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Bitcoin prices were steady on Thursday after falling from recent highs, amid tight presidential election expectations and higher US interest rates that made traders less interested in the crypto.
Crypto trading volumes were also mostly calm amid increased risk aversion, while losses in the stock market yesterday sent mixed signals to the crypto market. Most altcoins also followed Bitcoin's quiet movement, while Solana soared higher than its peers with increased activity on the blockchain.
Bitcoin is up 1.6% to $67,866 at the time of writing. The BTC price has been moving in a narrow range for the past two sessions after failing to break above the $70,000 level earlier this week.
Bitcoin initially surged due to increased speculation that Donald Trump will win a second term in 2024. Recent opinion polls and prediction markets also show Trump has a slight lead over Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
Trump promised to introduce friendlier crypto regulations if elected, and he has voiced support for crypto in recent campaigns.
However, Trump's macroeconomic policies are generally expected to be inflationary, a trend that leads to high interest rates and a stronger dollar. The sentiment pushed the dollar to a three-month high in the recent session, while putting pressure on risk markets.
Expectations of a slower rate of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve are also putting pressure on speculative assets like crypto, as higher interest rates limit the amount of liquidity that can be used in risky assets.
Traders were seen bracing for a smaller rate cut, which was 25 basis points by the Federal Reserve in November, according to CME Fedwatch.
Altcoins generally move in a low range. The world's second-largest cryptocurrency, Ethereum, fell 1.9% to $2,526.59.
MATIC and XRP moved in lower ranges, while ADA declined around 3%. Among meme tokens, DOGE rose by 1.6%.
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse remains optimistic that the US SEC will finally approve an exchange-traded fund (ETF) for XRP, the cryptocurrency developed by Ripple's founder, despite ongoing conflicts with the regulator.