Bitcoin's Price Steady Amid Market Pressures

Bitcoin’s price steadied on Thursday after pulling back from recent highs as anticipation of a tight presidential election and relatively higher U.S. interest rates kept traders averse towards crypto.

Crypto trading volumes were mostly subdued amid increased risk aversion, while overnight losses in stock markets provided middling cues to crypto markets. Most altcoins tracked muted moves in Bitcoin, while Solana rallied past its peers on increased activity on the blockchain.

Bitcoin rose 0.3% to $67,437.9 by 01:17 ET (05:17 GMT). The token has remained stable for the past two sessions after failing to break past $70,000 earlier this week.

Rates, Election Jitters Pressure Bitcoin

Bitcoin had initially rallied on speculation that Donald Trump will win a second term in 2024. Recent polls and prediction markets showed Trump with a slight edge over Democratic nominee Kamala Harris. Trump has proposed friendlier crypto regulations if elected, maintaining a largely pro-crypto stance during recent campaigns.

However, Trump’s broader macroeconomic policies are expected to be inflationary, leading to relatively high interest rates and a stronger dollar. This scenario has pushed the dollar to a near three-month high, applying pressure on risk-driven markets.

Expectations of a slower pace of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve have also impacted speculative assets such as crypto, as higher rates limit liquidity for risk assets. Traders are widely positioning for a smaller, 25 basis point cut by the Fed in November, as shown by the CME Fedwatch.

U.S. purchasing managers index data due later on Thursday is expected to provide more insights on the U.S. economy.

Solana Rallies Amid Increased Blockchain Activity, Memecoin Speculation

Solana was an outperformer in crypto markets this week, rising 4.5% to a near three-month high of $173.068 on Thursday amid increased trading volumes. Coindesk attributed these gains to heightened activity on the Solana blockchain, particularly in meme tokens related to artificial intelligence.

User numbers on Solana reached record highs of over 8 million, with speculative positions increasing sharply this week. Solana’s performance has shown an 8.4% increase this week, compared to a 1.5% drop in Bitcoin.

Crypto Price Today: Ether Falls, Altcoins Muted

Broader altcoins were flat to low. The world’s second-largest crypto, Ether, was an outlier, falling 2.4% to $2,553.24. MATIC, ADA, and XRP also remained steady, while among meme tokens, DOGE rose 1.2%.