Today on Saturday, December 21, the BTC and digital asset markets are up, according to data shared by CryptoRank.io. The broader virtual currency market capitalization is $3.56 trillion, up 5.31% over yesterday. The total crypto trading volume is $312.18 billion. BTC dominance currently stands at +54.50% while that of ETH is +11.71%. Today, the fear and greed index has decreased to 73, still indicating continued greed in the market.
?Market Overview#Bitcoin trades above $98K. The top-10 cryptos are traded in green zone:$ADA +19.2%$DOGE +16.4%$XRP +8.38%
— CryptoRank.io (@CryptoRank_io) December 21, 2024
Market capitalization: $3.61T (+6.23%)
The #BTC dominance: 54.01% (-1.94%)
Fear & Greed Index: 73 (Greed)
? Top Gainers
Baby Peng $BABYPENGU… pic.twitter.com/oe3CiCspTz
Digital asset prices see a sigh of relief
Several major tokens like Bitcoin, Cardano, XRP, and others surged their values amid the wider market plunge triggered by the Fed’s latest macro-economic situation update on Wednesday.
Bitcoin expanded its value to above $98,000 today on Saturday from a low of $95,875 yesterday. Other prominent cryptocurrencies trading in green include Cardano, Dogecoin, and XRP.
ADA is currently trading at $0.9266, up 19.20% in the past 24 hours. DOGE is hovering around $0.3255, up 16.4% over yesterday, while XRP is also up 8.38%, standing at $2.25 at the time of writing. Meanwhile, today’s top gainers include Baby Peng (1,061%), Sekuya (62.8%), Yesnoerror (123.6%), dForce (104.7%), and Ski Mask cat (102.7%).
Crypto prices embrace market correction
Despite today’s surge, most crypto assets discontinued their bull runs as the market embraced its ongoing correction, further ignited by the Fed’s updated macroeconomic forecasts.
Steady price decreases occurred after the Fed announced greater than anticipated inflation and unemployment predictions for 2025, triggering widespread reactions in international investment markets.
Although the central bank decreased lending rates by 0.25%, it hinted no more cuts are anticipated soon, embracing a more cautious approach that worried investors.
The Fed highlighted that the country has made some progress in reducing inflation. However, the rate achieved is still far from what’s expected. The Fed’s updated projections now expect only two rate cuts next year, from three cuts anticipated in the past.
What to expect
The current market correction reflects the ongoing price fluctuation in the virtual currency space, fueled by wider external factors like the central bank’s stance on lending rates and inflation. However, the current geopolitical environment, backed by President Trump’s reelection, continues to deepen the resilience of the digital asset markets. Healthy price consolidations provide investors and traders with potential possibilities for growth.
Crypto assets always move with a lot of surprises. Though most observers anticipate Bitcoin to remain around its current value and eventually renew its upward momentum, the market waits for massive token acquisitions to trickle in. Big investors, commonly known as whales, normally accumulate tokens during market declines, and that is what’s expected to occur soon.
