Bitcoin consolidates, ETH breaks out; analysts eye bullish altcoin cycle

Business Standard

17-07-2025

Flagship cryptocurrency Bitcoin (BTC) continues to consolidate around $118,000 as demand for major altcoins picks up. At last check, Bitcoin was trading at $118,630, up 0.63 per cent, with a 24-hour trading volume of $71.41 billion, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Over the past 24 hours, BTC has fluctuated between $117,751 and $120,065. Its market capitalisation stood at $2.36 trillion, the highest among all cryptocurrencies.
Vikram Subburaj, CEO of Giottus, believes the consolidation in Bitcoin's price is due to growing demand for other altcoins. Ethereum (ETH), for instance, has broken out of a consolidation zone against Bitcoin and recently crossed the $3,300 mark, with targets now set at $3,500.
'This implies a seasonal shift in money flows from Bitcoin to other major altcoins. This is usually a precursor to a full-blown alt-season, which could mark the end of this bullish cycle over the next 6–9 months,' said Subburaj. For this cycle to unfold, he believes Bitcoin needs to maintain a bullish trajectory, especially as macroeconomic and tariff-related cues improve.
Echoing similar views, Edul Patel, Co-founder and CEO of Mudrex, said Ethereum is currently outperforming after confidently breaching the $3,000 level. At last check, ETH was trading at $3,377.86, up 7.64 per cent over the previous day. Ethereum has fluctuated between $2,379.57 and $2,481.22 in the past 24 hours. Patel noted that Ether futures open interest hit a record high on Wednesday — a signal of strong bullish sentiment that is prompting traders to aim for higher price targets. 'ETH's strength suggests a shift in momentum within the broader crypto market,' said Patel.
From a technical perspective, Patel sees the next resistance for Bitcoin between $124,000 and $126,000, while $113,000 remains a key support level.
Among other altcoins, the top gainers for the day include FLOKI, which rose over 26 per cent, followed by Curve DAO Token with a gain of over 16.2 per cent, BONK up 14.64 per cent, and SPX6900 and Fartcoin, each up over 11 per cent. On the other hand, Pump.fun dropped by over 17 per cent, followed by Pudgy Penguins, down over 8.3 per cent, and SEI, which fell by 7.36 per cent, according to the CoinDCX research team.
The overall market sentiment, analysts said, remains bullish despite interim bearish movements.