Market Overview and Key Performers
Cryptocurrency markets opened the week on a muted recovery mode, taking several top-10 ranking tokens like BTC, XRP, ETH, and ADA up by more than 2%, alongside a cautious uptick in Asian equities. This recovery is partly aided by expectations that the US Federal Reserve will announce a widely expected rate cut on Wednesday.
Ethereum and Bitcoin have witnessed notable price upticks over the past 24 hours, both building momentum after a muted start to December. These coins traded firmer during Monday’s early Asian trading hours, supported by the anticipation that the Fed will cut interest rates by 25 basis points in its final meeting of the year.
Ripple’s XRP traded near $2.09 after a significant day-to-day rise, continuing a tentative climb that followed weeks of heavy selling pressure from the broader crypto market. Other tokens such as BNB added about 1.8%, while Solana climbed 3.7% to extend last week’s modest rebound and move closer to its intraweek high of $145.
Cardano’s price struggles appear to have come to an end, as it reversed a brief downtick that took it to $0.40, climbing back up to $0.43 on the day.
Underlying Market Sentiment and Expert Analysis
Despite the positive price movements, CryptoQuant’s Bull Score, a metric used to gauge momentum changes in market cycles, has fallen to zero for the first time since early 2022. The analytics platform associates this reading with bearish market phases, suggesting that investors are still experiencing "fear" even with the slight price recoveries observed.
According to CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju, the market currently lacks fresh liquidity inflows that could prevent several coins from experiencing a deeper slowdown. In early December, Young Ju shared a chart indicating that Bitcoin might remain in a broad consolidation zone between $55,000 and $70,000 next year, with volatility likely to persist around major macroeconomic events such as Fed rate cuts.
Most Bitcoin on-chain indicators are bearish. Without macro liquidity, we enter a bear cycle. #Bitcoinpic.twitter.com/6uy298q5Wo
— Ki Young Ju (@ki_young_ju) December 3, 2025
Young Ju further commented, "It is simple. If you think macro gets better next year, you buy. Otherwise, you sell. I’m not a macro expert, so find macro bros. New ETF inflows are the key. At this stage, it is more about being reactive than predictive. Set your scenarios and trade accordingly."
K33 Research offers a slightly more optimistic medium-term outlook, anticipating that rule changes for 401(k)s by early 2026 could allow retirement accounts to allocate funds to Bitcoin. While acknowledging that this shift would take months to materialize, the group believes the legislative pro-Bitcoin influence could be sufficient to deter bearish sentiment.
Analyst Alex Kuptsikevich observed that the recent rebound in Bitcoin mirrors patterns seen during prior cycle pullbacks in 2013, 2017, and 2021. He noted that the market has already absorbed a substantial two-month drawdown leading into the December policy window, and that the current price chart trajectory for Bitcoin is consistent with recovery periods observed at the end of those years.
CryptoQuant analysts, including Coindream, view the current environment as indicative of a "healthy futures market" that simply requires a trigger for the next bull run. Open interest in Bitcoin futures has dropped to its lowest level of the year. This could signify either investor capitulation or apathy, both of which are often precursors to opportunities for buyers seeking discounted entry points.