Bitcoin experienced a modest uptick in price on Wednesday, yet continued to hover within a recent trading range amid concerns regarding U.S. inflation and interest rates, deterring traders from embracing risk-associated assets such as cryptocurrency.

However, reports emerged indicating that Mt Gox, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange which had gone bankrupt, clarified that it presently had no immediate intentions to sell its substantial Bitcoin reserves. Instead, the exchange appeared to be devising a plan to reimburse its creditors. Consequently, Bitcoin saw a 1.5% increase in value over the past day, reaching $68,826.3 by 01:00 ET (05:00 GMT), remaining confined within the $60,000 to $70,000 range observed over the preceding two months.

Despite initial concerns sparked by Mt Gox’s movement of approximately $9 billion worth of Bitcoin this week, there were no indications of imminent token sales, prompting a sense of relief within the cryptocurrency market.

Subsequent reports clarified that Mt Gox had no immediate intentions to sell any tokens, although it remained committed to fulfilling its obligations. Former Mt Gox CEO Mark Karpeles suggested that the movement of Bitcoins was probably the trustees preparing for a future distribution, ruling out an imminent sale.

Mt Gox’s situation has been a significant concern for Bitcoin traders due to the large pool of tokens held by the now-defunct exchange, which it may liquidate to repay creditors. Such a liquidation could potentially introduce substantial selling pressure on the world’s largest cryptocurrency.

Altcoins experienced slight gains on Wednesday, with Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency, rising by 0.8% to reach $3,864.29, maintaining its position close to two-month highs. This uptrend followed positive developments from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding the potential approval of an exchange-traded fund (ETF) directly tied to Ether, while similar spot products began trading in UK markets. Despite these gains, the broader altcoin market saw relatively modest increases, constrained by ongoing apprehensions surrounding prolonged high interest rates and persistent inflationary pressures.

XRP registered a 0.8% increase, while SOL saw a more notable rise of 3.6%. Among meme tokens, SHIB demonstrated a substantial surge of nearly 17%, while DOGE recorded a more modest gain of 2.6%.

The focus this week remained on the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index data, which serves as the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation. Scheduled for release on Friday, this data is expected to influence the central bank’s decisions regarding interest rates. Several Fed officials have issued warnings indicating that interest rates are likely to remain elevated for an extended period, a scenario that could adversely affect the cryptocurrency market.