Bitcoin approaches $70K as DOGE, BSV, and BONK drive altcoin gains

Bitcoin continued to move closer to its former all-time high as the market turned highly bullish amidst increasing odds of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s odds of victory on prediction markets.

The global cryptocurrency market cap stood strong above the $2.4 trillion mark at the time of writing, its highest level over the past week.

While Bitcoin holders rejoiced, altcoin traders netted modest gains on the day, with popular names like DOGE, LTC, and BONK leading the top movers.

Short-term traders pulled liquidity out of the market with Glassnode data reporting increased profit-taking among wallets holding BTC for 155 days or less.

Over 7,127 BTC, worth around $481 million was sent to crypto exchange Binance during the early Asian trading hours of Wednesday.

The outflows were offset by notable whale action. According to CryptoQuant, institutional wallets scooped up more than 67,000 Bitcoins in just the last 30 days.

This momentum was also supported by an uptick in retail activity which had reached ​​a high-demand zone, the on-chain analysis platform added.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s Fear and Greed index cranked up to 73 at press time, up from 65 just yesterday. It seems like the market’s quickly shifting gears into full-on greed mode, with investors getting more bullish by the minute.

Bitcoin retested the $68k resistance for the first since July and was hovering around $67,884 when writing, up over 3% in the past 24 hours, and roughly 10% over the past week. 

Analysts on X pointed to the flagship crypto’s increasing correlation with Trump’s election odds which on polymarket stood at 59.5%, while Harris’ slid to 40.2%.

Thomas Fahrer, CEO of the crypto-focused reviews platform Apollo observed that for every “1% rise in Trump’s probability of winning,” Bitcoin was rallying by roughly $1K. 

According to pseudonymous trader Mac, when Bitcoin hit $68k previously, funding rates spiked to 0.07% due to FOMO and heavily leveraged longs.

Now, with neutral funding rates and spot trading leading the rally, it suggests the market isn’t overheated like before. 

As such, there could still be room for further growth, as the price rise seems more organic and less driven by risky leverage with spot traders calling the shots.

Analyst Shadi B observed that the market was quickly buying the dips, further reinforcing the heavy demand for the bellwether cryptocurrency, and the hopes of BTC hitting a new all-time high in the short-term. 

On the 1-day BTC/USDT chart, independent trader $0uL observed that Bitcoin is testing a critical trendline of around $66,500.

A daily close above this level could trigger a rally toward $70,000 and beyond. 

However, if Bitcoin closes below $66,500, it could lead to a sharp pullback, with potential downside targets around $64,000, and possibly dipping further to $58,222 or $53,712. 

In $0uL’s view, staying above the trendline increases the likelihood of hitting $70k and potentially a new all-time high, backing the optimism for “UPTOBER.”

For now, the altcoin market is still dragging its feet, while Bitcoin dominance hit a three-year high at 55.3% at the time of writing. It’s clear that all eyes—and money—are on BTC right now. 

Historically, Bitcoin usually takes the lead in rallies, with altcoins playing catch-up once BTC consolidates. So, until Bitcoin takes a breather, the altcoins are likely to stay on the sidelines for a bit longer.

However, while most altcoins were neutral or slightly within the red zone, a few showed signs of life. Here’s a look at the top gainers. Here are the top gainers:

Dogecoin

Dogecoin (DOGE) was the biggest gainer over the past day among the top 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market cap on Oct. 16.

The meme coin saw an 11.6% rise over the period bringing its price to $0.1258 while its market cap reclaimed the $18 billion mark.

Source: CoinMarketCap

DOGE’s trading volume also jumped together with its price, rising 89% over the past day while its open interest in the futures market climbed to $765, its highest level since June 17.

Dogecoin’s price also rallied amid analysts’ speculation that Tesla might buy DOGE after moving $225 million in Bitcoin to unknown wallets, fueled by Elon Musk’s past advocacy for the cryptocurrency.

The altcoin also surged as traders speculated that Musk’s growing influence in the US politics and potential ties to Donald Trump’s campaign could boost interest in Dogecoin, especially with mentions of a hypothetical “Department of Government Efficiency” (D.O.G.E.).

Litecoin

Litecoin (LTC) came next on the list gaining 5.9% over the last 24 hours and its price hitting a two-month high of $72.79 earlier in the day.

The crypto asset’s market cap was seated above $5.2 billion when writing.

Source: CoinMarketCap

Litecoin rallied after news broke out that crypto-focused investment firm Canary Capital has applied for a spot ETF with the SEC, offering investors direct exposure to Litecoin without holding the asset.

The LTC rally also came as the crypto fear and greed index hit 73, supported by Bitcoin’s rise from $66,000 to $68,250.

Litecoin has historically performed well during times of growing optimism and confidence in Bitcoin.

Bonk

Solana-based meme coin Bonk (BONK) was up 5.7% over the past day trading at $0.0000237 while its market cap surged past $1.6 billion.

Source: CoinMarketCap

Bonk’s rally followed the announcement of the first BONK ETP at Solana Breakpoint 2024, with Osprey Funds, a digital asset management firm opening the Osprey Bonk Trust for accredited investors.

The trust already boasts an impressive over $48 million in assets under management, signaling strong demand right out of the gate.

This comes as a major bullish indicator for the meme coin, further fueling excitement in the Solana ecosystem as investors showed confidence in Bonk’s potential for continued growth.

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