% level of the Fibonacci retracement system and the same system indicates that the 50% level at $150 is very likely to be visited.

Above the current price, the first resistance level is at $161, then the second at $165 and the third at $170.

Below the current price, the first support level is at $155, then the second at $150 and the third one at $143 (61.8% level of the Fibonacci retracement system).

The MACD on the 4-hour chart is increasing its openness and is tilting further down, so we can expect an acceleration of the price's decline.

The DMI on the 4-hour chart shows that the bearish trend is increasing. The bulls are not reacting and continue to lose strength.

XRP/USD is currently trading at $0.215 and accelerating the downward movement that began this week. The current price coincides with the 50% level of the Fibonacci retracement system. The next support, according to this tool, is at the 0.205 price level, 61.8% of the Fibonacci retracement system.

Above the current price, the first resistance level is at $0.218, then the second at $0.223 and the third one at $0.235.

Below the current price, the first support level is at $0.205, then the second at $0.20 and the third one at $0.19.

The MACD on the 4-hour chart shows an acceleration of the downward movement. The MACD on the 4-hour chart shows an acceleration of the downward movement.

The DMI on the 4-hour chart shows that the bearish trend is increasing and the bearish momentum is strong. The bulls are not reacting and continue to lose momentum.

Get 24/7 Crypto updates in our social media channels: Give us a follow at @FXSCrypto and our FXStreet Crypto Trading Telegram channel

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Top 3 Price Prediction Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP: Bears take over and draw a bloody moon - FXStreet

The cryptocurrency market started the downside correction after a strong rally initiated by risk reversal play at the beginning of January and reinforced by various altcoin pumps, including Craig Wright's saga and Ethereum Classic hard fork. At the time of writing, the total capitalization of all digital assets in circulation amounts to $226 billion; an average daily trading volume settled at $89 million, while Bitcoin's market share recovered to 66.4% after a short-lived dip below 66.0%.

Global regulators are increasingly interested in the concept of digital money. The central banks of Hong Kong and Thailand announced a joined project that will help to facilitate payments between the countries. They are looking into the idea of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) to reduce risks and ensure transparency of cross-border transactions. The project is known as Project Inthanon-LionRock.

Also, central banks of England, Canada, Japan, the Eurozone, Sweden, and Switzerland have also joined forces to study and share their knowledge and experience related to CBDC. They are particularly interested in the use cases for the new type of money, including cross-border interoperability and economical benefits. The group will be headed by the deputy governor of the Bank of England Sir Jon Cunliffe and co-chaired by Benoit Cure, a former ECB board member and head of the BIS innovation hub.

Notably, many officials emphasized that these initiatives came as a response to the emergence of digital currencies in a private sector. Thus, Facebook's Libra announced in 2019 and Telegram's Gram is viewed as a real threat to the existing monetary order.

In a separate development, the World Economic Forum (WEF) revealed CBDC PolicyMaker Toolkit, the first framework for central banks that are interested in creating their digital coins. A community of over 40 regulators and financial institutes have been working on this set of guidelines to help central banks evaluate, design and potentially deploy CBDC.

Meanwhile, according to the latest report of the Bank of International Settlements, over 80% of central banks are considering the idea of CBDC, though only 10% of them have proceeded to real development or pilot projects. Moreover, an overwhelming majority of the surveyed institutes confirmed thatpublic use of cryptocurrencies for domestic or cross-border payments was not significant.

Bitcoin's market volatility recovered from the weekly low, though it is still below the recent high reached on January 15. Notably, the volatility rise was accompanied by the price decrease. At the current levels, over 70% of all Bitcoin addresses are in the money, while a break-even price by most of the accounts is around $12,000.

The first digital asset hit the highest level of 2020 at $9,184 and retreated below $8,300 before recovering towards $8,450 on Friday. Bitcoin was less volatile than some altcoins that experienced strong rallies during the week. As a result, its market share dropped to 65.3% on Wednesday and recovered to 66.5%.

From the technical point of view, BTC/USD has returned to the pivotal area created by 50% Fibo retracement for the upside move from December 2018 low to July 2019 high. Once this barrier is out of the way, the upside is likely to gain traction with the next focus on $8,650. This area served as strong support at the beginning of the week, so we will need to see a sustainable move higher to mitigate the downside pressure and create a pre-condition for a recovery. Once it is out of the way, the upside is likely to gain traction with the next focus on $9,000. This is an ultimate short-term target for Bitcoin bulls protected by SMA200 daily.

On the downside, the pivotal support is seen at psychological $8,000. This area is reinforced by SMA100 daily and the upper boundary of the broken downside wedge. This barrier will be a hard nut to crack for Bitcoin bears. Most likely, it will attract new buyers that help initiate an upside recovery. However, once it is out of the way, the sell-off is likely to gain traction with the next focus on $7,650 (SMA50 daily).

The Forecast Poll of experts has worsened slightly since the previous week. The expectations on monthly and quarterly timeframes remained bullish, while the weekly expectations are now bearish now. The average price forecast on all timeframes moved above 8,000. Notably, the quarterly price forecast retreated below $10,000, which means that the experts are less optimistic about Bitcoin in the long run.

Read more here:
Bitcoin Weekly Forecast: Bitcoin bulls and bear fight gets a tougher edge - FXStreet