Bitcoin Update

On Monday, April 18, in the early morning, the bitcoin rate updated a minimum of $38,536 and jumped to $41,166 (+6.82%) by the close of the American session. The first half of the week was favorable for all top cryptocurrencies. On Thursday, April 21, the price rose to $42,976, which started a new sale of Bitcoin and other coins. The mood of speculators and investors changed along with the dynamics of futures for US stock indices.

The rally of the dollar and the fall of stock indices was caused by the head of the US Federal Reserve, J. Powell. He approved the possibility of a multiple rate hike of 50 bp. at upcoming Fed meetings. His and other FOMC comments over the past week suggest the Fed needs to raise rates three times by 50 basis points. According to the latest CME FedWatch Tool data, the probability of a rate increase on May 4 is 99.6%, on June 15 - 69.8%, on July 27 - 58.4%.

US Treasuries and the US dollar ended the week higher on the back of hawkish comments from the Fed. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes recorded losses of 5.18% and 7.06%, respectively. There is an opinion that the market is starting to lay an increase of 0.75 points already at the next meeting. There is still time until May 4th.

As a result, over Thursday and Friday, the price of bitcoin fell by 8.84%, to $39,177. Among the significant events in the crypto industry, one can highlight the decision of Binance to restrict access to its services to customers who live in Russia and have assets worth more than €10,000. Such customers will only be able to use the withdrawal function. If the value drops below the specified mark, the client will again have access to trading and other functions of the site. Restrictions are introduced in accordance with the fifth package of EU restrictive measures against Russia.

After a 9% drop, the price is trading in a tight range for twenty hours. The dynamics of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq remain in the spotlight this week. From US statistics, it is worth highlighting March orders for durable goods, GDP for the 1st quarter and basic personal consumption expenditures (PCE) for March according to annual and monthly readings, as well as the Chicago business activity index.

At the beginning of the year, bitcoin has fallen in price by 14% and remains to be traded in a wide range with borders of $33,000–$48,200. Buyers' positions remain weak. Sellers dominate as stimulus rolls back and monetary policy tightens. For them, the first target remains the level of $34,800. Whereas buyers need to pass the $43,000 level.