Bitcoin (BTC) tracked $42,500 into the 2023 yearly close as traders began to see “interesting” BTC price behavior.

BTC/USD 1-day chart. Source: TradingView

Post-ETF BTC price drop targets include $36,000

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD keeping volatility away during the final hours of the yearly candle.

After failing to secure a breakout of its December trading range, Bitcoin remained concerning for bulls ahead of the key legislative event to come early next month — the potential approval of the first United States spot price exchange-traded fund (ETF).

“Technically, H4 is in a downtrend and wants 40.5K~ IMO. But with that said, ETF approval is supposed to come within a week or two,” popular trader Crypto Chase wrote in part of the day’s analysis on X (formerly Twitter).

Crypto Chase, who previously opted to go short BTC at $43,000, predicted a maximum push to $46,000 on the back of a positive ETF decision, with $36,000 coming quickly should the product be rejected.

Continuing on the topic, popular social media commentator WhalePanda likewise saw the scope for limited upside around the approval, with a retracement to follow.

“ETF approval spikes us to $50K-ish, then depending on how long it takes for the ETFs to launch it will start selling off, maybe to low $40k-ish if it takes a month before they launch, don't see us go below $38k,” he told X subscribers.

“After that just a steady rise like a normal Bitcoin bull market passing $70k in April-May with some stalling in the summer and then end the year at around $100k-120k.”

The spot Bitcoin ETF continued to prove a divisive topic — Adam Back, CEO of blockchain startup Blockstream, repeatedly argued that it was “not priced in” to the market.

The ETFs are not priced in — Adam Back (@adam3us) December 31, 2023

At current levels, BTC/USD was still up nearly 60% in Q4 and around 160% year-to-date, per data from statistics resource CoinGlass.

BTC/USD monthly returns (screenshot). Source: CoinGlass

Analyst: Ether to "outperform" Bitcoin next year

Taking a closer look at short-timeframe order book trends, meanwhile, traders saw cause for excitement into the yearly close.

Related: Bitcoin miners reduce BTC holdings as ‘miner price’ nears $65K

Bid liquidity on U.S. exchange Coinbase had moved higher toward spot price, Skew and CredibleCrypto noted. Both suggested that this could trigger livelier trading conditions.

$BTC Coinbase Spot

those bids around $40K have now been moved up above the $41K 400BTC bid

things are getting interesting now https://t.co/IruykFPFVH pic.twitter.com/VAmlqj5UXV — Skew Δ (@52kskew) December 31, 2023

Coinbase bidder who first appeared 5 days ago just lifted his bids up from 39.5-40.5k range to 41.5k-42.5k aka right below current price $BTC pic.twitter.com/URMCeskQph — CrediBULL Crypto (@CredibleCrypto) December 31, 2023

Concluding the year, meanwhile, Michaël van de Poppe, founder and CEO of trading firm MN Trading, forecast that 2024 would be altcoins’ time to shine.

“The total market capitalization of Crypto rallied from $1T to $1.62T. The upward run is excellent but is looking at a potential top. The area around $1.85T or $2.10T could be an area for consolidation,” he summarized on Dec. 31.

“What's next? Ethereum to outperform Bitcoin in 2024. Enjoy the ride!”

Total crypto market cap annotated chart. Source: Michaël van de Poppe/X

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.