Bitcoin Breakout Cools as Fed Rate-Hike Bets Climb

What happened

Bitcoin traded near $84,490 Thursday, down from the $87,397 high it touched Monday, as traders price in higher odds that the Federal Reserve raises rates again next month. Bitcoin has slipped back below $85,000 after tagging an eight-month high near $87,400 last week, with rising odds of an October Fed hike taking some air out of the rally.

In brief Bitcoin trades near $84,490, down from Monday's $87,397 high, as CME FedWatch data puts October rate-hike odds at roughly 75% and December odds near 59%. BNB and Solana are the only two of the top 10 cryptocurrencies posting 24-hour gains, up 2.75% and 2.31% respectively, while Ethereum, XRP, Zcash and Hyperliquid cool off.

Crypto derivatives show $348.33 million in liquidations today, split between $270.89 million on the long side and $77.43 million on the short side. The pullback follows a rally that carried Bitcoin from the mid-$70,000s to an eight-month high in under a week.

A rate hike means higher borrowing costs across the economy, and it typically strengthens the dollar while lifting returns on cash and government bonds. That makes non-yielding, volatile assets like Bitcoin less attractive by comparison.