LEO's 0.21% Price Increase to $3.81: Key Insights for September 9, 2023

UNUS SED LEO (LEO) saw a slight 0.21% price increase over the past 24 hours to $3.81. With a market capitalization of $3.54 billion, LEO remains a top 50 cryptocurrency by market cap. In this report, we will analyze the key metrics behind LEO's price action and uncover insights into where the crypto asset may be headed next.

To start, LEO's 24-hour trading volume came in at $103,150 - remaining relatively low compared to some major cryptocurrencies. This indicates that while some traders are active in LEO markets, overall interest and momentum has been subdued lately.

Looking at the hourly timeframe, LEO dropped 0.53% over the past 60 minutes. Zooming out to the daily view, the 0.21% gain today comes after a 2.24% drop over the past week. And over the past month, LEO has declined 4.55% indicating a short-term downward trend.

However, taking a wider 6-month view, LEO has seen a solid 13.09% gain as longer-term holders remain confident in the crypto's outlook. This long-term momentum could suggest the recent dip is just a minor pullback before continued upside.

What's Behind LEO's Mixed Price Action?

LEO was created by the iFinex exchange to help cover losses from an earlier hack. Ownership of the token provides discounts on Bitfinex trading fees - giving it inherent utility on the popular crypto exchange.

However, regulatory scrutiny on iFinex has led to periodic selling pressure on LEO. Back in August 2022, LEO dropped over 50% in just 3 weeks as the DOJ cracked down on Tether's reserves that back the USDT stablecoin issued by iFinex.

Nonetheless, Bitfinex remains a top-10 cryptocurrency exchange by volume, giving fundamental support for LEO demand. And the volatility has provided traders with ample swing trading opportunities in LEO markets.

As regulations and exchange volumes evolve in the coming months, LEO may see significant volatility. But the crypto asset remains deeply intertwined with a major industry player in Bitfinex and its Tether stablecoin.

Technical Analysis Supports Upside for LEO

Analyzing the LEO/USDT 4-hour chart, we can see the crypto forming higher lows through September indicating accumulation by bulls. This positive structure suggests advantage is now flipping back to buyers on tests of support around $3.60.

The 50 and 200 period exponential moving averages (EMAs) remain in bullish order with the faster 50 EMA above the 200 EMA following the bullish golden cross back in July 2023. As long as these key moving averages hold up as support, advantage remains with buyers.

The relative strength index (RSI) is right around 50 - a neutral momentum level that leaves plenty of upside potential before overbought readings near 70. And the moving average convergence divergence (MACD) histogram recently ticked up from negative territory indicating building bullish upside momentum.

Overall, LEO appears poised to retest resistance around $4.10 if bulls can hold key support levels near $3.50-$3.60. A breakout above $4.10 would open the door for a retest of 2023 highs around $5.30. Upside appears the path of least resistance for LEO over the coming weeks and months.

LEO Price Prediction for 2023-2024

Based on the technical and fundamental analysis above, I foresee LEO continuing to find buying support on dips below $3.50. As crypto markets stabilize and Bitfinex volumes pick back up, LEO looks positioned for a rally back to the $4.50-$5.00 range by early 2024.

However, volatility will remain elevated depending on regulatory scrutiny and action on Tether and Bitfinex. If major negative news hits, LEO could always see another sharp selloff similar to August 2022. Yet for long-term believers in the iFinex ecosystem, these dips can provide attractive buying opportunities.

Upside for LEO appears more likely over the next 12-18 months, but traders should be nimble and ready to react to fast-moving news events in the crypto industry that can impact LEO sentiment and pricing. An investment strategy that takes advantage of extreme fear or greed can yield solid returns from LEO's oscillating price action.

How High Can LEO Reasonably Go This Cycle?

LEO reached an all-time high around $27 back in mid 2019 before declining over 90% into early 2022. Given today's more mature crypto market and LEO's deep ties to Bitfinex, it is unlikely to see the same parabolic price action this cycle.

However, a return to the former support turned resistance level around $5-6 appears reasonable if crypto markets can build off the momentum from the past few months. This would require a breakout above the key psychological $5 level where LEO has consistently faced selling pressure on several tests over the past year.

For LEO to reach prices in the $10+ range, it would likely require an explosive increase in crypto trading volumes and bullish sentiment similar to 2021. While possible, LEO may lack the speculative fervor from traders that names like Dogecoin or Shiba Inu attracted during the last bull run.

But as a top 50 market cap crypto with strong exchange utility, LEO has levers to drive significant upside. A rally back to $8-$12 by the end of 2024 would be an optimistic yet achievable scenario as the crypto industry continues growing over the long-term.

Can LEO Recover Back to Its All-Time High This Cycle?

While crypto markets have shown the ability to shatter expectations, LEO returning to its all-time high around $27 in 2023-2024 seems unlikely. The parabolic advance to $27 occurred in a much different crypto environment just months after LEO's launch and initial exchange listing.

For LEO to reach new highs above $27, it would take a massive resurgence in speculative frenzy and trading volumes across leading crypto exchanges. Additionally, concerns around Tether's reserves would need to fully dissipate to avoid the selling pressure that caused LEO's crash in 2022.

LEO more realistically appears bound to the $3-10 range in this market cycle. Only an extremely euphoric environment with traders chasing exponential returns would enable LEO to surge back towards $20+ in the next year or two.

While never say never in crypto, traders should temper expectations for now and build LEO positions with a vision of steady, long-term growth. The key to surviving crypto's volatility lies in avoiding unrealistic moonshot predictions and instead focusing on high-probability price action.