Crypto on the Brink: XRP, BTC Face Key Tests as Nasdaq Hangs in Balance

XRP and Bitcoin at Key Support Levels as Nasdaq Shows Warning Signs

XRP and Bitcoin are approaching critical support levels, while Nasdaq’s recent price action hints at potential weakness.

Payments-focused XRP has fallen more than 6% this week, testing the $2 support, a level that has repeatedly acted as a bear fatigue zone since last December. Lower wicks on multiple weekly candles indicate that selling pressure often eases here. A breach of $2 could trigger an accelerated selloff as traders and holders exit, though prices are holding for now. To turn bullish, XRP must overcome the descending trendline connecting lower highs since July, currently around $2.50.

Bitcoin is also trading near a pivotal support cluster. This includes a bullish trendline tracking higher lows through 2023–2024, the 100-week simple moving average (SMA), and the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement from the 2022 bear-market bottom to the recent record high of just over $126,000. A breakdown here would shift focus to April’s swing low near $74,500, followed by the 2021 bull-market peak just under $70,000. Some traders are already positioning for sub-$80,000 BTC in early 2026.

On the upside, Bitcoin bulls would need to reclaim the 50-week SMA, just above $102,252, to signal that the broader bull trend remains intact — a task complicated by Nasdaq’s cautionary signals. The Nasdaq recently formed a “hanging man” candlestick on the monthly chart, characterized by a small real body near the top, a long lower shadow, and little or no upper shadow. This pattern, appearing at record highs, warns of emerging selling pressure and potential trend exhaustion. Historically, tech stocks and Bitcoin often move in tandem, raising the stakes for crypto markets.

With XRP and Bitcoin at knife-edge supports and Nasdaq signaling potential weakness, traders face a tense environment. The widely anticipated Santa rally in both tech stocks and cryptocurrencies may face an uphill battle this year.