Bitcoin and ether prices were little changed, with BTC down 0.57% and ETH down 2.52%. Trading activity is in order with the overall range below the 20-day moving average for both assets. This week is a bit uneventful, however, with the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) announcing another interest rate hike, banking institutions trying to avoid a meltdown and US regulators stepping up scrutiny with the banking industry.

Even the Biden administration is taking a closer look at the crypto industry this week. The “President’s Economic Report” made it clear that the development of crypto assets “often demonstrates ignorance of the basic economic principles that have been learned in economics and finance for centuries, and that this is insufficient and – often damage consumers and investors.

But much of this week’s economic turmoil is linked to the merger of traditional banking institutions. These bond values ​​fell sharply following the fastest rise in interest rates in history. The Federal Reserve Board has finally raised interest rates by 25 basis points as expected and said it plans to continue to do so as inflation, partly as a result of the environment interest rate of 0% for two years, remains high.

The FOMC raised its Core PCE inflation estimate for 2023 to 3.3% from 3.1%, but the maximum interest rate forecast of 5.1% remains in place. Among crypto assets with a market cap of $1 billion or more, BTC and ETH are eighth and 14th, respectively, in this week’s CoinDesk price performance.