📃 Sep 18, 2026 – EUROPE Cryptocurrency Market 8h Daily Trend Forecast

Crypto Market Analysis & Trend: Trending Up

The crypto market is trending up, largely due to Bitcoin’s price action and a growing sense of greed. Bitcoin climbed to $76,516.01 on September 17 at 07:35:00, a 0.91% gain. This move higher followed news of Bitcoin topping $77,000 after the Bank of Japan lifted rates. Ethereum and Binance Coin also pushed higher; Ethereum rose 1.96% to $2,447.84, and Binance Coin gained 1.95% to $726.13 on the same day.

Market capitalization figures support this positive trend. Bitcoin’s market cap hit $1,534,745,538,538 on September 18, up 0.33%. Ethereum’s cap rose 1.26% to $298,701,643,654, and Binance Coin’s climbed 1.76% to $98,274,664,036. This growth in value happened even as trading volumes across major cryptocurrencies dropped sharply, Bitcoin’s volume fell 23.09% and Ethereum’s 24.29% on September 18. The divergence suggests existing holders are staying put, or buying pressure is concentrated, not widespread.

The Fear and Greed Index shows growing optimism, pushing further into the ‘greed’ zone. Alternative.me reported the index at 56pt on September 18, up 6 points from 50pt the day before. Coinstats.app showed even higher greed levels, ranging from 63pt to 66pt on September 18. This sentiment, plus positive news like Michael Saylor’s prediction of banks lending against Bitcoin and the CFTC’s broker registration relief for crypto developers, could build a supportive backdrop for potential continued gains.

Still, the market faces challenges. The CLARITY Act’s failure hurt XRP prices, and over $260 million in liquidations hit as Bitcoin touched $77,000, signaling underlying volatility. For the next 8 hours, confidence in an upward trend could be moderate to high, as long as Bitcoin holds above $77,000 and no major negative economic or regulatory news breaks. The drop in trading volumes, though, casts some doubt on how long these rapid price increases can last.

What is important

The crypto market is seeing upward momentum, with asset prices climbing and sentiment shifting decidedly to ‘greed’. Bitcoin’s price surged past $77,000 on September 17 after the Bank of Japan’s rate hike. Ethereum and Binance Coin also posted price and capitalization gains.

Even with these price gains, trading volumes across major exchanges and cryptocurrencies fell sharply on September 18. This split suggests prices are rising without broad, high-volume participation. Regulatory news is mixed: the CFTC’s relief for crypto developers is a positive, but the CLARITY Act’s failure put selling pressure on XRP.

Top 5 – Latest Headlines & Cryptocurrency News

👍 Bitcoin price tops $77K after BOJ lifts rates to 1.25%
– Bitcoin´s price surged past $77,000, reaching new all-time highs. This significant price movement occurred shortly after the Bank of Japan (BOJ) announced its decision to lift interest rates. The market is reacting positively to this development, indicating strong investor confidence and potential for further growth in the cryptocurrency.

👍 Michael Saylor Says Banks Will Lend Against Bitcoin Without Congress. Deutsche Bank Is Already Waiting for Approval
– Michael Saylor predicts banks will offer Bitcoin-backed loans without congressional approval, citing Deutsche Bank´s readiness. This indicates a growing institutional acceptance of Bitcoin as collateral, potentially driving further adoption and integration into traditional finance. The move suggests a significant shift in how financial institutions view and utilize cryptocurrencies.

👍 CFTC Clears Way for Crypto Developers to Build Trading Tools Without Broker Registration
– The CFTC has cleared the path for crypto developers to build trading tools without requiring broker registration. This move is expected to foster innovation and growth within the digital asset space, potentially leading to more sophisticated and accessible trading platforms for users.

👎 After the CLARITY Act fails, XRP price falls and faces selling pressure, investors fight back successfully to earn $10,000 a day
– The XRP price experienced a decline following the failure of the Clarity Act, leading to selling pressure. Despite this, investors successfully pushed back against the downward trend. The article suggests a potential for significant daily earnings for investors, implying resilience in the face of regulatory setbacks.

