Bitcoin Price at $10.2K Deadlock as Ether Continues Surprise Bull Run

Tuesday, Sept. 17 — Bitcoin (BTC) stayed flat as another day of motionless trading saw the largest cryptocurrency hover at about $10,200. 

Market visualization. Source: Coin360

BTC slowly erodes support above $10,000

Data from Coin360 showed sideways price action as the order of the day for Bitcoin, which remained between $10,100 and $10,320. 

As Cointelegraph reported, a longer period of low volatility saw only a brief interruption on Monday, when BTC/USD suddenly shed about $200. A subsequent rebound to previous levels slowly faded, leading to rates of $10,175 at the time of publication. 

The overall change for Bitcoin stood at 1.3% on the day, while weekly performance was also flat at 0.6% depreciation. 

Bitcoin seven-day price chart. Source: Coin360

Commentators had previously eyed the potential for a shake-up during the week, but this had yet to begin as traders continued to wait for cues. 

“Bitcoin continues to face a lot of selling pressure despite a bullish surge late on Monday. The bulls need to take charge and ensure defend $10K or there is a wider risk of downside in the short term,” regular Cointelegraph contributor Filb Filb said in private comments on Wednesday. 

He suggested the 20-week moving average (WMA) constituted the psychological barrier that protected Bitcoin from a more intense breakdown: 

“Prices below 10k, in particular, $9,800 where the 20 WMA lies would risk a bigger selloff. A close above $10,500 would be considered bullish and a break from the descending resistance.”

ETH/USD steals the altcoin show

On altcoin markets, a similar lack of momentum also prevailed. The exception to the trend was Ether (ETH), which continued its bullish move to circle closer to $200. 

The largest altcoin by market cap has gained 10% over the past three days, outpacing the remaining top 20 coins by market cap. 

Ether seven-day price chart. Source: Coin360

At the same time, Tron (TRX) and XRP both gained about 2% in Tuesday trading. 

The overall cryptocurrency market cap stood at $265 billion, with Bitcoin making up 69.1% of the total.