Bitcoin Falls Below $79,000 as XRP Leads Losses Amid Fed Rate Hike Bets

Bitcoin slipped below $79,000 in Asian trading on Thursday after briefly breaking above $80,000 for the first time since May. The pullback comes as traders reassess the recent crypto rally and increase bets that the Federal Reserve could raise interest rates.

Despite the decline, Bitcoin remains up around 14% over the past week, while XRP continues to lead major cryptocurrencies with a roughly 28% weekly gain.

Bitcoin Pulls Back as Rate Expectations Shift

Bitcoin fell almost 1% to just below $79,000 after reaching above $80,000 earlier in the week.

The move marks a cooling off period following last week's sharp rally, with weekly gains narrowing as the seven-day window moves beyond the strongest part of the advance. Bitcoin's weekly gain has dropped from 23% to 14%, while Ether's has fallen from 29% to around 11%.

The changing rate outlook is adding pressure. Shorter-dated U.S. Treasury yields moved lower as traders increased bets on a potential Fed rate hike, challenging the supportive yield backdrop that helped Bitcoin climb from below $68,000 last week.

Attention is now turning to Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's first Jackson Hole keynote on Friday, ahead of the Federal Reserve's September 15-16 policy meeting.

XRP Leads Crypto Losses

XRP posted the sharpest decline among major cryptocurrencies, falling almost 3% to just above $1.41. Despite the pullback, XRP remains up approximately 28% over seven days.

The decline follows XRP's explosive recent recovery. As discussed in our recent XRP Price Analysis for August 26, the token had already begun consolidating after reaching around $1.70, with the $1.50 - $1.55 region emerging as an important resistance zone.

Other major tokens were mixed. Hyperliquid's HYPE slipped more than 1% to below $81, while TRON fell less than 1% to just above $0.33.

Solana moved against the broader market, gaining almost 4% to above $101, while Ether rose about 1% to just below $2,494. BNB added almost 1% to just under $703, and Dogecoin remained below $0.09.

Can Bitcoin's Rally Continue?

The recent pullback does not necessarily signal the end of Bitcoin's recovery.

LMAX Group markets strategist Joel Kruger noted that daily technical indicators are in overbought territory, but said heavily overbought conditions do not always lead to a major reversal.

Kruger identified the May high near $82,820 as the next important confirmation level. A sustained break above that level could potentially open the path toward $100,000.

At the same time, the market's internal structure remains important. Singapore based QCP Capital said falling open interest suggests the recent move has been driven more by short covering than fresh leveraged buying, while spot ETF inflows have provided genuine demand.

That leaves Bitcoin at an important crossroads: the rally has delivered strong gains, but traders are now watching whether fresh spot demand can keep prices supported as monetary policy expectations become less favorable.

For now, $79,000 remains an important short-term area to watch, while a move back above $80,000 would put the recent highs back in focus.