Crypto News: ‘Boring’ Bitcoin braces for Fed Powell testimony with difficulty due new record high


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'Boring' Bitcoin braces for Fed Powell testimony
with difficulty due new record high

"About 400 days to go until the next halving. Whether there is one more major shock or not, we are likely starting the next cycle now."

— Philip Swift

Welcome to the Cointelegraph Markets weekly newsletter, where we look at the influential factors behind Bitcoin price action for the days ahead.

Bitcoin is caught between two stools this week as resistance near $25,000 combines with bears' failure to remove $22,000 as support.

The largest cryptocurrency is thus trailing sideways in a curious episode of calm, which has already made February its least volatile month ever recorded.

What could switch things up in the short term?

As March enters its second week, some familiar BTC price volatility catalysts are resurfacing.

These come in the form of the United States Federal Reserve, derivatives traders and more in what could still turn out to be a surprising week for crypto markets.

Cointelegraph takes a look at these topics and more in a rundown of things traders and analysts are looking at when it comes to ending the "boring" performance of the past few days.

Continue reading to discover five topics worth considering as part of your BTC trading strategy.

Is Bitcoin still alive?

You'd be forgiven for falling asleep at your screen or leaving it altogether this weekend — BTC/USD barely moved at all.

Even the weekly close failed to dislodge the status quo, with $22,000 support holding amid no effort to reclaim levels lost in last week's margin cascade.

As ever, the shadow of resistance near February's multi-month highs hangs over exchange order books.

Powell takes to the stage in Congress

Fed Chair Jerome Powell is in the spotlight again this week as he prepares to testify before the U.S. Congress.

Any hints into policy changes not already priced in could offer a chance for Bitcoin to at least break its flatlining price action.

If not Powell, then non-farm payroll data later in the week could do the job.

Fundamentals to the moon

Sound familiar? It is! Bitcoin network fundamentals are due to hit yet another all-time high this week.

Miners appear to be as eager as ever to deploy more and more hashing power to the network, despite profitability remaining precarious.

Net BTC sales, meanwhile, continue to outpace earnings on a rolling 30-day basis.

Two longs for every short

A window of hope? Funding rates on derivatives exchanges have been dipping negative in recent days.

Should the market be skewed too far in favor of further downside, a "squeeze" may result, pushing the spot price higher rapidly.

Nonetheless, with two longs for every short, the current spot price suggests that few are feeling pain so far.

Sentiment returns to January levels

The Silvergate debacle put the wind up crypto sentiment, and it shows — the Crypto Fear & Greed Index is at its lowest levels in six weeks.

While still "neutral," the Index represents the fickle nature of a market still fresh from the FTX disaster and the 2022 bear market.

Is everything really as gloomy as it seems?

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