Bitcoin slipped further on Thursday, sliding below $63,000 before stabilizing near $63,100, down roughly 0.5% over the past 24 hours. The modest decline came even as the U.S. interest rate outlook shifted in favor of looser policy, with recent inflation data reducing expectations for another Federal Reserve rate increase in September. Other major cryptocurrencies traded in similar fashion, while U.S. equities pushed to fresh records.

Softer Inflation Data Shifts the Macro Narrative

The latest price pressures were milder than expected. Wednesday's consumer price index showed inflation cooling, and Thursday's producer price index reinforced the trend. The PPI was flat in July, against a consensus forecast of a 0.2% increase, while core PPI rose 0.2%, below the 0.3% that economists had penciled in.

On an annual basis, headline PPI rose 4.7%, down from 5.5% in June and slower than the anticipated 4.9%. Core PPI climbed 4.2% year over year, in line with forecasts and down from 4.7% in June. The data points to an economy that is gradually disinflating, although the path remains uneven.

For markets, the immediate consequence was a significant repricing of Federal Reserve policy. CME FedWatch data, which derives rate odds from short-term interest rate futures positions, showed the probability of a September rate hike dropping to just 32%. A month earlier, traders placed the odds above 75%. The market still expects a meaningful chance of tighter policy by the end of 2026, with the probability of a hike between now and year-end sitting near 70%.

Treasury yields responded quickly. The two-year U.S. Treasury yield, which was above 4.30% only days ago, slid to roughly 4.14%. Lower yields are generally seen as supportive for risk assets, yet bitcoin's price action remained muted.

A Hawkish Voice at the Fed

Not every policymaker read the data as a reason to hold off. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack reiterated her view that the central bank should continue raising rates, arguing that the softer inflation prints do not yet provide enough confidence that prices will return to the Fed's 2% target on a sustainable basis.

Hammack was one of three dissents at the July FOMC meeting, placing her among the more hawkish members of the Federal Open Market Committee. Her comments Thursday, delivered at an event with the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce, underscored the internal debate about whether the current level of policy restraint is sufficient.

Bitcoin's Quiet Market Draws Comparisons to Past Cycles

Bitcoin's price behavior has become unusually compressed. The 30-day price range is just 5.6%, one of the narrowest readings on record. Analysts have described the atmosphere as 'too quiet,' with only a handful of comparable episodes in bitcoin's trading history.

That kind of low volatility often appears in the late stages of a bear market, a point that bitcoin analysts have highlighted. It can also appear early in a bull market. The current range, centered around $63,000, has persisted for weeks, leaving options traders and technical analysts to debate whether a breakout is imminent and in which direction.

Bitcoin's inability to rally despite an improving macro backdrop has led some to argue that capital is rotating elsewhere. The S&P 500, for instance, hit an all-time high of 7,815 on Thursday, rising 0.68% and extending its year-to-date gain to 13%. Traditional risk assets have absorbed a large share of the speculative appetite that previously supported digital assets.

Tether Completes KPMG Audit

In the stablecoin market, Tether announced the completion of an audit by KPMG, saying the firm issued an unqualified opinion on Tether's financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2025. The audit covered the company's financial position, results of operations, and cash flows, all prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

Tether described the engagement as the largest inaugural financial audit in history. A notable aspect of the process was that KPMG physically counted and inspected each gold bar held by the company, rather than relying solely on custodian or counterparty reports. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino called the audit a defining moment for the stablecoin sector, noting that critics had long argued a complete audit would never happen.

The announcement is significant for an industry that has repeatedly faced questions about transparency and reserves. Stablecoins now sit at the center of the crypto economy, and audits of the largest issuers are closely watched by regulators and traders alike.

Corporate Treasury and Earnings Moves

Several crypto-related companies moved the tape on Thursday. Bit Digital shares rose 10% after the company reported second-quarter revenue of $32.1 million, up 15% from the previous quarter on stronger cloud services. The firm also said it held approximately 164,311 ether, worth about $258 million at the end of the quarter.

Bit Digital's majority-owned unit, WhiteFiber, is expanding its AI infrastructure operations. Initial billing is underway at its NC-1 data center, and the company has signed more than $540 million in new cloud contracts. The parent company's net loss narrowed to $107.2 million, largely due to non-cash charges.

Sharplink, an Ethereum-focused treasury company, said it plans to deploy $200 million of ether through the liquid staking protocol Lido. In exchange, Sharplink will receive wrapped staked ether, an asset that represents the staked ETH and the rewards it earns. Anchorage Digital will custody the tokens.

The strategy allows Sharplink to earn staking rewards while retaining the flexibility to use wstETH as collateral in decentralized finance applications. CEO Joseph Chalom described the move as an expansion of the company's effort to make its ETH more productive. Lido currently has about $16.5 billion in ETH staked, with roughly $10 billion of wstETH being used as collateral across the ecosystem.

Altcoins and Options Market

While large-cap cryptocurrencies were listless, some smaller tokens outperformed. OKB, MNT, and VVV each rose more than 6% over the past 24 hours, placing them among the best-performing assets in the top 100 by market capitalization. Bitcoin's dominance rate stayed near 59%, indicating that the gains were not driven by capital rotating out of the majors.

Options activity pointed to a short-term bullish bet on bitcoin. A single trader spent roughly $1.07 million to purchase bitcoin call options with a strike price of $65,500 and an expiration date of Aug. 15, 2026. The position controlled 4,054 BTC and required bitcoin to climb from the $63,500-$63,800 zone to above $65,500 within two days to move into the money.

Macro Commentary Adds Caution

Some analysts warn that the inflation picture is not as benign as the latest reports suggest. A prominent macro commentator argued that temporary declines in energy and gasoline prices made the headline CPI look smaller, while inflation underneath remained sticky. The same analysis pointed to undercounted food prices and the exclusion of key housing costs from the index.

That could explain why the dollar index did not materially weaken following the CPI data, and why bitcoin received little support from the reduced odds of a rate hike. For now, BTC remains rangebound below $64,000, with traders waiting for a catalyst large enough to break the stalemate.

Other Notable Headlines

Elsewhere, XRP slipped below $1 even as a Korean regional bank adopted Ripple Payments. Ethereum-compatible project Monad reportedly offered early investors up to $60 million to cash out, but nearly all declined. Bitcoin did climb above $64,000 at one point, though most majors slipped at the same time.

Kraken parent Payward joined Anthropic's Project Glasswing, a security-focused initiative that aims to bring AI tools to the crypto ecosystem. Strategy's Michael Saylor said a share buyback is not a priority as the company builds a $4.8 billion cash reserve. BitMart's founder dismissed calls for an audit as users reported blocked funds and unpaid employees. The U.S. Treasury Department proposed a stablecoin rule tied to the GENIUS Act, and a detailed analysis of a Coldcard vulnerability showed how a long-unnoticed bug led to $100 million in hacked funds.

Market Structure and Volumes

Fresh research shows centralized exchange trading volumes fell 23.9% to $3.76 trillion in July, the lowest level since November 2023. During the same period, decentralized exchange spot market share climbed to a record 19.5%, and real-world asset perpetual futures reached $460 billion.

The evolving market structure reflects a dual trend: a broad decline in speculative activity and a growing preference for on-chain venues. For bitcoin, the combination of thin volumes and low volatility has historically preceded larger moves, but the market remains in a holding pattern as investors weigh macro risks and the next direction in Fed policy.

Source: Coindesk News