Bitcoin (BTC) is starting the new trading week on a slightly high note while there has been an increased amount of activity on many L1 chains.
Bitcoin (BTC) is starting the new trading week on a slightly high note after it was seen trading above $41,000. The move was replicated by Ether (ETH), which also opened trading above $2,100.
According to Coinglass data, about $103.5 million worth of token-tracked futures have been liquidated in the last 12 hours. However, $95 million out of the total liquidations were bets on higher prices, otherwise known as longs.
Although $33 million worth of Bitcoin liquidations took place in total, $29 million of those were long Bitcoin positions.
Bitcoin Price Signals that Positive Sentiment Remains
The enthusiasm around Bitcoin at the moment has been somewhat impressive, to say the least. However, a Senior Analyst at Hong Kong-based digital asset management firm Metalpha, Lucy Hu, believes that that might be an indicator that the broader market is unbothered even about the recent Ledger hack.
Hu says interest in Bitcoin continues to rise as traders brace up for upcoming rate cuts. She also mentioned the uprising of Bitcoin Ordinals, which according to her might be at the centre of the growing appeal. Part of her statement reads:
“Besides, the stellar rise of Bitcoin Ordinals continues to fuel enthusiasm for Bitcoin miners, who have been heavily rewarded. We expect the long-term growth momentum of Bitcoin to remain on track.”
As usual, many predictions have come in for Bitcoin, especially for what to expect of it in 2024. And it appears that everyone agrees that the BTC price is set to gain massively in the coming months. That is despite the fact it is currently in a correction phase.
On the one hand, Bitcoin halving, which historically precedes a long bull run, is scheduled to take place in April 2024. Then again, there is the anticipation for a spot Bitcoin ETF approval, which many believe should also happen in the first week of the new year.
Some of the most recent predictions include a $75,000 target for “early 2024,” which Woo Network posted in a recent end-of-year report. Bitwise also posted a slightly higher target of $80,000.
Memecoin Activity Surges
Meanwhile, it is worth noting that there has been an increased amount of activity on many layer-1 (L1) chains. And that is all thanks to the dozens of new meme coins that are flooding the market.
As a result, gas fees are spiking on Ethereum and many of these chains including Avalanche. In the past 24 hours alone, Ethereum has seen $13.52 million in gas fees. Avalanche, with a smaller market capitalization, did generate $5 million in fees over the same period.
Arbitrum and Optimism are not left out. They also recorded significant spikes in their gas fees during the last week.
