Cryptos continue to fall; Bitcoin is close to losing $28,000
The cryptocurrency market extends Thursday's falls. Bitcoin (BTC) continues to retreat, dropping more than 3% in the last 24 hours as it threatens to lose $28,000. Ethereum (ETH), meanwhile, has fallen around 2% and is close to abandoning the $1,900 level.
Craig Erlam, senior analyst at Oanda, highlights that the reigning cryptocurrency has abandoned the support level it found around $29,000 at the beginning of the month. "After such a prolonged rally since early January - more than 80% - the recovery may be running on fumes," the expert explained, while predicting further falls for Bitcoin.
This same idea is defended by Michael van de Poppe, cryptos analyst and founder of the investment firm Eight, who highlights that the largest cryptocurrency on the market is "currently showing weakness" after losing important support levels. "Final crucial level is at $27,600. Could take liquidity beneath, but needs a fast recovery. If not, and no break of $28,800, then I suspect we'll see $26,200," the expert noted.
Likewise, Mark Connors, head of research at Canadian cryptoasset manager 3iQ, believes that this steep drop has quite a bit to do with regulatory uncertainty in the United States, especially after the passage of MiCA ('Markets in Crypto Assets'). "The Kabuki theatre that unfolded in Washington this week suggests Asia and other jurisdictions will continue to gain market share from the U.S," the analyst indicated to 'CoinDesk'.
"Coinbase’s decision to get licensed in Bermuda to launch an exchange as early as next week shows that U.S. digital asset companies are now voting with their feet. So this week we had both price and regulatory volatility, with only one clear loser, the U.S. economy," he added.
It is worth recalling that New York-listed Coinbase announced that it is considering leaving the U.S. if regulatory clarity does not improve in the world's first economy. Brian Armstrong, CEO of the firm, has stated that the United States has "potential", but also that it is "lagging behind". The exchange has received a warning from the SEC for its staking service and joins other platforms such as Bittrex or Kraken, which have faced regulatory action from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In this regard, Coinbase welcomed the approval of the EU MiCa directive and assured that it is a "comprehensive legal framework" that will give organizations "the confidence to invest and grow in the region". Tyler Winklevoss, co-founder of the Gemini exchange, said that "it is sad" to see U.S. regulators "falling behind on such an important and promising technology" because "they are busy infighting and refusing to provide the most basic clarity".
In other market news, there have been steep falls for some of the major tokens. Solana (SOL) dropped more than 5% and Dogecoin (DOGE) plummeted 8%. Polygon (MATIC) and Cardan (ADA) fell by more than 4%.