Bitcoin drops below $80,000 as crypto ignores Asian tech rally, Fed meeting begins

Bitcoin BTC$84,459.46 slipped below $80,000 on Tuesday, dropping 0.4% since midnight UTC to near $79,700. Altcoins fell further, with ether ETH$2,490.55, the largest, losing 0.5%. The DeFi index (DFX) dropped 1.8%, the most of any CoinDesk index, a reversal from Monday, when it was the only index to gain.

U.S. stock index futures edged lower ahead of big-tech earnings later this week. Asian tech shares rallied, with South Korea’s Kospi rising 3.1%, though the advance didn’t pull crypto along with it. Oil rose, with U.S. crude approaching $102 a barrel.

The Federal Reserve begins a two-day meeting today, with an interest-rate decision on Wednesday and CME’s FedWatch tool showing around a 90% chance of no change. Traders will be looking for clues on whether another rate increase is likely before year-end. U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs took in $110 million on Monday, according to Farside Investors, ending two days of outflows.