Bitcoin (BTC) slides below $50k again as crypto market turns red

Bitcoin (BTC) again failed to consolidate above $51K after breaching the key resistance earlier yesterday. The top cryptocurrency slid below $50K again earlier today and is currently trading at $49,344 with a 4% decline over the past month.

The top cryptocurrency has seen a bearish phase ever since hitting a new all-time high in October near $69K and despite market pundits predicting an eventful final quarter, BTC like several other altcoins has been consolidating ever since. Many analysts have given a 6-figure price prediction for BTC by the end of 2021. However, as move deep into the last week of the year, BTC has shown little signs of bulls apart from a couple of bullish surges.

Apart from Bitcoin, the rest of the crypto market also traded in red, barring a few altcoins. Ethereum (ETH) fell below the critical support level of $4,000 and currently trading at $3,945. Among the top-5 cryptocurrencies by market cap, Binance coin (BNB) was the only altcoin that showed a green price momentum despite seeing a downturn. BNB is currently trading at $550 with a 1% surge over the past 24-hours. However, BNB wouldn’t be able to hold its green for long if the crypto market corrects further.

Source: Coin360

Can Bitcoin (BTC) see bulls again in 2022?

When comparing the current bull market with the last one, the price patterns have been quite distinct apart from early correlations. BTC rose to new ATHs towards the end of December in 2017 and most of its gains came in the last couple of weeks. While altcoins surged after Bitcoin’s market top. Comparing it to the 2021 bull cycle, the crypto market has shown more stability and a formidable price momentum where even market corrections of up to 50% didn’t shake many investors.

Market pundits expect the BTC rally to continue into 2022 and believe we are in a super cycle where the current price momentum is mimicking more of the year before the bull run and the real bull run would begin in  2022. Bitcoin is currently in a semi-bullish zone and Santimant analysis shows a steady circulation, thus the market sentiments haven’t turned red yet.

#Bitcoin continues to circulate in semi-bullish territory, according to our latest NVT model data. With $BTC back under $50k, circulation staying steady is encouraging to see, as it implies utility is remaining at a justifiable level vs. market cap. https://t.co/UXddCZQsDJ pic.twitter.com/VAJt25gvcN

— Santiment (@santimentfeed) December 28, 2021