The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at 3.5%–3.75% Wednesday, with policymakers voting 9-3 to pause — the most divided FOMC split this year — as inflation concerns tied to geopolitical disruption kept the central bank on hold, Reuters reported .
Markets reacted badly. The Dow fell roughly 1,150 points. The VIX, Wall Street's fear gauge, spiked 13.45% to 20.66. The 10-year Treasury yield climbed to 4.62%, its highest in months. SPY fell 1.54% and QQQ dropped 2.04%.
Crypto held in more quietly. Bitcoin traded around $64,036 at time of writing — up 0.62% in the past 24 hours but down 2.38% over the week. Etherum was similarly flat at $1,906, up 0.80% daily but down 0.69% over seven days. Solana fell further, down 5.21% week-over-week despite marginal daily gains.
The relative composure in digital assets is worth noting, given the macro shock. Bitcoin's correlation to risk assets has been well documented, but the past 24 hours have offered something of a partial decoupling — a dynamic bulls have been waiting for.
Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, in his post-meeting remarks, signaled the central bank has "no tolerance" for elevated inflation and warned that the five-plus years of above-target price growth "cannot be cured in nine weeks." Three policymakers dissented in favor of a 25-basis-point hike. The message from the majority: hold, but stay alert.
That posture — cautious on growth, unwilling to ease — creates a tricky backdrop for risk assets broadly. Bitcoin's resilience in the immediate aftermath is notable. Whether it holds if equities continue to deteriorate is a different question.