👎 Crypto Liquidations Surge Past $260M as Bitcoin´s Price Touches $77K
– Cryptocurrency liquidations have surpassed $260 million as Bitcoin´s price briefly touched $77,000. This surge in liquidations indicates significant volatility in the market, likely driven by rapid price movements and leveraged trading. Traders are experiencing substantial losses as positions are forcibly closed due to margin calls.

Factors Driving the Growth – Market Sentiment

Positive Terms – Sentiment Analysis

Negative Terms – Sentiment Analysis

Crypto Investor Fear & Greed Index

The Fear and Greed Index clearly shifted towards more optimism in the crypto market. Alternative.me reported the index at 50pt on September 17, a neutral reading. By September 18, it jumped to 56pt, up 6 points, moving firmly into the ‘greed’ category (50-74pt). Coinstats.app data confirms this, showing index values consistently in the ‘greed’ range, from 63pt at 00:10:00 on September 18 to 66pt by 04:00:00. This sustained greed suggests market participants are growing more confident and willing to take on risk, potentially signaling a short-term bullish outlook.

Bitcoin: Active Addresses

Bitcoin address indicators from bitaps.com show stable, high numbers. Total addresses hit 1,545,632,184 by 07:00:00 on September 18, with no change. Zero balance addresses also held steady at 1,488,763,430 at the same time. Addresses holding over 0.001 BTC totaled 12,118,733 on September 18 at 07:00:00, showing stable figures despite minor fluctuations. Larger holdings, like over 1 BTC, stood at 822,274, and those with over 100 BTC were 18,165, both with minimal percentage changes. Data for “Bitcoin Active Addresses” from btc.com for August 8, 2026, shows 0 addresses, indicating no recent data from that source.

Economic events to move the cryptocurrency market

Global financial markets had several high and moderate impact economic events scheduled for September 17 and 18, 2026. On September 17, high-impact events at 12:30:00 included “Jobless Claims 4-Week Moving Average” and “Initial Claims – Level,” plus “Housing Starts and Permits.” Moderate impact events that day were the “Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index” and the “EIA Natural Gas Report.” For September 18, high-impact events at 13:15:00 featured “Industrial Production Manufacturing Output – M/M,” “Industrial Production Industrial Production – M/M,” and “Industrial Production Capacity Utilization Rate.” These macroeconomic indicators can sway broader market sentiment and, by extension, the crypto market.

Crypto Assets Prices

Cryptocurrency prices moved higher on September 17, 2026. Bitcoin hit $76,516.01 at 07:35:00, up 0.91% with a 0.99% 24h variation and 2.28% 24h volatility. Ethereum also climbed, reaching $2,447.84, a 1.96% price variation and 2.12% 24h variation, alongside 3.60% 24h volatility. Binance Coin followed, priced at $726.13 with a 1.95% price variation and 2.32% 24h variation, showing 3.54% 24h volatility. These figures point to a general upward trend for major assets, despite notable volatility.

Cryptocurrency Capitalization and Volume

Market capitalizations for major cryptocurrencies generally rose on September 18, but trading volumes fell sharply. Bitcoin’s cap climbed 0.33% to $1,534,745,538,538, while its 24-hour volume dropped 23.09% to $23,694,376,417. Ethereum’s cap increased 1.26% to $298,701,643,654, with its volume down 24.29% to $11,980,034,960. Binance Coin’s cap grew 1.76% to $98,274,664,036, as its volume dipped 1.43%. Ripple saw a slight 0.23% cap decrease to $81,487,545,613, and its volume plunged 37.16%. Tether, a stablecoin, held relatively steady with a -0.01% cap variation, though its volume decreased 16.63%.

