Bitcoin and ether firm as ADP jobs data misses

Bitcoin opened at $64,602.32, up 0.9 percent from Wednesday, and ether opened at $1,906.96, up 2.1 percent, both trading near their best levels of the week. Private payroll data from ADP showed US employment rose by 15,000 in July, well short of the 16,500 forecast, cutting the odds of a Federal Reserve rate increase at next month's meeting.

The soft labour reading came alongside progress on reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's deputy foreign minister said Tehran and Oman have agreed proposed inbound and outbound shipping lanes through the strait, with a joint statement now under review by both governments. Shipping traffic through the strait fell to 33 vessels between Monday and Thursday, down from 50 in the week-ago period, as tankers awaited the outcome.

With the ADP miss already in the price, Friday's official jobs report becomes the more decisive catalyst for whether markets extend the rate-cut bet into next month.