Bitcoin held the $76,000 level despite a benchmark rate increase by the U.S. Federal Reserve, avoiding an immediate shock.

Cointelegraph, a blockchain media outlet, reported on Sept. 17 that the Fed raised rates by 25 basis points for the first time since 2023. Bitcoin traded around $76,000 before and after the announcement.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) unanimously raised the benchmark rate to 3.75 to 4 percent. Rate hikes typically weigh on stocks and other risk assets, but bitcoin rose 1.35 percent from 24 hours earlier to $76,663. With U.S. stocks falling the same day, it showed a relatively steady trend.

The market sees this rate increase as already largely priced in. Talos analyst Cooper Derschang said bitcoin largely held its pre-announcement level despite weakness in stocks, adding the rate hike was a decision the crypto market had already largely expected.

Still, market attention has shifted from this single hike to the possibility of additional tightening later this year. Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh said the economy may appear stable but inflation is too high. The Fed’s latest economic projections also showed 16 of 18 officials expected at least one additional rate increase before year-end.

Andrew Melville, head of research at Block Scholes, said an additional rate hike materialising could be a more hawkish move than a 25-basis-point increase. That made it a key variable whether bitcoin’s current defensiveness would continue.

Spot and derivatives markets moved in opposite directions. Over the past hour, there was net selling in perpetual futures of about $82 million in bitcoin and about $68 million in ethereum, while the bitcoin spot market logged net buying of about $15.5 million.

Exchange flows also moved quickly. Right after the rate hike, about 2,170 bitcoins flowed into exchanges, and 1,260 later flowed back out. Investors appeared to be adjusting positions as they digested the Fed’s message rather than uniformly avoiding risk assets.

Against this backdrop, the market is focusing less on bitcoin’s short-term price reaction and more on whether spot demand can hold up during a further tightening phase. Martin Lee, head of market insights at DWF Labs, said a hawkish stance in which higher rates remain for longer is coming back into focus, prompting risk-on assets to price in a new environment. That has made the next key point whether bitcoin’s resilience continues even in the face of the possibility of additional rate hikes this year.