Bitcoin
Drops to $69K, but Ether maintains gains on ETF hype By Investing.com
Investing.com – The price of Bitcoin fell slightly on Wednesday as anticipation of more signals on U.S. interest rates caused traders to lock in gains from a recent rebound in optimism towards a spot traded fund on Ether exchange.
The world’s No. 2 cryptocurrency has steadied at a more than two-month high after reports this week suggested some progress toward approval of spot ETFs by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The regulator is expected to make a long-awaited decision on the possible approval of ETFs later this week.
But warnings about sticky US inflation and higher interest rates for longer have kept traders cautious about cryptocurrency markets and also stripped Bitcoin of recent gains.
fell 1.5% in the last 24 hours to $69,880.1 at 01:33 ET (05:33 GMT).
Ether Stabilizes at More Than 2-Month High, SEC ETF Decision in Focus
Ether rose 3% in the last 24 hours to $3,755.37 and was near its highest level since early March. The token rose as much as 18% on Monday.
Media reports said the SEC asked exchanges to adjust their registrations for spot Ether ETFs on Monday, ahead of a crucial decision on their approval later this week.
The move marks some progress in approving ETFs, although the SEC could still deny applications as it has not engaged with any of the applicants to date.
Still, analysts said the SEC’s move reflected a greater likelihood of an eventual approval of a spot Ether ETF. The approval is expected to trigger a rally in cryptocurrency prices, similar to what was seen with the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs earlier this year.
Bitcoin struggles to maintain gains, more Fed signals awaited
The token rose as high as $71,000 on Tuesday before falling back to a $60,000 to $70,000 trading range seen for most of the past two months.
Sentiment towards crypto, despite optimism regarding an Ether ETF in sight, was still limited by lingering concerns about US interest rates.
Several Fed officials warned this week that the central bank needed more confidence that inflation was coming down before it could start cutting interest rates.
The focus was now on , for more hints on when the central bank might start cutting interest rates.
High rates for longer periods bode poorly for crypto markets as they limit the appeal of high-risk and highly speculative assets.
Crypto Price Today: Altcoin Rally Cools Down
Broader altcoin prices also cooled as Bitcoin pulled back, while traders remained largely biased towards Ether in the altcoin complex. Resilience has also limited any major upside in crypto.
fell 0.2%, while it fell 0.5%. Among meme coins, they rose 3.1% while they rose 1%.