Investing.com-- Bitcoin price fell on Monday, extending a sell-off seen over the weekend as sentiment towards crypto markets remained frail following a deep rout over the past month.
Crypto saw some relief towards the end of last week, tracking a rebound in broader financial markets as investors bet that fears of a U.S. recession were overblown.
But this notion ran out of steam over the weekend, with crypto tokens seeing extended selling in the past two days.
Bitcoin fell 1.3% to $59,830.0 by 09:17 ET (13:17 GMT). Trading volumes were also somewhat muted on account of a Japanese market holiday.
Bitcoin rangebound after sliding to $49k
The world’s biggest cryptocurrency was rangebound between $50,000 and $60,000 over the past week, after sinking as low as $49,000 earlier.
Sentiment towards risk-driven markets remained strained, especially in anticipation of key U.S. inflation data on Wednesday, which is set to offer more cues on the Federal Reserve’s plans for interest rate cuts.
While stock markets saw some recovery in recent sessions, with Asian shares advancing on Monday, crypto lagged this rebound, given the market’s more speculative nature.
Some resilience in the dollar also weighed, with the greenback seeing inflows as traders positioned for Wednesday’s inflation reading. The reading is expected to show inflation cooled further in July, giving the Fed more confidence to begin cutting interest rates.
Crypto price today: altcoins flat, XRP rally fades
Broader crypto markets saw mixed, mostly flat performance on Monday, as selling in Bitcoin weighed on risk sentiment.
World no.2 token Ether added 2.4% to $2,688.56
XRP rose marginally to $0.57, steadying following a strong rally last week.
XRP issuer Ripple Labs was ordered to pay a fraction of the penalties sought by the Securities and Exchange Commission for illegal sale of securities by the firm.
But the case still did not provide any regulatory clarity on whether crypto tokens were considered as securities.
Among other altcoins, ADA and SOL slid 1% and 1.2%, respectively.
Memetokens SHIB and DOGE traded relatively flat.
Tether describes Celsius's $2.4bn lawsuit as 'shakedown' and 'baseless'
In other crypto developments, USDT issuer Tether has strongly pushed back against a lawsuit filed by Celsius Network, dismissing it as a "shakedown" and "baseless."
The suit, filed on August 9 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, seeks to recover approximately $2.4 billion in Bitcoin that Celsius claims was improperly liquidated by Tether before the crypto lender's bankruptcy over two years ago.
In its response, Tether asserted that it acted according to the terms of a 2022 agreement, which required Celsius to provide additional Bitcoin as collateral when prices dropped.
Tether stated that when Celsius failed to meet these requirements, it was instructed by Celsius to liquidate the Bitcoin to cover an $815 million debt.
“This lawsuit seeks to improperly impose the costs of Celsius’ mismanagement on Tether,” the stablecoin issuer said, adding that the liquidation was done “at Celsius’ direction and with Celsius’ consent.”
The company also criticized the lawsuit's legal basis, describing it as an “obvious misapplication of the law” and raising concerns about jurisdiction. It reassured investors of its financial stability, noting it had $12 billion in consolidated equity as of June 30, 2024.
Celsius, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2022, argues that Tether did not provide the agreed-upon 10-hour timeframe to meet the final collateral demand, instead proceeding with what it calls an improper liquidation of 39,542.42 Bitcoin. The $2.4 billion claim reflects the current value of Bitcoin.