Crypto Price Analysis Dec-17: Ethereum, Ripple, Cardano, Polkadot and Polygon

This week, we take a closer look at Ethereum, Ripple, Cardano, Polkadot, and Polygon.

Ethereum (ETH)

Ethereum had a very volatile week with prices falling close to $3,600 before reversing back above $4,000 yesterday in a surprising move. Unfortunately, at the time of this post, ETH lost the $4,000 level again, ending the past seven days with a 7.5% decline.

The price action has made both a lower low and a lower high this week. Because of this, the trend remains bearish, and unless buyers come in force to push prices higher, it is tough to expect a reversal in this trend. ETH found good support on the $3,700 level, and this is likely to be retested soon if buyers fail to stop the downtrend. The resistance sits at $4,000.

The indicators on the daily timeframe remain bearish, and ETH also suffered a 10% pullback versus Bitcoin, losing most of the recent gains on the ETH/BTC pair. For this reason, Bitcoin has increased its dominance in the overall crypto market share. Looking ahead, the best hope for bulls is for ETH to stop its downtrend and consolidate under $4,000 before attempting another break above this key level.

Ripple (XRP)

This week, XRP continued to consolidate in a tight range between the $0.89 resistance and $0.75 support levels, lacking the strength to break out. Overall, XRP had a poor week, with a 6.6% loss in price compared to seven days ago.

However, there are some early signs that this consolidation may prepare the stage for a possible breakout. The daily MACD completed a bullish cross three days ago, and the RSI has been making higher lows and higher highs. This calls for some optimism in the future, as XRP bulls may attempt another break of the key resistance level. That would set the stage for XRP to reclaim its $1 valuation.

Looking ahead, XRP is facing two challenges. The first is trying to break out from this range, and the second is doing so in an environment where the overall market is bearish (see ETH above). This will not be easy, but XRP is known to diverge from the overall market at times.

Cardano (ADA)

ADA lost a critical support level last week, falling under $1.36 to find support on the $1.2 level. In doing so, it fell below a key trendline that has held since March 2020. Because ADA’s price closed below this level, the chances of recovery are becoming less likely with each passing day. However, the selling pressure has not been significant since then and ADA only lost 4.9% in the past seven days.

Currently, ADA’s price is consolidating in a tight range, similarly to XRP. The $1.36 level now acts as a resistance, and a fall below the key support level at $1.2 may push ADA to the $1 level.

Looking ahead, it is crucial for the cryptocurrency to stop the downtrend and not lose its key support level. Should that be successful, then ADA can attempt a recovery.

Polkadot (DOT)

DOT’s poor performance has continues this week as well, having failed to stop the downtrend discussed last time. For this reason, it registered another 7.6% loss in the past seven days.

The current price action is barely holding onto the $26 support level. Should DOT fail here, then the next key support will be found at $20. During this downtrend, the daily RSI entered the oversold area from where it quickly bounced up, forming a bullish divergence as price went lower. Because of that, this downtrend could come to an end soon, particularly as MACD just did a bullish cross on the daily timeframe.

Looking ahead, DOT could have a nice relief rally to pause the current downtrend. Buyers will surely be very interested in DOT considering its price is at a 50% discount compared to its all-time high at $55. In such a scenario, the resistance at $32 is the biggest challenge for bulls.

Polygon (MATIC)

MATIC’s rally has come to an end. After a very strong performance in the past, this week, MATIC ends in red with a 3.6% loss in price. Moreover, the bearish divergence discussed in our last analysis appears to hold true so far as MATIC’s price approaches the end of the ascending triangle (in blue).

If the cryptocurrency fails to push higher and break the $2.2 resistance, then price may fall to the key support at $1.6, confirming the bearish divergence on the RSI. On top of that, the daily MACD has been bearish for the past five days with no clear sign of a reversal yet.

Volume has also decreased since the last attempt to break the resistance. This setup puts MATIC under a lot of pressure from bears. Looking ahead, MATIC is likely to exit from this ascending triangle in the coming week. Best to be prepared for that, particularly if price falls lower.