This week, the leading cryptocurrencies attempted to grow, then lost their positions and again switched to an upward trend. BTC is trading around 58700.00 ( 0.2%), ETH is at 2615.00 ( 2.3%), USDT is around 1.0002 (–0.01%), BNB is around 524.00 ( 4.1%), and SOL is around 145.00 ( 0.8%). The total market capitalization by the end of the week fell to 2.07T dollars, and the share of BTC in it increased to 55.8%.

The sector is in a state of uncertainty under the influence of several opposing factors. Among the key reasons contributing to investor caution are the monetary policy of the US Fed and the upcoming US presidential elections. Thus, the July consumer price index slowed down but the reaction of cryptocurrency traders to this statistics was ambiguous. Experts believe that monetary factors are losing their positive value in the digital market. Previously, it was believed a decrease in interest rates with a slowdown in inflation and the economy should contribute to the weakening of the American currency against alternative assets. However, the first easing of monetary policy will most likely occur against a soft economic landing, and in these conditions, the dollar will retain its attractiveness for investment. The second reason forcing market participants to maintain a wait-and-see attitude is the US presidential election, the outcome of which can greatly affect the authorities’ attitude to digital assets. Thus, earlier, Republican candidate Donald Trump had already stated that the government should not sell the cryptocurrency it had on its balance sheet and allowed the use of BTC to pay off the US national debt, which ensured his growing popularity in the community. Experts expected that the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris would distance herself from the current regulators’ policy and make several friendly statements regarding the digital industry. However, it has not happened yet.

Moreover, in the run-up to the elections, the authorities are increasing pressure on organizations associated with the sector. Last week, the US Fed ordered Customers Bank to provide 30 days advance notice before entering into a new financial relationship with any cryptocurrency company. Gemini co-founder Tyler Winklevoss said that the regulator now controls access to banking services, deciding who can open a bank account, thereby limiting their operation ability.

The caution of market participants is illustrated by the low volumes of investment in Bitcoin ETFs. In the first four trading sessions of the week, the outflow of funds amounted to 3.5M dollars. In addition, additional pressure on the sector was exerted by the transfer of 10.0K BTC confiscated from the Silk Road marketplace in 2023 by the US authorities to the Coinbase Prime platform, and now traders are waiting for them to go on sale.

Next week, most of the largest digital assets will continue to grow or consolidate.