Bitcoin 

BTC

$20,815

 quickly returned to $48,000 during Sept. 15 as BTC/USD continued on the path to a $50,000 retest. 

Bitcoin takes aim at $50,000

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView tracked the largest cryptocurrency as it beat out thin resistance above $47,000 to zone in on psychologically significant higher levels.

Passing $47,000 was a substantial gain for bulls, with resistance then shifting up towards the $50,000 mark, an area which should come next, analysts say.

"Right now, we are looking at a potential breakout above the range high," Cointelegraph contributor Michaël van de Poppe said in his latest YouTube update earlier on the day.

Van de Poppe revealed that he was uncertain about a breakout happening at this stage, but if it were to happen, a $50,000 retest would be "pretty significant."

"That's the final hurdle before we're going to have an actual new all-time high, in my opinion," he added about flipping then retesting $50,000 as support.

A look at the latest buy and sell positions on major exchange Binance confirmed the increasing resistance wall beyond the $40,000–$50,000 corridor.

Polkadot cools gains as Cardano returns

Altcoins were also in a broadly celebratory mood Wednesday, with Cardano 

ADA

$0.349

 and Binance Coin 

BNB

$298

 both seeing gains in excess of 6%.

Related: Bitcoin has now been above $10K for a whole year

The best performers in the top ten cryptocurrencies, the two tokens outshined the previously buoyant Polkadot (DOT), which conversely lost 4% on the day.

Largest altcoin Ether 

ETH

$1,542

 added 3% to near $3,500.