Today in Crypto: Bitcoin Dips 3.5% Ahead of Expected Fed Rate Hike; Mexican Exchange Bitso Hits 1M Users

Despite the Chicago Board of Options Exchange’s volatility index showing a lack of investor anxiety ahead of the Federal Reserve rate increase, bitcoin was down 3.5% in the 24 hours leading up to Monday (July 25) afternoon.

The top cryptocurrency was selling at almost $21,900, CoinDesk wrote. The Fed might raise interest rates by 75 basis points this week — and there’s also a small likelihood of a 100 basis point change.

The weakness of bitcoin might show that the Fed is sticking to its path of aggressive tightening, the report noted.

Bloomberg reported on the falling price of bitcoin, noting that it had fallen by roughly 4.3% Monday and was sitting around $21,840 as of 10:10 a.m. in New York. The report also said crypto might be at the mercy of the Fed interest rate hike amid slashed earnings from Big Tech firms and a still-slowing economy.

Furthermore, Aptos Labs announced Monday that it has raised $150 million in a Series A funding round.

According to the company announcement, Aptos is currently trying to build a new foundation for Web3 and plans to address customer needs with the “most performant and upgradable blockchain technology.”

Aptos wants to support various things including gaming, social networks, finance, media and entertainment.

Additionally, Asian crypto exchange Zipmex, which froze withdrawals last week, wants to raise $50 million to repair its balance sheet.

Zipmex is reportedly in discussions to sell all or part of itself after lending money to Babel Finance and Celsius, both of which have been seeing lots of trouble recently, per a Bloomberg report.

In a tweet Saturday (July 23), Zipmex said it has received terms from one of “various interested parties,” though the company did not identify the other entity.

Finally, Mexican crypto exchange Bitso has reached 1 million users in Brazil after launching in the country last year, Reuters reported.

Thales Freitas, the company’s Brazil chief, said July’s ratings were up from June’s, even with the downturn among many big cryptocurrencies. Freitas added that Bitso’s transaction volumes grew 66% in June from May.

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