Bitcoin remained resilient around the $64,000 level despite a hawkish Federal Reserve outcome, escalating geopolitical tensions involving Iran, and an 8% overnight increase in oil prices that pushed the Dow Jones down 2.2% and drove the Nasdaq to a three-month low.

The crypto market held relatively firm on Thursday, with bitcoin trading almost unchanged near $63,915 and ether slipping just 0.25% since midnight UTC, even as global risk markets faced significant pressure during Wednesday’s session.

Behind the stable prices, however, was a volatile trading environment. Sharp moves following the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision triggered widespread liquidations across leveraged futures markets as traders were caught on both sides of the market.

The Fed decided to keep rates unchanged, but three policymakers voted in favor of a hike, signaling that tighter monetary conditions could remain in place. Higher rates generally weigh on risk assets by increasing borrowing costs and reducing liquidity.

CoinGlass data showed that approximately $286 million in crypto positions were liquidated over the past 24 hours. Long positions accounted for $186 million of the losses, while short positions contributed $100 million, reflecting a market that experienced strong moves in both directions before settling back near its previous range.

Bitcoin traders saw liquidations split almost evenly between bulls and bears, showing that the price swings affected both sides of the market. The volatility was enough to trigger forced closures despite bitcoin remaining within a relatively narrow trading range.

After the Fed announcement, Iran launched several ballistic missiles at U.S. military targets, prompting President Donald Trump to warn of a forceful response.

The geopolitical escalation sent oil prices higher, reversing Monday’s losses, while U.S. stocks declined. Despite the initial weakness, S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures later turned slightly positive.

Crypto Derivatives Update

Futures sentiment shifts toward caution:
Crypto futures positioning moved slightly bearish, with short taker volume accounting for 51% of market activity, according to CoinGlass. Overall participation remained subdued, with open interest and trading volume showing little change compared with the previous day.

UNI leads major token gains:
Uniswap’s UNI token ranked among the strongest performers in the top 100 cryptocurrencies. However, futures open interest declined to 65.8 million tokens, suggesting traders were reducing exposure. The token’s negative 24-hour cumulative volume delta showed that aggressive sellers remained active in the futures market.

Bitcoin leverage stays subdued:
Bitcoin open interest remained around 750,000 BTC, a level it has held since early June, indicating limited new leveraged participation during the recent rebound. Ether open interest also fell below 14 million ETH after reaching a six-week high of 14.53 million ETH, suggesting weaker leverage demand despite ether’s stronger monthly performance compared with bitcoin.

Altcoin traders remain defensive:
Most of the 25 largest cryptocurrencies, excluding BTC, ADA, TRX, CRO, and ZEC, posted negative open-interest-adjusted CVD readings over the last day. The data suggests bearish traders continue to dominate activity across much of the altcoin market.

Bitcoin volatility declines:
Bitcoin’s 30-day implied volatility index, BVIV, dropped below 38%, approaching levels that have historically acted as support. However, volatility tends to revert over time, meaning the current low levels could precede another increase in market swings.

Options markets favor upside bets:
Deribit options activity showed strong demand for bitcoin call options at the $70,000 and $75,000 strike prices, which ranked among the most traded contracts over the last 24 hours. Ether options followed the same trend, with the five most active contracts all being call options, indicating traders are positioning for potential gains.

Token Performance

Injective (INJ) was the strongest performer over the past 24 hours, rising 6.95% as DeFi-related tokens gained momentum. Uniswap (UNI) advanced 4.46%, while FET recovered 3.28% after recent weakness.

Zcash (ZEC) continued its upward trend, gaining 1.54% since midnight UTC to reach $474 and maintaining stronger momentum than other privacy-focused assets. Monero (XMR) rose 0.4%.

Hyperliquid (HYPE) declined 0.47% to $53.64, extending its retreat from recent highs and bringing its overall pullback to around 30% from its peak.

Lighter (LIT) dropped 4.22% over the last 24 hours, though it remained slightly positive since midnight, suggesting selling pressure may be easing after a correction that erased nearly 25% from its July peak.

Jupiter (JUP) fell 1.48% since midnight after a brief recovery on Wednesday. Trading activity continued to weaken, with daily volume dropping to approximately $23 million after previously exceeding $50 million earlier this year.