Bitcoin and the top 10 non-stablecoin cryptocurrencies plummeted on Thursday morning in Asia. Litecoin outperformed XRP. After the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates as predicted on Wednesday but later warned rates could be higher for longer, U.S. markets slumped. A lawsuit against Justin Sun and a warning to Coinbase regarding its staking products raise crypto fears.
According to CoinMarketCap data, bitcoin declined 2.53% in the past 24 hours to US$27,355 at 09:00 a.m. in Hong Kong, but it gained 12.55% in the past seven days. Before the Fed’s rate hike and hawkish statements, Bitcoin reached a nine-month high of US$28,803.
Ether fell 2.85% to US$1,739 but gained 5.6% over the week.XRP fell 8.66% to US$0.4219. With a recent jump on hopes the SEC litigation involving the token is nearing resolution, it is up 17.57% for the week.Just Litecoin gained in the past 24 hours. The token climbed 6.07% to US$86.63, 13.32% weekly.
On Wednesday, the U.S. SEC sued Justin Sun and three of his companies—Tron Foundation Limited, BitTorrent Foundation Ltd., and Rainberry Inc. (formerly BitTorro) for selling and offering unregistered “crypto asset securities” Tronix (TRX) and BitTorrent (BTT). It also sued Lindsay Lohan and Jake Paul for allegedly marketing TRX and BTT.
After getting a Wells notice alleging securities law violations, Coinbase may be sued by the SEC again.Crypto market capitalisation fell 2.31% to US$1.15 trillion in 24 hours. The 24-hour trade volume rose 1.75% to US$68.93 billion.U.S. stocks fell Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 1.63%, the S&P 500 1.65%, and the Nasdaq Composite Index 1.60%.
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve boosted its target range for U.S. interest rates by 25 basis points to 4.75% to 5%.Investors expect further rate hikes this year after the Fed maintained its goal to keep annual inflation below 2%. February’s consumer price index (CPI) climbed 6%, down from 6.4% in January but still above the Fed’s 2% target.
According to Reuters, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told a Senate Appropriations subcommittee that she has not contemplated a “blanket insurance or guarantees” of all bank accounts.As of 9:00 a.m. in Hong Kong, U.S. stock futures were marginally higher. Dow futures rose 0.15%. Futures rose 0.12%. Nasdaq Composite up 0.09%.
