Technical Analysis

Pippin [PIPPIN] jumped 32.3% in the last 24 hours while Bitcoin fell 3.96% and the total crypto market cap dropped 4.13%. Open interest rose from $178 million on 15 December to $208 million, a 16.85% increase, alongside a 61.8% rise in daily volume. Despite a negative funding rate, coordinated whale accumulation appears to be driving the rally.

On December 15, CryptoQuant data showed short-term holders moved about 24.7K BTC to exchanges near ~$88.2K, with 86.8% realized in profit and over $1.89 billion in value. As price slipped toward ~$85K on December 16, STH inflows fell to 3.9K BTC while long-term holder inflows were muted, indicating profit-taking rather than structural distribution.

Across December, XRP has struggled near the $2.00 area as derivatives activity and spot participation weakened. Binance futures taker buy volume fell from above $5.8 billion in July to roughly $250 million, while the Estimated Leverage Ratio slipped to about 0.18. On Dec. 11, a long‑dormant wallet realized $721.5 million in profit.

In 2025, the Bitcoin-to-gold ratio slid from roughly 40 to 20 ounces per BTC as gold outperformed and drew strong buying interest from central banks and ETF investors. Over the same period, spot Bitcoin ETF assets fell from $152 billion to $112 billion and long-term holders realized substantial profits, pressuring BTC on a relative basis. The move reflects diverging demand patterns for gold and Bitcoin rather than a fundamental collapse in BTC's long-term narrative.

On December 16, 2025, the US unemployment rate rose to 4.6%, above the 4.5% forecast and the prior 4.4%. Commentators say the highest reading since September 2021 could drive Federal Reserve easing in 2026. Bitcoin traded near $88,000 after the release, up 1.84% over the past three hours.

On December 16, 2025, analyst Michaël Van De Poppe argued that gold is priced too richly compared with Bitcoin, citing the Relative Strength Index (RSI) for BTC versus gold falling below 30 for only the fourth time. He noted that similar readings coincided with major Bitcoin bear market lows in 2015, 2018 and 2022, and suggested a possible rotation from gold into BTC as the crypto asset trades at $85,583.

ARK Invest's Cathie Wood said the Bitcoin bottom after the October 10 crash may already be in, with price stabilizing near $86,000. According to Glassnode, institutions now control 29.8% of circulating BTC, while MicroStrategy's December 15 Form 8-K detailed a 10,645 BTC purchase for $980.3 million at $92,098 per coin. Technical indicators suggest early stabilization despite trading below the $104,000 short-term holder realized price.

In December 2025, analyst JD highlights XRP’s retest of the 21-month EMA, echoing a similar setup seen before its January 2018 all-time high. JD suggests that if XRP can hold this key trendline over the next 20 days, it could open the door to a fresh record high in Q1 2026, though a sharp correction could also follow. The pattern underscores how crucial this EMA level is for XRP’s potential upside and downside in 2026.

Bitcoin slipped below $90,000 and stabilized in the mid-to-high $80,000s, with three price zones guiding near-term action. A support band at $83,500–$85,000 and a consolidation pocket at $86,500–$87,000 frame the range, while $90,800–$91,500 stands as an upside target if $88,500–$89,000 is reclaimed.

Bitcoin has hovered around $89,000–$90,000, well below the October peak near $126,000. Samson Mow says Dec. 26 matters more than recent candles, as the December options expiry with heavy call interest between $100,000 and $118,000 and put clusters around $85,000–$90,000 could unlock a larger move.