Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies experienced a decline on Thursday after a selloff on Wednesday, following the Federal Reserve's latest interest-rate hike. Despite the setback, cryptocurrency traders predict that the digital asset rally will continue, albeit with a temporary pause.
Over the past 24 hours, the price of Bitcoin has fallen by 1.5%, reaching $27,700, dropping from the high point of $28,500 on Wednesday. However, the digital asset rebounded from the trough below $27,000 immediately after the Fed raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point. Wednesday's peak marked the highest level for Bitcoin since the crypto bear market accelerated last June. Prices for the largest digital asset are still up by more than two-thirds in 2023 in a rally that has spurred calls for a new bull market.
Sam Yilmaz, co-founder of venture fund Bloccelerate, said, "Bitcoin's rally ahead of the Fed set us up for disappointment, and sure enough, we saw Bitcoin retreat from just shy of $29,000 after Powell's press conference. A cooling off period is overdue and allows Bitcoin and crypto to settle. I still believe Bitcoin could go to $35,000 in a matter of weeks because, put simply, price action breeds price action in crypto."
Cryptocurrencies fell in line with the stock market after the Fed hiked rates. This return to Bitcoin's correlation with equities comes after weeks of outperformance. While the rate hike of 25 basis points was expected, digital assets dropped in step with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 as investors worried about how tightening financial conditions would continue to pressure the banking system.