21st August 2025 – (Hong Kong) Bitcoin and Ethereum briefly dipped before recovering momentum following the Federal Reserve’s release of minutes from its July monetary policy meeting. The minutes revealed a rare division within the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), as two governors failed to sway the committee toward a 25-basis-point interest rate cut.
The minutes noted that “a couple of members preferred to lower the target range for the federal funds rate by 25 basis points at this meeting,” arguing that inflation, excluding tariff effects, was nearing the Fed’s 2% target and that increased tariffs were unlikely to have lasting inflationary impacts.
In the hour after the release, Bitcoin was trading at $114,253, up 0.6%, while Ethereum rose by 1.2% to $4,347. Both cryptocurrencies had seen a slight dip immediately following the release, despite an otherwise strong day for the crypto market.
Federal Reserve Governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman, currently the Fed’s Vice Chair for Supervision, have publicly supported a more aggressive approach to lowering interest rates. Such a move could benefit the cryptocurrency market by freeing up capital for investment.
The dissent by Waller and Bowman marks the first instance of two Federal Reserve governors opposing a policy decision since 1993. The previous dissenting vote came in September 2024, when Bowman advocated for a 0.25% cut rather than the 0.5% adjustment ultimately agreed upon by the committee.
The Fed releases minutes weeks after each monetary policy meeting, shedding light on the discussions and debates that inform its decisions. The next FOMC meeting is scheduled for September, and many traders are closely watching for further developments.
Bowman justified her dissent by citing inflation “moving considerably closer to the committee’s objective, after excluding temporary effects of tariffs, a labour market near full employment but with signs of less dynamism, and slowing economic growth this year.” She also argued that a gradual rate cut would hedge against economic weakness and potential harm to the labour market.
The FOMC has long targeted 2% inflation, but recent figures from the Bureau of Labour Statistics indicate a slight rise to 2.7% in July. Core inflation, excluding volatile food and energy prices, remains higher at over 3%.
The debate over interest rates comes amid mounting pressure on the Federal Reserve from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly urged the central bank to lower rates. Trump has even threatened to dismiss Fed Chair Jerome Powell, though he has yet to act on this threat.
