Bitcoin Steadies Near $112K as Traders Await Fed Rate Decision
Bitcoin held steady during early Asian trading hours Tuesday, hovering near $112,000 as investors stayed cautious ahead of this week’s Federal Reserve rate decision.
The leading cryptocurrency slipped 1.8% in the past 24 hours and 0.5% over the last hour, changing hands at $112,100. Despite the pullback, Bitcoin remains up 3.4% for the week, with price action showing consolidation rather than a renewed sell-off.
While prediction markets and futures pricing overwhelmingly expect the Fed to cut rates, traders appear reluctant to position aggressively until the decision is confirmed.
“Bitcoin is consolidating rather than chasing upside, while gold continues to weaken,” said Enflux, a Singapore-based market maker, in a note to CoinDesk. “That supports the view that liquidity is rotating from metals into digital stores of value.”
The firm added that gold’s recent retreat may be reinforcing the shift toward Bitcoin as investors look for higher-beta assets in a softening macro backdrop.
OKX Singapore CEO Gracie Lin said that trading desks are largely accumulating rather than speculating, with capital moving into USD stablecoins to preserve liquidity.
“Traders are concentrating funds in deep order books — what some call a ‘dry-powder’ strategy,” Lin said, noting that sentiment has improved amid U.S.-China trade progress and growing confidence in a rate cut.
Lin added that lower leverage and higher stablecoin balances suggest the market is “coiling for a potential breakout” as macro conditions turn more supportive.
According to Enflux, the $110,000 level has become a key short-term support zone, attracting steady dip-buying over the past week.
Market Snapshot
- BTC: Down 1.8% to $112,100, consolidating below $116,000 resistance.
- ETH: Fell 3.8% to $3,970, underperforming as traders rotated into Bitcoin and stablecoins.
- Gold: Dropped to a three-week low near $3,950, even as LBMA delegates in Kyoto projected a potential rise to $4,980 within a year.
- Nikkei 225: Gained 1% to a record above 51,000, leading Asian markets ahead of the Fed’s expected 25-basis-point cut, with investors betting on a dovish tone from Chair Jerome Powell.
