Crypto update: Bitcoin, Ethereum see profit booking; BNB eyes fresh high

The cryptocurrency markets have witnessed a pullback, signaling a cooling of short-term momentum rather than a reversal of the broader bull cycle. The bulls failed to intensify volatility over the past weekend, and as a result, Bitcoin's price dropped below $112,000. Although ETH, XRP, DOGE, ADA, and SOL plunged below their respective support levels, Binance Coin (BNB) held above $1,000 and is heading towards a new all-time high (ATH).   

One of the major causes for the downfall could be $230 million in longs that were liquidated in the past few hours, according to the CoinDCX research team. Utilising this opportunity, Metaplanet purchased an additional 5,419 BTC, valued at $632.5 million, bringing the total to 25,555 BTC, worth $2.7 billion. "In the meantime, Bitcoin’s Market Cap has surged to $2.24 trillion, higher than most countries’ GDP.

 

Bitcoin, Ethereum see profit booking

At last check, Bitcoin was trading at $112,918, marking a fall of 2.5 per cent over the past 24 hours. According to CoinMarketCap, the asset traded within a range between $112,209 and $115,901 during the session. Its daily trading volume surged to $45.12 billion.

 

Over $630 million in liquidations, driven by a 26 per cent surge in derivatives open interest, Riya Sehgal, research analyst, Delta Exchange, said, shows how leveraged traders were caught off-guard. Bitcoin’s failure to hold $117,750, she said, underscores fragile technicals.

 

That said, despite profit booking, Edul Patel, CEO of Mudrex, believes the outlook remains bullish. On-chain data shows that exchanges recorded outflows of more than 420,000 ETH in the past week alone. ETH was last trading at $4,206, down 6 per cent, with intraday price fluctuations between $4,142 and $4,499. Trading volume reached $43.32 billion. 

"BTC must reclaim $116,000 to regain momentum, with $124,000 as the breakout level for the next leg higher, while ETH bulls need to defend $4,250 to avoid deeper downside," said Sehgal.

 

"Investors moving ETH off exchanges typically indicate reduced intent to sell, strengthening the case for an upside. Looking ahead into the week, macroeconomic data such as the US initial jobless claims, PMI data, and Jerome Powell’s speech could influence the market momentum," said Patel.

 

Story (IP) outperfoms 

Among the altcoin space, Story (IP) was the top performer for the day with a rally of up to 15 per cent, while MemeCore (M), PAX Gold (PAXG), and Tether Gold (XAUt) were the gainers on CoinMarketCap with a surge of up to 2 per cent.  Conversely, Aster (ASTER), Pump.fun (PUMP), Pi (PI), Conflux (CFX), Curve DAO Token (CRV), Sonic (S), Optimism (OP), Raydium (RAY), Celestia (TIA), Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL), Arbitrum (ARB), FLOKI (FLOKI), and Worldcoin (WLD) saw a fall of up to 16 per cent.