Christmas has kicked off, but investors aren’t exactly rushing to “buy the dip.” Historically, the stretch from late December into early January tends to be bullish—last cycle saw the total crypto market jump by roughly $200 billion during that window. This year, however, the cycle opened with a small pullback: about a 0.82% drop that erased nearly $30 billion from market capitalization. Given the recent bouts of volatility, that outflow is relatively modest, keeping the door open for a holiday rally in Bitcoin.
A flash event on December 24 has fueled debate about market manipulation. TradingView data shows the BTC/USD pair on Binance briefly plunged from an $87k open to $24k—a dramatic ~73% drawdown—before quickly reversing. The move’s timing, amid holiday-thin liquidity and subdued retail participation, intensified scrutiny and speculation that “smart money” used the narrow trading window to force a liquidation event.
Where does that leave BTC? The market appears to be in a tug-of-war with $85k as the focal point. Sentiment indicators have slid into a “fear” zone, which historically signals a strong accumulation phase rather than capitulation. Technically, Bitcoin isn’t collapsing — it put in a 2.20% intraday gain and was pushing toward the psychologically important $90k “FOMO” zone, putting near-term short positions at risk.
How to read the last few days:
- Flash dump on Binance (Dec. 24): ~$87k → $24k (≈73% drawdown), followed by rapid recovery to about $85k (TradingView).
- Market start to cycle: 0.82% dip, roughly $30B exit from total market cap.
- Current price action: ~2.2% intraday bump toward $90k; sentiment in “fear,” which can be bullish historically.
Many market participants view the Binance flash as a classic liquidation squeeze: a brief, violent move that shakes out weak hands and tests conviction. With that volatility largely behind it, the recent uptick suggests stronger hands are defending the market. If $85k holds as a base, the path to a holiday rally remains plausible.
As always, this is market reporting, not investment advice. Crypto trading carries high risk—do your own research before making any financial decisions.
Source: TradingView; reporting by AMBCrypto.
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