Bitcoin (BTC) headed towards the upper end of its trading range on June 24 as optimism once again crept into traders’ expectations.
BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView
Bitcoin Price ‘Ready for $23,000’
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView tracked BTC/USD broadly flat as it reached local highs of $21,425 on Bitstamp.
The pair has turned higher since dropping below $20,000 on June 22, with US stocks entering similarly over the weekend.
Cointelegraph contributor Michael van de Poppe announced to his Twitter followers that day that “Bitcoin is ready for $23,000.”
Just above the 200-week moving average (WMA), $23,000 has been a popular bullish target for commentators – and sellers.
As noted by the trading group Decentrader, whales on the Bitfinex exchange have located orders in this area, providing the possibility of “fake” BTC/USD above 200WMA in the event of a squeeze.
“The 200WMA has great historical significance because it raised prices in previous bear markets, and it will be of great interest to traders when price revisits it,” Decentrader wrote in the latest market update, echoing popular sentiment.
“At Bitfinex where we know whales especially like to dominate, there is a large number of orders at $23,000 just above the 200WMA. There is no guarantee that those orders will stay there or not be broken when the price hits them. But it is worth noting, and therefore realizing Possible fraud risk around the 200WMA which price may reject on its first attempt to break.”
The company added that in general, while cryptocurrencies are “not out of danger”, the market has been giving “encouraging” signs for the bulls.
Trader targets $1,500 for Ethereum
Meanwhile, Altcoins stole the show on lower time frames as the week drew to a close.
Related: Bitcoin miner ‘surrender event’ may have already occurred – Research
Ether (ETH), the largest altcoin by market cap, has gained nearly 10% on the day to top $1,200.
Ripple (XRP) and Solana (SOL) fared better, with both reporting double-digit daily gains while the latter posting weekly returns of nearly 30%.
1 hour candle chart SOL/USD (Binance). Source: TradingView
The Green Sea has been omnipresent among the top fifty cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, with UNUS SED LEO (LEO) bucking the trend, down 5.8% at the time of writing.
“Great market environment here as the bullish momentum continues,” Van de Poppe said in a separate update, adding that ETH/USD could reach $1,500 “over the coming weeks.”
