Bitcoin Faces Psychological Barrier At $100,000
According to CoinDesk, the emotional nature of human behavior is particularly evident in cryptocurrency markets, where round numbers hold significant psychological weight. This phenomenon often leads to panic-selling when price gains stall near these numbers, especially those ending in several zeros. Traders sometimes anticipate this behavior, arranging order books to create a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Bitcoin, for instance, has recently encountered resistance at the $100,000 mark, a psychological sell wall. Previous analyses have attributed this to profit-taking, capitulation from short-term holders, and insufficient demand to push bitcoin higher. Understanding whether this is a recurring pattern could be beneficial for market participants.
Historical data from Glassnode reveals that breaking through psychological barriers often requires multiple attempts. The analysis examined trading patterns when bitcoin's price approached within 2% of $10,000 increments. Bitcoin first surpassed this level in December 2017, but after the subsequent market downturn, it took until 2020 to reclaim the $10,000 mark, closing within 2% of this barrier 21 times before breaking through. This period was one of bitcoin's longest within a specific price range.
Each subsequent $10,000 increment saw bitcoin closing within 2% between 15 and 30 times before surpassing the level, a pattern that persisted up to $70,000. However, this trend shifted following President-elect Donald Trump's victory in November, when bitcoin quickly surged past $80,000 and tested $90,000 only three times before overcoming the barrier.
Now, the $100,000 level remains uncharted territory. Bitcoin has already closed twice within 2% of this mark on November 21 and November 22. The question remains whether bitcoin will revert to the long-term pattern of approximately 20 attempts or if it will break through on the third try.