Crypto Braces For Volatility: Bitcoin Holds $74,000 Ahead Of Fed Rate Decision, Altcoins Lead Gains

• Bitcoin continues to consolidate, with resistance levels between $76,000 and $80,000 in focus, according to MNFund chief investment officer Michael van de Poppe.
• Altcoins, including Cardano, XRP, and Ethereum, outperformed Bitcoin, posting stronger gains over the last 24 hours.
• Institutional demand remained steady, with Bitcoin ETFs recording $199 million in inflows despite macro uncertainty.

Bitcoin (BTC) held above $74,000 on Wednesday morning ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates later in the day, while the U.S. and Iran enter their third week.

Bitcoin’s price was trading around $74,200, up 0.7% over the last 24 hours. Retail sentiment around the apex cryptocurrency on Stocktwits remained in ‘bullish’ territory amid ‘normal’ levels of chatter over the past day. 

One cautious user said it’s unlikely the Federal Reserve will cut rates on Wednesday, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell may even announce the central bank won’t cut rates for a while amid the U.S.-Iran war.

Optimistic users opined that the Federal Reserve’s announcement wouldn’t really impact the price of Bitcoin.

Bitcoin’s Price Is Consolidating

According to crypto analyst Ted Pillows, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting is likely to add volatility to the crypto market. In a post on X, he said if Bitcoin’s price does rise ahead of the meeting, the price level would represent a “local top.”

Founder and chief investment officer at MNFund, Michael van de Poppe, echoed a similar sentiment. He stated that Bitcoin’s price is consolidating and will continue to test higher levels, citing the resistance levels above. “Wouldn’t be surprised with that test at $76-80K,” he wrote on X.

Cardano, XRP,  Ethereum Lead Gains Among Crypto Majors

The overall cryptocurrency market edged 0.6% higher in the last 24 hours, holding above $2.6 trillion. Cardano (ADA) led gains among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization, followed by Ripple’s XRP (XRP) and Ethereum (ETH). 

ADA’s price rose 1.6% in the last 24 hours, while XRP’s price was up around 1% – staying above the $1.50 mark. Ethereum’s price edged 0.8% higher to around $2,300, which analysts attributed to strength in ETF inflows after BlackRock launched its iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF (ETHB) last week.

Despite uncertainty surrounding the upcoming Fed rate-cut meeting, inflows into Bitcoin spot ETFs remained strong at $199 million by the end of Tuesday. The CME FedWatch tool showed a 98.9% probability that rates would remain unchanged this month.

Read also: Arthur Hayes Says Fed Won't Cut Rates For Trump, Ignores Bitcoin – Bank Stress Is The Real Signal

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