2018 proved a difficult year for Ethereum across the crypto markets as its value kept on nose diving. The drastic drops were attributed to the introduction of a new BitMEX – ETH perpetual contract. This allowed traders to shorten ETH’s price with up to 100 times leverage similar to XBT contracts. Consequently, the contracts were used as a scapegoat by pessimistic investors who took the chance to weigh down on the price of Ethereum. This saw its value drop by 57% in August alone.
XRP put up a spirited resistance to market turmoil that befell the crypto industry to overtake Ethereum in the charts as the second top cryptocurrency by market capitalization. In the last quarter of 2018.
Another factor that saw Ethereum drop in value is the ICO sell off factor. In 2018, the capital markets, more so ICOs, fared poorly. This led to massive sell-offs and conversion of crypto assets into fiat. In October especially, Ethereum went on a downward spiral as investor confidence reduced remarkably. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) went into the ‘oversold’ area, showing the extent of the damage on the investor sentiments.
Ethereum’s market cap overtakes XRP
Over the past 24 hours, however, Ethereum has put up and maintained a Bullish momentum that has seen it regain its position as the second top rated cryptocurrency according to market capitalization. At the moment, Ethereum has a market capitalization of $15.7 Billion while XRP is at $14.9 Billion.
The rally upward rally has seen Ethereum’s price oscillate within the $150 range. This Altcoin went through a market correction in December 2018 after nosediving during the post-fork period. The high point of $154 (as seen in A above) on which it sits. It is expected to go even higher if the Bullish momentum can continue.
As seen in point R, the Relative Strength Index of Ethereum went up considerably. It went into the ‘undersold’ area, signaling the improved investor confidence in the digital coin. Additionally, the 7-day moving average is below the 21 days EMA and both moving averages are headed up which means that the current Bull Run might be here for long.
