Bitcoin Rises Near $25,000. It Needs to Clear Key Levels to Keep Rallying.

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Bitcoin
and other cryptocurrencies were rising on Monday as the march higher in digital assets continued despite a quiet day in the stock market, with investors away from Wall Street for the Presidents Day holiday.

The price of Bitcoin has risen 1.5% over the past 24 hours to above $24,900, having spiked above $25,100 in the peak of recent trading. The largest digital asset remains around its highest levels since last June amid a rally that has carried it some 50% higher to start 2023—though Bitcoin continues to change hands well below its late-2021 high near $69,000.

“Bitcoin’s positive momentum continued this week with a break above the previous high of 24,250. Not only did we see positive price action but volume was also higher than it had been in the previous two weeks,” said Rachel Lin, the CEO of crypto derivatives platform Synfutures. “Unfortunately, positive price action has not been accompanied by good fundamental news.”

Indeed, cryptos have been climbing seemingly in spite of a spate of regulatory storm clouds gathering around the space. U.S. regulators have taken several lines of action in recent weeks to crack down on crypto companies as well as products and services including stablecoins and staking—raising the prospect of a tougher operating environment in the world’s largest economy.

Nevertheless, traders have taken the latest regulatory headwinds in their stride—perhaps exhibiting optimism around the prospect of legal clarity for crypto at long last, even if it includes short-term headwinds.

Upbeat trading in digital asset markets Monday also comes amid a quiet session for investors globally, with Wall Street off over Presidents Day and stocks muted globally. 

Cryptos have become largely correlated with equities over the past year—amid a tough macroeconomic environment—typically moving in step with the

Dow Jones Industrial Average
and the

S&P 500.
In the absence of stock trading or major macro catalysts, Bitcoin and its peers continued to drift higher, with key price levels lying ahead.

“We still need to watch how Bitcoin performs in the coming days,” said Lin. “There are several resistance levels between 25,000 and 25,250 including the 200-Week Moving Average. We’re also witnessing strong selling pressure in this region, a break above 25,200 would be a very good sign for Bitcoin and the wider crypto market.”

Beyond Bitcoin,

Ether
—the second-largest cryptocurrency—gained 1% to move above $1,700. Smaller cryptos, or altcoins, were more mixed, with

Cardano
climbing 1.5% but

Polygon
less than 1% lower. Memecoins were in the green, with

Dogecoin
up less than 1% and

Shiba Inu
jumping 4%.

Write to Jack Denton at jack.denton@barrons.com