Crypto altcoins lead slide after US Fed raises possibility of rate hikes

PRICES in the cryptocurrency market slumped across the board after the Federal Reserve signalled the possibility of resuming its interest-rate hikes after pausing its tightening cycle.

“The reaction lines up very closely with what was seen in other risk assets, in what is currently being interpreted by the markets as a marginally more hawkish than expected Fed,” said Stephane Ouellette, chief executive of FRNT Financial, an institutional platform focused on digital assets. “As in most markets, there are some that speculate on breakouts around these events. I would imagine some of those short-term trades unwound, leading to the sell-off and bounce.”

Bitcoin, which accounts for almost half the US$1 trillion crypto market’s value, tested the US$25,000 price level as it declined for a third day. Ether dropped around 4.6 per cent, while so-called altcoins such as XRP and Litecoin dropped around 8 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively.

Technically, Bitcoin continues to threaten a decisive breakdown of the 2023 up-trend line with “resistance quite clearly lined up” in the US$30,000 to US$31,000 range, Ouellette said.

Fed officials paused on Wednesday (Jun 14) following 15 months of interest-rate hikes but signalled they would likely resume tightening at some point to cool inflation.

“The downward pressure in the market appears to be coming from traders who were positioned long before today’s FOMC announcement that bought the rumour and are now selling the fact,” said Darius Tabatabai, co-founder at decentralised exchange Vertex Protocol.

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More specifically, we are seeing liquidations on Vertex and across many other venues as many look to reposition in the face of a hawkish outlook, Tabatabai said. BLOOMBERG