Bitcoin has slipped back below the $79,000 mark, with market participants bracing for heightened volatility as expectations of a Federal Reserve policy shift collide with the upcoming address from Kevin Waller. During early Asian trading on Thursday, the world's largest cryptocurrency was down nearly 1% for the day, after briefly surging past the $80,000 threshold for the first time since May earlier in the session.
Among major altcoins, Ripple suffered the steepest decline, dropping close to 3% to just above $1.41, although its weekly gains still stand at a robust 28%. Hyperliquid's HYPE token slid over 1% to below $81, while Tron retreated more than 1% to just above 33 cents. In contrast, Solana bucked the trend, climbing nearly 4% to just above $101, marking a 19% weekly advance. Ethereum edged up 1% to under $2,494, Binance Coin rose almost 1% to below $703, and Dogecoin held steady just under 9 cents.
As the session progressed, the substantial weekly gains accumulated during the past week's powerful rally have notably narrowed. Bitcoin's seven-day increase has cooled from 23% to 14%, while Ethereum's corresponding figure has contracted from 29% to 11%.
Interest rate expectations are acting as a drag on the market's rebound. Short-term Treasury prices fell overnight as traders increasingly price in the likelihood of rate hikes, a development that undermines Bitcoin's momentum in a low-yield environment—just last week, the cryptocurrency was trading below $68,000. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Waller is scheduled to deliver his inaugural keynote address at Jackson Hole on Friday, three weeks ahead of the September 15-16 rate decision meeting.
Joel Kruger, a market strategist at LMAX Group, noted that while daily chart indicators are showing overbought conditions, not every overbought scenario triggers a sharp reversal. He identified the next critical support level near May's peak at approximately $82,820, suggesting that a breakout above this point could pave the way for a move toward the $100,000 mark.
Equities, meanwhile, are painting a contrasting picture. Nvidia (NVDA.US) jumped nearly 5% in after-hours trading following its announcement of robust sales growth projections through 2028, lifting shares of Marvell Technology (MRVL.US) and SanDisk (SNDK.US) in the process. The MSCI Asia-Pacific index advanced 0.5%, led by SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, while South Korea's KOSPI composite index gained close to 2%.
In a Telegram post, Singapore-based QCP Capital observed that declining open interest suggests the market is primarily unwinding short positions rather than initiating fresh buying, with genuine demand emanating from spot ETF inflows. The firm concluded: "Given the very limited liquidity support, is this rally structural or merely a temporary phenomenon?"
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