Crypto Market Today (March 18, 2025): BTC, ETH, XRP, SOL, and DOGE Struggle While BNB Sees Positive Movement!

Major assets have experienced only slight changes in the crypto market today March 18, 2025. Despite a temporary decline, some analysts are focusing on long-term market trends as they view this as a natural correction. ETH saw a slight decline however its upcoming upgrade could improve Ethereum’s functionality, potentially affecting its price. Meanwhile, major altcoins such as XRP, BNB, and Solana show mixed performances.

Fed Announcement Looms: How Will It Impact Bitcoin?

The crypto market today has been calm with most of the top 10 cryptocurrencies seeing small losses. Based on Coingecko’s data the crypto market’s capitalization has decreased by 2.7%, reaching $2,801,231,401,839. Based on crypto market analysis this can be attributed to Investors’ cautious approach ahead of the FED’s announcement. The Federal Reserve’s policy meeting, which is set to take place March 18 to 19 will determine the market’s approach. Based on projections the interest rates are expected to remain the same.

Chart 1 – Provided by Coingecko, published on Coingecko, March 18, 2025. 

Based on Chart 1 Bitcoin is currently trading at $82,698 and has experienced a 1.1% daily decline in value. However, data shows that the number one coin has had a 1.2% weekly gain in value. Although the decline could be disappointing, in total the digital gold is reported to have outperformed other assets. These include equities, the stock market, and precious metals. This performance was despite two major pullbacks in price after BTC’s ATH in January. 

Bitcoin’s Pullback: A Healthy Correction or a Bear Market Start

BTC’s ATH of $109,000 was reached on January 20 and since then BTC has declined nearly 10%. This is partly why crypto market analysis shows that Bitcoin’s pullback to  $76,000 is a natural correction for the market cycle.  Aurelie Barthere, principal research analyst at the Nansen crypto intelligence platform has also commented on the BTC’s price decline.  Stating “We are still in a correction within a bull market”

ETH’s Decline: Ethereum’s Bright Future 

Ethereum’s price has also experienced a mild decline as its streak of underperformance continues. However, based on some analysis this decline and underperformance can still lead to major gains in the future. DeFi Dad believes that investing in ETH is similar to today’s stock market giants. He named companies like Amazon, stating that early investment in ETH now is like investing in these stocks decades ago.

Chart 2 – Provided by Coingecko, published on Coingecko, March 18, 2025

According to Chart 2, Ethereum’s price is at $1,893 right now with a small daily loss. This coin has seen a 0.6% decline in the last 24 hours and a 1.4% drop in the last week. ETH’s price movement has recorded a 24-hour range from $1,889.72 to $1,949.66. This slight downtrend in ETH’s market might be reversed as the Pectra upgrade releases. Ethereum network is set to receive this upgrade in the next month.

XRP, SOL, & DOGE See Losses – BNB Gains

The other altcoins also were mostly red as XRP had a 3.3% daily decrease reaching $2.26. BNB the native asset of the Binance exchange saw a 0.7% daily increase in value reaching $632.90. Solana was also in red, recording one of the biggest losses with a 4.6% drop, reaching $123.33. Dogecoin experienced a 4.0% drop in 24 hours and is now trading around $0.1662.

Now the Right Time to Enter or Wait?

Historically, market cycles favor gradual gains, suggesting Bitcoin could regain momentum as macroeconomic pressures ease.  Altcoins face pressure from market-wide corrections, yet some may benefit from upcoming developments. Ethereum has also underperformed recently but remains crucial for blockchain applications and upcoming upgrades focus on scalability, potentially boosting its demand. Crypto markets remain sensitive to Federal Reserve policies, as such traders should wait for these developments before entering a market.