Bitcoin edges up to $81,800 as sentiment slips back to neutral

Bitcoin turned slightly higher overnight, trading at $81,847 and up 0.54% over 24 hours, after easing to $81,311 in our last recap. The move is small, and it came as the Crypto Fear & Greed Index slipped back to a neutral 53 while analysts quoted by CoinDesk split over whether a $100,000 year-end is still in reach.

Bitcoin

According to CoinGecko data at 13:15 UTC on October 18, Bitcoin traded between $80,823 and $82,178 over the past 24 hours. It remains down 1.44% over seven days. Its market value stands at about $1,645 billion, with $15.9 billion traded in the last 24 hours. Follow the BTC/USD chart on TradingView.

Ether and the majors

Ether slipped 0.38% to $2,411.71 and is down 3.54% on the week. The other large coins were mostly flat on the day but still carry clear weekly losses. Cardano remains the weakest, down 10.84% over seven days, followed by XRP and Dogecoin at about 7% each.

Market breadth and sentiment

CoinGecko puts total crypto market value at $2.759 trillion, down 2.4% over 24 hours. That figure sits awkwardly with the small moves in the largest coins, so we treat it with caution. Bitcoin dominance is 59.5% and Ether dominance is 10.7%.

The Fear & Greed Index fell to 53 (Neutral) from 55 a day earlier. It read 69 on October 12, and today's reading matches the October 15 low as the weakest of the past eight days.

What is driving the market

Year-end debate. CoinDesk reports that Bitwise sees a potential return above $100,000, while LO:TECH expects a narrower trading range as interest-rate uncertainty weighs on the market.

Security losses. Security firm Hacken told CoinDesk that third-quarter hacks cost $1.18 billion, and that 77% of losses involved compromised suppliers, delayed fixes or systems outside the latest reviews. Separately, Cointelegraph reports that the Cysic bridge was halted after an unauthorized mint of 10 million CYS. Cysic said the mainnet was not affected.

Stablecoins and banks. Decrypt reports that a Bank for International Settlements working paper found stablecoin growth slows when US banks raise deposit rates, with Circle's USDC the most sensitive. CoinDesk adds that Circle is defending USDC economics as rivals court its partners, noting Coinbase also backs the competing Open USD network.

Weekend leverage. CoinDesk reports that round-the-clock chip-stock contracts lost $52 million in a 10-minute flush while US markets were shut. The tech backdrop was already fragile: our sister site covered how AI debt fears pushed Treasury yields lower and ended the dollar's four-week win streak.

What to watch next

• Bitget changes. Cointelegraph reports the exchange will discontinue services for some users in a one-off exercise, and says user funds are safe.
• Circle expansion. According to Cointelegraph, CEO Jeremy Allaire said Circle is looking to enter 40 developing markets.
• Stablecoin competition. Watch whether partners shift between USDC and rivals such as Open USD, as CoinDesk describes.
• Sentiment. A further slide in Fear & Greed below its recent neutral readings would extend the cooling seen since October 12.