The cryptocurrency market bled profusely Thursday, as investors shuddered about the movement of billions of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) ahead of a probable sell-off.

What Happened: Bitcoin nosedived to the $57,000 zone, its lowest since Feb. 28. Since the beginning of this week, the world's largest digital asset has slumped 9.5%, nearly 21% down from its all-time high clocked earlier this year.

The second-largest cryptocurrency, Ethereum, also crashed to a six-week low, erasing all the gains made since the hype of spot ETF approvals in mid-May.

The sell-offs were precipitated by the movement of 47,228 Bitcoin, worth $2.7 billion, by defunct cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox from a cold wallet to a new wallet, possibly in preparation for payouts to its creditors.

The slump forced the largest wave of liquidations since mid-April, as $541.45 million in future contracts was wiped out in the last 24 hours. Long liquidations accounted for a whopping $472 million.

Bitcoin's Open Interest plunged 7% in the last 24 hours. A fall in price, coming alongside a fall in OI, is viewed by some analysts as a good sign because they think the downtrend will end once all long sellers have closed their positions.  

The Cryptocurrency Fear & Greed Index flashed a "Fear" signal, implying that investors were bearish on the market prospects. But such conditions also provide buying opportunity for bold dip buyers.

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The global cryptocurrency market cap stands at $2.09 trillion, following a 6.06% fall in the last 24 hours.

Stock futures traded flat Thursday night. The Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures is up 0.08%, as of 9 p.m. EDT.  Futures tied to the S&P 500 gained 0.01%, while Nasdaq 100 Futures slipped 0.03%.

Markets will open on Friday after the Fourth of July break. Investors have now set their eyes on the release of June jobs data.

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Analyst Notes: Widely followed cryptocurrency analyst Ali Martinez sounded a bearish alarm, with more potential downsides to follow for Bitcoin.

"Bitcoin closing below $57,000 could spell trouble, with potential support only at $51,000," Martinez stated.

"If BTC can break past this level, the next significant target is $78,700," Martinez explained.

One of the most crucial resistance areas for #Bitcoin is $65,795. If $BTC can break past this level, the next significant target is $78,700! pic.twitter.com/tcxTJlKUo3

— Ali (@ali_charts) July 2, 2024

In a positive forecast, popular analyst Rekt Capital highlighted the possibility of King Crypto peaking around mid-September or mid-October 2025.

"The longer Bitcoin consolidates after the Halving, the better it will be for synchronizing this current cycle with the traditional halving cycle," the trader opined.

#BTC
In the 2015-2017 cycle, Bitcoin peaked 518 days after the Halving
In the 2019-2021 cycle, Bitcoin peaked 546 days after the Halving
If history repeats and the next Bull Market peak occurs 518-546 days after the Halving...
That would mean Bitcoin could peak in this cycle... pic.twitter.com/bg6GjkvLlW

— Rekt Capital (@rektcapital) July 4, 2024