The crypto market has dipped after the weekend rally, with top coins shedding off their recent gains. Bitcoin slipped off the $60,000 level again, and Ether has crept below $2,400 and currently trades just above $2,300.
This price decline comes as investors anticipate a rate cut later this week following the FOMC meeting scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.
Moreover, the slip-offs coincide with reports of Donald Trump’s second assassination attempt.
Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Altcoins Shed Weekend Gains
Bitcoin rallied over the weekend, reaching a high of $60,634 on Saturday, September 14. However, it has since shed off some gains, declining over 4% to briefly trade at just above $58,165 before climbing above $58,000.
Ethereum also dropped over 5% to trade at $2,259 before returning to around $2,317 as of 5:39 am EST. Other top altcoins followed a similar trend; Solana has declined 3.8% to trade around $131.63. XRP has dropped 2.76% to trade at $0.5717, while Dogecoin shed off 2.95% of its gains to trade at $0.1023 around the same timeframe.
Meanwhile, the broader crypto market capitalization currently stands at $2.06 trillion, down by 2.06% over the past 24 hours. The downtrend comes amid heightened anticipation of an interest rate cut by the US Feds.
Possible Factors Driving Today’s Crypto Price Decline
Presto Research analyst Min Jung believes the ongoing downturn may be due to “a broader risk-odd movement ahead of the FOMC meeting.” Jung says crypto is likely giving up the Friday gains not recorded in the equity markets.
Many believe the Federal Open Market Committee meeting on September 17 and 18 will focus on the rate cut. Market participants expect the Federal Reserve to announce a rate cut after this meeting.
An interest rate cut could influence cryptocurrency prices and the broader financial markets. The reason is that lower interest rates make borrowing cheaper, encouraging more consumer spending and investment, which could boost stock prices.
Meanwhile, SOFA.org’s head of insights, Augustine Fan, says Bitcoin’s weekend rally isn’t due to “anything crypto-specific.” Fan believes Bitcoin rallied on Friday likely “due to the massive squeeze in SOFR futures (50 basis point cut) and the resulting equity rally.”
#BTC fell 2.7% and #Ether 5.38%, driven by news of a Trump assassination attempt and rate cut speculation.
Check out the article by @TheBlock__ featuring
our Head of Insights, Augustine @tangpingnomics ⬇https://t.co/ixD6UONQVd— SOFA.org (@SOFAorgDAO) September 16, 2024
Fan said the momentum has waned, and the crypto market is back to its less exciting state. “We are failing to see a carry-through of that momentum in today’s session,” he noted.
Despite rate cut speculations, Bitcoin has not experienced a profound break over the past two weeks. Weighing in on BTC’s performance, Augustine Fan noted that the buzz around the Fed rate cut hasn’t significantly impacted the asset’s price.
“The truth is that we are still at $58,000, and [the price of Bitcoin] hasn’t moved in two weeks outside of a small break to $54,000 and $60,000, so all of this is noise,” Fan said.
Trump’s Assassination Attempt
Some market observers speculate that Trump’s apparent assassination attempt at his Florida golf club on Sunday contributed to today’s crypto downturn. However, analysts Min Jung and Augustine Fan have different opinions.
Jung noted that while the timing of Trump’s assassination coincides with the crypto market downturn, it is difficult to say both events are directly related. Similarly, Augustine Fan says Trump’s apparent assassination attempt “is a non-factor for macro markets for now.”
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