Bitcoin Bounce Stalls at $9K Amid 2% Rise in S&P 500 Futures

Prices rose to a high of $9,010 at 08:05 UTC, but quickly fell back below $8,900, pouring cold water over excitement generated by Monday's 2.3% bounce from the two-week low of $8,630.

At press time, the number one cryptocurrency by market value is changing hands near $8,860, according to CoinDesk's Bitcoin Price Index.

The futures tied to the S&P 500, Wall Street's equity index, are reporting over 2% gains Tuesday.

As a result, some traders may expect the cryptocurrency to chart a strong break above $9,000 during the day ahead. However, major exchanges like Bitstamp, which is included in the calculation of Bitwise's "Real" bitcoin trading volume figures, have registered low volumes during the last 24 hours.

"The steep upwards trend was broken this weekend, and the BTC price crossed the line which has acted as support several times over the past month. If the downwards price action continues, the lower $8,000 area is an important support zone for the price and should see a lot of buyers coming in," said a weekly update produced by the cryptocurrency exchange Luno and Arcane Research.

Investors seem to be accumulating coins amid the price drop.

On-chain data provided by blockchain intelligence firm IntoTheBlock shows the number of bitcoin addresses holding coins for over a year has reached a new record high of 19.44 million this month, toppling the previous lifetime high of 19.08 million in April.

There's a general consensus in the investor community that bitcoin is a hedge against the fiscal and monetary imprudence practiced by governments and central banks over the years, and more so, recently in the efforts to combat the coronavirus-led slowdown in the global economy.

From a technical analysis standpoint, the overall bias would once more turn bullish if and when prices rise above $10,000.

The immediate bearish bias would be invalidated if the risk-on seen in traditional markets powers the cryptocurrency above $9,310.