Bitcoin has fallen below $64,000: a "hawkish" signal from the new Fed chair
The first cryptocurrency sharply lost value, falling below the psychological mark of $64,000. The digital asset market immediately reacted with a decline to the results of the first Federal Reserve meeting under the leadership of the new chairman, Kevin Warsh.
The regulator decided to keep the key interest rate at 3.5–3.75% per annum. However, the main disappointment for crypto community members was not so much the numbers as the rhetoric of the Fed chair. Warsh hinted at the possibility of a rate hike by the end of this year, which was perceived by investors as a "hawkish" signal.
The dot plot of FOMC officials' forecasts showed a split: exactly half of the voting participants expect rates to remain unchanged or decrease, while the other half leans toward at least one increase. Warsh himself declined a personal assessment, calling this format "limiting" for future policy.
Strategic Changes and Market Reaction
The agency announced the creation of five working groups to study the regulator's communication strategies, asset balance, data sources, the impact of artificial intelligence on the economy, and methods for combating inflation. During the press conference, Warsh mentioned "price stability" more than ten times, which only heightened market concerns.
Against this backdrop, the yield on two-year U.S. Treasury notes jumped by 14.4 basis points, and stock indices began to decline. The Fed named the surge in energy prices due to the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East as the main economic risk. Warsh emphasized that the agency intends to bring inflation back to the 2% target, calling this commitment "unconditional."
Direct Impact on the Crypto Market
Bitcoin quotes momentarily fell to ~$63,680. Ethereum lost 3.15%, while Solana and XRP dropped by 2.9% and 3.8%, respectively. The only exception was TRX, which showed a modest gain of 0.75%. The GMCI 30 index, tracking the dynamics of the largest assets by market capitalization, lost 2.6%.
Notably, traditional safe-haven assets also came under pressure: the price of gold fell by 1.39%, and silver dropped by 2.79%. At the same time, the stock market showed mixed dynamics — the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices rose due to the signing of an interim agreement with Iran and the opening of the Strait of Hormuz.
My comment: The market clearly overestimated the likelihood of a "dovish" scenario from the new Fed leadership. Warsh's rhetoric is a clear signal that the fight against inflation remains priority number one, even at the cost of slowing economic growth. For Bitcoin, this means continued high volatility in the short term, and a break below the $63,000 level could trigger a deeper correction. Investors should prepare for a period of heightened uncertainty.