Bitcoin price today: rangebound with focus on Israel-Iran tensions

Investing.com-- Bitcoin edged marginally higher Thursday, remaining squarely in a tight trading range as increased speculation over U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran war kept traders largely risk-averse.

Hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve also weighed on risk sentiment, after the central bank kept interest rates steady and remained non-committal to further easing. The Fed also trimmed its rate cut outlook for 2026. 

At 05:20 ET (09:20 GMT), Bitcoin rose 0.1% to $104,900.0.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency has stuck to a trading range of between $103,000 to $108,000 for the past week, especially after the onset of renewed military action between Israel and Iran.

A Bloomberg report said on Thursday that U.S. officials were preparing for a potential strike against Iran in the coming days, although it was unclear whether it would materialize.  

Trump lauds stablecoin bill progress

Trump on Wednesday evening lauded the passage of the GENIUS Act–a bill that establishes a regulatory framework for stablecoins–through the Senate, and called for its immediate passage through the House. 

“The House will hopefully move LIGHTNING FAST, and pass a “clean” GENIUS Act. Get it to my desk, ASAP,” Trump said in a social media post.

The bill’s progress did spur some gains in crypto stocks, especially Circle Internet (NYSE:CRCL), as it showed Trump making good on his promises to approve more crypto-friendly regulation. 

Circle’s USDC and Tether’s USDT are the biggest stablecoins in the market, and play a key role in facilitating crypto transactions. 

Crypto price today: altcoins drift lower, Fed rate outlook weighs 

Broader crypto prices drifted lower, with hawkish-leaning comments from the Fed also lending pressure. 

The central bank left interest rates unchanged at 4.25% to 4.5%, with Chair Jerome Powell reiterating a data-driven approach to any future cuts.

Powell maintained his forecast of two more cuts in 2025, but trimmed the outlook for rate cuts in 2026, a move that was perceived to be largely hawkish. 

Powell also warned that Trump’s tariff plans could drive up inflation in the coming months, giving the central bank even less impetus to cut rates.

Broader risk-driven assets retreated after Powell’s comments, with losses spilling over into crypto.

World no.2 crypto Ether fell 0.1% to $2,526.50, while XRP steadied at $2.1577.

Cardano and Solana lost more than 1% each.

Ambar Warrick contributed to this article