Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s Hawkish Comments Throw Some Cold Water on Crypto

The price of bitcoin (BTC) fell about 1.5% to $88,300 in the minutes following Powell’s comments. The price at press time had dipped a bit further to $88,000, down 3.2% over the past 24 hours. Ether (ETH) is down by a similar amount. The broader CoinDesk 20 Index, however, is up 0.5% over the same time frame. It’s being led by a 13% advance for Ripple’s (XRP), perhaps cheered by remarks from Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler which could be interpreted as his planning to quietly exit his job in wake of the Trump victory.