Major cryptocurrencies traded lower ahead of the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee’s markup of the CLARITY Act in Washington.
* The Agriculture Committee’s portion of the bill could advance on Thursday even if broader legislation stalls.
* Bitcoin slipped below $88,000, with retail sentiment on Stocktwits deteriorating to ‘extremely bearish’ territory.
* Analysts flagged $88,000 as a key near-term support level for Bitcoin, with further downside possible before a rebound.
Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL) and other major cryptocurrencies were in the red on Thursday morning ahead of the crypto market structure bill markup in Washington.
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Bitcoin’s price dipped below $88,000, falling 1.5% in the last 24 hours. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the apex cryptocurrency deteriorated to ‘extremely bearish’ from ‘bearish’ over the past day.
Meanwhile, Ethereum’s price fell below the $3,000 market, down 1.8% in the last 24 hours. Retail sentiment around the leading altcoin remained in the ‘bearish’ zone over the past day, accompanied by chatter at ‘normal’ levels.
Meme token Dogecoin (DOGE) led losses among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, down 3.7% in the last 24 hours. DOGE was followed by Solana (SOL), which fell 2.8%, and Cardano (ADA), which was down 2.5%. Ripple’s native token XRP (XRP) dipped 2.2% in the last 24 hours. All saw retail sentiment in ‘bearish’ territory over the past day, except Solana, which was in the ‘extremely bearish’ zone.
All Eyes On Washington
The U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee is scheduled to hold a markup session for the CLARITY Act on Thursday, rescheduled from earlier due to the winter storm in D.C. The debate could advance commodities rules even if the Banking Committee side of things is stalled.
According to a Reuters report, officials from the White House are set to meet with executives from the banking and cryptocurrency industries next week on Monday to figure out the next steps after the bill was stalled following it recent amendments.
The main point of contention remains the proposed regulations around stablecoin rewards. Coinbase (COIN) pulled its support over provisions that could limit the rewards that firms like crypto exchanges earn from the dollar-pegged tokens. Traditional banks, on the other hand, have opposed letting stablecoin issuers or their exchange partners offer rewards.
Banks have argued that it risks a deposit shrinking from regular accounts, while the crypto advocates have maintained that these rewards ultimately benefit the end consumer.
Approval of the Agricultural Committee’s half of the crypto market structure bill could prove to be a catalyst for the market. It would be a greenlight Bitcoin and Ethereum to trade like “commodities”.
Crypto Market Outlook
Technical analysts remain divided on near-term price action, with key support levels coming into focus. “BTC failed to reclaim the $90,000 level again,” said analyst Ted Pillows. “Another sweep of the $88,000 zone before the next bounceback could happen for Bitcoin.”
Pillows added that Ethereum is facing similar pressure. “$ETH tried to reclaim the $3,000 level but failed. The next key level is $2,800-$2,850, which held up last week. A sweep of this zone before a reversal could happen.”
Others are watching longer-term signals. Analyst Caleb Franzen noted that Bitcoin is close to forming a third consecutive red monthly candle on Heikin-Ashi charts, a pattern that has historically marked the end of corrections in past bull markets. “If a fourth forms, it would be further evidence of trend deterioration and a potential shift toward a bear market,” Franzen said.
Read also: Bitcoin, Ethereum Drop While Gold Extends Record Run Following Fed Decision
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