• Bitcoin has been caught within the throes of an intense upswing, with buyers maintaining full control of its price action as they move to push it up towards $19,000
• The strength of this latest push higher has come about as the entire market rallies in tandem, which is a tell-tale sign that the crypto market is caught in the throes of a full-fledged bull trend
• Where BTC trends next will likely set the tone for the entire market. Bulls must close its daily candle above $18,600 for it to extend this momentum in the near-term
• This comes as the Bitcoin network grows fundamentally healthy, with its utilization reaching all-time highs

Bitcoin and the aggregated crypto market have been caught in the throes of one of the most intense bull markets seen since 2017.

Not only is BTC just a hair away from setting fresh all-time highs, but the rest of the crypto market is also pushing higher in tandem.

Ethereum’s recent break above $500 has allowed the DeFi sector to race higher as well, with all the blue chip DeFi assets outperforming the aggregated market.

This isn’t an unjustified upswing either, as BTC’s network health is arguably the strongest it has ever been.

Bitcoin Pushes Towards $19,000 as Parabolic Uptrend Kicks Off

At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading up over 4% at its current price of $18,700. This marks a massive upswing from recent lows of $17,400 set just a few days ago.

The intensity of the recent market-wide upswing is only growing stronger, with prominent voices within the traditional financial markets now shilling Bitcoin – including the Blackrock CIO.

BTC is trying to flip its previous $18,600 resistance into support. An ability to do so could allow it to see some massive momentum in the days and weeks ahead.

BTC’s Network Health Surges as Activity Flourishes

One data aggregator explained in a recent tweet that Bitcoin’s network health reaches the highest levels seen in ages.

This comes as the on-chain activity reaches all-time highs, with active Bitcoin addresses reaching levels not seen since January of 2018.

“Bitcoin on-chain activity is closing in on new all-time highs. There were 1.19 million $BTC active addresses, the highest value since Jan 2018.”

Image Courtesy of Unfolded.

Where the entire market trends in the near-term will depend largely on Bitcoin’s upcoming daily close, but the immense macro momentum indicates that this uptrend is here to stay.

Featured image from Unsplash.
BTCUSD pricing data from TradingView.

Bitcoin price still continues to climb despite seven solid weeks of positive price momentum. Whether or not the cryptocurrency has already returned to price discovery mode or not, is debatable.

But even if it isn’t, this latest push has brought the first-ever cryptocurrency to its final resistance level before setting a new record. When the all-time high is cleared, there will be no stopping FOMO from flooding the space once again and sending Bitcoin to astronomical prices.

Bitcoin Bulls Push To $18,000: Why This Is The Last Resistance Before A New Record

Bitcoin price action continues to heat up, at this point nearly rising in a straight line upward. The leading cryptocurrency by market cap hasn’t experienced much for a correction the entire ascent but has approached the final resistance level prior to setting a new peak.

Will that new all-time high be set before the month, week, or even day is over? Or will this resistance level be enough to slow the FOMO from advancing further for now?

Either scenario is possible. Bitcoin price has very little resistance above here, as you can see from the 4-hour price action left behind around the 2017 top.

So little resistance above $18,800 could mean a new record is nearer than most expect | BTCUSD on TradingView.com 

But there is also potentially a sell setup perfected – two of them – just as the cryptocurrency approaches the last stand before price discovery truly begins.

Short-Term Reversal Possible: Sell Setup And Countdown Triggered At Final Resistance

The TD Sequential indicator has triggered a 9 setup and 13 countdown – the two signals suggest that the trend is overextended and needs to cool off. But as you can also see in the picture below, Bitcoin has ignored several of these signals on the way up.

TD 9 and 13 setup and combo have been triggered on the four-hour chart | BTCUSD on TradingView.com 

During the last cycle, it wasn’t until Bitcoin set a new all-time high, that the bull market really picked up in pace. FOMO is here now, however, and with how little resistance is left and how strong the momentum has been, a new record within days – even hours – cannot be ruled out.

This could be it. Is Bitcoin ready to set a new record, or is this the short-term reversal for the cryptocurrency to refuel a bit before the full bull run begins?

Featured image from Deposit Photos, Charts from TradingView.com

Bitcoin was heading upwards on Friday in anticipation of closing another week in gains (including the weekend).

The BTC/USD exchange rate continued its upside momentum as it jumped $18,000, a psychological resistance level, all over again. At best, the pair wobbled between meager sell-off and buy-out attempts the entire day while maintaining a strong price floor around the said level.

Bitcoin remains unfazed by negative macro sentiments [for now]. Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com

Its upside session appeared in contrast with a rather grim macroeconomic outlook. Traders in the US stock futures and gold markets turned choppier after the US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced to close several emergency Federal Reserve lending programs.

Those facilities backed corporate credit and municipal-borrowing markets. But with Mr. Mnuchin’s decision—that economists believe came under the Republicans’ pressure—would remove about $455 billion that the Fed could have used to support the Main Street, as well as state and local governments.

The Anti-Risk Rally

Bitcoin rallied luminously against the Fed’s credit facilities all across 2020. Many analysts agreed that the central bank’s infinite bond-buying policy turned yields on them lower. That, in turn, prompted investors to seek returns in riskier assets. As a result, Bitcoin, stocks, and gold benefited from behaving like speculative alternatives to bonds.

On Friday, the Bitcoin market absorbed the Mnuchin shock. The cryptocurrency rose higher as traders focused on the brighter spots, including its booming institutionalization and a mere community craze to see its value hitting $20,000—a record high—by year-end.

Meanwhile, the “Bitcoiners” also appeared to have ignored Mr. Mnuchin because of his imminent exit from the US Treasury Secretary chair next month. As President-elect Joe Biden takes oath on January 20, he would most likely reenact the emerging lending programs, especially as the US’s rising coronavirus cases put further restrictions in place.

Wow. BlackRock CIO of Fixed Income Rick Rieder talking about Bitcoin replacing gold on CNBC this morning. pic.twitter.com/9KZR0muJVp

— Pomp (@APompliano) November 20, 2020

But in the event of a split Congress, creating new lending facilities could become difficult for Democrats, leading to the stimulus-deadlock-like scenario. That would make the US dollar stronger, creating pressure on Bitcoin and other pandemic winners to lose some portion of their gains.

The Friday + Weekend Bitcoin Outlook

Ideally, it is time the Bitcoin price corrects lower.

Bitcoin parabola peaks and corrections. Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com

The cryptocurrency is looking to form a parabola peak that typically follows a period of consolidation lower or sideways. That is further visible in its daily Relative Strength Index, which reads overbought. That amounts to some form of price correction as well.

The Mnuchin story expects to create downside pressure in the US stock market. Meanwhile, Bitcoin’s erratic correlation with the S&P 500 index could turn its prices lower over the weekend (as a lagging move).

“It is unclear as of yet whether a deep reversal will take place or not,” said Ronnie Liu, investment analyst at OKEx crypto exchange. “The market is reflecting a bull run across all time frames, and on the downside, the zone between $16,500 and $17,000 is likely to provide strong support.”