By George Glover
Bitcoin was dropping on Monday as fears of higher interest rates dragged down cryptocurrencies and other risk assets.
Bitcoin was down 2.1% to $76,791 over the past 24 hours, according to data from CoinDesk. That meant the largest crypto by total market capitalization was trading 62% off the record high it hit in October.
The world's largest cryptocurrency jumped as high as $81,900 last week after the Senate Banking Committee approved a long-sought bill on how digital assets are regulated. The so-called Clarity Act has a long way to go before becoming law but the vote was a step in the right direction.
But the gains following Thursday's vote have quickly faded, with Bitcoin now at its lowest level since May began.
Other tokens were also sliding. Ethereum fell 4%, Solana declined 3.2%, and XRP was 3.3% over the past 24 hours, per the Kraken crypto exchange.
The selloff came as investors worried that a flare-up in inflation will bolster the case for the Federal Reserve to hike rates. Cryptos tend to become less attractive relative to yield-bearing investments like bonds when borrowing costs rise.
Markets are currently pricing in a 55% chance of at least one rate hike by the end of the year, up from 24% a week ago, according to CME's FedWatch tool.
Write to George Glover at george.glover@dowjones.com
This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 18, 2026 07:41 ET (11:41 GMT)
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