Bitcoin Plunges Toward $69,000 as Gold Hits All-Time High

Bitcoin (BTC) faced a setback towards $69,000 following the Wall Street opening on April 12, overshadowed by the surge in gold prices. BTC's underperformance was despite reduced outflows from Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC). Analysts attributed the decline to a lower bid liquidity below $70,000 and a widening Bitcoin price premium gap on Coinbase. Risk assets, including Bitcoin, faced a downward trend, while gold reached record highs, raising concerns among some analysts about the macroeconomic landscape.

Bitcoin Loses Momentum, Falling Towards $69,000 as Gold Soars to Record Highs

April 13, 2022

New York, NY - Bitcoin (BTC) has succumbed to a downward trend in the wake of the Wall Street opening on April 12th, retreating towards the vicinity of $69,000. This decline has occurred as gold has surged to new all-time highs, eclipsing BTC's price action.

Analysis of data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView reveals a lackluster performance for BTC/USD towards the end of the week. Despite reduced outflows from the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), Bitcoin has exhibited a hesitant sentiment, with bid liquidity being absorbed below the $70,000 threshold.

J. A. Maartunn, a contributor to the on-chain analytics platform CryptoQuant, has highlighted the influence of Coinbase on this decline. Maartunn has pointed to the disparity in spot Bitcoin premiums across major exchanges, with Coinbase exhibiting a lower price compared to Binance.

The surge in risk assets has been directed towards gold, which has reached a record high of $2,431 per ounce. By contrast, United States equities have followed Bitcoin's downward trajectory, with both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes experiencing declines of approximately 1% at the time of writing.

The atypical behavior of gold has raised concerns among some analysts, including the trading resource The Kobeissi Letter. They have observed that the current macroeconomic landscape is generally conducive to a decline in gold prices, highlighting the exception of central bank stockpiling and escalating geopolitical tensions.

"Every single factor that has historically led to LOWER gold prices is happening now. Except for 2 key factors, central banks are stocking up on gold and geopolitical tensions are skyrocketing," the Kobeissi Letter stated in an X post. "When gold is behaving so strangely, it leads you to one key question: Does someone know something?"

Within the narrow range that BTC/USD has occupied for several weeks, traders observing short timeframes have found little of interest. Instead, attention has shifted towards the impending block subsidy halving, which has the potential to introduce volatility.

Popular trader and analyst Rekt Capital has identified a "re-accumulation phase" in the current market conditions. "As is historically the case, Bitcoin is developing a clear Re-Accumulation Range going into the Halving," he explained in an X post. "This is the range Bitcoin would likely break out from weeks after the Halving."

Cointelegraph has previously reported on the ongoing consolidation near Bitcoin's previous all-time highs, a phenomenon that has been prevalent in past macro breakout events. In a subsequent post, Rekt Capital suggested that the re-accumulation phase could potentially extend for up to five months.

"Many investors get shaken-out in this stage due to boredom, impatience, and disappointment with lack of major results in their BTC investment in the immediate aftermath of the Halving," Rekt Capital noted.

This article is not intended to provide investment advice or recommendations. All investment and trading involve significant risks, and individuals should conduct their own thorough research before making any decisions.