Over the last 24 hours, the Bitcoin price rose only 0.2%, reaching $64,339.7 as of 05:38. The world’s largest cryptocurrency continues to move within the tight trading range between $60,000 and $70,000 seen over the past six weeks. This horizontal trend reflects the cautious atmosphere that has been dominant in the market for a while.

During the week, news emerged that disgraced Binance founder Changpeng Zhao had been found guilty of violating anti-money laundering laws and that US prosecutors were seeking a three-year prison sentence for him. This development made investors nervous, increasing concerns that regulatory pressure on cryptocurrencies will continue.

Bitcoin and the overall crypto market did not benefit sufficiently from the overnight decline in the dollar that followed lower-than-expected US gross domestic product data. This situation was interpreted as an indication that investors’ hopes that the Fed would cut interest rates in the near future were weakening.

But a stronger GDP price index reading revealed investors were further dampening their expectations for a rate cut by the Fed. Data from the CME Fedwatch tool shows that investors expect a rate cut only through September or the fourth quarter of 2024.

The possibility that high interest rates will continue in the long term in the United States reduces the appeal of volatility-prone and speculative assets. This keeps investors cautious about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin tends to perform better in low interest and high liquidity environments.

Bitcoin also ignored the rise in US technology stocks, which came after tech giants Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOGL) announced strong earnings reports, giving positive signals recently. This suggests that the correlation between Bitcoin and US technology stocks has weakened in recent weeks. In previous periods, when technology stocks gained value, Bitcoin generally moved upwards. However, this recent break may indicate that the crypto market is now acting more independently from traditional financial markets.

In the short term, the Bitcoin and cryptocurrency market will focus on the results of upcoming US inflation data. If inflation is higher than investors expect, it is possible that there will be selling pressure in the cryptocurrency markets.

In the long term, Bitcoin’s price performance will depend on various macro-economic factors such as the global economy and US interest rates. If the high interest rate environment continues, it may become difficult for Bitcoin to move upwards. However, positive developments such as the expansion of use of cryptocurrencies and increased institutional investor interest may support Bitcoin’s long-term outlook.

Investors should make informed investment decisions by closely following the developments in the cryptocurrency market and accurately assessing their risks.