Bitcoin experienced sharp swings after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates steady, briefly falling below $80,000 as altcoins broadly retreated. The Fed decision was in line with market expectations, but volatility followed as Fed Chair Warsh did not rule out another rate increase in December.
Bitcoin's Post-FOMC Swings
After a rejection at $85,000 last Wednesday, bitcoin fell to $83,000 within hours and to $81,000 by Thursday. The decline continued into the weekend, with a drop to $79,100 on Saturday, its lowest level in five weeks.
The cryptocurrency struggled to hold above $80,000 for long before gaining traction on Tuesday and Wednesday morning, rising to $81,700 ahead of the second-to-last FOMC meeting of the year. It dipped to $80,500 before the meeting, surged to $81,800 after the decision, then was rejected and slumped to $79,600 hours later.
Bitcoin has been unable to stage a notable comeback since then and was struggling around $80,000. Its market capitalization stood at $1.61 trillion, while its dominance over altcoins was at 60%.
Altcoins in the Red
Altcoins followed bitcoin lower. Ethereum fell 2.14% to $2,320, XRP dropped 3% below $1.30, SOL returned to $100, and ZEC fell more than 5% to $1,250. HYPE, DOGE, LINK, and ADA were also in the red.
NEAR and BCH led the decline with losses of around 8% each. CC, ENA, and MNT dropped by up to 7%. BTW was the only major exception, rising 8% to near $1.90.
The total crypto market capitalization fell 1.5% from the previous day to $2.680 trillion.
