Crypto Markets Under Pressure as Fed Holds Steady and Gold Soars

Bitcoin and major cryptocurrencies face downward pressure as the Federal Reserve maintains interest rates at three point five to three point seven five percent. Bitcoin currently trades around eighty-seven thousand seven hundred thirty dollars, down from recent highs, while Ethereum slipped below three thousand dollars to twenty-nine hundred twenty-five dollars. Meanwhile, gold surged to record levels above five thousand three hundred dollars per ounce, and over half of Bitcoin's invested supply now sits at a cost basis above eighty-eight thousand dollars, creating potential vulnerability. XRP is trading at one dollar eighty-seven cents. On the regulatory front, we cover major developments including World Liberty Financial's USD1 stablecoin surpassing five billion dollars in market capitalization while the Trump meme coin collapsed over ninety-three percent. Ripple secured a major legal victory in the Ninth Circuit as a class-action lawsuit was dismissed as time-barred. The cryptocurrency industry's political power is on full display with Fairshake PAC accumulating one hundred ninety-three million dollars ahead of the twenty twenty-six midterms. We also examine institutional moves reshaping the landscape: Fidelity announced plans to launch its own stablecoin, the Fidelity Digital Dollar, entering a market dominated by Circle and Tether. Metaplanet is raising one hundred thirty-seven million dollars to expand Bitcoin holdings, while Sony invested thirteen million dollars in Startale to grow the Soneium blockchain. Worldcoin's token surged on reports that OpenAI is exploring a biometric social network to combat bots. Plus, Bitcoin miners are pivoting to AI infrastructure with partnerships from Microsoft and Amazon driving substantial gains in mining stocks. The UAE Central Bank approved the nation's first regulated USD-backed stablecoin, and Wall Street firms pushed back on SEC exemptions for tokenized securities in a private meeting with the crypto task force.