Share this article
Bitcoin Crosses $46K as Year of 'Long' Begins, Easing ETF Sell-Off
Over the next few days, East Asia will celebrate the start of the year of the dragon, which is considered to be one of the luckiest and most prosperous animals in the Chinese Zodiac.
Updated Mar 8, 2024, 9:18 p.m. Published Feb 9, 2024, 6:35 a.m.
- Bitcoin has historically seen gains around the Chinese New Year period.
- Sources of selling pressure from ETF holders and miners have eased in the past week while BTC prices have increased, suggesting demand.
Bitcoin crossed $46,000 early Friday, as the CoinDesk 20 Index (CD20), a measure of the biggest cryptocurrencies, jumped over 2%.
The largest crypto by market cap reached a one-month high as East Asia ushered in its biggest festive of the year, celebrating the start of what’s believed to be one of the luckiest periods as per the Chinese Zodiac.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
In Mandarin Chinese, the word for dragon is pronounced similarly to “long,” boosting memetic value among crypto traders.
Bitcoin could rise to as much as $48,000 in the coming days as the asset historically shows gains around the Chinese New Year period, 10X Research said in a Thursday note, predicting a gain of at least 11%.
The asset has added nearly 15% in the past two weeks, data shows, easing losses as the anticipated bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) turned out to be a sell-the-news event. The rise to its highest level since Jan. 12 came as the S&P500 and Nasdaq-100 indices hit all-time highs on Thursday.
Several ETFs have since absorbed more than a billion dollars worth of bitcoin selling pressure in the past few weeks, indicating demand.
Elsewhere, on-chain analysis firm CryptoQuant said in a Thursday note that bitcoin movements out of miner wallets – which signify selling – seemed to slow.
Meanwhile, some traders said recent bitcoin price action stemmed fears of a further sell-off, citing strength in weekly movements.
“Bitcoin rose above its 50-day moving average late Wednesday, confirming the bullish medium-term trend and easing fears of a deeper correction,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, FxPro senior market analyst, in an email to CoinDesk. “On a weekly basis, bitcoin and the broader crypto market have gained strength after a long period of consolidation and are now poised to make new highs.”
Больше для вас
Что нужно знать:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
Больше для вас
Coinbase Sees Crypto Recovery Ahead as Liquidity Improves and Fed Rate Cut Odds Climb
The crypto exchange also took note of a so-called AI bubble that continues to go strong and a weaker U.S. dollar.
Что нужно знать:
- Coinbase Institutional is seeing a potential December recovery in crypto, citing improving liquidity and a shift in macroeconomic conditions that could favor risk assets like bitcoin.
- The firm's optimism is driven by rising odds of Federal Reserve rate cuts, with markets pricing in a 93% chance easing next week, and improving liquidity conditions.
- Several recent institutional developments, including Vanguard's crypto ETF policy reversal and Bank of America's greenlighting of crypto allocations, have contributed to bitcoin's rebound from recent lows.
Top Stories
