Quick overview

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Markets are awaiting signals from the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank on the future path of interest rates, against a backdrop of persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Bitcoin fell below the $77,000 mark on Tuesday as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of key central bank decisions this week. Rising oil prices and renewed inflation concerns have weighed on appetite for risk assets, placing cryptocurrencies under pressure.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency is down 0.8%, trading around $76,100, though it still posts a modest weekly gain of 0.5%. Meanwhile, Ethereum slipped 0.1% to around $2,200 per token and remains down 0.8% over the past seven days.

The broader altcoin market is showing similar weakness, with Solana and XRP falling 1% and 1.2%, respectively. The few exceptions include Figure Heloc, which gained 0.5%, while Dogecoin rose 1.2%.

Crypto Markets Focused on Central Banks

This week’s agenda for crypto investors is dominated by meetings from the Federal Reserve, the Bank of England, and the European Central Bank.

The tone was set earlier by the Bank of Japan, which decided Tuesday to keep interest rates unchanged, although the vote revealed the highest level of dissent within the institution since January 2016.

Attention now turns to the Fed, which will announce its decision on Wednesday. While markets do not expect a change in interest rates, investors will closely watch the press conference from Jerome Powell, likely his final appearance as head of the central bank.

The following day, focus will shift to Europe’s central banks, as the region remains one of the areas most affected by the surge in global oil prices caused by the war in the Middle East.