A Bitcoin Selloff May Be Coming as Price Slips Again. Here's Why.

Bitcoin
and other cryptocurrencies slipped lower on Thursday but held near key levels, as a “sell the news” dynamic continued in the wake of the approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds. More selling could be on the way.

The price of Bitcoin shed less than 1% over the past 24 hours to fall below $39,800, dropping under the psychologically important $40,000 level but holding above recent lows in the $38,000 zone. The largest digital asset remains more than 15% lower from the peak above $48,000 notched amid a trading frenzy around the anticipation and eventual approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S.

While improving sentiment for risk-sensitive assets and a rally in the stock market—with the
Dow Jones Industrial Average
and
S&P 500
trading near record highs—had buoyed cryptos earlier this week, gains have failed to hold. Bitcoin is hovering around the key level of $40,000, and though recent price action has been to the downside, the short-term trend is one of stability. But it may not be for long.

“A cautious uptrend can be discerned in Bitcoin since Tuesday, as some players are looking to lock in profits from short positions or buy after a sharp sell-off,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, an analyst at broker FxPro. “We note that Bitcoin was not oversold before stabilizing, and bears may use the current lull to hoard liquidity before another sell-off.”

Beyond Bitcoin,
Ether
—the second-largest crypto—dropped 1% to $2,200. Smaller tokens or altcoins were more muted, with
Cardano
and
Polygon
just above and below flat, respectively. Memecoins were similarly mixed, with
Dogecoin
down 2% but
Shiba Inu
advancing more than 1%.

Write to Jack Denton at [email protected]

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