Bitcoin (BTC) surpassed the $98,000 mark after the Dec. 24 Wall Street open, with “large spot buyers” driving the rebound in its price action. Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD reaching new local highs of $98,020 on Bitstamp. The cryptocurrency gained over 3% in a day, recovering from earlier in the week when it retested December lows. Popular X account Exitpump expressed optimism, suggesting that the long-anticipated “Santa rally” may have arrived for crypto. “BTC Large spot buyers showing up, lfg,” Exitpump posted, accompanied by a chart depicting exchange order-book volumes. Meanwhile, CoinGlass reported nearly $40 million in BTC short liquidations within the past 24 hours, with the total cross-crypto liquidations reaching $150 million. Breaking Key Resistance Levels Analytics account Bitcoindata21 highlighted Bitcoin’s positive momentum, noting progress in flipping key volume-weighted average price (VWAP) resistance levels. “Nice strength in Bitcoin today,” they wrote, emphasizing the need to surpass the $98.5k VWAP to target all-time highs. Their chart also illustrated a rebound in the Coinbase premium, signaling increased buying pressure during U.S. trading hours. Cautious Optimism Amid Risks While optimism grew among some market watchers, others struck a cautious tone. Trader and analyst Rekt Capital warned about the risks of further downside. “Yesterday, Bitcoin showed some signs of a relief rally after which price was rejected to almost new lows. Today, Bitcoin is rebounding yet again and once again into the old support,” Rekt Capital explained. He added, “As long as the previously lost supports turn into new resistance, additional downside should be expected. Conversely, a reclaim of these previously lost supports would obviously be bullish.”
