After cutting off Bitcoin around early Wednesday. $BTC$66,250.94 It reversed mid-afternoon in the US, falling to session lows below $66,000, putting pressure back on the lower end of the recent range.
After trading $68,500 in one night, $BTC It is down 2.5% in the past 24 hours and last traded at $66,200.
Cryptocurrency stocks, which started the day strong, followed suit, either narrowing their gains or falling entirely. Most notable was Coinbase (COIN), which went from up 3% in the morning to down 2% by the afternoon. Strategy (MSTR), the largest corporate holder of Bitcoin, fell about 3% as the underlying asset fell.
After a strong start, U.S. stocks regained much of their gains just before the close. What didn’t help were the surprisingly hawkish minutes of the Federal Reserve’s January Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. As expected, most central bankers agreed with the decision to pause rate cuts, but some perversely suggested that the Fed was backing “two-faced” guidance that it could choose to raise rates if inflation remains high.
The dollar had already strengthened on the day, but the dollar index (DXY), which measures the dollar against a basket of major foreign currencies, strengthened further by rising to its highest level in nearly two weeks. A strong dollar often weighs on risk assets, and Wednesday’s cryptocurrency selloff appears to fit that pattern.
With today’s decline, Bitcoin has now suffered its fifth consecutive week of declines, the worst consecutive decline since the extended bear market of 2022.
They also face important challenges at their current level. The $66,000 area held as support last week, facilitating a rebound above $70,000. If this floor breaks decisively, traders will likely start looking at the early February low of $60,000 or even lower.
