Bitcoin slides below $117.5K amid warnings further BTC price drops next

Key points:

  • Failure to reclaim $120,00 could spell trouble for Bitcoin bulls.

  • Whales appear to be offloading at local highs, creating further hurdles to price upside.

  • Short-term holder cost bases feature as local support lines of interest.

Bitcoin (BTC) gave up attempts to crack $120,000 at Tuesday’s Wall Street open as traders stayed split on market strength.

Bitcoin Price, Markets, Market Analysis
BTC/USD 1-hour chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

Bitcoin price weakness sparks sub-$110,000 targets

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD returning below $117,500, now under its daily open.

The pair had managed to reach $119,000 earlier in the day, despite signs of fresh BTC sales by asset manager Galaxy Digital.

US sellers subsequently stepped in, and commenting on the current market setup, many traders warned that any downside could snowball quickly.

“We’ve got bear divs, everyone expects up, would make more sense to push down before a potential move higher,” popular trader Roman wrote in part of his latest analysis on X, having earlier given a downside target of $108,000.

Trading resource Material Indicators likewise saw the potential for new lows, warning that whales were distributing.

“If $116,750 doesn’t hold, the $110k range may come into focus quickly,” it told X followers Monday.

BTC/USDT order book liquidity data with whale transactions. Source: Material Indicators/X

“Looks to be a clean triple tap developing on $BTC here,” trader Credible Crypto added, describing the area around $15,700 as being key to hold.

BTC/USDT 15-minute chart. Source: Credible Crypto/X

Profit-taking still offers “very positive signs”

Tuesday’s US job openings helped shore up the bull case for risk assets and crypto.

Related: ‘Biggest trade deal ever’ — 5 things to know in Bitcoin this week

In one of its “Quicktake” blog posts, analytics platform CryptoQuant also flagged improving consumer confidence data as a reason for optimism.

“Today’s JOLTS data, coming in slightly below expectations, provided a ‘not too hot, not too cold’ signal for the markets. This creates a positive environment for risk assets,” it summarized. 

“Additionally, the better than expected Consumer Confidence data signals a reversal after a 6 month decline, showing growing investor optimism about the future.”

CryptoQuant argued that BTC price upside remained intact for the future, thanks to an overall lack of sell-side pressure.

“Even as the price approaches the $120,000 level, we are not seeing a massive profit realization event on the Net Realized Profit and Loss (NRPL) chart that could signal a top,” it continued. 

“This is a very positive sign. It means investors are not rushing to take profits, showing strong conviction that the move will continue.”

Bitcoin NRPL data (screenshot). Source: CryptoQuant

CryptoQuant argued that the cost basis of various cohorts of short-term holders (STHs) should function as support in the event of a drawdown.

“Solid Supports (Realized Price): In potential pullbacks, the cost bases of short-term investors at the ~$115.7K and ~$105K levels are ready to act as strong, tested support zones,” it concluded.

Bitcoin cost basis data by investor cohort (screenshot). Source: CryptoQuant

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.