Bitcoin price throughout 2018 was locked in a bear market and downtrend that ultimately took the price of the first-ever crypto asset to its bottom at $3,200. But during the almost 8 months of 2019, Bitcoin has been in an uptrend and is preparing to enter a bull market.

But before it gets there, Bitcoin price still needs to close a weekly candle above $11,500 – a feat it hasn’t accomplished in nearly 18 months.

Bear Market Began at $11,500, BTC Stuck Below Resistance Since

High timeframe candlestick closes are often , from the daily to weekly, and beyond. Weekly and monthly closes are especially important and typically represent a stronger technical signal across longer-term trends.

On Sunday night, the weekly close in Bitcoin price at around $10,900 was a strong close, beating out the two previous weeks and setting the crypto asset up for further bullish momentum. However, above here, there is strong resistance remaining from where the transition from parabolic advance and bull market into downtrend and bear market first began.

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Bitcoin price has not closed a weekly candle above $11,500, suggesting it may be the final hurdle it must overcome before the bull market can begin. The last weekly candle to close above $11,500 was back in January 2018, before the bear market really took hold of Bitcoin and crypto.

Bitcoin Price Must Break $13,800 Before New All-Time Highs Are Set

If any other barriers remain above $11,500, it would be $13,800 – where Bitcoin price was rejected violently back at the end of June, causing a flash crash of over $1,000 in minutes in reaction to meeting the powerful resistance level for the first time in well over a year.

The price level also represents another potential resistance level that may need to be breached in order to truly embark on a bull run. The last time a weekly candle closed above $13,800, was on January 1, 2018, signaling an end to the bull run and hype bubble of 2017.

At the peak, Bitcoin price reached an all-time high of $20,000. If Bitcoin can once again break above $11,500, and then $13,800, it could be off to the races in terms of retesting its all-time high and potentially setting a new one. There is some minor weekly resistance at $15,250, but the momentum of breaking above $13,800 could cause Bitcoin price to blow right past it much like it did when it broke back above $6,000 earlier in the year.

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The current days and weeks are critical for Bitcoin price and the near-term future of its price trend. Watch these important resistance levels closely as price action develops and plan any buying or selling accordingly.