ADVANCEMENTS IN THE CRYPTOCURRENCY WORLD THIS WEEK IN COINS: BITCOIN AND ETHEREUM STAND STILL AFTER FED RATE HIKE

Crypto is fast becoming a hot topic among expected 2024 U.S. Presidential candidates.

After posting small gains last weekend, the price growth of crypto market leaders Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) slowed to effectively nothing this week.

Bitcoin remains at the level it was this time last weekend, hovering around $28.820, a decrease of about 5% from its April high of $30,979 set nearly three weeks ago but still about 77% up from the start of January when the price was $16,615.

Ethereum added 4.2% to its value over the seven days and currently changes hands at $1,885, a decline of about 7% from its 2023 high of $2,129 set in mid-April and 66% up from January 1, when the price was $1,197.

TRON experienced the most growth this week and was the only top thirty cryptocurrency to grow by 8% over the week to trade at $0.070261 at the start of the weekend.

All other leading cryptocurrencies remain virtually unmoved over the last seven days.

The market’s lack of growth this week is at least partly attributable to the Fed’s decision to hike interest rates by another 25 basis points to fight inflation, the tenth consecutive hike since March last year.

In macroeconomic terms, interest rate hikes tend to drive investors away from risk-on assets like stocks and crypto as the cost of borrowing rises, making money more expensive and thus discouraging more speculative investments.

On Tuesday the White House released a report reinforcing the idea of a Digital Asset Mining Energy tax (DAME). It would apply to miners of both proof-of-work and proof-of-stake cryptocurrencies, despite their different levels of energy consumption, and—beginning in 2024— assessing a tax that’s based on their electricity costs, starting at 10% and increasing each year until it reaches 30%. Read