Bitcoin Price is Range Bound as $70K Proves a Stiff Barrier to Break

The Bitcoin price was trading at 3:00 am EST on April 1, down 0.85% over the last 24 hours.

BTC remained rangebound over the weekend, oscillating around the $70,000 level. Its market dominance is still more than half of the crypto market's share at 51.02%, according to data from Coin360.

ITCOINCrypto performance, 1 day. Source: Coin360

Other top-cap cryptocurrencies were also flashing red, including Ether (ETH), which had lost 2% of its value on the day to trade at $3,557. BNB Chain's BNB was trading at $589, down 3% over the last 24 hours. XRP, Cardano (ADA), and Avalanche (AVAX) were down 2%, 2.6% and 3%, respectively, over the same time period.

The crypto market has always followed the direction determined by Bitcoin, the pioneer and the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. With Bitcoin halving less than 20 days away, the price is expected to remain range-bound as traders get ready to see how the price reacts to the phenomenal event.

Bitcoin faces stiff resistance on the upside

Since rising back above $70,000 on March 25, the BTC price has traded sideways in a tight range between $69,434 and $71,442. Supplier congestion from the upper limit of the range has stifled any attempts to push the price higher, as shown in the daily chart below.

The stiffness of this barrier is corroborated by on-chain data from market intelligence firm IntoTheBlock. Its In/Out of the Money Around Price (IOMAP) model shows that around 473,510 BTC were previously bought within this range by roughly 573,660 addresses.

Bitcoin IOMAP chart. Source: IntoTheBlock

Apart from the stiff barrier ahead, the RSI was turning down and was positioned at 56, just above the middle line. This reinforced BTC's rangebound movement, suggesting that the buying and selling pressure balanced out.

As such, if Bitcoin's price moves in favor of the bulls, it will rise from the current levels to confront resistance from the upper boundary of the rectangle at $71,442. A daily candlestick close above this level would confirm an escape from consolidation, with the next logical move being the all-time highs above $73,800 and into price discovery. The $80,000 psychological level would be the next major milestone for the bellwether cryptocurrency.

TradingView Chart: BTC/USD

If Bitcoin continues with the ongoing correction, it may drop first toward the lower limit of the range at $69,434 and later to the psychological level at $66,000. Below that, a support level would emerge from $64,000 and later to the local low within the $60,000 demand zone.

This is where the downside could be capped for Bitcoin in the short term.