Bitcoin stalls below $110K amid macro jitters, TON leads altcoins

Bitcoin traded rangebound on Tuesday, struggling to gain momentum after a failed attempt to break above its all-time high near $110,000, now acting as a key resistance level. With BTC consolidating below record highs, the broader crypto market slipped 3.24% over the past 24 hours, pushing total capitalisation down to $3.54 trillion. Market sentiment also cooled, with the Crypto Fear and Greed Index dropping three points to 71, though it remains in the “greed” zone. The slowdown was reflected across major altcoins, with most posting losses while a few managed modest single-digit gains. Why is Bitcoin not going up? Bitcoin is currently stuck below its all-time high as profit-taking and fading momentum weigh on the market. After rallying nearly 50% from April lows, the price has entered a choppy phase, with increased selling from short-term holders limiting further upside. These investors realised approximately $11.4 billion in profits over the past 30 days, a sharp jump from $1.2 billion in the previous month. Thin trading conditions have exacerbated the slowdown, as the U.S. market was closed on Monday for the Memorial Day holiday. This further dampened momentum as volumes remained low and buying interest failed to pick up. Analysts warned that unless fresh capital enters to absorb this selling pressure, Bitcoin could see its upside capped or even face a deeper correction. Adding to the uncertainty is a cautious mood ahead of several key macroeconomic events due later this week, including U.S. GDP data and inflation prints from both the U.S. and Europe. Traders are holding back in anticipation of signals that could influence interest rate outlooks and risk sentiment more broadly. Market participants are also closely watching Nvidia’s upcoming earnings report, scheduled for release after the U.S. market closes today. As a leading player in the AI and semiconductor sectors, Nvidia’s performance is seen as a bellwether for tech stocks and broader market sentiment. Investors are particularly attentive to the company’s guidance amid recent U.S. export restrictions on AI chips to China, which have already led to a $5.5 billion inventory write-down. The outcome of this report could have significant implications for risk appetite across financial markets. At the same time, enthusiasm among retail traders has cooled. According to Santiment, retail enthusiasm has faded in recent days, with fewer traders showing aggressive buying intent despite Bitcoin hovering near record levels. “The euphoria has calmed down a bit. And with markets moving in the opposite direction of retailers’ expectations, we want to continue to see some reasonable doubt,” the blockchain analytics firm wrote on X. Bitcoin has also faced repeated rejections at the $110,000 level in recent days, which some analysts suggest is key for the rally to continue upwards. BitMonty @Bit_Montie · Follow #Bitcoin $BTC has now broken out of the triangle pattern and is moving upwardsThe key resistance level is at $110KA breakout above this level could propel us to a new all-time highHowever, if the price is rejected at this level, it may retreat back toward the support area 12:44 PM · May 26, 2025 4 Reply Copy link Read 2 replies What’s next for Bitcoin? Nevertheless, some market pundits claim that Bitcoin’s consolidation may actually benefit the rally in the long term, as long as it manages to hold above key support levels. According to well-followed commentator Daan Crypto Trades, the longer Bitcoin hovers around $110,000, the more liquidity builds up on both sides of the price. He flagged liquidity clusters sitting near $106,000 and above $111,000, which could act as likely magnets for price movement. Others like Michael van de Poppe, founder of MN Capital, pointed to $102,000–$104,500 as a key area to defend. Losing this zone, he warned, could risk breaking the current bullish momentum. Zooming out, Bitcoin remains in the early stages of its price discovery phase, according to pseudonymous analyst Rekt Capital. While short-term pullbacks are expected, Rekt Capital believes the broader macro trend remains bullish. Rekt Capital @rektcapital · Follow #BTC Bitcoin has only just begun its Price Discovery Uptrend 2Still many weeks of upside aheadOf course, there will be normal dips & pullbacks during Price Discovery Uptrend 2But general Macro Upside lays ahead $BTC #Crypto #Bitcoin 2:51 PM · May 23, 2025 1.5K Reply Copy link Read 62 replies In line with this, long-term targets for Bitcoin range between $130,000 and $250,000. Standard Chartered, Bitwise, and SkyBridge Capital have all placed year-end targets around $200,000, citing factors like stablecoin growth, institutional adoption, and broader regulatory clarity. Meanwhile, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes sees Bitcoin climbing to $250,000 by the end of 2025 if the Federal Reserve resumes quantitative easing, a scenario he views as increasingly likely. At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading at $107,483, down 2% over the past 24 hours. Altcoin recap Over the past 24 hours, the altcoin market cap mirrored Bitcoin’s movement, holding steady around the $1.4 trillion mark. Meanwhile, the Altcoin Season Index stood at 24, signalling that Bitcoin continues to dominate broader market sentiment. Ethereum (ETH), the largest altcoin by market cap was down 1% over the day, trading at a little above $2,600, while other large cap altocins like XRP (XRP), Solana (SOL), Dogecoin (DOGE) and Cardano (ADA) also recorded losses ranged between 1-4%. Despite this bearish momentum, Toncoin (TON) bucked the trend to become the only altcoin among the top 100 altcoins by market cap to secure double-digit gains, of nearly 17% over the day, while SPX6900 (SPX) and Quant (QNT) followed with 9.7% and 8% respectively. Source: CoinMarketCap Toncoin (TON) climbed nearly 17% as investor attention turned to two major developments involving Telegram, its $300 million partnership with Elon Musk’s xAI to integrate Grok AI, and a rumored $1.5 billion bond raise reportedly backed by BlackRock and Citadel. Since TON is a core part of Telegram’s Web3 infrastructure, the token often rallies in response to platform-related announcements and growth signals. SPX6900 (SPX), a satirical memecoin parodying the S&P 500, rose 9.7% as it rallied in response to the index’s recent decline, fitting its theme of thriving when traditional markets underperform. As for Quant (QNT), the gains are likely tied to the unveiling of its new Quant Flow feature during EBAday in Paris yesterday. The feature, built into the recently launched Overledger Fusion upgrade for the Quant network, adds advanced automation and programmability to transactions through the PayScript engine. The post Bitcoin stalls below $110K amid macro jitters, TON leads altcoins appeared first on Invezz

Source: Invezz