Bitcoin Slides Below $106K; Analyst Sees Ether Breakout Looming

Bitcoin BTC$87,802.55 quietly slid to its weakest price in nine days on Thursday afternoon as crypto markets cooled off after a multi-week rally from the April lows.

The top cryptocurrency hit a session low of $105,750 before rebounding to just above $106,000. It was down 1.5% in the last 24 hours, but still only 5% away from record high levels.

The CoinDesk 20 — an index of the top 20 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization except for exchange coins, memecoins and stablecoins — has slumped 0.9% in the last 24 hours, with solana SOL$123.89 and avalanche AVAX$11.63 underperforming BTC with losses of 1.8% and 2%, respectively. Meanwhile, Ethereum's ether ETH$2,925.81 and XRP XRP$1.8862 defied the downtrend with 1%-2% gains.

Crypto stocks have had a relatively muted session. Coinbase (COIN) is down 2.7% but Strategy (MSTR) has risen 0.8%. Bitcoin mining firms Bitfarms (BITF), Bit Digital (BTBT), CleanSpark (CLSK) and Greenidge Generation Holding (GREE) booked roughly 4% losses.

A check on traditional markets showed U.S. equities giving back most of the gains on yesterday's court ruling that blocked the Trump administration's global tariffs.

However, a U.S. appeals court today reinstated the tariffs while the government appealed the earlier ruling, perhaps adding to investor uncertainty.

LMAX Group market strategist Joel Kruger expects a volatile ride with tariffs again back in focus with the ongoing appeal and the self-imposed July 9 deadline for trade deals approaching, but still sees further upside for digital assets.

“Bitcoin remains robust in the latter half of the week, consolidating just below its recent peak while steadfastly holding above $100,000 for 20 consecutive days, underscoring persistent bullish momentum," he said.

Ether shows strength, analysts note

Kruger also noted that Ethereum's ether shows signs of snapping its multi-year downtrend against BTC, as the corporate crypto treasury bonanza has reached the second-largest digital asset with SharpLink Gaming's (SBET) $425 million fundraising plan.

Arthur Aziz, founder and investor of B2 Ventures, said that ETH is coiling for a breakout but warned of downside risks.

Sharing his technical analysis in a note, he said the $2,750 level has posed significant barrier capping gains over the past weeks, while the $2,550-2,450 area emerged as a key support level. He noted that ETH is forming a bullish ascending triangle pattern, which historically preceded rallies to higher prices.

"The stage for a future $3,000 level breakout is being set right now," he said. However, "abusing" leverage in futures markets could trigger a "sharp breakdown" below the $2,550-2,450 support zone in cascading selling.