Cryptocurrency Market Update

Cryptocurrency prices stabilized on the first day of the month after crashing by double digits on Friday, ahead of Bitcoin’s options expiry.

Altcoin Performance

Hedera Hashgraph (HBAR) price led the charge among altcoins, rising by 25% on Saturday. Stellar Lumens (XLM) rose by 16%, while Algorand (ALGO) and Ondo Finance (ONDO) rose by over 15%.

These altcoins jumped following Bitcoin (BTC) bouncing back above $85,000 after dropping to $78,115 on Friday. This rebound occurred after options worth over $5 billion expired on the last day of the month, leading to increased market calm, with American equities closing higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 600 points, while the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 rallied by 95 and 300 points, respectively. Generally, cryptocurrency prices have a close correlation with the US stock market.

Regulatory Environment

There was no specific news regarding Saturday’s top movers such as Hedera Hashgraph, Algorand, Stellar Lumens, and Ondo Finance. A potential catalyst for Hedera and Stellar Lumens is the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) friendlier stance toward the crypto industry. The SEC has concluded lawsuits against Gemini, Coinbase, and Uniswap and is in talks with Justin Sun to resolve ongoing litigation. Analysts expect the SEC to approve spot crypto ETFs for cryptocurrencies like Litecoin (LTC), Hedera, and Stellar, which could increase inflows and boost prices.

Buying the Dip

Another reason for the rally in HBAR, ALGO, ONDO, and Stellar may be that investors are buying the dip, as these cryptocurrencies are trading at their lowest levels in months. Buying the dip following asset crashes is a common strategy among investors. However, this rebound might also represent a dead cat bounce, a temporary rebound before an asset resumes its downtrend, often called a bull trap.

Hedera Hashgraph Price Analysis

The daily chart shows that the HBAR price bottomed at $0.1807 this week and then bounced back to $0.2360, moving slightly above the 25-day moving average. Bulls may continue targeting the next key resistance level at $0.2586, identified as the 38.2% Fibonacci Retracement level and the lowest swing from January.

Algorand Price Technical Analysis

Algorand’s price has consolidated over the past few days but remains below the 50-day moving average, indicating bearish control. The price is still below the 61.8% retracement point and has formed a head and shoulders pattern, typically a bearish sign. This suggests a potential strong bearish breakdown, retracing towards the psychological $0.20 level.

Stellar Price Forecast

Stellar’s XLM price peaked at $0.6360 on November 24 last year and bottomed at $0.2537 on Saturday, forming a series of lower lows and highs, creating a descending channel. A recent retest of the lower side of this channel on Friday, producing a small doji candle, indicates a potential bounce back as bulls target the channel’s upper side at $0.35.

Ondo Price Prediction

Ondo peaked at $2.1590 in December but has since dropped to the psychological level of $1. Falling below the 50-day moving average and the 61.8% Fibonacci Retracement point, ONDO also presents a head and shoulders pattern, indicating further downside potential, possibly reaching the psychological point at $0.80.

Current Bitcoin Status

At press time, Bitcoin was up 2.7%, trading at $84,536, down 22.4% from its all-time high.

Source: CoinGecko

Read more: SEC delays decision on Fidelity’s spot Ethereum ETF options