Cryptocurrency markets await catalyst; price action remains range-bound

Cryptocurrency markets continued to trade in a tight range on Friday, with Bitcoin and Ethereum under pressure as institutional caution persisted. Analysts said Bitcoin repeatedly defended key support levels, while resistance capped any meaningful upside. Ethereum mirrored the weakness, dipping below critical thresholds before staging modest rebounds, with higher levels proving difficult to breach.

 

Market watchers noted that downside levels for both tokens would be closely monitored in the coming sessions. A break below support, analysts said, could trigger deeper corrections, while historical trends suggest that sustained levels may pave the way for a short-term relief rally. 

Bitcoin faces resistance at $68,000

Bitcoin failed to sustain gains above $68,500, slipping nearly 4 per cent intraday to a low of $65,650 as sellers regained control. The decline, Riya Sehgal, research analyst at Delta Exchange, said, mirrored ongoing institutional caution, with U.S. spot ETFs recording fresh outflows, extending total net withdrawals to $8.5 billion since October 2025. A mild rebound lifted BTC back toward $66,500 by the session’s close, but sentiment remained fragile.

 

“All eyes now turn to today’s Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index inflation print. A softer reading could ease Federal Reserve tightening concerns and spark a relief bounce, while hotter data risks amplifying downside pressure,” Sehgal added.

 

At last check, BTC was trading around $67,229, up 0.71 per cent, with a 24-hour trading volume of $31.64 billion, according to CoinMarketCap. During the same period, the digital asset oscillated between $65,637 and $67,456. The token remains more than 46 per cent below its all-time high of $126,198 set on October 7, 2025, with market capitalisation slipping below $2 trillion to $1.34 trillion, yet retaining its position as the largest cryptocurrency by value.

 

According to the CoinSwitch Markets Desk, in the absence of a clear catalyst, price action remains in short-term consolidation. BTC is on track for a fifth consecutive monthly decline, a pattern last seen in 2018–19, when six straight red months preceded a sharp multi-month rally of over 300 per cent. Similar momentum could begin shifting in early Q2 2026.

 

“Liquidity positioning suggests a move above $68,000 may trigger a short squeeze, while a break below $66,000 could lead to heavy long liquidations,” the desk said.

 

From a technical point of view, Sehgal said, “Going forward, $66,000 for BTC and $1,900 for ETH are crucial downside levels to watch. A breach could trigger deeper corrections toward $64,500 and $1,870, respectively.”

Ethereum struggles below $2,000

Ethereum mirrored Bitcoin’s weakness, breaking below key supports at $1,935–$1,920 to touch $1,905, before recovering to retest near $1,945. At last check, ETH was trading lower by 1.7 per cent at $1,937 on CoinMarketCap. The token fluctuated between $1,911 and $1,985 over the past 24 hours, with a trading volume of $17.7 billion.

 

Sehgal noted that $1,970 continues to act as stiff overhead resistance for Ethereum.

Altcoin markets snapshot

The altcoin segment displayed a mixed performance. Top gainers on CoinMarketCap included Kite (KITE), Midnight (NIGHT), Virtuals Protocol (VIRTUAL), Decred (DCR), Pump.fun (PUMP), OKB (OKB), Hyperliquid (HYPE), AINFT (NFT), TRON (TRX), OFFICIAL TRUMP (TRUMP), Solana (SOL), Monero (XMR), Humanity Protocol (H), Bitcoin (BTC), KuCoin Token (KCS), Bitget Token (BGB), Bitcoin Cash (BCH), PAX Gold (PAXG), Tether Gold (XAUt), UNUS SED LEO (LEO), and Flare (FLR), rallying up to 13 per cent.

 

Among laggards, Arbitrum (ARB), Pi (PI), Bittensor (TAO), MemeCore (M), Ethena (ENA), Internet Computer (ICP), Dash (DASH), Toncoin (TON), Pippin (PIPPIN), ether.fi (ETHFI), Lighter (LIT), XDC Network (XDC), Canton (CC), Chiliz (CHZ), Sei (SEI), Kaspa (KAS), Morpho (MORPHO), Sky (SKY), Quant (QNT), Pudgy Penguins (PENGU), Aptos (APT), Cosmos (ATOM), Polygon (POL), PancakeSwap (CAKE), Polkadot (DOT), Ondo (ONDO), Curve DAO Token (CRV), Algorand (ALGO), Filecoin (FIL), and Ethereum Classic (ETC) fell as much as 10 per cent.