The cryptocurrency market was stunned to find out Elon Musk’s signaling that Tesla will not accept Bitcoin anymore as payment for its cars. Bitcoin price dropped over 13% on the news, and so did the majority of altcoins, but Ripple price held strong.
The rout on the cryptocurrency market comes at a time when the overall financial market is under pressure. Inflation fears have sent the stock market on a bearish spiral, with the Dow Jones losing over 1,500 points this week so far. The futures show continuing weakness, so more of the same is expected in the North American session.
Musk’s arguments were that Bitcoin mining consumes too much energy and Tesla may shift to other cryptocurrencies that consume less than 1% of the energy needed to mine Bitcoin. Ripple may be one of those currencies.
For the technical traders, the Ripple price is at crossroads. Since the middle of April, it forms a triangular pattern that may break both ways. Traders must wait for a daily close above the triangle’s trendlines. A bullish break triggers a long trade with a target above 2.4 and a stop at 1.20, while a bearish break triggers a move towards 0.6 with a stop at 1.58.
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