Asia Market Open: Crypto Rally Stalls as Bitcoin Sinks Below $113K Ahead of Fed Rate Call

Good morning, Asia. Here’s what’s moving before the ￰0￱ lost steam into the Asia session, down 1.1% to $112,806 as traders trimmed risk before the Fed’s rate decision later ￰1￱ pullback cooled a recent crypto rebound even as regional equities climbed on AI ￰2￱ snapshot Bitcoin : $112,806, down 1.1% Ether : $4,016, down 2.1% Solana : $194.64, down 3.3% Total crypto market cap : $3.8 trillion, down 1.4% Asia is taking its cue from Wall ￰3￱ optimism carried over after Microsoft struck a deal to let OpenAI restructure as a public benefit corporation while taking a 27% stake, and that lifted sentiment across the ￰4￱ can see it in the price action, as MSCI Asia ex-Japan nudged higher, Japan’s Nikkei jumped more than 1% to fresh records, and Korea’s Kospi hit an all-time high thanks in part to upbeat results from SK Hynix, a key Nvidia ￰5￱ are mixed into Europe and the US, with Nasdaq a touch firmer and Euro Stoxx 50 a bit ￰6￱ Rate Cut Looms as Markets Brace for Policy Signals on Liquidity The real hinge today is ￰7￱ have almost fully priced a 25-basis-point Fed ￰8￱ dollar has eased on the view that more cuts could follow, and traders will listen closely for any hint that the Fed might slow or stop balance-sheet runoff, which would matter for liquidity.

BREAKING: 98% chance of a 25 bps Fed rate cut tomorrow 2% chance of a 50 bps ￰9￱ — Kalshi (@Kalshi) October 28, 2025 What to watch from the Fed US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is expected to announce a rate cut today as the two-day FOMC meeting wraps ￰10￱ meeting runs Oct. 28–29, with Powell set to release the decision today at 2 pm ET, followed by a press conference at 2:30 pm ￰11￱ will parse the statement and Q&A for guidance on the path of rates and quantitative ￰12￱ Lee, chief analyst at Bitget, described the Fed’s expected 25-basis-point rate cut to a range of 3.75% to 4% as a move that could inject fresh liquidity into crypto markets.

“Easing borrowing costs typically boost risk appetite, and this could channel fresh capital into assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum, sparking 5%–10% short-term rallies,” he said. “As investors seek higher returns, we may also see capital rotation from safer assets into major altcoins like SOL and XRP, reinforcing crypto’s appeal as both a growth play and inflation hedge.” BOJ Decision, Fed Rate and Big-Tech Results Form This Week’s Macro Crosscurrents In FX, the yen firmed about 0.3% after US officials amped up warnings about Japan’s ultra-low ￰13￱ Bank of Japan is up tomorrow, and most expect no ￰14￱ add another layer. We’re heading into the busiest stretch with Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta all reporting, exactly the balance sheets that have steadied risk this ￰15￱ crypto desks, those same macro levers decide the next move, the rate path, the tone of US-China talks, and mega-cap ￰16￱ Bitcoin hovering under $113K, the question is whether a dovish Fed and tech strength can restart the bid, or if traders stay cautious until the dust settles.