Bitcoin (BTC) Breaks Ranks to Test Resistance at $44,000

Key Insights:

• Bitcoin (BTC) surged by 14.5% to test resistance at $44,000
• Monday’s breakout saw Bitcoin decouple from the NASDAQ 100 and broader global equity markets
• The Bitcoin bulls will now be targeting a return to $50,000

It was a bullish start to the week for Bitcoin (BTC) and the broader crypto market. Recovering from an early morning day low of $37,473, Bitcoin surged to a late intraday high of $43,954 before easing back. Resistance at $44,000 pegged Bitcoin back in the final hour of the day.

Reversing a 3.66% slide from Sunday, Bitcoin ended the day up by 14.51% at $43,189.

It was also a bullish session for the rest of the crypto top 10.

LUNA surged by 26.09% to lead the way, with SOL ending the day up by 16.44%.

ADA (+12.49%), AVAX (+12.58%), and ETH (+11.65%), also found strong support, while BNB (+9.88%) and XRP (+8.40%) trailed the front runners.

Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index Continues Upswing

Market angst stemming from news updates on Russia led to a slide in the index to 20/100 on Monday morning. Responding to Bitcoin’s Monday breakout, the index surged to 51/100 this morning. Significantly, the index also moved out of the “Extreme Fear” zone and returned to the “Neutral” zone.

For the Bitcoin bulls, the index will need to move back through to 54/100 to bring $50,000 levels back into play for Bitcoin. A fall to sub-20/100 would deliver sub-$30,000 levels.

For the crypto market, the upside came despite bearish sentiment across the mainstream markets. Monday’s moves could prove to be a material one in Bitcoin and the crypto market’s status in the global financial markets.

Before Monday’s rally, Bitcoin had closely tracked the likes of the NASDAQ 100. The correlation had left Bitcoin in the hands of the news wires and the NASDAQ 100 before Monday’s decoupling.

Bitcoin Price Action

At the time of writing, Bitcoin was up by 0.22% to $43,286.

Technical Indicators

Bitcoin will need to avoid the $41,542 pivot to make a run on the First Major Resistance Level at $45,608. Bitcoin would need broader market support to break through to $45,000.

In the event of another extended rally, the Second Major Resistance Level at $48,030 and resistance at $50,000 would come into play. The Third Major Resistance Level sits at $54,500.

A fall through the pivot would bring the First Major Support Level at $39,120 into play. Barring an extended sell-off throughout the day, Bitcoin should avoid sub-$39,000 levels. The Second Major Support Level sits at $35,050.

Looking at the EMAs and the 4-hourly candlestick chart (above), it is a less bearish signal. Bitcoin now sits well above the 200-day EMA. The 50-day EMA has narrowed to the 100-day and 200-day EMAs this morning. A bullish cross of the 50-day EMA through the 100-day EMA would bring $50,000 into play.

Bitcoin would need to avoid the 200-day EMA, currently at $40,400, to support another breakout day.