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Investing.com-- Bitcoin rebounded on Thursday, climbing back above the $90,000 mark as increasing expectations of a U.S. Federal Reserve rate cut drove a wave of renewed investor interest.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency last traded 4% higher at $91,201.6 by 01:54 ET (06:54 GMT).
After sliding to as low as roughly $80,000 last Friday -- its weakest level since April -- the flagship cryptocurrency reversed course, buoyed by optimism that the Fed might ease policy next month.
Fed rate cut bets gain steam; chair nomination in focus
Markets now price in roughly an 85% chance of a quarter-point rate reduction, a sharp jump from a measly 44% chance a week ago. Lower rates would tend to lift “risk assets” such as Bitcoin, by increasing liquidity, and boosting appetite for higher-yielding alternatives.
Yet, some caution remains. Inflation remains sticky in the U.S., and macroeconomic data have been mixed. That has raised questions over how far or how fast the Fed will move -- and whether the recent rally is more a short-term bounce than the start of a sustained uptrend.
Still, among those optimistic, the potential appointment of Kevin Hassett as the next Fed chair -- seen by some as more inclined toward loose monetary policy -- is adding fuel to the bullish case for Bitcoin and other risk assets.
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Naver Financial to buy Upbit operator in $10 bln deal
Naver Financial, the payments arm of South Korean tech giant Naver Corp (KS:035420), has agreed to acquire Dunamu, the operator of major cryptocurrency exchange Upbit, in a deal valued at about $10 billion.
The transaction will be executed through a stock swap that will make Dunamu a wholly owned subsidiary of Naver Financial.
The companies said the merger will combine Naver’s large digital-payments ecosystem with Upbit’s leading position in South Korea’s crypto trading market.
The move marks one of the country’s largest fintech and digital-asset consolidations to date, positioning Naver to expand into blockchain-based financial services once the deal clears regulatory review.
Crypto price today: altcoins rise, Ether up 3%
Most altcoins rose on Thursday, tracking Bitcoin’s gains as risk appetite improved.
World no.2 crypto Ethereum rose 3% to $3,030.92.
World no. 3 crypto XRP gained 0.5% to $2.21.
Solana climbed 3%, while Cardano rose 2.2% and Polygon added 1%
Among meme tokens, Dogecoin rose 1.3%, while $TRUMP was largely unchanged.