Bitcoin’s rally stalled near $82,000 on Saturday, retreating to just above $80,000 following an escalation in the Middle East. The broader market saw most major altcoins post losses, though Avalanche (AVAX) bucked the trend with a significant double-digit gain.
Bitcoin’s recent upward momentum was halted over the weekend, with the asset shedding nearly $2,000 from its local peak. The cryptocurrency had surged past $80,000 on Friday for the first time in two weeks, but a rejection at the $82,000 mark on Saturday triggered a pullback.
This reversal coincides with a major escalation in the Middle East on Saturday evening, which likely dampened risk appetite across global markets. As a result, bitcoin’s market capitalization has slipped to $1.61 trillion, while its dominance over the altcoin market has climbed to nearly 59%.
The current price action follows a volatile week that saw the highly anticipated cloture vote on the CLARITY Act fail in the US Senate on Tuesday. Bitcoin initially reacted with a leg down to a three-week low of $75,000, though it quickly demonstrated resilience.
The Federal Reserve’s decision to hike interest rates for the first time in over three years on Wednesday, along with the Bank of Japan’s rate increase on Friday, failed to derail the bullish sentiment. These events ultimately set the stage for the weekend surge that was ultimately capped by geopolitical tensions.
Most larger-cap altcoins have followed bitcoin into the red, with the two leading privacy coins suffering the steepest declines. Zcash (ZEC) has dropped by 8.2% to $1,443, while Monero (XMR) has tumbled by 8.6% to $523.
Other notable losers include UNI, RAIN, LINK, NEAR, AAVE, and CC, all of which are trading well into negative territory. Ethereum was rejected at $2,630 and now sits near $2,600 after a 2.6% daily decline. BNB is struggling to hold the $750 level, while XRP has fallen back under $1.40. SOL has slipped below $110, and HYPE, after hitting a new all-time high, has retreated slightly to $91.
In contrast, Avalanche (AVAX) has surged more than 11% daily to trade above $9.6. Other gainers today include ENA, PEPE, and M. The total cryptocurrency market cap has shed around $40 billion in the past day, bringing the overall figure down to $2.740 trillion.
