Bitcoin Rallies Past $87,000 After Fed Rate Hike, But Who's Behind It?
The recent Federal Reserve rate hike was expected to make riskier assets harder to own, but Bitcoin defied expectations by climbing past $87,000 after the decision. The public record reveals several sources of demand that contributed to this rally, although it cannot identify a single buyer or provide an exact account of the market movement.
The Federal Reserve raised its target range to 3.75% to 4.00% on September 16, and US spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) initially lost $746.3 million across September 15 and 16. However, these funds then gained about $2.65 billion over the next five sessions through September 23.
Strategy, a public company, bought 950 BTC for $75.7 million during September 14 to 20, which was reported on its Form 8-K filing on September 21. Another corporate buyer, Strive, disclosed purchasing 1,355 BTC at an average price of roughly $79,475 during September 14 to 18.
Nicolaï Sondergaard, a senior research analyst at Nansen, described the rally as a combination of ETF demand and short covering, while Alice Liu, research lead at CoinMarketCap, stated that covering, rather than new buying, drove much of the rise. These views provide insights into the market movement but highlight the limitations in identifying individual buyers or exact figures.