Bitcoin traders grew more hopeful of a near-term rally after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday.

Santiment said social media sentiment turned sharply more bullish after the decision, even as the Bitcoin fear and greed chart slipped back into extreme fear territory.

Sentiment shifts after Fed decision

Santiment said traders were treating the Fed’s decision to keep rates at 3.5% to 3.75% as a possible setup for a relief rally.

The platform said its social discussion score jumped from about 9 to 71 in the hours after the announcement.

Santiment said:

“For now, traders are expecting a bullish relief rally in spite of no changes being made.”

It added:

“This is likely due to the fact that the bearish price action related to the lack of cuts already occurred yesterday.”

Fed policy has long been a major macro driver for bitcoin, with traders often viewing pauses as a sign that cuts could follow.

Analysts split on next move

Not everyone sees a clean breakout ahead.

Onchain analyst Willy Woo recently warned that a bull trap may be forming, meaning bitcoin could briefly rise before reversing lower:

“A potential bull trap may be forming.”

At the time of publication, bitcoin was down 4.35% over the past 24 hours at $70,790, according to CoinMarketCap.

Broader market still matters

Analyst Matthew Hyland said bitcoin and the wider crypto market could see a significant rally once stocks find a bottom and rebound.

The S&P 500 was down 3.73% over the past 30 days.

Trader Moustache also pointed to a stronger move ahead.

He said:

“What you’ll see in the coming months is a massive rally.”