Bitcoin (BTC) remains in a bearish position this Wednesday, with the BTC/USDT pair below at US$29,300, have hardly budged since Monday’s bruising 3% dip.
Traders appear apprehensive about the benchmark cryptocurrency, with exchange-traded volumes depressed and open interest on the derivatives market falling by the low single digits overnight.
There appears to be a ‘wait and see’ attitude in anticipation of today’s interest rate decision from the US Federal Reserve.
Another 25-point interest rate hike is roundly expected, with anything heavier unlikely given the US’s continually declining inflation numbers.
Bitcoin traders waiting on Fed to make a move – Source: currency.com
The big question is: Can bitcoin reclaim the all-important US$30,000 price point in the short term?
That may depend on forward guidance from the Fed; if Powell and company signal an end to hikes, risk-on assets like bitcoin could see a boost of confidence.
For the moment, Binance’s order book is fairly balanced between buy and sell order, suggesting pierce volatility could be subdued in the hours ahead.
Ethereum (ETH), the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, closed 0.4% higher against the US dollar yesterday to hit the midnight bell at US$1,857.
The ETH/USDT pair fell back 0.3% to US$1,852 in this morning’s Asia trading window.
Global cryptocurrency market capitalisation currently stands at US$1.17tn, with bitcoin dominance sticking below 50%.
Dogecoin still on a run
Shiba Inu-themed meme coin Dogecoin (DOGE) continues to be the top performer in the blue-chip altcoin space.
The DOGE/USDT pair surged a formidable 10.3% on Monday, bringing the pair to a three-month high of US$0.084, though it has since knocked back to US$0.080.
Dogecoin has been on a rally since Twitter boss Elon Musk gave a nod to the meme coin by putting the Ð ticker symbol in his Twitter bio.
Shiba Inu (SHIB), a similarly themed meme coin, has benefitted from this also, with the SHIB/USDT pair adding 1.2% overnight.
Other top movers in the altcoin space today include Toncoin (TON), Tron (TRX) and Compound (COMP).
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