Investing.com-- Bitcoin slipped on Thursday, steadying following a rally driven by optimism over Israel-Iran ceasefire. Despite recent gains, the world’s largest cryptocurrency remained within a recent trading range.

Focus was now on more institutional demand for the crypto, amid reports of several corporates buying Bitcoin. U.S. mortgage giants Fannie Mae (OTC: FNMA ) and Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC ) are also set to consider crypto as an asset for applications.

Still, the buying and adoption appeared to have provided only limited support to Bitcoin prices, at least for now.

The world’s largest crypto inched 0.6% lower to $107,020 by 10:09 ET (14:09 GMT), staying below a weekly high of over $108,000.

Broader crypto prices were a mixed bag, as improving risk sentiment spurred limited gains this week.

Bitcoin sees increased institutional buying

Bitcoin enjoyed a slew of institutional buying this week.

Anthony Pompliano’s ProCap BTC, a crypto venture, purchased nearly $400 million worth of Bitcoin this week. This came just days after the venture signed a $1 billion deal to list on public markets through a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company.

In Japan, hotel operator Metaplanet purchased about $133 million worth of Bitcoin, becoming the fifth-largest corporate holder of the crypto after Elon Musk’s Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA ).

This week’s buying follows Gamestop buying about $500 million worth of Bitcoin in late-May.

Corporates appear to be largely attempting to emulate Michael Saylor’s Strategy Incorporated (NASDAQ: MSTR ), which rode a wave of Bitcoin buying to an over $100 billion valuation.

Sentiment towards crypto has also improved this year amid increasing signs of a friendly U.S. regulatory environment.

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac to consider Bitcoin adoption

U.S. Director of Federal Housing William Pulte said on Wednesday that he was directing the mortgage giants to consider crypto as an asset for mortgage applications.

The move comes amid increasing regulatory favor towards crypto under President Donald Trump’s administration.

“After significant studying, and in keeping with President Trump’s vision to make the United States the crypto capital of the world, today I ordered the Great Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to prepare their businesses to count cryptocurrency as an asset for a mortgage,” Pulte said in a statement.

But it was not immediately clear what cryptos will be considered by the agencies, or how they plan to navigate the high levels of volatility in crypto prices.

European Commission to permit mutual recognition of stablecoin issuers - report

The European Commission is preparing to clarify that stablecoins issued by EU-licensed companies can be treated the same as those issued by their non-EU counterparts, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing a source familiar with the matter. The move comes as regulators continue addressing risks linked to stablecoins.

Earlier this week, ECB President Christine Lagarde warned that stablecoins could threaten monetary policy and financial stability, and urged lawmakers to support legislation for a digital euro.

Under the EU’s MiCA framework, introduced in 2023, stablecoin issuers must obtain regulatory approval before launching tokens in the bloc.

Crypto price today: altcoins down as risk appetite cools

Broader crypto prices were a mixed bag, mostly lagging Bitcoin as risk appetite cooled after some gains earlier this week.

World no.2 crypto Ether slid 0.5% to $2,435.36, while XRP fell over 4% to $2.12.

Solana dropped 3.7%, while Cardano around 5%.

Among meme tokens, Dogecoin shed nearly 5%, while $TRUMP fell 4.5%

(Ambar Warrick contributed to this report.)