Bitcoin, Ether, XRP Fall on a Big Day for Crypto. It's About Much More than the Fed. — Barrons.com
By Elsa OhlenBitcoin and other cryptocurrencies fell Wednesday as investors braced for the Federal Reserve's next interest-rate decision and the highly anticipated White House crypto policy report.Bitcoin was down 0.9% over the past 24 hours to $117,807, according to CoinDesk data. Ether dropped 2%, while XRP fell 2.5%. Solana slid 3.4%.S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were up 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively.The central bank's next interest-rate decision will be announced at 2 p.m. Eastern time Wednesday. The market believes it is almost certain the Fed will keep rates on hold.A surprise rate cut or commentary suggesting it may come in the near future would likely have a positive effect on crypto prices, and vice versa. That is because lower borrowing costs tend to make traders more willing to take risks.But what the crypto industry really wants is details about how the government could buy Bitcoin for the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve that President Donald Trump created via an executive order in March. Crypto traders hope Wednesday's report, ordered by Trump in January, will suggest a way for the government to buy Bitcoin; the March executive order called for the reserve to hold coins forfeited to the government via criminal or civil proceedings. Any indications that the U.S. could become a buyer of the coin should cause crypto prices to rise.However, a White House official said that the main purpose of Wednesday's report is to provide a "clear comprehensive framework" for the industry, rather than set out plans regarding the Bitcoin reserve, Barron's previously reported.Write to Elsa Ohlen at [email protected] content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.