Autor Cointelegraph By William Suberg

Bitcoin (BTC) reversed in classic fashion on March 10 after bulls failed once again to hold higher levels.BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingViewBart’s back on the Bitcoin chartData from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD forming a characteristic “Bart Simpson” retracement pattern overnight on Wednesday.The pair had managed to pass $42,000 before consolidating, but a lack of support meant that a drop back to its previous trading zone below $40,000 was the grimly familiar outcome.Such “Bart” formations had come several times in the weeks prior, and underscored the difficulty experienced by a market stuck firmly in an established trading range for months.- Was no follow up in price or volume for deriv bidders- attempting to unwind their longs and tanked the market volume, predicted funding, and open interest tell the story pic.twitter.com/hJD6QVRUek— Dylan LeClair (@DylanLeClair_) March 10, 2022Those hoping for upside continuation were thus left disappointed, with cross-crypto liquidations for the 24 hours to the time of writing totaling $211 million, according to data from analytics resource Coinglass.Crypto liquidations chart. Source: Coinglass“Fried bulls this morning,” popular trader Crypto Ed, who had called the end of the upside at Wednesday’s highs, told Twitter followers.“This is not PA but PP Ping Pong And yes, Asians always been good in Ping Pong,” he added, referring to both the up and down slopes of the “Bart” occurring during Asian market hours.Thursday meanwhile would see the release of U.S. consumer price index (CPI) data for February, this tipped to show inflation still running hot at an estimated 7.9% year-on-year.“CPI number comes out tomorrow & the FOMC meeting is in less than a week (March 15 & 16),” trader and analyst Matthew Hyland forecast in part of a tweet Wednesday. “I expect volatility ahead, but increased certainty as a result.”An accompanying chart underlined key resistance levels for BTC/USD to overcome, along with support at $36,300 and $33,000.BTC/USD chart with key levels marked. Source: Matthew Hyland/ TwitterAltcoins in copycat U-turnBitcoin’s volatility likewise cost altcoins much of their latest gains, with Ether (ETH) down 5.1% to less than $2,600.Related: Price analysis 3/9: BTC, ETH, BNB, XRP, LUNA, SOL, ADA, AVAX, DOT, DOGEMany others out of the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap were equally gloomy on the day, with previous high flyer Terra (LUNA) nonetheless managing to linger near $100 highs.LUNA/USD 1-hour candle chart (Binance). Source: TradingView

Bitcoin (BTC) held onto swift gains at the Wall Street open on March 9 as nerves over U.S. regulatory moves calmed. BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingViewExecutive order enters with a whimperData from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD maintaining $42,000 into the start of trading Wednesday.The pair had shrugged off the latest round of macro tensions to add over 11% in 24 hours, among the best movers in the broader crypto market.Despite mixed feelings over the real significance of the move among traders and analysts, fresh information about U.S. President Joe Biden’s executive order on cryptoassets appeared to allay some of the market’s fears.An accompanying fact sheet seemed to point to the order being more investigative than draconian, making the White House’s latest efforts decidedly unlike last year’s Infrastructure Bill.”The Administration will continue work across agencies and with Congress to establish policies that guard against risks and guide responsible innovation, with our allies and partners to develop aligned international capabilities that respond to national security risks, and with the private sector to study and support technological advances in digital assets,” it concluded.Reacting, Bill Barhydt, founder and CEO of payment gateway Abra, called the order a “nothing burger with a side of psychobabble” and said that Bitcoin was rallying as a result.The fact sheet itself did not mention “Bitcoin” at all, referring only to “digital assets” and “cryptocurrencies.””Today, POTUS signed an Executive Order on crypto-assets. I look forward to collaborating with colleagues across the government to achieve important public policy goals: protecting investors & consumers, guarding against illicit activity, & helping ensure financial stability,” Gary Gensler, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), wrote on Twitter.Among the order’s plans was a pledge to further research into a central bank digital currency, or CBDC, on the part of the U.S. government.Range resistance not tipped to be brokenBuoyed by the events, BTC price action thus allowed market players to push higher in their short-term forecasting.Related: Bitcoin transaction fees briefly doubled yet remain exceptionally lowFor options trader and pseudonymous Twitter user John Wick, the scenario was now similar to that in which BTC/USD found itself earlier in March.#BTC Reversal bar setup + Squeeze Arrow setup has up in a new uptrend (again) targeting $44k retest.Indicators from https://t.co/c5WtFtKTRV https://t.co/f7AEvUEHQ5 pic.twitter.com/XLfUiwC42Q— John Wick (@ZeroHedge_) March 9, 2022Others remained conservative, with Crypto Ed not expecting a rematch of the previous range high.”BTC looks like it finished that move at $42,550 Just a marginal new high was enough apparently,” he wrote in his latest Twitter update.Bearish prognoses nonetheless remained, with precious little sign that Bitcoin would break out from its range high near $46,000.

Bitcoin (BTC) hit $42,000 on March 9 as an impressive overnight candle saw bulls reclaim support levels.BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingViewTrader: Market “still fragile”Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD abruptly “squeeze” through previous resistance at $39,600, going on to deliver 24-hour gains of 11.3%.Amid local highs of $42,438 on Bitstamp, the mood among traders was also improving, but caution remained. Multiple macro factors: the Russia-Ukraine war, inflation and the United States’ incoming executive order on cryptocurrency all kept commentators wary.”I can’t deny that the market is looking a bit better after this move. However, still very fragile, short timeframe and uncertain,” Cointelegraph contributor Michaël van de Poppe said as part of Twitter comments on the day.Fellow trader and analyst Pentoshi was similarly cool on the performance, which took Bitcoin back to the upper segment of a range in which it had lingered throughout 2022.IF 40.7k holds on the 1D/3D THEN will look once again for the yearly open for a third time prev was from near blue “value area”. First two both came up just short. Third time likely the charm IF 40.7k holdsBelow 40.7k = no buenoTargets:Hold 46.2k and 52-53k https://t.co/zMkoiCZcjV pic.twitter.com/tSigWopXn3— Pentoshi (@Pentosh1) March 9, 2022″This was a nice squeeze, but ultimately want to see Bitcoin reclaim 46-47k to feel confident that momentum has been regained,” William Clemente, lead insights analyst at Blockware added.Bets remained open as to the impact of Thursday’s consumer price index (CPI) data for February, this expected to be 7.9% and a key driver of short-term volatility for BTC/USD.The data would precede the following week’s decision on key interest rates from the Federal Reserve, with expectations just as varied as to its scope.”IMO BTC’s first dip from 60k to 30k in 2021 was caused by China’s mining ban. The second dip from 60k to 30k in 2021 was caused by inflation combined with possible rate hikes & QE ending,” PlanB, creator of the stock-to-flow family of Bitcoin price models argued. “Currently the odds of rate hikes & QE ending seem low.”LUNA returns to top major altcoin returnsBitcoin thus performed strongly even against many altcoins, with the top ten cryptocurrencies by market cap struggling to keep up.Related: Bitcoin stems losses after US bans Russian oil, gold heads to record highsEther (ETH) was up 7.2% on the day at the time of writing, while others were flatter, such as XRP on 3.7%.The briskest gains belonged to Terra (LUNA) once again, LUNA/USD targeting 20% gains and its highest since mid-January.LUNA/USD 1-day candle chart (Binance). Source: TradingView