BTC breathes altcoins hope amid a bearish backdrop

• Bitcoin price reveals exhaustion signs after a 20% ascent in less than five days.
• Ethereum price flips the $1,730 hurdle into support level in an attempt to fill the FVG at $1,820.
• Ripple price hits a ceiling at $0.357 and is likely to retrace to $0.340 before attempting another leg-up.

Bitcoin price has seen a massive spike in bullish momentum that has caused the spotlight to shift from LUNA’s 350% run-up to BTC. Ethereum and Ripple have also rallied due to this run-up and are currently consolidating to establish a new directional bias.

Bitcoin price to rediscover its next move

Bitcoin price has tagged the $20,692 and $21,874 targets as mentioned in the previous publications. The main trigger for this move was a sweep of the sell-side liquidity resting below the $19,511 support level. 

As BTC hovers around $22,000, investors need to pay close attention to the resistance barrier, extending from $22,850 to 23,000 and the imbalance, aka Fair Value Gap (FVG) at $23,164. A revisit to these levels could result in a local top formation. 

The aftereffects of this move would include a sell-off in Bitcoin price to $18,497 and $17,570, which would align with the bearish outlook from a macro perspective.

BTC/USD 6-hour chart

While things are looking up for Bitcoin price, a flip of the $25,000 hurdle into a support level will invalidate the bearish thesis. This move would trigger sidelined buyers to step in and catalyze a run-up to $28,000.

Ethereum price waits for an opportune moment

Ethereum price rallied 25% in the last 13 days – a higher return than Bitcoin. The advance pushed ETH to flip the $1,730 resistance level into a support floor as it tried to retest the imbalance at $1,820, known as FVG. After sellers took control, ETH fell back and retested the $1,730 barrier and is now trying to breach below it.

If successful, it could trigger an Ethereum price crash to $1,290, which is another stable support level. However, due to the Merge and the volatility that comes with it, investors should consider the possibility of ETH disagreeing with the market trend and visiting the $2,000 psychological level once more before a move to $1,290.

ETH/USD 1-day chart

While things are not looking so good for Ethereum price, a daily candlestick close above $2,034 will create a higher high and invalidate the bearish thesis. This development could see ETH revisit the $2,200 and $2,500 hurdles. 

Ripple price ready to make a move

Ripple price rallied 16% after sweeping the August 29 swing low at $0.318. This development was followed by a massive run-up that is currently attempting to overcome the $0.360 resistance barrier.

While flipping this blockade will allow Ripple price to realize more gains, a failure could result in a pullback to $0.340. If buyers step in at this level, they could catalyze another move to $0.381, which is another major resistance barrier. 

XRP/USD 1-day chart

However, a breakdown of the $0.309 support level will invalidate the bullish thesis for Ripple price. In such a case, market makers might knock XRP price lower to collect the liquidity resting below the June 18 swing low at $0.286.