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Major digital assets posted mixed performances on Wednesday, Dec. 10, following the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates by 25 basis points – the third rate cut this year.
Bitcoin (BTC) increased 0.5% in the past 24 hours to $93,488, while Ethereum (ETH) increased by 3.4% to $3,405. Among other large-cap coins, XRP fell 1% to $2.09, BNB traded flat at $899, and Solana (SOL) increased 1% to $140.
The total crypto market capitalization is currently at $3.3 trillion, up 1% on the day, with a 24-hour trading volume of $119 billion. Bitcoin's dominance stands at 56.5%, and Ethereum's at 12.5%.
The top gainers over the past 24 hours include Midnight (NIGHT), up 56.5% to $0.066; MemeCore (M), up 7.8% to $1.46; and Monero (XMR), up 6.4% to $403.79.
Meanwhile, Ethena (ENA) was the biggest loser, falling 7.7% to $0.26. Pumpfun (PUMP) also dropped 5.2%, while Filecoin (FIL) declined 4.5% to $1.50.
Liquidations and ETF flows
Crypto markets experienced over $249 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, according to Coinglass, with long positions accounting for $113 million and short positions making up $136 million.
Ethereum led the wipeouts, with nearly $91 million liquidated, followed by Bitcoin at $60 million, and other altcoins totaling $16 million.
In the ETF space, Bitcoin ETFs recorded nearly $152 million in inflows, while Ethereum ETFs saw around $178 million. XRP and Solana ETFs posted inflows of $9 million and over $16 million, respectively, according to SoSoValue data.
FOMC Statement
The mixed market activity comes as the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates for the third time this year. The U.S. central bank lowered its benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points to a range of 3.5% to 3.75%.
The decision passed with a 9-to-3 vote, which is smaller than usual, experts say, as some members wanted a bigger cut and others preferred no change.
In comments shared with the press, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said that while all members concurred that inflation is too high, they can’t agree on the best approach moving forward.
“Everyone agrees that inflation is too high, and we want it to come down, and agrees that the labor market has softened and that there’s further risk. Everyone agrees on that,” Powell said. “Where the difference is, is how do you weigh those risks? And what does your forecast look like?”
The Fed also raised its 2026 GDP growth forecast to 2.3%, up 0.5 points from September. Meanwhile, inflation is expected to stay above 2% until 2028.
In comments shared with The Defiant, Nic Roberts-Huntley, co-founder and CEO of Blueprint Finance, said that the 25-basis-point rate cut will likely soften borrowing costs and boost risk-asset sentiment.
“For Bitcoin, this could mean a rally back toward levels we lost over the past few weeks, provided there’s actual liquidity ready to be deployed,” Roberts-Huntley said. “That said, we’re heading into a complex macro season: with potential year-end tax-loss selling and growing economic uncertainty on the horizon for 2026, it will be hard to isolate the effect of the rate cut in the near term.”