Bitcoin price is struggling to maintain its bullish momentum despite first breaking above $62,000 in August. However, one analyst believes BTC is approaching a potential breakthrough that could bring in six-figure prices.
Bitcoin Q4: “The Steepest Rise” Awaits
Independent technical analyst Gert van Lagen seems convinced that the current price action of Bitcoin (BTC) will have explosive consequences. In an August 27 X post, van Lagen highlights the formation of a parabolic curve, with BTC continuing to rise in a stepwise fashion.
This chart also shows the formation of a rare cup and handle (CnH) pattern on the weekly chart. This pattern has been forming for almost three years, dating back to October 2021.
A successful breakout of the CnH pattern can result in a parabolic uptrend as the pattern confirms a trend bottom and then confirms higher sideways consolidation in the subsequent development.
According to Tom Bulkowski, a renowned trader and creator of Thepatternsite.com, the success rate of the CnH pattern is also very high at 95%.
Bitcoin Cup and Handle Pattern Approaching Parabolic Breakout. Source: X
Criterion 1 in the parabolic curve was formed at the market bottom in November 2022. Criterion 2 was confirmed as the market bottom recovered from $15,460 to $25,290. Criterion 3 was formed as Bitcoin moved sideways between $30,000 and $25,000 between April 2023 and September 2023.
Bitcoin then experienced its first parabolic rally of 198%, reaching a new all-time high of $73,737 in March 2024.
Over the past few weeks, the BTC/USD chart has been printing the 4th base formation, the final stage of the parabolic curve. The 4th base is also the “handle” part of the CnH pattern, which is also approaching a breakout.
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The analyst predicts that if Bitcoin breaks above the 4-bit level, it will be “the steepest rally BTC has ever experienced” or an explosive rally.
The target price is expected to exceed $260,000 by the end of 2024, which is a 312% increase from the current BTC price.
More than $7 billion worth of short selling is expected to be liquidated at $70,500.
Bitcoin price has broken through its previous all-time high of over $70,000, but there are some consequences for futures traders. According to data from CoinGlass, a massive liquidation event is likely to occur if BTC breaks through $70,493.
Bitcoin liquidation heatmap. Source: CoinGlass
As observed, short liquidations at that price as of August 27 amounted to $7.18 billion. Similarly, another $6.54 billion of short positions will be liquidated at $72,581, meaning that the futures market is still strongly positioned between bullish and bearish traders.
However, despite the BTC price crash, long/short accounts have turned bullish over the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin long/short account on Binance. Source: CoinGlass
According to the data, 57.19% of current accounts are holding long positions. However, the taker buy/sell volume between long and short traders is almost identical, and the long/short ratio remains at 1.01.
Bitcoin enters the ‘banana zone’
Cointelegraph reported a similar prediction for Bitcoin from another analyst, who predicted that BTC would reach $150,000 by the end of 2024.
Real Vision analyst Jame Coutts has struck a familiar tone, predicting that BTC price action is entering a “completely crazy season” or “banana zone.”
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A banana zone is defined as a parabolic rally with significant price and volume expansion, which triggers a collective market interest and ultimately leads to a further sustained exponential rise.
Also, Bitcoin researcher Smithson Weed shared his research that accurately predicted Bitcoin’s peak in the previous bull cycle. Weed’s price targets have varied throughout 2025, but his minimum expected price is $164,173 by January 1, 2025.
Overall, these predictions follow a similar pattern where BTC is expected to surge once it breaks its previous high.
This article does not contain any investment advice or recommendations. All investment and trading moves involve risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making decisions.