Bitcoin (BTC) made a bounce at $23,000 by Jan. 21 as Asian buyers brought renewed market strength.
BTC/USD 1 Hour Candlestick Chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView
Supply liquidity raises suspicions
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD battling bears to hit $22,790 overnight on Bitstamp — its highest since August.
With new multi-month highs appearing in quick succession despite fears of a major correction, Bitcoin continued to surprise as traders paved the way for more upside.
As noted by intraday trader Skew, Asia led into the weekend, with selling pressure from market makers being absorbed by exchanges.
“Another rally driven by Asia. TWAP buyers absorb selling pressure from MMs. Big spot bid lifting offers and ask wall were drawn before another short squeeze,” skew commented on a composite chart.
Annotated BTC/USD charts. Source: Skew/Twitter
On-chain analytics resource Material Indicators meanwhile marked Ask for liquidity to be removed on Binance the day before, allowing for Bitcoin’s initial run above $22,000.
“The volatility continues. Don’t give everything back, but definitely take some of it with you,” it says wrote Part of a later update.
BTC/USD order book data (Binance). Source: Material Indicators/ Twitter
“The bigger the pump, the harder BTC will fall,” says analyst Toni Ghinea tweetedwhile Crypto Tony argued that the entire movement may be nothing more than a dead cat bounce.
“Whether this is a dead cat relief wave or a reversal in bitcoin, it’s great to see some optimism in crypto again,” he summarized.
In addition, considering why there were more gains after the week’s TradFi trading, a popular commentator also hinted that traders were being manipulative.
“No one who genuinely wants to buy and own crypto waits until the Friday close to execute every week,” according to an update to readadding that the “goal of these buyers is clear”.
Earlier in the week, Material Indicators had also warned about “choreographed” bids on BTC.
BTC/USD 1-Day Candlestick Chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView
Key moving average on the horizon
Attention therefore focused on the upcoming weekly close for BTC/USD, which would be its best since mid-August if current prices hold up.
At the same time, Bitcoin appeared about to print a so-called “death cross” on the weekly chart, with the descending 50WMA poised to cross the still-rising 200 WMA.
BTC/USD 1 week candlestick chart (Bitstamp) with 50, 200 WMA. Source: TradingView
Related: Bitcoin faces $15,000 crash as US triggers ‘financial meltdown’ – Arthur Hayes
A key target was the 200-week moving average (WMA), which currently stands at $24,650 and is out of reach for much of 2022.
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