Bitcoin and most altcoins crashed late Tuesday/early Wednesday after news emerged that the major exchange Bitfinex got hacked. Initially, prices dipped by only $50, from around $601 to $551 per coin on FXOpen. But when the scope of the hack got revealed (120k Bitcoins), prices crashed almost $100 extra to hit a low of $469 before recovering. After a sizable retracement, we are currently quoted at $564 per coin. Let’s go over our two altcoins (PPC/NMC) and then we’ll get back to Bitcoin.
Peercoin Enters a New Downtrend
Peercoin entered a new downtrend after a break of $0.355 on Tuesday. Similarly to Bitcoin, we saw a ‘flash crash’ to a low of $0.297 followed by a recovery to $0.345 right now.
The 29 cents level is also a one-year low for PPC/USD, so it`s not a surprise prices took a breather there. A break below here would open the door to the multi-year low at $0.211 per coin.
On the upside, a break of the $0.431 swing high would end the current downtrend. The hurdle to start an uptrend is set much higher at $0.524 per coin. A breakout above here could open the door to the next important level at $0.57. With the recent move lower the medium-term (weekly) trend for PPC/USD is now down too. The long-term (monthly) trend remains neutral.
Namecoin Joins Selling
Alternative cryptocurrency Namecoin joined the selling party on Tuesday. Prices first broke the key 35 cents support, then extended the move to a low of $0.28 on Wednesday as BTC crashed. We are currently trading substantially higher at $0.32 per coin.
Namecoin is now in a (short-term) downtrend as well. A break below the 2015 low at $0.274 could lead to further losses. The medium-term trend has switched to the downside but the long-term trend is undecided.
On the upside, we will need to see a breakout above $0.371 to end the downtrend. A move beyond the 44 cents level is needed to kick-start a new rally. Above here we find resistance levels at $0.476, followed by $0.48 and $0.50. A breakout above the 50 cents round figure may extend the gains to the swing high at $0.54.
Bitcoin Crashes, Recovers
Bitcoin extended the losses after entering a downtrend this week. The move lower was exacerbated by the hack of course. Despite the recovery, a decisive break above the $650 figure is needed to end the current downtrend. A new rally requires a move above the $670 level as well. For more levels, take a look at our Tuesday article.
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