Bitcoin Has Followed A Downward Trend This Week

Bitcoin has been following a downward trend over roughly the last week, bouncing back at some points but continuing to push lower.

The digital currency fell to as little as $6,133.31 on Wednesday at 16:30 UTC (12:30 EST), according to the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index, close to 20% below its price of $7,616.10 at the start of Saturday.

The cryptocurrency bounced back, rising to as much as $6,699.90 on Thursday, representing a 9.2% increase from the weekly low of close to $6,100 hit on Wednesday, additional BPI figures show.

Bitcoin had pulled back somewhat at the time of report, trading at $6,537.25.

[Ed note: Investing in cryptocoins or tokens is highly speculative and the market is largely unregulated. Anyone considering it should be prepared to lose their entire investment.]

Bitcoin 'Trading In A Downward Trend'

Several analysts gave their point of view on Bitcoin's latest price movements, weighing in on its general direction.

"Bitcoin is trading in a downward trend," said digital currency investor Marius Rupsys. He stated that:

From the high of $20,000 to $6,100 - it is down about 70%. Any asset that fell this much would be in downtrend (ie. when stocks are down 20% it is considered to be in correction). This week seems to be just continuation of the previous trend.

"Since about February Bitcoin has been in a clear downtrend, unable to keep setting new highs," said Nate Flanders, CEO of Delaware-based Mandala.

"A lot of traders use trendlines, and other tools to determine this and so the more experienced traders might be playing it back in forth inside a channel."

He emphasized that traders should keep their eyes open for a trend reversal fueled by shifting sentiment following the recent statements made by U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission officials that Bitcoin and Ether are not securities.

"As people feel more comfortable, regulatory certainty being a huge factor, we might see a shift in behavior."

Bitcoin's Retracement

While Flanders offered a positive expectation for market sentiment going forward, some analysts described the recent declines in Bitcoin prices as merely being a retracement following the digital currency's sharp rally, which brought its price to nearly $20,000 on the CoinDesk BPI.

"Bitcoin is definitely in an upward trend when looking at the long term graphs," said Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst for social trading platform eToro.

"What we're seeing here is still considered to be a retracement from the highs of December."

Disclosure: I own some Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash and Ether.