Latest news with #U.S.SenateBankingCommittee
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bitcoin Rally Short-Circuited as Fed Chair Powell Raises Stagflation Fear
A modest bitcoin rally to a possible challenge of the $86,000 level quickly reversed during U.S. afternoon trading hours on Wednesday as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warned on the effects of President Trump's tariff regime. "The level of the tariff increases announced so far is significantly larger than anticipated," said Powell in a speech. "The same is likely to be true of the economic effects, which will include higher inflation and slower growth." In other words, stagflation — a throwback to a sizable portion of the 1970s when the U.S. experienced weak economic activity alongside double-digit inflation. "We may find ourselves in the challenging scenario in which our dual-mandate goals are in tension," continued Powell. The price of bitcoin (BTC) fell about 2.5% in the minutes following the Powell remarks, now trading at $83,700, down 1.5% over the past 24 hours. U.S. stocks, which had been trying to mount a comeback from opening declines, also were hit, the Nasdaq slumping 3.4% to a session low. Powell also mentioned that as crypto is becoming more mainstream, there's a need for a legal framework for stablecoins. He said that banking regulation around crypto will likely be 'partially relaxed.' The U.S. Senate Banking Committee cleared a bill to regulate stablecoin issuers in March, marking the first committee approval and a significant step closer to law in the U.S. "Powell came out extremely hawkish," Quinn Thompson, chief investment officer of hedge fund Lekker Capital, said in a Telegram message. It's notable that Powell downplayed last week's market turmoil characterizing it as "orderly market functioning," he added. "I would have at least expected him to give a nod to the elevated volatility and ruptures forming in the treasury market but he did not do that," Thompson said. Powell's tone suggests that investors should temper their expectations for rate cuts in the upcoming meetings, said Thompson, which could weigh on risk assets including crypto. "It appears a May cut is firmly off the table barring Fed intervention for bad reasons and I wouldn't say June is a lock either," concluded Thompson. "The bull case for crypto and bitcoin specifically is liquidity and policymaker intervention. Both of those seemed very far off based, so it's difficult for me to paint a constructive picture in the immediate term." UPDATE (April 16, 18:40 UTC): Adds additional comments made by Chair Powell about stablecoins. Adds analyst comment. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US Senate panel advances Trump pick Paul Atkins as SEC chairman
(Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Banking Committee voted on Thursday to advance President Donald Trump's nominee to run Wall Street's top regulator as well as his picks for banking oversight and transportation roles. In a party-line vote, the committee voted 13-11 to approve Paul Atkins as chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Jonathan Gould as U.S. comptroller of the currency. Republican Senator Tim Scott, the committee's chairman, praised the nominees' experience and said they would de-politicize financial regulation. Senator Elizabeth Warren, the committee's top Democrat, said she opposed the nominations due to what she said was their preference for deregulation in favor of Wall Street payers. She also cited mass layoffs of government workers and the administration's efforts led by billionaire Elon Musk to shutter entire agencies. "I will not vote to confirm these administration officials when co-Presidents Trump and Musk are actively destroying these agencies while we just sit here," she said. With some support from Democrats, the panel also approved the nominations of Luke Pettit, a former Senate staffer who is set to become an assistant secretary of the U.S. Treasury, and Marcus Molinaro, slated to be federal transit administrator.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Crypto Daybook Americas: Trump's New Tariff Threat Fails to Budge Bitcoin
By Francisco Rodrigues (All times ET unless indicated otherwise) President Donald Trump ramped up the trade-war hyperbole, threatening to increase import tariffs levied on the EU and Canada if they keep on working to 'do economic harm' to the U.S. after announcing a 25% tariff on vehicles and foreign-made auto parts. Despite the threat, crypto markets remained stable, with bitcoin holding steady at about $87,500. Over 24 hours the largest cryptocurrency is down about 0.6% and the broader CoinDesk 20 Index some 2%. The growing threats not only raise concerns about economic growth, but also widen the gap between the U.S. and Europe, whose leaders are meeting with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky today to work on long-term security guarantees. The summit comes