This article is more than three months old

Three experts on what China and Fed moves mean for crypto prices

Three experts on what China and Fed moves mean for crypto prices
Snapshot
The Fed signalled an openness to further jumbo rate cuts following its half a percentage point chop last week. Credit: Justin Lane/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
  • Experts shared views on crypto prices amid a big shift in central bank policies.
  • Wintermute, Arthur Hayes, and Noelle Acheson weighed in on the macro landscape.

China’s central bank plans for stimulus measures further spurred optimism among investors already bullish about Federal Reserve policy.

The PBOC cut a key interest rate and left the door open for further reductions. It also unveiled measures to stimulate the stock market, along with the property and banking sectors.

Meanwhile, the Fed also signalled an openness to further jumbo rate cuts following its half a percentage point chop last week.

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said on Monday that the central bank has “a long way to come down to get the interest rate to something like neutral.”

Three experts on what it means for crypto:

Wintermute

“This adds a significant amount of liquidity into global markets — supporting conditions into year-end,” Wintermute wrote of the China measures in a note to clients on Tuesday.

Referring to Fed policy, Wintermute added: “As risk tolerance increases, the cryptocurrency market is well-positioned to benefit from the inflow of risk-seeking liquidity.”

Noelle Acheson

”Too little too late?,” asked analyst Noelle Acheson, noting subdued action from US and crypto markets.

Join the community to get our latest stories and updates

Why?

“Just like US rate hikes didn’t do much to dampen demand, it’s not clear that Chinese cuts will do much to stimulate it,” she wrote of Bitcoin in her “Crypto is Macro Now” newsletter.

“It is surprising that it hasn’t performed better given its sensitivity to liquidity sentiment.”

”The tailwinds for BTC continue to accumulate. The headwinds are still there – US investor sentiment, macro and political uncertainty – but there is pressure against them.”

Arthur Hayes

While he didn’t specifically address recent China or Fed developments, Maelstrom founder Arthur Hayes cited central bank policies generally for his U-turn on crypto prices.

He said he recently changed his mind, turning more bullish in the short term thanks to looser borrowing costs and stimulus.

“As long as our masters attempt to suppress entropy by printing money, crypto will rise in fiat terms,” Hayes told DL News on Tuesday.

“And the Maelstrom portfolio will prosper regardless of whether I get my short-term calls right or wrong.”

Crypto market movers

  • Bitcoin is down 0.6% over the past 24 hours to trade at $63,143.
  • Ethereum is down 2.2% over the same period to reach $2,609.

What we’re reading