Optimism OP struggles to gain momentum despite alleged $90 million OP purchase by a16z

• Venture capital firm a16z has purchased $90 million in OP tokens under a two-year vesting period, Unchained crypto reports.
• Sources told Unchained Crypto that Optimism has done well and the project is still doing airdrops. 
• OP price is hovering around $2.50 early on Wednesday, shedding almost 4% despite the news. 

Optimism (OP) is struggling to make a comeback above key resistance at $2.969 despite reports that venture capital firm a16z scooped up $90 million in OP tokens in a private sale. The news – reported by Unchained crypto – failed to support OP price, which trades at $2.502 on Wednesday, close to the accumulation zone on the daily time frame. 

OP price struggles despite alleged $90 million private sale

A16z purchased $90 million worth of OP tokens according to a report published on Tuesday by Unchained crypto. The VC firm’s investment is executed under a two-year vesting period, according to sources. 

The Layer 2 Ethereum scaling solution recently observed a surge in on-chain activity on its protocol and a spike in the utility of the OP stack. This is the likely catalyst for the $90 million investment by a16z. It is typical of purchases with a vesting period to be discounted relative to an asset’s market price. 

OP price is $2.502 on Binance early on Wednesday, falling 3.8% on the day. OP holders are likely still digesting the news of the private sale and Optimism is yet to see an impact on its price. 

Optimism and a16z didn’t immediately respond to FXStreet’s request for comments about the reports. 

OP could sweep support, collect liquidity in accumulation zone

Optimism finds immediate support at the April 27 low of $2.246. A decline below this level could imply a sweep of the accumulation zone, which expands from $1.800 to $2.117. The Liquidity Swings in the OP/USDT 1-day chart below indicate areas with relatively high accumulated volume. 

The areas highlighted by the Liquidity Swings typically act as support or resistance for the asset. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is at 44.64, heading towards the neutral level at 50. OP price added 35% to its value since April 13, when RSI flashed a buy signal by leaving behind the oversold zone. 

OP/USDT 1-day chart 

A daily candlestick close above $2.502 could invalidate the bearish thesis. OP price faces immediate resistance at $2.969, the bottom of the accumulation zone formed on March 19 seen in the chart above.