after the U.S. persuaded Ukraine and Russia to agree to a Black Sea ceasefire. Cryptocurrency prices are being influenced not only by macroeconomic factors, but also by the forthcoming expiry of around $15 billion worth of BTC and ETH options contracts on Friday. The uncertainty has stalled BTC's price rally, even after video-games retailer GameStop moved to raise $1.3 billion to accumulate the cryptocurrency. Still, the U.S. House of Representatives has released a bill that's set to help reduce systemic risks associated with stablecoin usage. Blockchain development is also progressing steadily, with Ethereum's final Pectra test going live on the Hoodi network. Looking ahead, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee will today hold a hearing on the nomination of Paul Atkins — who holds up to $6 million in crypto-related assets — as the Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Stay alert! Crypto: March 27: Walrus (WAL) mainnet goes live. April 1: Metaplanet (3350) 10-for-1 stock split becomes effective. Macro March 27, 8:30 a.m.: The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis releases (Final) Q4 GDP data. GDP Growth Rate QoQ Est. 2.3% vs. Prev. 3.1% Core PCE Prices QoQ Est. 2.7% vs. Prev. 2.2% PCE Prices QoQ Est. 2.4% vs. Prev. 1.5% Real Consumer Spending QoQ Est. 4.2% vs. Prev. 3.7% March 27, 8:30 a.m.: The U.S. Department of Labor releases unemployment insurance data for the week ended March 22. Initial Jobless Claims Est. 225K vs. Prev. 223K March 27, 10:00 a.m.: The U.S. Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on the nomination of Paul Atkins to the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Livesteam link. March 27, 3:00 p.m.: Mexico's central bank announces its interest rate decision. Target Rate Est. 9% vs. Prev. 9.5% March 28, 8:00 a.m.: The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) releases February unemployment rate data. Unemployment Rate Est. 6.8% vs. Prev. 6.5% March 28, 8:00 a.m.: Mexico's National Institute of Statistics and Geography releases February unemployment rate data. Unemployment Rate Est. 2.6% vs. Prev. 2.7% March 28, 8:30 a.m.: Statistics Canada releases January GDP data. GDP MoM Est. 0.3% vs. Prev. 0.2% March 28, 8:30 a.m.: The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis releases February consumer income and expenditure data. Core PCE Price Index MoM Est. 0.3% vs. Prev. 0.3% Core PCE Price Index YoY Est. 2.7% vs. Prev. 2.6% PCE Price Index MoM Est. 0.3% vs. Prev. 0.3% PCE Price Index YoY Est. 2.5% vs. Prev. 2.5% Personal Income MoM Est. 0.4% vs. Prev. 0.9% Personal Spending MoM Est. 0.5% vs. Prev. -0.2% April 2, 12:01 a.m.: The Trump administration's reciprocal tariffs plan, announced Feb. 13, takes effect alongside a 25% tariff on imported automobiles and certain parts announced March 26. Earnings (Estimates based on FactSet data) March 27: KULR Technology Group (KULR), post-market, $-0.02 March 28: Galaxy Digital Holdings (GLXY), pre-market, C$0.38 Governance votes & calls DYdX DAO is discussing the allocation of $10 million to fund the most profitable traders on the platform in a bid to attract talent. The DAO is also voting on creating a new liquidity tier designed for 'markets introduced through the Instant Market Listings' feature. Venus DAO is discussing the potential acquisition of a 33% stake in for $4.5 million to position Venus to 'build a comprehensive DeFi SuperApp on the BNB Chain." Balancer DAO is discussing the establishment of a Balancer Alliance Program, which would see the protocol share a portion of the revenue it generates with key ecosystem partners in the form of USDC as veBAL. CoW DAO is discussing updating the score definition for buy orders after a Base network incident revealed that the current definition could lead to an excessive allocation of solver rewards. March 27, 9 a.m.: PancakeSwap and EOS Network Foundation to host an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session. March 27, 12 p.m.: Cardano Foundation to hold a livestream with its CTO breaking down the project's roadmap. March 27, 12 p.m.: Header to host a Community Call with support for Post-Quantum Cryptographic Algorithm, sponsored feels ,and AI tools on the agenda. March 27., 1 p.m.: Alchemy Pay to host a Community AMA session. March 28, 3 a.m: Ontology to hold a Weekly Community Update via X Spaces. Unlocks March 31: Optimism (OP) to unlock 1.93% of its circulating supply worth $28.67 million. April 1: Sui (SUI) to unlock 2.03% of its circulating supply worth $178.46 million. April 1: ZetaChain (ZETA) to unlock 6.05% of its circulating supply worth $17.66 million. April 2: Ethena (ENA) to unlock 0.77% of its circulating supply worth $17.63 million. April 3: Wormhole (W) to unlock 47.64% of its circulating supply worth $144.79 million. April 7: Kaspa (KAS) to unlock 0.59% of its circulating supply worth $11.74 million. April 9: Movement (MOVE) to unlock 2.04% of its circulating supply worth $24.92 