Top 3 Price Prediction Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple: Bitcoin grinding closer to new ATH, crypto bull cycle still intact

• Bitcoin recovers above $19,000 but takes a breather before making the final leg to a new ATH above $20,000.
• Ethereum could restart the uptrend to $700 if short-term resistance at $600 is broken.
• Ripple is on the verge of a breakdown to $0.55 in case immediate support at $0.65 is shattered.

The cryptocurrency market is dotted red and green on Wednesday during the European session. On Tuesday, the massive upward price action seems to have taken a hiatus, with most crypto assets retracing from their weekly highs.

Meanwhile, some selected digital assets such as Stellar Lumens (XLM) still recorded incredible gains in the last 24 hours. NEM (XEM) and DigiByte (DGB) are also green after rallying 12% each in the same period.

The flagship cryptocurrency hit highs above $19,000 and ascended to new yearly highs close to $19,500. Bitcoin bulls seem to be playing their stability card before completing the much-anticipated rally to a new all-time high (ATH).

Bitcoin eyes $20,000 and price discovery

BTC/USD is changing hands at $19,115 after restarting the uptrend following a dip to $18,500. On the upside, $19,500 caps upward price movement. However, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) hints at Bitcoin gaining traction towards the hurdle at $19,500.

A break above the crucial level at $19,500 will pave the way for the much-awaited majestic and finally ascend above $20,000. The bellwether cryptocurrency may also enter a price discovery phase following the breakout.

BTC/USD 4-hour chart

It is worth noting that the speculated move to $20,000 will be invalidated if Bitcoin failed to break the resistance at $19,500. On the downside, support at $19,000 must hold for the bullish outlook to remain intact.

Note that losses below this initial support may seek refuge at the 50 Simple Moving Average. It would be disastrous for Bitcoin to slide under moving average support because the price action that would follow might extend to the 100 SMA, slightly above $17,000.

Ethereum bulls shift the focus back above $600

Ether broke below the ascending wedge pattern as predicted on Tuesday. The bearish price action break hit a daily low of $578 before the ongoing recovery. ETH/USD is teetering at $595 at the time of writing amid the battle to break the resistance at $600.

Buy orders are likely to increase if Ethereum confirmed a breakout above $600. Investors anticipate that Ethereum will rise to levels close to $1,000 before the year ends, mainly due to the impending launch of the new protocol, Ethereum 2.0.

For now, the path of the least resistance path is upwards based on RSI bounce from levels close to the midline. A continued uptrend towards the overbought region might confirm the rally to $700.

ETH/USD 4-hour chart

Ethereum could abandon the uptrend if the price failed to make a daily close above $600. Selling pressure may start to build under this crucial level, perhaps enough to send the smart contract token to the support at $530 as highlighted by the 50 SMA. Extended declines under $500 would seek anchorage at the 100 SMA.

Ripple sitting on the edge of a cliff

XRP/USD managed to find support at $0.55 following the analysis on Tuesday. The declines that followed the spike to a new yearly high at $0.92 overshot other tentative support areas at $0.7 and $0.6.

The cross-border token is trading at $0.66 amid a developing bearish momentum due to the seller congestion at $0.75. If XRP lost the support at $0.65, declines to $0.55 (recent anchor) might come into the picture.

Any additional action under the above zone is likely to cause extreme damage to the progress made in the last two weeks, possibly sending Ripple to test lower levels at the 50 SMA and 100 SMA.

XRP/USD 4-hour chart

Support at $0.65 must hold to ensure that Ripple can focus on resuming the uptrend. Resistance envisaged at $0.75 may delay the price action towards $1. XRP could enter another bull cycle if buy orders surge and create enough volume to support a rally.