Bitcoin’s latest rally past $88,000 has reignited bullish sentiment across the market, with some traders predicting a surge to $159,000.

However, blockchain analytics firm Santiment has issued a cautionary note, suggesting this optimism could backfire.

Greed Could Spell Trouble

Crypto markets thrive on sentiment, and right now, greed is creeping back in after a period in late February and early March that saw fear as the sector’s primary driver. Bitcoin’s recent resurgence to $88,500 has stirred fresh optimism among retail traders, with Santiment revealing that social media mentions of the cryptocurrency’s price targets above $100,000 have spiked.

As crypto has bounced nicely in the second half of March, traders have swung the pendulum back toward mild greed. After showing major fear in late February and early March following two stints of Bitcoin dipping as low as $78K, it appears that this rebound to $88.5K has… pic.twitter.com/WGvmvKSv2X

Furthermore, in an ongoing poll on X by the analytics platform, more than 60% of respondents believe that BTC will break the $100,000 mark, while 40% anticipate a drop below $75,000. At the time of writing, over 892 people had participated in the poll, with 14 hours left until it closed.

While the community is flooding social media with these lofty price targets, Santiment noted a troubling pattern: historically, markets tend to move contrary to public sentiment, meaning heightened greed could signal an incoming correction.

Bitcoin’s upward momentum was halted just below $89,000, where strong resistance emerged. Analysts attributed this resistance to the convergence of the 50-day moving average and descending trendline from the asset’s all-time high.

Additionally, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) has entered overbought territory, indicating that the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market cap may have reached a local top. Crypto watcher Ali Martinez previously pointed out that such instances have often led to significant corrections.

Recent whale activity supports this concern. While these large holders resumed accumulation earlier in the month, contributing to BTC’s price jump from the $77,000 level to beyond $88,000, on-chain data shows that some have started offloading their holdings. Santiment recently reported that more than 20,000 BTC, worth about $1.8 billion, were sold around the local peak.

Moreover, concerns over the defunct crypto exchange Mt. Gox’s recent billion-dollar BTC movement have added to the uncertainty. History shows that such large transfers often create market fear, prompting sell-offs.

Market Outlook

Despite the worries, Bitcoin has gone back above $88,000 as of this writing after spending most of the morning at $87,000. The current price is a meager 1.4% rise from yesterday’s level, but it means that over the past week, BTC has gained 5.7%, outpacing the broader crypto market, which has only gained 2.3% in that period.

However, the number one cryptocurrency’s dominance has dropped to 58.3% as altcoins like Cronos (CRO) and Dogecoin (DOGE) recorded significant gains.