Goldman Sachs reverses Fed call twice in four days, sending ripples through Bitcoin and XRP markets

Goldman Sachs couldn’t make up its mind. In the span of four days around September 15-16, 2026, the bank flipped its Federal Reserve forecast twice, moving from a prediction of a single isolated rate hike to anticipating a second increase as soon as October. The catalyst was the Federal Reserve’s September 16 FOMC meeting, where the central bank raised its target interest rate by 25 basis points to a range of 3.75%-4.00%. That marked the Fed’s first rate increase since 2023. Goldman’s whiplash forecast Going into the meeting, Goldman’s base case was relatively tame. The bank expected a 25-basis-point hike but characterized it as a one-and-done move, an isolated recalibration rather than the start of a new tightening cycle. Then the Fed released its dot plot, and the mood shifted fast. Sixteen out of 18 policymakers indicated they expected at least one additional rate increase before year-end. Goldman responded by scrapping its isolation thesis and pivoting to forecast another hike in October. CME FedWatch pricing moved in lockstep, with market-implied odds of a 25-basis-point October hike climbing above 50% following the announcement. What rate hikes mean for Bitcoin and XRP Bitcoi...