Optimism creeps back into crypto, with the 2022 test still to come
Your day-ahead look for Sept. 17, 2026
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added almost 1% over the past 24 hours while zcash (ZEC) jumped by more than 23% to a record high.
Traders who remember previous Fed rate cycles, especially 2022, are likely to be cautious, however.
Bitcoin is currently about 40% below its October record high of $126,000. When the Fed began tightening in March 2022, it was also roughly 40% below its record high, the November 2021 peak.
Over the next 12 days, the largest cryptocurrency rallied 18% before sliding 50% for several months, a period that also saw the collapse of crypto exchange FTX.
The relief leg of that pattern has already begun, with bitcoin defying a shift to the downside after the U.S. Clarity Act was shelved, but ETF flows continue to demonstrate weakness, with $746 million exiting spot bitcoin funds on Tuesday and Wednesday alone.
