KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia's key index closed at an intraday high today, supported by continued buying interest even as renewed geopolitical tensions and a weaker overnight lead from Wall Street following the US Federal Reserve's (Fed) decision to stand pat on interest rates weighed on broader sentiment. The Fed has decided to hold rates steady for the fifth consecutive meeting, with the Federal Funds Rate unchanged between 3.50 per cent and 3.75 per cent. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 4.84 points to 1,720.40 from yesterday’s close of 1,715.56. The benchmark index, which opened 1.14 points lower at 1,714.42, hit its lowest level of 1,710.69 in early trade before gaining momentum for the rest of the day. However, the broader market was negative with losers outpacing gainers 581 to 411, while 612 counters were unchanged, 1,173 untraded, and 87 suspended. Turnover declined to 2.49 billion units valued at RM2.25 billion from ...
Approaching a Milestone
Ether (ETHUSD) is just 3% shy of its all-time high of $4,865.81 from November 2021, riding the coattails of Bitcoin’s repeated record peaks this year. As of Wednesday, ether traded around $4,715, up 29% in the past five days and 41.9% year-to-date. By contrast, Bitcoin (BTCUSD) hovered near $122,536, just below its $123,165.67 record, with gains of 6.3% over five days and 31.2% YTD.
Fueling the Rally
Both cryptos are benefitting from:
Risk-on sentiment following an in-line U.S. inflation report, which boosted market expectations for a September Fed rate cut (91.8% probability vs. 57.4% a month ago).
Record highs for BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) and iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA) ETFs.
Corporate treasury interest, with some firms now allocating funds not just to bitcoin, but also to ether and solana.
Why Ether is Outperforming Now
Analysts say ether’s recent strength is driven by:
The Pectra Upgrade (May 2025): Ethereum’s biggest blockchain improvement since 2022, making the network cheaper and faster.
The Genius Act (July 2025): The first U.S. federal law regulating stablecoins, expected to accelerate adoption. Ethereum hosts roughly half of the stablecoin market and holds 54.8% share in tokenization, per DeFiLlama.
Growing institutional interest in ether alongside bitcoin, making ETH a bigger part of the crypto investment mix.
Shubh Varma of Hyblock Capital calls it a “catch-up trade” — bitcoin has already set multiple new records this year, while ether is now racing to close the gap.
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