million. Token Listings March 27: Walrus (WAL) to be listed on KuCoin, Bluefin, MEXC, Bitget, and Bybit. March 28: Binance to delist Aergo (AERGO). March 31: Binance to delist USDT, FDUSD, TUSD, USDP, DAI, AEUR, UST, USTC, and PAXG. CoinDesk's Consensus is taking place in Toronto on May 14-16. Use code DAYBOOK and save 15% on passes. Day 2 of 3: Real World Crypto Symposium 2025 (Sofia, Bulgaria) March 27: Building Blocks (Tel Aviv) March 27: Digital Euro Conference 2025 (Frankfurt) March 27: Web3 Banking Symposium 2.0 (Lugano, Switzerland) March 27: WIKI Finance EXPO Hong Kong 2025 Day 1 of 2: Money Motion 2025 (Zagreb, Croatia) March 28: Solana APEX (Cape Town) April 2-3: Southeast Asia Blockchain Week 2025 Main Conference (Bangkok) April 2-5: ETH Bucharest Conference & Hackathon (Bucharest, Romania) April 3-6: BitBlockBoom (Dallas) By Shaurya Malwa A viral AI art trend fueled by OpenAI's new 4o model sparked a surge in Studio Ghibli-themed memecoins, blending nostalgia with cryptocurrency speculation as fans create Ghibli-style images and traders capitalize on the hype. The ghiblification (GHIBLI) token, the largest, boasted a $21 million market cap and $70 million in trading volume within 24 hours driven by over 250,000 trades on the Ethereum and Solana blockchains. The trend, marked by the #GhibliAI hashtag amassing millions of hits on X and Instagram, reflects internet culture's love for humor and absurdity, attracting speculators with low-cost, high-volatility tokens. Smaller Ghibli-inspired tokens like Ghilbi Doge, NoFace and Yutaro lag behind GHIBLI in trader interest, while the latter's liquidity pool holds just over $330,000 in Solana's SOL. While BTC, ETH CME futures yields stopped falling early this month, there has been a noticeable lack of progress, particularly in the wake of continued corporate adoption of bitcoin. The divergence suggests sophisticated market players remain cautious. BTC, ETH perpetual funding rates on offshore exchanges are barely positive, another sign of cautious sentiment. TRX, XMR, TON and SUI are the only top 25 coins with positive net cumulative volume deltas for the past 24 hours. The positive value indicates net buying in the perpetual futures market. BTC and ETH short-end options-based implied volatility indexes continue to drift lower, with investors still pricing bigger swings in ETH relative to bitcoin. Deribit-listed options continue to show a bias for short duration puts in BTC, ETH, SOL and XRP. BTC is up 0.22% from 4 p.m. ET Wednesday at $87,494.70 (24hrs: -0.86%) ETH is up 0.69% at $2,025.47 (24hrs: -1.90%) CoinDesk 20 is up 0.48% at 2,757.13 (24hrs: -2.19%) Ether CESR Composite Staking Rate is up 2 bps at 2.97% BTC funding rate is at 0.0087% (3.1744% annualized) on Binance DXY is unchanged at 104.47 Gold is up 0.82% at $3,045.80/oz Silver is up 1% at $34.37/oz Nikkei 225 closed -0.6% at 37,799.97 Hang Seng closed +0.41% at 23,578.80 FTSE is down 0.66% at 8,632.24 Euro Stoxx 50 is down 0.7% at 5,373.68 DJIA closed on Wednesday -0.31% at 42,454.79 S&P 500 closed -1.12% at 5,712.20 Nasdaq closed -2.04% at 17,899.02 S&P/TSX Composite Index closed -0.7% at 25,161.10 S&P 40 Latin America closed -0.83% at 2,460.26 U.S. 10-year Treasury rate is up 4 bps at 4.4% E-mini S&P 500 futures are unchanged at 5,763.25 E-mini Nasdaq-100 futures are unchanged at 20,112.25 E-mini Dow Jones Industrial Average Index futures are up 0.16% at 42,815.00 BTC Dominance: 61.69 (-0.14%) Ethereum to bitcoin ratio: 0.02317 (0.17%) Hashrate (seven-day moving average): 838 EH/s Hashprice (spot): $49.19 Total Fees: 9.67 BTC / $846,444x CME Futures Open Interest: 144,470 BTC BTC priced in gold: 28.8 oz BTC vs gold market cap: 8.17% The share price of bitcoin-holder Strategy (MSTR) has risen past $320, confirming a bullish double bottom breakout. The pattern suggests potential for a rally for the Nasdaq-listed shares to resistance at $410. Strategy (MSTR): closed on Wednesday at $329.31 (-3.66%), up 0.48% at $330.89 in pre-market Coinbase Global (COIN): closed at $193.95 (-5.03%), up 0.81% at $195.52 Galaxy Digital Holdings (GLXY): closed at C$18.08 (-3.06%) MARA Holdings (MARA): closed at $13.79 (-3.23%), up 0.51% at $13.86 Riot Platforms (RIOT): closed at $7.9 (-7.17%), up 1.01% at $7.98 Core Scientific (CORZ): closed at $7.63 (-11.89%), up 1.97% at $7.78 CleanSpark (CLSK): closed at $8.12 (-6.99%), up 0.62% at $8.17 CoinShares Valkyrie Bitcoin Miners ETF (WGMI): closed at $14.32 (-8.5%) Semler Scientific (SMLR): closed at $39.57 (-6.63%) Exodus Movement (EXOD): closed at $50 (-10.78%), up 0.6% at $50.30 Spot BTC ETFs: Daily net flow: $89.6 million Cumulative net flows: $36.33 billion Total BTC holdings ~ 1,115 million. Spot ETH ETFs Daily net flow: -$5.9 million Cumulative net flows: $2.43 billion Total ETH holdings ~ 3.406 million. Source: Farside Investors AI is the worst-performing crypto market sector of the past 24 hours. The dire performance is consistent with losses in AI-related