Bitcoin Rises, XRP Falls. Crypto's Next Catalyst Is Around the Corner. — Barrons.com

By Elsa Ohlen

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies traded largely sideways Tuesday, as the crypto sector awaited its next catalyst.

Bitcoin rose 0.2% over the past 24 hours to $118,836, according to CoinDesk data. It fell to about $117,500 overnight and during Asia trading hours, but has steadily climbed back up again since.

Ether and XRP were down 0.7% and 2.8%, respectively. Solana fell 3.8% and meme coin Dogecoin dropped 5%.

Futures tracking the S&P 500 were up about 0.2%.

On Wednesday, the White House will release a crypto policy report, called for under the executive order President Donald Trump signed in January on digital assets, according to Bo Hines, executive director at the Presidential Council of Advisers for Digital Assets.

In January, Trump signed the order saying he would "promote United States leadership in digital assets and financial technology while protecting economic liberty."

It comes as Congress is making strides to regulate the sector.

Another catalyst for cryptos will be the Federal Reserve's next interest-rate decision on Wednesday. Rates are widely expected to remain unchanged, but an unexpected move or commentary from Chair Jerome Powell could move markets, including cryptos.

Bitcoin has been unable to break through the $120,000 level lately. "This indecision to break out of the range is likely to continue until the market sees the Fed's key rate decision on Wednesday evening," said FxPro analyst Alex Kuptsikevich early Tuesday.

Write to Elsa Ohlen at elsa.ohlen@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.