Bitcoin Magazine
Bitcoin Price Steadies Near $90,000 as Fed Pauses Rate Cuts, Powell Signals Neutral Stance
Bitcoin hovered near $89,000 on Wednesday as the Federal Reserve opted to hold interest rates steady, pausing its rate-cutting cycle and striking a notably calmer tone on inflation and the labor market.
The bitcoin price traded above $90,000 earlier in the session before slipping to around $89,500 as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell spoke at his post-meeting press conference.
The move came after the Fed announced it would keep its benchmark federal funds rate unchanged at a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, ending a streak of three consecutive 25-basis-point cuts delivered in September, October, and December.
The decision reflected a central bank increasingly comfortable with the economy’s trajectory, even as inflation remains above target. Policymakers cited moderating job growth and lingering price pressures as reasons to pause further easing.
The Federal Open Market Committee voted 10–2 to hold rates, with Governors Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller dissenting in favor of another quarter-point cut.
Miran, whose term expires Saturday, has consistently argued for deeper rate reductions. Waller, meanwhile, is one of the potential candidates to succeed Powell as Fed chair and last dissented in July when the Fed also held rates steady.
JUST IN: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says President Trump may pick a new Fed Chair ‘in a week or so’ Pro-Bitcoin Rick Reider is currently leading by 10% in the odds for the job — Polymarket pic.twitter.com/8IjKqoaYpe— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) January 28, 2026
Fed’s Powell: The economy is expanding at a solid pace
In its statement, the FOMC said the economy continues to expand “at a solid pace,” noting that job gains “have remained low” while unemployment has shown “some signs of stabilization.” Inflation, the committee added, “remains somewhat elevated.”
Powell reinforced that message, emphasizing that after cutting rates by a cumulative 175 basis points over the past year, the Fed now views policy as close to neutral.
“It’s hard to look at the incoming data and say that policy is significantly restrictive at this time,” Powell said, describing the current stance as “loosely neutral or somewhat restrictive — it’s in the eye of the beholder.”
That framing mattered for markets. Bitcoin has historically responded positively to easing financial conditions, but Wednesday’s price action suggested traders who were prepared for this FOMC decision and were recalibrating expectations for near-term rate cuts rather than reacting to outright hawkishness.
Powell struck a measured tone on the labor market, pushing back against fears of a sharp deterioration. He noted that recent payroll reports showed average job losses of about 22,000 per month, while private-sector hiring remained modestly positive.
Slower labor supply g