On Friday, Bitcoin remained around $92,000 after another unsuccessful attempt to surpass $93,000 overnight, continuing the erratic, indecisive trend observed in recent sessions.
This maintains the ongoing trend since late November, where sellers are defending the mid-$93,000s while buyers are active near $91,000, with neither party able to gain enough traction for a decisive trend.
The one-month chart indicates BTC remains trapped in a descending pattern from early November’s highs, with the latest bounce producing yet another lower high. The peak was near $93,500 before the price declined, preserving the broader corrective pattern.
Momentum is still weak, and attempts for intraday recovery are quickly fading — indicating that liquidity is limited above current prices. A clear break below $91,000 would reveal the next support range at $90,000–$90,500, while bulls must reclaim $93,200 to reverse the short-term downtrend.
Large-cap assets showed mixed performance approaching the weekend. Ether traded around $3,150 after slight overnight losses, while solana fell by 4% and XRP dropped nearly 5%. Cardano saw a decline of about 2%. The overall market capitalization increased by approximately 1% in the last 24 hours, nearing $3.2 trillion, reflecting a slow recovery that began almost two weeks ago following a seven-week decline.
Over the past week, ETH has led major assets, gaining over 5%. Zcash also showed strong performance with a notable increase earlier in the session.
ETF flows illustrated a distinct divergence. Spot bitcoin products experienced net outflows of $14.9 million, whereas ether funds enjoyed inflows of $140.2 million, indicating a shift of new capital from BTC into the Ethereum ecosystem.
Liquidation data from the past day reflects nearly $45 million in long liquidations for BTC and $50.7 million in shorts. In contrast, ETH experienced over $103 million in short-side liquidations — indicating that traders positioned against ether were caught off guard as volatility surged.
Macro data introduced an element of uncertainty. U.S. ADP payrolls decreased by 32,000 in November, significantly below expectations, suggesting a quicker cooling in the labor market. Wage growth has slowed, and futures markets are now estimating a nearly 90% chance of a rate cut in December.
The dollar index experienced sharp swings as traders adjusted their rate expectations, while risk markets broadly encountered increased volatility.
FxPro analyst Alex Kuptsikevich noted that bitcoin’s brief touch on $94,000 earlier in the session faced “not yet too aggressive” resistance from sellers, suggesting that the market may not see stronger pushback until the $98,000–$100,000 range.
He emphasized that reactions at higher levels will be pivotal in determining if a more sustainable recovery is emerging or if recent gains are merely corrective.
In other developments, Bitunix analysts remarked that the market has entered a “composite phase of macroeconomic turning-point expectations plus internal capital rotation within crypto,” pointing to ETF flows and inconsistent liquidation patterns as signs of divergent risk appetite.
They predict a continuation of structurally volatile, range-bound trading until bitcoin either maintains above $93,000 or breaks below $90,500.
Institutional progress has bolstered broader sentiment. Vanguard commenced crypto ETF trading access for clients earlier this week, while Bank of America informed institutional clients that they may allocate 1%–4% of portfolios to digital assets. Additionally, the CME launched a VIX-style implied volatility index for bitcoin futures, with versions for ether, solana, and XRP expected to follow.