stocks on Wall Street supposedly triggered by Microsoft abandoning data center projects set to use 2 gigawatts of electricity in the U.S. and Europe. Dogecoin Gains, XRP Slumps as Trump Warns of 'Far Larger' Tariffs (CoinDesk): President Donald Trump threatened Canada and the EU with higher tariffs if they collaborated and harmed the U.S. economy. His post on Truth Social damped early positive sentiment in crypto markets. Rattled by Trump, America's Allies Shift to Defense Mode (The New York Times): Trump's 25% auto tariff alarmed allies including Canada, Japan and Germany, who see it as a breach of decades-old economic and defense partnerships with the U.S. BlackRock Expands Digital Asset Team, Adds Four High-Level Roles (CoinDesk): The asset manager advertised for a director of digital assets, director of regulatory affairs, vice president for digital asset and ETF legal counsel, and associate for digital assets. Robinhood, Moving Beyond Meme Stocks, Now Wants to Be Your Bank (Bloomberg): Later this year in the U.S., Robinhood Gold subscribers will gain access to savings and checking accounts offering high yields, same-day cash delivery and services like estate planning. Donald Trump's Cuts to US Government Raise Worries Over Economic Data Quality (Financial Times): Economists say the Department of Government Efficiency could undermine the quality of U.S. economic data by weakening agencies behind key indicators like inflation and jobs reports. Studio Ghibli Craze Inspires Memecoins on Ethereum, Solana After OpenAI's 4o Release (CoinDesk): AI-generated art styled after Studio Ghibli films has gone viral, sparking the creation of Ghibli-themed cryptocurrencies, with ghiblification (GHIBLI) reaching a market cap of $21 million.
Forbes
27-03-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Senate Grills Trump's SEC, OCC, Treasury Picks On Crypto and Financial Markets
In a high-stakes hearing on March 27, 2025, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee spotlighted a major shift in the direction of digital asset regulation, capital markets oversight, and banking policy—one that could reshape the future of finance. The committee heard testimony from three consequential nominees in President Trump's second-term administration: Paul Atkins for Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Jonathan Gould for Comptroller of the Currency, and Luke Pettit for Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Institutions. Together, their testimony signals a significant policy realignment in the executive branch of the United States government, one that could finally bring regulatory clarity and momentum in Congress to the long-awaited legislative framework for digital assets. Paul Atkins, a former SEC Commissioner with deep institutional knowledge and industry experience, made it clear that crypto regulation would be front and center if he's confirmed to lead the Commission. In his testimony, Atkins emphasized in his written testimony that 'a top priority of my chairmanship will be to work with my fellow Commissioners and Congress to provide a firm regulatory foundation for digital assets through a rational, coherent, and principled approach.'. Atkins' statement aligns with criticisms from both sides of the aisle that the SEC under Gary Gensler relied too heavily on regulation by enforcement. That strategy, critics argue, stifled innovation, harmed investors, and discouraged responsible industry development in the United States, forcing innovation overseas. Atkins' approach, informed by his past tenure as a commissioner and his experience in the private sector, leans toward clear rules of the road. He highlighted the urgent need to 'reset priorities and return common sense to the SEC,' distancing himself from Gensler's term and making the case that over-politicized and ambiguous regulation harms capital formation and investor protection. Importantly, Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.), the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, reiterated his strong support for Atkins earlier this year. Scott emphasized Atkins' track record, noting that he has long supported policies aimed at boosting capital formation and employment. Scott added that Atkins' deep regulatory experience positions him to help address what he described as the 'damage' done to capital markets under Gary Gensler's leadership. He further remarked that Atkins recognizes the growing demand for regulatory clarity in the digital asset space, an issue affecting millions of Americans seeking access to this emerging asset class. Scott's remarks reflect bipartisan concern over the SEC's posture toward digital assets under the leadership of former SEC Chair Gary Gensler. In a recent Yahoo News interview, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), a leading Democratic voice on crypto policy—and co-sponsor of Senator Bill Hagerty's stablecoin legislation (the GENIUS Act) echoed that sentiment. Senator