Investing.com-- Bitcoin price moved little on Tuesday as anticipation of token distributions from the now defunct exchange Mt Gox, along with closely-watched cues on interest rates, kept crypto markets in check.
Fund flow data showed digital assets marking a third straight week of outflows, although sentiment appeared to be improving after steep outflows through June.
Bitcoin climbed 0.1% in the past 24 hours to $62,736.2 by 08:28 ET (12:28 GMT). The world’s biggest cryptocurrency was nursing steep losses through June, and remained within a trading range of $60,000 to $70,000 seen through most of the second quarter.
Bitcoin price subdued amid Mt Gox sale fears
Sentiment towards Bitcoin showed limited signs of improving, especially as the managers of Mt Gox said they will begin distributing Bitcoin stolen during a 2014 hack in early-July, returning the tokens to clients of the exchange.
Mt Gox was seen mobilizing about $9 billion worth of Bitcoin earlier this year, although it remained unclear how much the distributions will entail. But traders speculated that receivers of Bitcoin will be more inclined to sell, given that the token grew exponentially in the past decade.
Such a scenario presents outsized selling pressure on Bitcoin, which is likely to pressure prices.
Crypto price today: Altcoins muted amid rate fears
Among broader crypto tokens, altcoin prices tread water as traders remained averse to crypto ahead of key signals on U.S. interest rates.
Ether fell 0.25%, while ADA and XRP rose more than 4% and 1%, respectively.
Among meme tokens, DOGE slipped 0.6%, while SHIB added 1.1%.
Market focus was squarely on an address by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell later on Tuesday.
Beyond that, the minutes of the Fed’s June meeting are due on Wednesday, while key nonfarm payrolls data is due on Friday.
Crypto took limited support from increased expectations of a September rate cut by the Fed, as traders remained largely biased towards the dollar.
July could be positive for Bitcoin as first day brings strong ETF inflows
Bitcoin bulls may enjoy the upcoming few weeks as potential seasonal cycles could boost the price of the largest cryptocurrency after months of declines and rangebound trading.
Historically, July has been a bullish month for crypto and risk assets. On July 1, 2024, U.S.-listed ETFs saw nearly $130 million in inflows, marking the highest since early June, following more than $900 million in outflows throughout the month.
“Bitcoin has a median return of 9.6% in July and tends to bounce back strongly, especially after a negative June (-9.85%),” said Singapore-based QCP Capital in a Telegram broadcast.
“Our options desk also saw flows positioning for an upside move last Friday into the month-end, possibly in anticipation of the ETH spot ETF launch. Many signs point to a bullish July,” QCP added.
Over the past decade, Bitcoin has averaged gains of more than 11% in July, with positive returns in 7 out of 10 years. Crypto fund Matrixport highlighted in a 2023 report that July returns from 2019 to 2022 were approximately 27%, 20%, and 24%, respectively.
Data from digital asset manager Coinshares showed on Monday that capital outflows from crypto investment products slowed sharply in the week to July 1.
But trading volumes remained well below 50% of their weekly average so far this year, as retail interest in crypto once again appeared to be cooling.
Ether-linked products saw the heaviest outflows in the week, despite reports suggesting that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could approve a spot Ether ETF as soon as this week.