Bitcoin (BTC) News Today: News from the Middle East Overshadows Halving

BTC-Spot ETF Market Sees Net Outflows for Four Sessions

BTC advanced by 3.63% on Thursday. Partially reversing a 3.97% slide from Wednesday, BTC ended the session at $63,574.

BTC-spot market flow data for April 17 sent BTC to a Thursday (April 18) session low of $60,877. However, dip buyers fueled a BTC rise to a session high of $64,267. The gains came despite BTC-spot ETF outflows on Wednesday and sliding bets on multiple 2024 Fed interest rate cuts. Investor sentiment toward the looming Bitcoin Halving likely limited the impact of crypto market headwinds.

On Wednesday, April 17, the BTC-spot ETF market saw total net outflows of $165.0 million. According to Farside Investors,

• iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) saw net inflows fall from $25.8 million (April 16) to $18.1 million (April 17).
• Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) saw net inflows fall from $1.4 million to zero.
• ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB) and Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB) saw net outflows of $42.7 million and $7.3 million, respectively.
• Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) saw net outflows increase from $79.4 million to $133.1 million.

BTC-spot ETF flow data for Thursday, April 18, improved, but inflows remained lackluster when considering four successive sessions of net outflows.

According to Farside Investors,

• GBTC saw net outflows fall from $133.1 million to $90.0 million.
• FBTC saw net inflows of $37.4 million.
• ARKB and BITB saw net inflows of $9.5 million and $12.8 million, respectively.
• Excluding flow data for IBIT, the BTC-spot ETF market saw net outflows of $23.1 million.

Nevertheless, the BTC-spot ETF market saw net outflows of $259.7 million from Monday (April 15) to Wednesday (April 17). The pullback in demand via the BTC-spot ETF market is BTC price-negative, with the Bitcoin Halving in less than 24 hours.

Bitcoin and the Halving Event Countdown

According to the Bitcoin Halving Countdown Clock, the Bitcoin Halving will happen on April 20, 2024.

Geopolitical Tensions Intensified on Friday Morning

On Friday, April 19, reports of explosions at an Iranian airport fueled a flight to safety, sinking riskier assets. The Nikkei 225 and ASX 200 were down 3.31% and 1.45%, respectively. BTC and ETH saw losses of 5.25% and 5.13%. respectively. According to the BBC, an Israeli missile hit Iran

Technical Analysis

Bitcoin Analysis

BTC remained below the 50-day EMA while holding above the 200-day EMA. The EMAs affirmed the bearish near-term but bullish longer-term price signals.

A BTC move through the $64,000 resistance level would give the bulls a run at the 50-day EMA. A break above the 50-day EMA would support a move toward the $69,000 resistance level.

On Friday, BTC-spot ETF flow data, the Bitcoin Halving, and geopolitics need consideration.

Conversely, a BTC break below the $60,365 support level could give the bears a run at the $58,000 handle.

With a 14-Daily RSI reading of 37.85, BTC could drop to the $58,000 handle before entering oversold territory.

Ethereum Analysis

ETH sat below the 50-day EMA while holding above the 200-day EMA. The EMAs confirmed the bearish near-term but bullish longer-term price trends.

An ETH breakout from the $3,033 resistance level could give the bulls a run at the $3,244 resistance level. A break above the $3,244 resistance level would bring the 50-day EMA into play.

Conversely, an ETH drop below the $2,800 handle would give the bears a run at the 200-day EMA and the $2,664 support level.

The 14-period Daily RSI reading of 36.60 suggests an ETH drop to the $2,800 handle before entering oversold territory.