Gillibrand praised Atkins and underscored the need for comprehensive legislation on stablecoins and crypto market structure. Though she personally does not own Bitcoin, Gillibrand emphasized the need to create a framework that both protects consumers and enables innovation to thrive. Jonathan Gould, nominee for Comptroller of the Currency, focused his testimony on maintaining the relevance and resilience of the national banking system. Gould, who has served as OCC chief counsel under both Republican and Democratic administrations, vowed to 'depoliticize the banking system' and 'embrace innovation within the agency and the banking system.' That innovation includes supporting responsible engagement with digital assets and modernizing the tools banks use to serve an increasingly digital economy. Gould's experience drafting the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act of 2018 provides a solid foundation for rethinking how banks interact with emerging asset classes. Similarly, Luke Pettit, nominee for Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Institutions, brings an international and human-centered view to financial regulation. In a deeply personal and patriotic statement, Pettit reminded the committee that financial regulation is ultimately about people—those 'buying a home, starting a business, accessing credit, or saving for retirement.' He pledged to uphold a financial sector that 'fosters economic growth, freedom, and opportunity for all Americans.'. His grounding in both the Senate and the Federal Reserve suggests that Pettit is well positioned to balance market innovation with systemic safety; particularly in areas like financial education, community development, and digital infrastructure. Taken together, these nominations are not business as usual. They represent a policy pivot. In contrast to the previous administration's cautious and often adversarial stance on crypto, the Trump administration appears poised to implement a more industry and innovation-first approach to digital asset regulation. This shift could finally make room for legislation that has been years in the making, including stablecoin and market structure bills championed in both chambers. What makes this moment different? It's not just the nominees, it is the convergence of legislative pressure, bipartisan frustration, and increasing public optimism and demand. According to the 2025 annual Cryptocurrency Adoption and Consumer Sentiment Report, crypto ownership has nearly doubled in the three years since the end of 2021. In 2025, approximately 28% of American adults, or about 65 million people, own cryptocurrencies. And with crypto-friendly voices emerging on both sides of the aisle, the possibility of bipartisan legislation is no longer beyond the realm of possibility. While the appointments of Atkins, Gould, and Pettit signal a clear intent to reset the regulatory posture from enforcement-first to engagement-driven, this executive momentum must be matched by Congressional action. The American constitutional system divides powers between branches for a reason: the executive branch can implement policy and steer regulatory priorities, but it is Congress that writes the law. Agencies like the SEC and OCC do not inherently possess lawmaking power; rather, they derive their authority through legislation passed by Congress (commonly known as enabling legislation or organic statutes). These statutes define the jurisdiction and scope of agency powers and establish the legal boundaries within which regulations can be developed and enforced. Without modernized laws that explicitly account for the features of digital assets, agencies are left interpreting statutes drafted long before the invention of blockchain, often leading to patchwork. If confirmed, Atkins, Gould, and Pettit would represent one of the most crypto-savvy regulatory lineups to serve concurrently in key financial oversight roles. Whether their collective experience and stated openness to reform will translate into effective, forward-looking policy for a wide swath of consumers and investors—beyond the investor class—remains to be seen. Still, the real test lies ahead. Will Congress seize the opportunity to pass meaningful legislation? Will regulatory agencies translate the pro-innovation rhetoric of their probable leaders into concrete, consistent rules that the industry can rely on? For now, all eyes are on the Senate.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US Senate panel advances nominee to lead consumer watchdog
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Banking Committee voted Thursday to advance the nomination of Jonathan McKernan to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In a party-line vote of 13 to 11, McKernan was approved by the Republican-led panel, clearing the way for his eventual consideration by the full Senate to lead the agency, which the Trump administration has aggressively moved to curtail.
