Upbit trading volume evaporated by 31%... Market 'wait-and-see' even with rebound of top 3 coins

Upbit Trading Volume Plummets 31%... Top 3 Coins Rebound Amid Fed's 'Hawkish Hike,' Altcoins Stir

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While the New York stock market collapsed due to the Fed's first interest rate hike in three years and hawkish remarks by Chairman Kevin Warsh, the domestic cryptocurrency market rebounded. Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and XRP (Ripple) all rose, with some altcoins showing double-digit surges. However, Upbit's 24-hour trading volume sharply dropped by over 31%, indicating a strengthened wait-and-see attitude among investors, contrary to the price rebound.

According to Upbit at 7:22 AM on the 17th, Bitcoin traded at 104,088,000 won, up 1.07% from the previous day. Ethereum recorded 3,293,000 won, a 0.83% increase, and Tether (USDT) also rose by 0.81%. The Upbit Composite Index rose 1.15% to 10,615.40, and the Altcoin Index rose 1.25% to 2,823.19. The Bitcoin group and Ethereum group also increased by 1.18% and 0.92% respectively, showing a rebound from the previous day's shock, centered on large cryptocurrencies.

The rebound is interpreted as a combined result of the Fed's interest rate hike already being largely priced into the market, and the easing of regulatory uncertainty following the rejection of the U.S. cryptocurrency market structure bill and the Clarity Act. The Fed raised the benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to 3.75-4.00%, but the market had already priced in over 90% probability of a 0.25 percentage point hike just before the decision. Bitcoin and Ethereum fluctuated significantly immediately after the rate announcement, and top cryptocurrencies generally showed flat or upward trends. However, New York stocks reversed to a decline as Chairman Warsh assessed that financial conditions were not particularly tight and left open the possibility of further rate hikes within the year. The Dow Jones index fell 1.21%, the S&P 500 fell 0.45%, and the Nasdaq fell 0.01%.

In the domestic market, the rise of some altcoins was more prominent than that of major coins. Based on Upbit's weekly gain rate, Lisk (LSK) surged by 225.00%, followed by VTHO (VeThor Token) with 63.96%, B3 (B3 Coin) with 31.12%, DRV (Delight) with 30.95%, and ARK (Ark) with 28.75%. In the KRW market, Lisk rose 44.57% from the previous day, Delight rose 59.89%, and FOLD (Fold) rose 22.67%. The fact that the Upbit Altcoin Index recorded a higher growth rate than the Composite Index also demonstrates this selective strength in altcoins.

However, trading volume significantly decreased. As of 7:23 AM, according to Upbit Datalab, the 24-hour trading volume was 1.37 trillion won, a sharp decrease of 31.65% from the previous day, and the daily trading volume was tallied at 1.27 trillion won. XRP maintained the top spot in 24-hour trading volume share with 19.84%, followed by Lisk with 10.13%, Bitcoin with 6.91%, Ethereum with 5.47%, and Tether with 5.30%. On the Upbit KRW market screen, XRP's trading volume was approximately 272.6 billion won, significantly outstripping Bitcoin's approximately 96.6 billion won and Ethereum's approximately 75.6 billion won. Although prices rebounded, the fact that trading volume decreased by over 30% suggests a market characterized by trading centered on specific assets rather than strong overall buying pressure.

The key variables for the market for the rest of this week are concerns about further tightening by the Fed and Bitcoin's support level. Following Chairman Warsh's hawkish message, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield surpassed 5%, and 16 out of 18 Fed officials anticipated at least one more 0.25 percentage point rate hike this year. Earlier, CoinMarketCap presented the $72,000-$74,000 range as Bitcoin's short-term key support level. Domestically, whether Bitcoin's rebound will continue after recovering around 104 million won, along with whether Upbit's trading volume, which sharply decreased by 31.65%, will recover, appears to be key indicators for assessing the sustainability of this rebound.

*Disclaimer: This article is for investment reference only, and we are not responsible for any investment losses based on it. The content should be interpreted for informational purposes only.*