PancakeSwap token price dropped to $2.36 on September 1, falling over 4% in 24 hours. This decline continued a trend for the month, which has wiped out nearly 20% of its value.
CAKE price dropped below $2.48, triggering stop-loss orders on various exchanges and leading to large price swings throughout the day.
The sell-off comes despite rising platform revenues and steady protocol activity. PancakeSwap generated $39 million in fees over the past 30 days, a 16.5% increase according to Token Terminal.
Its total value locked (TVL) remains firm at $2.15 billion. Yet CAKE’s market cap has slid to $829 million, leaving traders focused less on fundamentals and more on technical points that could determine the near-term direction.
Why CAKE Price Is Under Pressure
At the heart of current anxiety is the looming October 23rd staking deadline, when more than $99 million worth of CAKE may be unlocked.
Market participants are bracing for potential selling pressure if users rotate out of staking pools into liquid assets, especially in a broader DeFi market that has already shed 4.51% of TVL this week.
Adding to pressure, sentiment remains fragile. The Crypto Fear & Greed Index currently sits at 39, indicating a tilt toward “fear,” with many traders prioritizing liquidity over tokenomics.
That mindset is evident in recent flows: CAKE’s 24-hour trading volume spiked 76% to $72.1 million, but prices still fell, a classic sign of distribution rather than accumulation.
Meanwhile, burns have not been enough to offset the mood. PancakeSwap removed 513,000 CAKE ($1.41M) from supply last week, continuing its 22-month deflation streak.
While this structurally reduces the circulating supply, markets appear unconvinced that buy-side demand can absorb the looming sell-side risks.
Pancakeswap Price Breaks Below Moving Averages
On the charts, CAKE looks pinned beneath heavy resistance. The token now trades below all major moving averages, including the 7-day SMA at $2.55, the 30-day SMA at $2.68, and the 100-day SMA at $2.50.
The latest breakdown has pushed the RSI(7) to 34.42, brushing oversold territory, while the MACD histogram at –0.029 signals accelerating downside pressure. The next critical support sits near the 200-day SMA at $2.31, last tested in June.
Still, not all traders are ready to abandon the bull case. A recent chart by Alpha Crypto Signal on X highlighted a falling wedge pattern, a classic bullish reversal setup.
“If $CAKE can hold above the lower boundary and eventually break out with volume, it could mark the beginning of a reversal toward higher levels,” the analyst wrote, echoing optimism that compressed price action may resolve to the upside.
For now, the bearish camp argues momentum favors sellers until $2.48 is reclaimed. The bullish camp counters that wedge formations often end in sharp breakouts, and oversold RSI levels make CAKE a candidate for a snapback rally if broader DeFi sentiment steadies.
READ MORE: Sky Protocol Holds $0.065 Ahead of Binance Rebrand Catalyst
