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Bitcoin slides below $26,500 amid the ongoing regulatory crackdown

Kitco Media
By Jordan Finneseth
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(Kitco News) - The ongoing regulatory onslaught resulted in crypto prices trading down on Wednesday as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission continued to target centralized crypto exchanges in the U.S. with enforcement actions. New developments include the approval of an emergency order to freeze the assets of Binance.US, while Binance CEO Chengpang Zhao has been summoned to appear in court in response to Monday’s 13-charge lawsuit against the world’s top cryptocurrency exchange.

An unexpected interest rate hike by the Bank of Canada combined with a decline in Chinese exports led to a mixed day in the stock market, while Treasury yields rose after the US Treasury said it plans to increase the size of its upcoming bill sales. At the close of markets, the S&P and Nasdaq were in the red, down 0.38% and 1.29%, respectively, while the Dow managed to finish up 0.27%.

Data provided by TradingView shows that Bitcoin (BTC) began to trend down at the opening of the first candle on Wednesday, ultimately hitting a daily low of $26,320 in the afternoon before bulls managed to push it back above $26,400.

BTC/USD Chart by TradingView

The early morning pullback resulted in July Bitcoin futures prices trading weaker, according to Kitco senior technical analyst Jim Wyckoff, who noted that “Prices hit a nearly three-month low on Tuesday, but trading has turned choppy at mid-week.”

Bitcoin futures 1-day chart. Source: Kitco

“The bears have the slight overall near-term technical advantage as they have re-established a price downtrend on the daily bar chart,” Wyckoff said.

A survey of Crypto Twitter shows that many analysts are anticipating a move higher for Bitcoin once the FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) surrounding the recent lawsuits settles down. As market analyst Caleb Franzen notes in the following Tweet, the test of a major support/resistance level at $25,335 “is a good place to step in as a buyer.”

For those looking for a little more confirmation before jumping back into the market, analyst Crypto Tony highlighted $26,650 as the level that needs to be reclaimed before he makes a fresh entry into the market.

The appearance of a ‘cup and handle’ formation is further verification that Bitcoin’s price could soon rise, according to market analyst Captain Faibik.

And crypto trader Moustache provided a macro view that suggests Bitcoin is on the verge of “a very big move,” if it performs how it has in past market cycles.

Altcoin sell-off

Altcoins largely traded in the red on Wednesday as the threat of enforcement actions against the world’s largest crypto exchanges and the SEC’s apparent classification of many of the top altcoins as securities led traders to dump tokens for stablecoins until a clearer picture of the regulatory landscape emerges.

Daily cryptocurrency market performance. Source: Coin360

The three notable exceptions to the market downturn were Stella (ALPHA), Radicle (RAD), and Storj (STORJ), which gained 16%, 14.56%, and 9.52%, respectively.

The overall cryptocurrency market cap now stands at $1.1 trillion, and Bitcoin’s dominance rate is 46.6%.

Kitco Media

Jordan Finneseth

Jordan Finneseth is a Crypto Market Reporter for Kitco Crypto. Coming from a background in Psychology and Human Behavior, he began to focus his attention on the cryptocurrency space in early 2017 after noticing the rapid growth of this emerging market. Since that time, Jordan has worked as a content creator for multiple projects and as a crypto news journalist reporting on the latest developments within the cryptocurrency market. Jordan holds a Master of Science in Clinical/Counseling Psychology and a pair of Bachelor's degrees in Psychology and Environmental Health Science. You can reach out Jordan Finneseth at 1- 514.670.1372.

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