Bitcoin (BTC) rose higher as pro-cryptocurrency Paul Atkins was sworn in as the new chairman of the SEC

The apex cryptocurrency touched an intraday high of $88,820.47 after crossing $87000 the day before, as investors cheered the breakout.

Bitcoin rose higher Monday, as pro-cryptocurrency Paul Atkins was sworn in as the new chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

What Happened: The apex cryptocurrency touched an intraday high of $88,821.47 after crossing $87,000 the day before, as investors cheered the breakout following weeks of sideways price action.

The excitement was reflected through a 98% jump in trading volumes to $38.64 billion.

The uptick, however, failed to lift Ethereum out of the doldrums, as the second-largest cryptocurrency fell below $1,600.

Bitcoin's dominance reached 63.7%, signaling continued rotation of capital from altcoins to the leading digital asset.

The sentiment may have been bolstered overnight by news of Atkins' swearing-in as the 34th SEC Chair. Atkins had previously stated that building a regulatory framework for digital assets would be his top priority.

Total liquidations reached $270 million in the last 24 hours, with nearly equal numbers of bullish and bearish bets erased.

Bitcoin's Open Interest rose 3.06% in the last 24 hours, representing an increase of $3.52 billion. That said, nearly 59% of Binance traders who had an open BTC position were positioned short.

The market sentiment improved from "Fear" to "Neutral," according to the Crypto Fear and Greed Index.

Top Gainers (24 Hours)

The global cryptocurrency market capitalization stood at $2.74 trillion, following an increase of 0.76% in the last 24 hours.

Major stock averages ended the session in the red. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 971.82 points, or 2.48%, to close at 38,170.41. The S&P 500 lost 2.36% to close at 5,158.20, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished 2.55% lower at 15,870.90.

The sell-offs came after President Donald Trump intensified his attack on Fed Chair Jerome Powell, accusing him of prior political favoritism and calling for “preemptive” interest-rate cuts.

Meanwhile, gold surged to a record high above $3,400 per ounce, reflecting a 0.23% increase from the previous day.

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Analyst Notes: CryptoQuant's Head of Research, Julio Moreno, identified $91,000-$92,000 as a potential Bitcoin resistance level, which corresponded to the Trader's On-chain Realized Price.

"The trader's realized price acts as support when market conditions are bullish (green area, bull score >= 60), and as resistance when market conditions are bearish (red area, bull score <= 40)," Moreno explained.

Bitcoin price resistance may be at ~$91-$92K, around the Trader's On-chain Realized Price (pink line).

The trader's Realized Price acts as support when market conditions are bullish (green area, bull score >= 60), and as resistance when market conditions are bearish (red area, bull score <= 40).

Current market conditions are bearish, with a bull score of 20. This aligns with the behavior of the market in December 2022, when Bitcoin faced strong resistance at the $70,000 level.

At that time, Bitcoin experienced several futile attempts to overcome the resistance, leading to a decline back to the $50,000 support.

However, after successfully breaking through the resistance at $70,000, Bitcoin encountered resistance again at $80,000, which was overcome quickly.

Subsequently, Bitcoin faced resistance at $90,000, which was breached after a brief touch.

This resistance level is crucial as it corresponds to the realized price of traders who entered the market during the 2021 bull run.

If Bitcoin fails to break through this resistance, it could indicate a return to the lower support level at $60,000.

On the other hand, if Bitcoin manages to close above this resistance, it could signal a continuation of the bull run, setting a new resistance level at the next realized price, which is around $110,000.

The realized price is an on-chain indicator that measures the average price at which Bitcoin last moved from one wallet to another, taking into account the total transaction fees paid. It is used to determine the price at which traders collectively enter and exit the market.

The bull score is a technical indicator that measures the strength of the current bull market. A score of 60