Bitcoin recovered strongly from its morning fall as cryptocurrency investors prepared for Thanksgiving.

What Happened: The leading cryptocurrency fell below $96,000 during the afternoon, only to recover losses as the evening progressed.

On Friday, the asset nearly reached the record $100,000 level before stalling due to a strong pushback from the bears.

Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, failed to replicate its senior token's comeback, ending the 24-hour period down by nearly 2%.

The sharp correction caused mayhem in the cryptocurrency derivatives market, with over $511 million getting liquidated in the last 24 hours. About $380 million in leveraged long bets were wiped out.

Bitcoin's Open Interest (OI) dropped marginally by 0.20%, while the number of short positions for the coin surged dramatically against longs in the last 24 hours.

Market sentiment remained in the "Extreme Greed" zone, as per the Cryptocurrency Fear and Greed Index, signaling a desire to buy more.

Top Gainers (24-Hours)

The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $3.33 trillion, following a marginal contraction of 0.69% in the last 24 hours.

Stock futures inched higher Sunday night. The Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures rose 226 points, or 0.51%, as of 7:45 p.m. EDT.  Futures tied to the S&P 500 gained 0.42%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures added 0.49%.

The shortened Thanksgiving trading week would see the release of October's personal consumption expenditure (PCE) data, the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure.

Analyst Notes: In a note to Benzinga, Chris Kline, COO and Co-Founder of BitcoinIRA, noted a significant interest in Bitcoin.

"Bitcoin appears to be crossing the Rubicon, garnering enthusiasm among those discussing economic policy at the national level, both in the US and across the globe," Kline said.

He also highlighted the elevation of Bitcoin proponents to cabinet-level positions in the incoming Donald Trump administration, potentially making "murky regulatory waters" clear.

Widely-followed cryptocurrency analyst Ali Martinez predicted Bitcoin to peak between June and September 2025 in the ongoing bull cycle.

"Long-term Bitcoin holders are showing signs of growing greed! Historically, this behavior suggests it could take 8–11 months for BTC to hit a market top," Martinez stated.

Long-term #Bitcoin holders are showing signs of growing greed! Historically, this behavior suggests it could take 8-11 months for $BTC to hit a market top. If the trend holds, we might see a potential peak between June and September 2025! pic.twitter.com/UacfaQb5VW

— Ali (@ali_charts) November 24, 2024