Bitcoin (BTC) struggled to hold above $43,000 into Dec. 8 as an altcoin surge put Ether (ETH) in the spotlight.
BTC/USD 1-hour chart. Source: TradingView
ETH, SOL step up as Bitcoin takes liquidity
Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed ongoing BTC price consolidation as ETH/USD added up to 7.6% in around 24 hours.
Bitcoin, having tapped new 19-month highs of $44,490 earlier in the week, now troubled market participants as both ETH and Solana (SOL) stole attention.
Eyeing Bitcoin’s share of the overall crypto market cap, popular analyst Matthew Hyland described recent progress as a potential “false breakout.”
Dominance hit 55.26% on Dec. 6, in line with the BTC price highs — the highest reading since April 2021.
“It would need to close above support to avoid; currently below,” Hyland wrote in part of commentary on X (formerly Twitter), referring to the key 54.35% mark.
At the time of writing, dominance stood below this at around 53.9%.
Bitcoin crypto market cap dominance 1-week chart. Source: TradingView
Some major altcoins took advantage of the situation, with ETH/USD hitting $2,392 before seeing a modest correction of its own on the day.
ETH/USD 1-week chart. Source: TradingView
SOL/USD hit $72.88 on Bitstamp, its highest since May 2022, as investors increasedbullish bets on three figures entering the future.
SOL/USD 1-week chart. Source: TradingView
Commenting on the current status quo, research firm Santiment argued that fear, uncertainty and doubt, or FUD, surrounding an altcoin breakout could ultimately help Bitcoin.
“Traders are fearful that #crypto markets may be in a bull trap at the moment,” it reasoned on Dec. 7.
“But while Bitcoin may have stopped its momentum for the time being, Ethereum and altcoins are blasting off once again. FUD could propel $BTC to $50K if it increases.”
Crypto social media volume data. Source: Santiment/X
An accompanying chart showed data that covered social media activity for the phrases “bull trap” and “bear trap,” referring to current crypto price action.
Keeping the faith on more upside
Elsewhere, Bitcoin market participants saw encouraging signs in the current BTC price comedown.
Popular trader Credible Crypto, known for his optimistic perspective on Bitcoin in the current environment, argued that accumulation was ongoing before the “next leg up” for the largest cryptocurrency.
As Cointelegraph reported, however, some believe that a much larger correction is due, this having the potential to return the market to $30,000 or even closer to $20,000 before new all-time highs hit.
