This is a technical analysis article written by CoinDesk Analyst and Certified Market Technician Omkar Godbole.
Payments-Focused Cryptocurrency took a hit this week, falling more than 6% to $2, a level that has become a decisive line for the Ripple-linked token.
Since last December, this level has appeared as a zone of bearish fatigue, a place where selling pressure tends to ease, as indicated by the lower wicks of several weekly candles.
The takeaway: If and when $2 support gives way, disappointed holders could rush to the exit, causing a prolonged price decline.
For now, prices hold the support line. For the outlook to turn bullish, prices must overcome the descending trendline connecting the lower highs since July, currently around $2.50.
Speaking of Bitcoin The leading cryptocurrency is closing in on what could be the most crucial trio of support in all time: a bullish trendline that has charted higher lows through 2023 and 2024, the 100-week simple moving average (SMA), and the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement from the brutal bear market bottom in late 2022 to just over $126,000, the recently hit record high.
Break that and attention shifts to the April low near $74,500 and then the 2021 bull market top just below $70,000. Some traders have already taken action, preparing for BTC below $80,000 in early 2026.
On the upside, BTC bulls need to reclaim the 50-week SMA, the critical lifeline just above $102,252, if they want to convince the market that the broader bull run is still alive and kicking.
Nasdaq in the lead?
The task may be easier said than done, as a classic “hangman” candlestick pattern has appeared on the Nasdaq monthly chart, warning of impending weakness. BTC and tech stocks tend to move most often at the same time.
The pattern is characterized by a small real body near the top of the candle, a long lower shadow at least twice the length of the body and little or no upper shadow, and indicates that selling pressure is emerging and the uptrend may be losing momentum.
When it hits record highs, as in the case of the Nasdaq, it warns of a potential reversal or pause in the upward movement, suggesting that traders should closely watch for confirmation of a bearish turn in subsequent candles.
So, between XRP and Bitcoin on these cutting-edge supports and the Nasdaq’s top worried signals, traders have a lot to live up to. Perhaps the Santa rally that both tech stocks and cryptocurrency bulls are counting on won’t happen this year.
