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By Francisco Rodrigues (All times ET unless indicated otherwise)
Bitcoin BTC$88,023.39 rose above $88,000 even after the Bank of Japan increased interest rates to the highest in nearly 30 years, a move that would have been expected to strengthen the yen and make the carry trade less attractive.
Instead, the currency weakened on concerns the higher rates would endanger the spending plans of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who took office in October. The yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond touched 2% for the first time since 2006.
Other cryptocurrencies also advanced. Ether ETH$2,957.89 added 3.4% in the last 24 hours, though major altcoins including BNB and SOL rose less than 1%. The broader CoinDesk 20 (CD20) index advanced 1.3%.
In the background is the cooler-than-expected U.S. inflation data, published yesterday. That report strengthened the chance of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates in the future, a potential boon for risk assets, though prediction markets overwhelmingly still point to no rate cut next month.
Beyond that, risk assets still face the potential unwind of the AI trade.
“Capital is still flowing aggressively into AI infrastructure, but monetization questions are becoming harder to ignore,” analysts at QCP Capital wrote. “Major players such as Oracle and Iren are ramping up capital expenditure, while AI-related revenues remain comparatively flat.”
Risk-asset valuations could plunge if revenues fail to materialize, the analysts said. Several crypto firms are benefiting from the AI trade, especially bitcoin miners who have started pivoting into AI infrastructure in multibillion dollar deals.
Regulatory developments are also supporting market development.
“The United States is poised to solidify the GENIUS Act’s regulatory architecture in 2026,” Ira Auerbach, head of Tandem at Offchain Labs and former head of digital assets at Nasdaq, told CoinDesk. “Stablecoin issuers that once relied on offshore regimes will find meaningful advantages in bringing reserves and operations back to US soil.”
Auerbach also said that some retirement-plan providers are preparing to test target-date and balanced funds with 0.5% to 1% crypto exposure, potentially creating steady demand that is less tied to market cycles.
“It treats digital assets less as a swing factor and more as another risk component in long-horizon portfolio construction, which is how structural demand begins to take shape,” Auerbach added. Stay alert!
Read more: For analysis of today’s activity in altcoins and derivatives, see Crypto Markets Today
For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead”.
For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead”.
For a more comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead”.