Cryptocurrency Exchanges Volume and Variation

Trading volumes across major crypto exchanges broadly fell on September 18. Binance, the largest, saw its volume drop 11.02% to 122,570. Other big exchanges also reported significant declines: Bybit’s volume fell 15.83% to 19,071, Coinbase’s 9.65% to 27,235, Crypto.com’s 15.70% to 10,148, Gate.io’s 15.89% to 18,820, Kraken’s 19.67% to 18,680, KuCoin’s 26.21% to 21,066, and OKX’s 15.96% to 26,803. Bitfinex was the exception, with a 2.20% volume increase to 8,223. This overall drop in volumes suggests less trading activity, even with recent positive price moves in the wider market.

Mining – Blockchain Technology

Bitcoin mining indicators show stable difficulty and block rewards, but hash rates are fluctuating. Mining difficulty held steady at 127.45T from September 12 through September 18, with no change. The reward per BTC block also stayed at 3.13 BTC throughout this period. The number of mined blocks consistently rose by 0.01% or 0.02% daily, hitting 967.48K on September 18. The hash rate, which measures computational power, jumped 5.13% to 906.29B GB on September 18, recovering from a sharp 16.54% drop on September 17. This hash rate fluctuation points to dynamic participation or adjustments in the mining sector.

Taking stock

The crypto market is seeing asset values climb while trading volumes fall, creating a complex picture for participants. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Binance Coin all posted price and capitalization gains on September 17 and 18, pushing overall market sentiment into ‘greed.’ The Fear and Greed Index reflects this, rising to 56pt and 66pt across different sources.

This upward price action, however, is happening alongside a sharp drop in 24-hour trading volumes across most major cryptocurrencies and exchanges. Bitcoin’s volume fell over 23% and Ethereum’s over 24% on September 18. Exchanges like Binance and Coinbase also saw double-digit percentage declines. This suggests recent price gains could be driven by lower liquidity or sustained buying from a smaller group of participants, rather than broad market engagement.

Regulatory developments also create mixed signals. The CFTC’s decision to grant broker registration relief to crypto developers is a positive for innovation, potentially fostering new trading tools. On the flip side, the CLARITY Act’s failure put selling pressure on XRP, showing how legislative uncertainty continues to impact specific assets. These opposing forces,bullish sentiment and rising prices against falling volumes and mixed regulatory news,shape today’s market.

So What

Current market dynamics show prices climbing, but underlying trading activity remains quiet. For market watchers, this means recent gains in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Binance Coin,up 0.91%, 1.96%, and 1.95% respectively on September 17,could be vulnerable to sudden shifts if buying pressure doesn’t hold. The broad drop in exchange volumes, with Binance down 11.02% and Coinbase down 9.65% on September 18, points to less liquidity, which can amplify price swings on smaller trades.

The ‘greed’ sentiment, with the Fear and Greed Index hitting 66pt on September 18, suggests optimism. However, this can also come before corrections if the market gets overextended. Mixed regulatory news,the CFTC’s positive move for developers versus the CLARITY Act’s negative impact on XRP and Ethereum,means individual assets might react differently to wider market trends. Investors should weigh the effects of lower liquidity and higher potential volatility, even in a rising market.

What next?

For the next 8 hours, market participants should watch Bitcoin’s price closely, especially its ability to hold above $77,000, a level it briefly topped on September 17. Sustained trading above this point would solidify the current upward trend. The Fear and Greed Index, now in the ‘greed’ zone at 56pt (Alternative.me) and 66pt (Coinstats.app) on September 18, will be key; a sharp move down could signal a shift in market sentiment.

Also, watch for the impact of high-impact economic events scheduled for September 18 at 13:15:00, including “Industrial Production Manufacturing Output – M/M” and “Industrial Production Capacity Utilization Rate.” These macroeconomic data releases could sway broader market sentiment and potentially spark reactions in crypto. Further drops in trading volumes across major exchanges like Binance and Coinbase, which saw 11.02% and 9.65% declines respectively on September 18, would point to weakening buying interest despite rising prices. That’s a reason to be cautious.

Disclaimer – Informational Content, Not Investment Advice

Content provided herein is solely for informational purposes and should not be construed as a recommendation, endorsement, or suggestion to engage in any form of investment activity. The information presented in this post is not intended to serve as financial, legal, tax, or investment advice.

About the Author: CryptoTrends Team

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