Leading cryptocurrencies consolidated, while stocks climbed higher on Monday, as investors looked for clues on the “Santa Claus Rally.”
Crypto Market Consolidates
Bitcoin briefly surged past $90,000 but couldn’t hold the gains, slipping back to around $88,000. Trading volume for the apex cryptocurrency surged 61% to $36 billion in the last 24 hours.
Ethereum chopped around the $3,000 level, while trading volume surged 52%.
As of this writing, Bitcoin accounted for a 59% share of the market, while Ethereum’s dominance exceeded 12%.
Shares of cryptocurrency-linked stocks Strategy Inc. (NASDAQ:MSTR) and Bitmine Immersion Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:COIN) closed down 0.30% and 0.86%, respectively, during the regular trading session.
Benzinga Edge delivers real-time stock alerts, trade ideas, and professional investing tools to help you navigate the market. Find out more about MSTR and BMNR here.
Over $200 million was liquidated from the cryptocurrency market in the last 24 hours, according to Coinglass, with nearly $130 million in long liquidations wiped out.
Bitcoin’s open interest rose 1.04% in the last 24 hours. Meanwhile, over 66% of Binance traders with open BTC positions were positioned long, according to the Long/Short Ratio.
The “Extreme Fear” sentiment prevailed in the market, according to the Crypto Fear and Greed Index.
Top Gainers (24 Hours)
The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $3 trillion, following a modest drop of 0.48% in the last 24 hours.
All Set For Santa Rally?
Stocks began the holiday-shortened week on a bright note. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 227.79 points, or 0.47% to end at 48,362.68. The S&P 500 lifted 0.64% to end at 6,878.49, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.52% to finish the day at 23,428.83.
Investors are watching closely to see if the “Santa Claus Rally” — the trend of rising stock prices during the last five trading days of December and the first two trading days of January — will materialize.
Bitcoin’s Bottom In 2026, Predicts Analyst
Ali Martinez, a widely followed cryptocurrency analyst and trader, predicted Bitcoin’s next market bottom at $37,500 in roughly 288 days, around October 2026.
Blockchain analytics firm CryptoQuant stated that Bitcoin’s network activity mirrors the 2018 bear market with fewer active addresses, declining transactions and lower fees.
“Historically, when highly active addresses shrink, it signals retreat by traders and institutions, reinforcing the transition into quiet accumulation phases that precede future volatility,” the firm added.
Photo Courtesy: Shutterstock/Sodel Vladyslav
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