Benzinga - by Mehab Qureshi, Benzinga Staff Writer.
Major cryptocurrencies plunged on Thursday evening as investors eagerly awaited crucial jobs data, which could potentially influence the direction of interest rates.
| Cryptocurrency | Gains +/- | Price (Recorded 9:30 p.m. EDT) |
| Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) | -0.63% | $27,527 |
| Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) | -1.42% | $1,621 |
| Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) | -0.32% | $0.061 |
What Happened: Weekly initial jobless claims for the week ending September 30 stood at 207,000, reflecting a marginal increase of 2,000 compared to the previous week. This figure was also close to the forecasted 210,000 by economists, according to a Dow Jones consensus estimate. While this uptick in jobless claims was in line with market expectations, it left some investors disappointed who were hoping for clearer signs of a labor market breakdown, potentially bringing an end to the rates that are negatively impacting stocks.
The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX, is currently underway. A jury of 12 individuals will be responsible for determining his fate. According to TechCrunch, Wednesday’s court proceedings primarily focused on opening statements and the testimonies of the first two witnesses. Bankman-Fried was seen in the courtroom wearing a gray suit and purple tie, often engrossed in his laptop or engaged in discussions with his main attorney, Mark Cohen.
The jury, consisting of nine women and three men aged between 33 and 69, has been given the crucial task of deciding the outcome of Bankman-Fried’s case, which involves charges related to fraud and money laundering.
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Top Gainer (24 Hour)
| Cryptocurrency | Gains +/- | Price (Recorded 9:30 p.m. EDT) |
| Trust wallet token | +6.40% | $0.95 |
| Ton coin | +5.44% | $2 |
| Maker | +2.12% | $1,476 |
Currently, the global crypto market capitalization stands at $1.09 trillion, a 0.69% increase in the last day.
The S&P 500 experienced a slight dip of 0.13% closing at 4,258.19, while the Nasdaq Composite also traded down by 0.12%, closing at 13,219.83.
See More: Best Cryptocurrency Scanners
Analyst Notes
Crypto analyst Michael Van de Poppe believes that Bitcoin is well-prepared to reclaim the $29,000-30,000 range and set its sights on new highs.
#Bitcoin is very much ready to reclaim $29,000-30,000 and target new highs.— Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL) October 5, 2023
Daan Crypto Trade predicts that the trend for the remainder of October will largely depend on whether the Daily 200MA (Purple) or the Daily 200EMA (Blue) yields first. "It will likely determine the trend for the rest of October if I had to guess. $27K & $28K. The battle continues."
Crypto trader Ali Martinez said that an alarming bearish flag pattern appears to be emerging in the realm of the king crypto.
#Bitcoin seems to be shaping a bear flag — a classic chart pattern that often signals a continuation of the $BTC downtrend.The silver lining? A tight stop loss of only 0.86% with a potential take profit near 5%.
You can try this trading strategy at @PrimeXBT using the promo… pic.twitter.com/ySGFh9fxVA
— Ali (@ali_charts) October 5, 2023
Bearish flag patterns are highly regarded in technical analysis for their ability to predict sudden downward movements. Typically, they form when the price consolidates upwards following a significant downtrend, yet struggles to break through a crucial support level.
"Bitcoin seems to be shaping a bear flag – a classic chart pattern that often signals a continuation of the BTC downtrend. The silver lining? A tight stop loss of only 0.86% with a potential take profit near 5%."
Data from the on-chain analytics platform Santiment reveals that Bitcoin’s mid to large-sized wallets have been actively accumulating coins, with an impressive addition of 71,155 BTC ($1.95 billion) in just the past 6 weeks. The collective holdings of these addresses are now within a strikingly close range of 90,000 BTC (a mere 0.59% difference) from the 15.29 million Bitcoin they held back in November 2021.