Crypto Price Today Live: Bitcoin holds $21,500; Shiba Inu and Dogecoin rise up to 4%

New Delhi: Crypto tokens were trading mostly higher on Friday ahead of the much-awaited address by Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell at Jackson Hole in Wyoming.

Investors continued their vigil for the US central bank chair’s comments that might hint at the Fed’s next interest rate hike.

Barring Solana and Polkadot, major crypto tokens were trading higher on Friday. Shiba Inu rose 4 per cent, whereas Cardano, BNB and Dogecoin added a per cent each during the early hours.

The global cryptocurrency market cap was trading marginally higher at the $1.04 trillion mark, rising less than a per cent in the last 24 hours. However, the total trading volume dropped more than 2 per cent close to $63.98 billion.

Expert take
Edul Patel, CEO and co-founder, Mudrex said Bitcoin traded flat as bulls are trying to enter the market, but on the other hand, selling strength also continues to increase.

“Despite the decline, BTC has constantly attempted to keep its price above the $21,000 support level. If buyers can return to the market and regain momentum, BTC might soar to $22,000. Else, it may fall to $20,000 level shortly,” he added.

Global updates
Ethereum, the network behind the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap (after Bitcoin), will move from a proof-of-work consensus mechanism to a proof-of-stake blockchain next month in a process called “the merge”.

This will make Ethereum at least “99 per cent more energy efficient”. The Ethereum Foundation has said that the Merge Blockchain upgrade is scheduled on September 6 and the upgrade will be fully completed between September 10-20.

Tech view from BuyUcoin cryptocurrency exchange
SHIB surged as Shibarium launch approaches. The popular meme coin rose close to 3 per cent as a result of a shortage in supply due to the token burn. SHIB is now the 12th largest crypto in the world with a market cap slightly above $8 billion.

The excitement around the launch of Shibarium, the layer 2 blockchain by Shiba Inu, which is just weeks away from its launch, might have sparked investor interest in the meme coin. The upward trend will depend on how the market reacts to the Federal Chief’s comments on the monetary policy on Friday.

(Views and recommendations given in this section are the analysts’ own and do not represent those of ETMarkets.com. Please consult your financial adviser before taking any position in the asset/s mentioned.)