It was another eventful week in the cryptocurrency market following the U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank decisions to keep interest rates unchanged earlier in the week.
Bitcoin dipped briefly below $75,000 after the third FOMC meeting of the year on April 29, but the cryptocurrency recovered quickly and then embarked on a strong upward move. It held steady over the weekend, even as Washington rejected two peace proposals from Iran.
On Monday morning, bitcoin climbed above $80,000 for the first time in more than three months, only to fall back below $78,400 after unclear reports suggested Iran had allegedly attacked a U.S. Navy vessel in the Strait of Hormuz. Those reports were soon refuted, and BTC recovered to $80,800 and then higher.
The rally continued for several days and reached a peak of $82,800 on Wednesday, marking bitcoin’s highest level since late January. That peak represented roughly an $8,000 gain from the previous Wednesday’s dip below $75,000.
Despite the surge, multiple analysts warned the rally might be unsustainable and vulnerable to a reversal. That warning proved prescient late in the week: bitcoin slipped below the $80,000 support on Thursday and into Friday, and now trades just under that level, though it remains slightly positive on the weekly chart.
Some altcoins outperformed bitcoin this week, with Zcash (ZEC) standing out. ZEC gained more than 60% over the week, followed by ONDO with a 48% increase and WLFI up about 32%.
Market Data
Market Cap: $2.73T | 24H Vol: $103B | BTC Dominance: 58.4%
BTC: $79,600 (+1.3%) | ETH: $2,270 (-1.8%) | XRP: $1.39 (-0.8%)
This Week’s Crypto Headlines You Can’t Miss
Wall Street Giant Morgan Stanley Enters Crypto Race With Pricing Edge: Report. The U.S. banking giant, long supportive of digital assets, is reportedly preparing to offer crypto trading through its E*Trade platform. The firm plans to compete on lower trading costs and will initially enable clients to trade BTC, ETH, and SOL.
Strategy Posts $12.5B Q1 Loss as BTC Prices Weigh on Results. The company led by Michael Saylor disclosed weak first-quarter results, reporting a net loss exceeding $12.5 billion, driven largely by a $14.5 billion unrealized loss tied to bitcoin price movements.
Coinbase Slashes Jobs by 14% to Become ‘Lean, Fast, AI-Native’. Following moves by several rivals, including Crypto.com and Gemini, the largest U.S. crypto exchange announced workforce reductions of around 14% as it pivots toward greater AI integration.
Bitcoin Shoots Past $82K, Fuels Altseason Speculation. Bitcoin’s run to multi-month highs was accompanied by strong gains in several altcoins, including ZEC, TON, and WLFI. Those rallies sparked talk of an approaching altseason, though subsequent days tempered that narrative.
Crypto Exchange Bullish Strikes $4.2B Deal to Acquire Equiniti. A leading cryptocurrency exchange revealed plans this week to acquire Equiniti, a global transfer agent, in a deal valued at approximately $4.2 billion.
WLFI Lawsuit Sparks Response: Justin Sun Calls It ‘Meritless’. A growing dispute between Justin Sun and the World Liberty Financial project resulted in legal action from both sides. Justin Sun described WLFI’s suit as “meritless” after the DeFi protocol filed its own complaint earlier in the week.
Charts
This week’s technical coverage includes price analysis for Ethereum, Ripple, Cardano, Binance Coin, and Hyperliquid — see the complete chart review for detailed levels and commentary.