Pakinomist– Bitcoin fell on Thursday, extending a streak of steep losses as risk appetite was rattled by hawkish signals from the Federal Reserve, while the prospect of a U.S. government coin sale also weighed.
At 07:30 ET (12:30 GMT), it fell 1.2% to $93,775.0, after falling as low as $92,540.0 earlier in the session.
The world’s biggest cryptocurrency largely erased a new year’s setback this week and tracked broader declines in risk-driven assets as traders braced for a slower pace of rate cuts in 2025.
Broader crypto prices also retreated, although losses on Thursday were more biased towards Bitcoin after reports said the Justice Department had received court approval to sell coins confiscated from the Silk Road marketplace.
DOJ gets court approval to sell $6.5 billion Bitcoin
Media reports said the DOJ had received court approval to sell about 69,370 Bitcoin seized after a 2014 crackdown on online black market Silk Road.
The total value of the tokens amounts to around $6.5 billion, representing a heavy dose of selling pressure on the world’s largest cryptocurrency.
The DOJ has previously sold its confiscated crypto holdings and was recently seen mobilizing its Bitcoin holdings for a potential sale. Coinbase (NASDAQ: ) has a contract with the DOJ to handle government crypto sales.
The Bitcoin selloff also dashed some hopes that the DOJ would convert its Bitcoin holdings into a strategic reserve under President-elect Donald Trump.
Trump has promised to create a national Bitcoin reserve, although it is still unclear how he will achieve this.
Crypto price today: hawkish Fed signals bullish crypto markets
Broader crypto prices fell in line with Bitcoin as risk appetite was eroded by hawkish signals from the Fed.
The minutes from the central bank’s December meeting reiterated the Fed’s plan to cut interest rates at a slower pace in 2025, amid the resilience of the US economy and concerns about sticky inflation.
Policymakers were also seen expressing some concerns that inflation remains supported by expansionary and protectionist policies under Trump, which could keep interest rates higher for longer.
Higher rates bode poorly for speculative assets such as crypto, as they weigh on investors’ appetite for risk-driven assets.
Among altcoins, it fell 1.1% to $3,305.80 after seeing steep losses earlier in the week. fell 0.8% to $2.3069, , , and closed down during the session.
(Peter Nurse contributed to his article.)
