Jerome Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, noted that there are "no plans for interest rate cuts," and this has led to a decline in major cryptocurrency prices.
As of 8:03 a.m. on the 31st, according to CoinMarketCap, a global cryptocurrency exchange site, Bitcoin has recorded a price of $117,484, down 0.28% from 24 hours ago. Ethereum, the second largest by market capitalization, is down 0.26% at $3,778, while Ripple (XRP), the third largest, is trading at $3.08, down 1.25%.
This is analyzed as being due to the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady, along with Powell's statement that "we need to observe the impact of tariffs on inflation further" and "we are not considering interest rate cuts yet." Generally, when high-interest rate policies are maintained, the investment demand for risky assets, including cryptocurrencies, decreases.
Cryptocurrency news outlet CoinDesk reported that approximately $200 million in altcoins (coins other than Bitcoin) were liquidated as a result of Powell's comments.