As it turned out by December 27, the trade-off for Bitcoin’s (BTC) 61% climb in November from about $67,000 to above $108,000 was an almost complete lack of a ‘Santa Claus’ rally ahead and during Christmas, which resulted in the coin changing hands at $96,273 at press time.
Indeed, BTC performance in the last 7 to 10 days has been so lackluster that numerous cryptocurrency and on-chain analysts have started forecasting a significant plunge for the digital asset, even if many of them still see a longer-term rally.
Analysts forecast Bitcoin flash crash as BTC rejects breakout above $100,000
A major trigger for the bearish prediction has been Bitcoin’s recent inability to find a stable footing above $95,000. The world’s premier cryptocurrency has spent much of the last week trading roughly in the range between $92,000 and $99,000 though most of the trading has been closer to the lower bound.
Such a trend prompted Tone Vays, a derivatives trader and financial educator, for example, to forecast that, unless BTC manages to stably reclaim levels above $95,000, it could face a correction to $73,000.
Peter Brandt, otherwise a staunch believer in Bitcoin’s strength, proved even more pessimistic as he hinted at a possibility the cryptocurrency’s next move could take it down toward $70,000.
Hey trolls — this is not a prediction. Just always pointing out possibilities, not probabilities, not certainties. No screen shot is necessary $BTCA right angled broadening triangle could project back into the 70s and a test of the parabolic modality pic.twitter.com/n5sy6DxAMb
— Peter Brandt (@PeterLBrandt) December 20, 2024
Brandt, however, reaffirmed his long-term optimism in the comments beneath the X post as he confirmed he still foresees an eventual rally above $130,000.
Mark Newton, a director, and strategist at Fundstrat, similarly forecasted a retracement down to $60,000, though, again, the Wall Street analyst and advisory firm maintains a bullish 2025 price target for Bitcoin as the famous Tom Lee set it as high as $250,000.
Benjamin Cowen, the founder and CEO of ITC, mirrored the downturn prediction as he speculated BTC might mirror Invesco QQQ Trust and, thus, experience a flash crash to $60,000.
Finally, Ali Martinez, the on-chain expert who compiled the other analyst forecasts for Bitcoin’s next move, opined that a significant short-term downturn is possible as the cryptocurrency is trading below ‘its most significant’ support zone at $97,300 and there are no logical stops between the support level $93,806 and $70,000.
Bitcoin likely to set new records in 2025 despite December headwinds
Despite the gloomy musings, the long-term picture remains generally optimistic for Bitcoin.
Along with the aforementioned Peter Brandt – who believes in a long-term rally above $130,000 – and Tom Lee – who forecasted a climb to $250,000 in 2025 – the personal finance author Robert Kiyosaki estimated a surge to $350,000 and the digital assets lobbyist Perianne Boring opened up a possibility for a Bitcoin rocketing above $800,000.
Martinez himself, despite concurring that there is an imminent danger of a deep pullback, previously predicted that the most likely outcome of the current cryptocurrency market cycle is a BTC climb to approximately $220,000 before the next bear phase for digital assets.
Featured image via Shutterstock
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