Crypto Industry News:

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), who was held by Bahamian authorities, faces extradition to the United States after questioning.

According to reports, Bankman-Fried appeared on December 21 in a Bahamas Magistrates' Court hearing - his third since his arrest - where he waived his right to a formal extradition process that could take weeks. Officials from the U.S. Embassy, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Marshals Service were reportedly present to facilitate Bankman-Fried's handover.

Reuters reported that the SBF legal team said the former CEO "wanted to leave" the Bahamas. Jerome Roberts of Bankman-Fried's legal team reportedly heard the SBF say on December 19 that his decision was motivated by a desire to "put clients back on their feet." More than a million creditors from FTX have been without access to their funds for weeks.

Bahamas officials arrested Bankman-Fried on December 12 as part of extradition proceedings to the United States, where he faces Department of Justice charges of defrauding investors and lenders, as well as lawsuits filed by the CFTC and the SEC. Prior to SBF's resignation on November 11, FTX and related individuals allegedly violated campaign finance laws through "dark money" donations and used customer assets to fund investments in Alameda Research.

After being denied bail, the former CEO spent more than a week in custody at Fox Hill Prison in the Bahamas, a facility notorious for physical abuse of inmates and harsh conditions. He would likely be entitled to another bail hearing in the US court proceedings once his extradition is complete.

Technical Market Outlook:

The BTC/USD pair had made a local high at the level of $17,055 in form of a Pin Bar candlestick pattern on H4 time frame chart. The market keeps trading below 100 MA on the H4 time frame chart and is trading below the intraday technical resistance seen at $16,880. The volatility is still limited despite the recent spike down, so the trading rage is seen between the levels of $16,268 - $16,720. Any breakout below the range low would extend the corrective cycle towards the level of $15,984 (November 28th low). The weak and negative momentum supports the short-term bearish outlook on the H4 time frame chart.

Weekly Pivot Points:

WR3 - $17,039

WR2 - $16,862

WR1 - $16,778

Weekly Pivot - $16,685

WS1 - $16,601

WS2 - $16,509

WS3 - $16,332

Trading Outlook:

The down trend on the H4, Daily and Weekly time frames continues without any indication of a possible trend termination or reversal. So far every bounce and attempt to rally is being used to sell Bitcoin for a better price by the market participants, so the bearish pressure is still high. The new yearly low was made at $15,555 and if this level is violated, then the next long-term target for bulls is seen at $13,712. On the other hand, the gamechanging level for bulls is located at $25,367 and it must be clearly violated for a valid breakout in the longer term.