The cryptocurrency market witnessed a significant downturn over the past 24 hours, impacting Bitcoin and major altcoins like XRP and Shiba Inu (SHIB).
Bitcoin’s Struggles Below $100K
Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a sharp correction, falling below the critical $100K milestone to a low of $94,300 before recovering slightly to around $97,000, according to CoinGecko.
Interestingly, this pullback occurred after MicroStrategy announced another substantial Bitcoin acquisition, increasing its holdings to 423,650 BTC (valued at $41 billion). Despite reducing the circulating supply, the purchase did not trigger a price rally, mirroring a similar trend following the company’s November acquisition.
Altcoin Performance: Losses Across the Board
The correction wasn’t limited to BTC. Leading altcoins, including Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and Dogecoin (DOGE), suffered substantial losses. This market-wide downturn led to over $1.4 billion in liquidations over the past 24 hours.
XRP: Optimism Amid a Price Dip
Ripple’s XRP saw its price drop by 12%, trading at approximately $2.17 after briefly dipping below $2. Despite this, XRP remains up 270% month-over-month, with analysts forecasting further gains:
- Peter Brandt and CRYPTOWZRD highlighted XRP’s strong market potential, predicting its market cap could reach $270 billion.
- Ali Martinez suggested investors watch for a retest of $2.25 as an entry point, targeting $4.40.
SHIB: Struggles Despite Network Milestones
The meme coin Shiba Inu (SHIB) also faced a 15% drop in value despite milestones on its Layer-2 scaling solution, Shibarium:
- 2 million wallet addresses and 600 million transactions demonstrate its growing adoption.
- A surge in the burn rate (up over 1,000%) saw 51.7 million SHIB tokens burned in 24 hours, potentially boosting long-term value through scarcity.
Market Outlook
As Bitcoin stabilizes near $97,000, the broader market awaits signs of recovery. Strong fundamentals for tokens like XRP and SHIB, coupled with recent developments, could signal potential rebounds for these assets in the near future.
