Steady at $63.5k After Rate Cut Cheer

Bitcoin’s price surged to a three-week high on Friday, positioning it for a robust week as investor sentiment improved following a significant interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

Initially, the world’s most prominent cryptocurrency reacted somewhat mixed to the rate cut, but it eventually aligned with the rising trend seen in other risk-driven markets, particularly stocks. Broader cryptocurrency values also increased on Friday, setting them on a path for weekly gains.

Bitcoin climbed over 1% to reach $63,514.00 by 08:21 ET (12:21 GMT), marking its highest value since mid-August.

Bitcoin Sees Weekly Gains

This week, Bitcoin recorded an approximately 6% increase, aiming for its second consecutive positive week. The overall sentiment in the cryptocurrency markets was lifted by the Fed’s actions, which tend to increase liquidity and encourage investment in speculative assets. Analysts predict that the Fed’s recent rate cut could initiate an easing cycle that might lower rates by as much as 125 basis points by the year’s end.

However, potential for larger gains in both crypto and other risk-driven markets remained somewhat restrained by comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who indicated that the Fed’s neutral rate would be higher than in previous years. This raised concerns about how low interest rates might actually fall and sparked apprehensions regarding the state of the economy and the possibility of slowed growth in the coming months.

Low interest rates played a crucial role in the bullish cryptocurrency market of 2021, but the sector has seen a prolonged decline in retail interest since then. Earlier this year, spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) offered a modest boost to trading volumes.

Bitcoin has largely traded within a narrow range for most of the year.

Current Cryptocurrency Market Overview: Mixed Performance Among Altcoins

Overall cryptocurrency prices rose alongside Bitcoin; however, altcoins were poised for mixed weekly results. Recent capital inflows into the crypto market have primarily favored Bitcoin and Ether, with Bitcoin maintaining its significant market dominance.

The second-largest cryptocurrency, Ether, rose by 4.8% to $2,554.74 and achieved a 5.6% gain for the week. Other notable cryptocurrencies fluctuated in value, with some experiencing gains between 0% and 7%. Among them, one asset jumped by an impressive 10% this week, while others were expected to show flat or lower weekly performance.

In the meme token category, one popular token increased by 1% and registered a 0.9% weekly gain.

Notable Movement of Bitcoin from Early Days

On Friday, hundreds of Bitcoin mined during the early days of the network were moved, marking a rare event for Bitcoin from the "Satoshi era," which spans from late 2009 to 2011 when Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, was still active in online discussions.

An on-chain tracker noted that over 250 Bitcoin, valued at nearly $16 million at current prices, were transferred during European morning hours. These transactions, which took place within an hour, involved batches of 50 Bitcoin sent to new wallets.

It remains uncertain if the wallets belong to the same individual or entity, and as of now, none of the newly transferred Bitcoin have been sent to cryptocurrency exchanges. Blockchain data indicates that these Bitcoins were received as block rewards in 2009, just months after the network’s launch, and had remained inactive until the recent transfers.

Report contributed to by Ambar Warrick.