The negative trend is shaped by uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy: investor enthusiasm sparked by Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole symposium, where he acknowledged the possibility of a cautious rate adjustment in case of labor market cooling, has faded as subsequent comments from officials were notably cautious. St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem and New York Fed’s John Williams emphasized that any decision on borrowing costs would depend solely on incoming macroeconomic data, which currently points to renewed inflationary pressure in the U.S. economy. Today at 14:30 (GMT+2), attention will be on the Core PCE Price Index: forecasts suggest an increase from 2.8% to 2.9% y/y, which would reduce the likelihood of dovish rhetoric at the September 19 meeting, weighing on non-USD assets.
Other factors also add pressure to the sector: according to CoinGecko, several major “whales” have been offloading BTC in favor of ETH, releasing around $2.0 billion worth of tokens onto the market last week. Meanwhile, the U.S. Treasury intends to implement identity verification requirements for DeFi smart contracts, citing crime prevention. Experts warn that such measures could undermine trader privacy, complicate entry into the sector, and place transactions under government control, contradicting the core principles of DeFi.
Unlike most cryptocurrencies, SOL — now the sixth largest by market cap — gained 17.4% after Solana blockchain validators began voting on the approval of a major network upgrade, Alpenglow. The update is designed to replace the current Proof-of-History and TowerBFT mechanisms with new Votor and Rotor systems, cutting transaction finality from 12 seconds to 150 milliseconds. This technological leap could significantly boost investor and developer interest in Solana, supporting further token growth.
Despite the ongoing correction, the long-term fundamentals remain favorable: demand for cryptocurrencies as safe-haven assets persists, and the U.S. government’s commitment to creating clear legal frameworks for the digital market could attract more institutional players. Among the latest positive developments is the decision by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to allow U.S. clients to trade on offshore crypto exchanges if registered with the Foreign Board of Trade (FBOT).
In the short term, however, monetary factors continue to exert pressure, and further declines in prices are possible next week.