Bitcoin Falls Below $28K Ahead of This Week’s FOMC Meeting: Market Watch

Bitcoin failed to continue higher after draining $28,500 yesterday and has fallen below $28,000 ahead of arguably the most anticipated FOMC meeting in a while.

The altcoins have suffered even more, with DOT, MATIC, SOL and others dumping up to 7-8% in a day.

BTC follows up ahead of the FOMC meeting

Ever since the banking problems worsened in the US and even extended to Europe, bitcoin’s price performance has been nothing short of spectacular. The cryptocurrency rose from $20,000 to $28,500 in just over a week, reaching a 9-month high. The BTC Fear and Greed Index also soared to new highs.

A high of $28,500 came yesterday, soon after news that UBS had agreed to buy struggling banking giant Credit Suisse. However, the asset began to pull back in the following hours and fell to $27,500 earlier today. Despite gaining a few hundred dollars since then, it still trades below $28,000.

All eyes in the financial world tomorrow will be on Jerome Powell – the chairman of the US Federal Reserve. The next FOMC meeting is scheduled for March 22, and the banking crisis could deter the central bank from raising interest rates further.

In fact, prominent billionaires, such as Elon Musk and Bill Ackman, believe the Fed should back away from its current monetary strategy and even cut interest rates by up to half a point.

Altcoins Retrace Hard

Most altcoins recorded notable gains in the last week or so, but there are some major retracements charting on a daily scale now. Ethereum has further distanced itself from $1,800 after another 2.3% drop. Binance Coin is back at $330 after a 1.5% decline.

More losses come from the likes of MATIC, DOGE, SOL, DOT, SHIB, LTC and AVAX. The landscape of mid-cap alts is no different, with CRO, ICP, GRT, APE, VET, FIL, APT and others dumping up to 8% in a day.

As such, it’s no surprise that the total market cap for crypto has fallen by just over $30 billion in a day and is down to $1.150 trillion.