Crypto stages major rally as Fed rate hopes send Bitcoin to four-month high

Bitcoin climbed 6.8% to a four-month high near $82,200 on September 3-4, after Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller signaled he favors holding rates steady at the upcoming September 15-16 FOMC meeting. The rest of the crypto market followed, with total capitalization jumping roughly 3.7% to approximately $2.81 trillion. The rally wasn’t limited to crypto. The S&P 500 gained 1.06% and the Nasdaq rose 1.4%, as traders across asset classes recalculated the odds that the Fed would tighten further. Before Waller’s remarks, futures markets had priced a September rate hike at roughly 63-70% probability. Afterward, that number dropped to around 50%. The numbers behind the move Ethereum posted gains of 4-5%, while XRP climbed about 6%. The standout performer was Zcash, which surged between 16-18%. US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net inflows of $731 million on the day, with BlackRock’s IBIT alone absorbing $454 million. A wave of short liquidations amplified the price action. When Bitcoin broke through key resistance levels, leveraged bearish positions got force-closed, creating a cascade of buy pressure that pushed prices higher still. What Waller actually said, and why it matters ...