Journalist
Posted:
- BTC reached a high of $107,000 amid increased optimism about a likely US national reserve.
- Kraken whales placed sell orders at price targets of $150,000 – $160,000.
On December 16, Bitcoin reached $107,000 on growing hopes that the US would create a national BTC reserve.
The enthusiasm could make the next goal of $110,000 achievable, but the Kraken Whales were considering a price point of $150,000 to $160,000.
According to BTC on-chain analyst Bitcoindata21, Kraken Whales’ sell orders above $150,000 reflected the early 2024 trend, which dampened cryptocurrency momentum below $80,000. He said,
“Kraken whales are starting to tell us where the bitcoin price will slow down in the coming months. Some are selling the above orders, which may be similar to the orders that held back the price increase earlier this year.”
Source:
The growing demand of BTC
BTC’s recent all-time high (ATH) above $107,000 was boosted by strong demand in the spot market.
According to Julio Moreno, head of research at CryptoQuant, selling pressure from major players has decreased due to increasing demand. He said,
“Bitcoin OTC desks are seeing their largest monthly balance drop yet this year, -25k Bitcoin, as demand continues to grow. Moreover, their balance has decreased by 40,000 Bitcoin since November 20.”
Source: CryptoQuant
For context, OTC (Over the Counter) Desk Balance represents the selling pressure of major players who do not use centralized exchanges. The decline is a positive sign for BTC’s uptrend.
The increased appetite of investors for BTC could push it higher and hit the expected targets of $120,000-$150,000.
Interestingly, the current price action closely followed Polymarket’s chances of the US creating a BTC reserve.
Odds rose from 25% to a high of 40% on Monday, matching BTC’s jump from $94,000 to $107,000 over the same period.
At the time of writing, odds were down slightly to 38%, while BTC fell to $106.5K. This suggested that the US BTC reserve would be the next major catalyst for the expected targets of $120,000-$150,000 or more.
Does this mean that the widely expected decline was not a problem?
Well, the relapse risk was still there, at least according to the increased profitability as tracked by aSOPR. Historically, BTC reached a local top when the metric reached the first or second band as profitable holders cashed out.
At the time of writing, the metric was close to the first band, indicating that a pullback is still ahead.
Source: Glassnode
