Ether Leads Crypto Gains Ahead of FOMC Decision, Outpacing Bitcoin Amid Market Uncertainty

Ether Leads Crypto Gains Ahead of FOMC Decision, Outpacing Bitcoin Amid Market Uncertainty

Ether (ETH) surged nearly 7% in the past 24 hours, leading gains among major cryptocurrencies as traders anticipate the outcome of Wednesday’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. The rally comes as investors weigh potential policy decisions that could impact broader market sentiment.

The price jump in ETH was accompanied by a 4% rise in dogecoin (DOGE), a memecoin historically correlated with ether’s price movements. Other Ethereum-based memecoins, including pepe (PEPE) and mog (MOG), saw gains of more than 5%, continuing to act as leveraged bets on ETH’s price action.

Among other major assets, XRP, BNB Chain’s BNB, Solana’s SOL, and Cardano’s ADA climbed around 3%. Meanwhile, Tron’s TRX initially surged 5% before retracing, as memecoin trading on the blockchain accelerated following a recent zero-fee update on the Sunpump platform.

Bitcoin (BTC) posted a more modest 2% gain, remaining steady just below the $84,000 mark in Asian evening hours. As traders await the FOMC’s decision, many are closely watching the $80,000 level, with some analysts warning that a break below this threshold could signal the loss of a crucial support zone.

The ETH/BTC ratio—an indicator of ether’s performance relative to bitcoin—rose from 0.23 to 0.24 since early Wednesday, reflecting increased demand for ETH as a higher-risk asset compared to BTC’s perceived stability.

Ethereum’s Fundamental Catalysts

Ether’s recent surge lacked a clear immediate catalyst, but the Ethereum network has several key technical upgrades in the pipeline. The upcoming Pectra upgrade, currently in testing, aims to enhance scalability, staking, and user experience by implementing over 20 Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs). Notable among these are EIP-7702, which introduces smart account functionality, and EIP-7251, which raises the validator staking limit to 2,048 ETH.

Testing began on the Holesky testnet in February 2025, followed by Sepolia in March. However, initial testing encountered transaction processing issues due to client incompatibilities. To address these challenges, Ethereum developers launched a new testnet, Hooli, on March 17, with further Pectra testing scheduled for March 26. If testing proceeds as planned, mainnet deployment is expected between late April and early May 2025.

Market Sentiment & Macro Influences

“Bitcoin has found some support around $80K, but the stability appears fragile given broader macroeconomic weakness,” traders at Singapore-based QCP Capital said in a note. “While we’re not calling the exact moment when the rally ends, we’re struggling to identify strong tailwinds that could meaningfully reverse this trend in the near term.”

QCP analysts emphasized the importance of the FOMC’s stance on growth and inflation expectations. “We’ll be closely watching for any dovish shifts. Given that the economic impact of tariffs will take months to materialize, we expect the Fed to maintain a ‘wait-and-see’ approach for now.”

Meanwhile, gold surged above $3,000 to reach new all-time highs on Wednesday, prompting discussions about its inverse correlation with bitcoin.

“Despite bitcoin’s historical role as a macro hedge alongside gold, its recent divergence—falling while gold rises—suggests that BTC is behaving more like a risk asset,” said Ryan Lee, Chief Analyst at Bitget Research, in a message to CoinDesk. “This shift is likely driven by Fed policy uncertainty, profit-taking, and a rotation into traditional safe-haven assets.”

Lee added that the FOMC decision could play a pivotal role in bitcoin’s short-term direction. “If the Fed adopts a dovish tone, we could see a recovery in BTC. However, a more hawkish stance might deepen the correction, reinforcing bitcoin’s sensitivity to broader economic signals rather than its ‘digital gold’ narrative.”

As traders brace for the Fed’s decision, the crypto market remains highly reactive to macroeconomic developments, with Ethereum’s ongoing technical upgrades providing a key counterbalance to broader risk sentiment.