Last week, the Bitcoin price dipped slightly, reaching $62,180 after the Federal Open Market Committee’s Wednesday meeting and Kevin Warsh’s first press conference as the new Fed Chair.
Similarly, major altcoins such as Ether, Solana, and XRP also recorded weekly declines ranging from 5% to 10%.
The Fed left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday, but the updated dot‑plot chart proved more hawkish than market expectations, suggesting the central bank may keep rates higher for longer. Nine of the monetary officials involved in preparing the dot‑plot forecasted at least one rate hike this year, while six indicated that multiple hikes could be possible. This prompted traders and investors to reprice risk assets.
Looking ahead to the current week, attention remains focused on the potential U.S. rate path, with PCE inflation data due Thursday.
If the data show inflation remains above target and accelerates again, markets may start taking the Fed’s hawkish projections on the dot‑plot more seriously.
Conversely, if the data indicate inflation is falling again, traders and investors may view the dot‑plot as overly pessimistic and revert to a scenario of no rate hikes this year, especially as oil prices have plunged sharply in recent days and Middle East tensions appear to ease.
We are awaiting further developments.
BIGGEST MARKET MOVES
$AERO was among the most volatile assets last week, gaining 35% and returning near a local high from mid‑May. The rise was driven by the announcement of a significant protocol update that replaces the traditional weekly gauge voting system with real‑time liquidity incentive allocation. Additional support for the price came from further token buybacks by the Aerodrome Foundation and growing demand from major investors.
NOTABLE STORIES
Franklin Templeton files for ETFs that reinvest stock dividends into Bitcoin
Franklin Templeton filed a petition with the U.S. SEC last week to create two “Bitcoin DRIP” ETFs. The funds would maintain exposure to U.S. stocks, with dividends paid by the constituent companies automatically invested in Bitcoin instead of being reinvested in additional shares or held in cash.
The Franklin US Equity Bitcoin DRIP Index ETF would track the performance of the 500 largest U.S. companies by market cap. The Franklin US Innovation Bitcoin DRIP Index ETF would focus on 100 large non‑financial Nasdaq‑listed companies.
Both ETFs would launch with an allocation of roughly 95% to stocks and 5% to Bitcoin‑related investments such as spot ETFs. Bitcoin exposure could then gradually increase through the dividend‑reinvestment mechanism.
The proposed Franklin Templeton Bitcoin DRIP ETFs are noteworthy because they create a new link between traditional stock investing and systematic Bitcoin accumulation. They would allow investors to gain broad U.S. market exposure while gradually building a Bitcoin position through an automated, rule‑based process.
