By Frances Yue
Crypto bulls are eyeing $40,000 as bitcoin’s next level, with the recent rally sending the crypto to a new high for the year, as the market shakes off the news that Binance’s co-founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty on Tuesday to criminal charges related to violating U.S. anti-money-laundering laws, and stepped down as head of the company.
The largest crypto (BTCUSD) on Friday rose to as high as $38,294, the loftiest level since May 2022, according to CoinDesk data. It climbed over 3% over the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin is up over 127% so far this year, but is still down 44.5% from its peak in 2021.
The crypto’s recent strength is supported by optimism that a bitcoin exchange traded fund may be approved soon in the U.S., and the market’s outlook on the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy and the U.S. dollar, according to James Harte, analyst at Tickmill Group.
“Risk assets such as BTC look well positioned to gain further against a softer USD,” as traders expect the Fed to keep its key interest rate unchanged before cutting it in the first or second quarter of 2024, Harte wrote in emailed comments.
From the technical perspective, “focus remains on further upside though softening momentum studies suggest pullback risks. While BTC holds above the $34755 level, $39860 remains the next target for bulls,” Harte noted.
Alex Kuptsikevich, senior market analyst at FxPro, said that “the dynamics of November lead us to believe that the chances of the price rising by another $2.5K and exceeding the $40K level are higher than the chances of it falling by the same amount to $35K.”
Ether (ETHUSD) also rose on Friday to $2,131, close to a local high reached on Nov. 10, according to CoinDesk data.
“There was a classic Fibonacci retracement with a 61.8% pullback from the initial rally. Breaking through the $2135 level will set up the main scenario of a 161.8% growth, which in this case is close to $2500,” Kuptsikevich wrote in a Friday note.
Ether gained 75% so far this year, though is still down 56.4% from its all-time high in November 2021.
Crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN)’s shares also rose on Friday, up 5.8% to $115.78 late morning Friday, on pace to its highest close since May 4, 2022, according to Dow Jones market data. The company’s shares are up 226.34% year-to-date, on pace for best year on record.
-Frances Yue
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11-24-23 1612ET
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