Bitcoin's (BTC) attempt at a sizable rally was snuffed out Tuesday, but the crypto managed to hold the $27,000 level and was trading at $27,180 late in the afternoon, up 1.4% over the past 24 hours.

The broader CoinDesk Market Index (CMI) was ahead 1% for the day. Notably underperforming was ether (ETH), with a gain of just 0.1%.

Earlier Tuesday, bitcoin had rallied to its highest price in three weeks at $27,475, but – as has been the pattern for months – sellers quickly emerged.

The results of the Fed policy meeting come tomorrow

The U.S. Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will conclude its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday. The FOMC is universally expected to hold its benchmark fed funds rate steady at a range of 5.25%-5.50%, but market participants will be focused on the central bank’s updated economic projections and Chairman Jerome Powell’s post-meeting press conference for clues about the future direction of monetary policy.

The FOMC’s next meeting is at the start of November, and investors are currently pricing in a 70% chance of continued steady policy. An unexpectedly hawkish lean to the updated economic projections or Powell comments could serve as a negative catalyst to both crypto and traditional markets.

Bitcoin btc Federal Reserve Market Wrap

Stephen Alpher

Stephen is CoinDesk's managing editor for Markets. He previously served as managing editor at Seeking Alpha. A native of suburban Washington, D.C., Stephen went to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School, majoring in finance. He holds BTC above CoinDesk’s disclosure threshold of $1,000.