Bitcoin swung higher on Tuesday amid jitters in trading ahead of U.S. inflation data and a Federal Reserve policy decision.
The largest cryptocurrency fell 2.5% to a one-week low and was trading below $68,000 at 12:42 Singapore time. Smaller cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum and Dogecoin also lost ground.
Bitcoin hit a record high of $73,798 in March, driven by an influx of investment into U.S. exchange-traded funds, but has struggled to hit new highs since then.
Inflation data and Federal Reserve forecasts due out on Wednesday may confirm concerns that interest rates will remain higher for longer, creating an unfavorable environment for speculation on assets such as cryptocurrencies.
Anand Gomes, co-founder of derivatives platform Paradigm, said that no news is a bad thing in the crypto space. The market constantly needs positive news to stay up, so when there is no news, the trend tends to be down.
