Bitcoin Slides Below $78k Amid Fed Chair Comments and US‑Iran Escalation
Bitcoin edged lower on Monday, falling 1.3% to $77,915.1 by 09:51 ET (13:51 GMT) and reaching an intraday low of $77,000. The price decline was attributed to hawkish comments from Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh at the Jackson Hole symposium, which heightened expectations of a near‑term rate hike, and to renewed military action between the United States and Iran that pushed oil prices higher.
Warsh reiterated the Fed’s commitment to a 2% inflation target but did not announce a specific policy move. Markets interpreted his remarks as hawkish, and the CME FedWatch Tool showed a 60.4% probability that the Fed will raise the federal funds rate by 25 basis points in September. Traders are awaiting the upcoming non‑farm payrolls data for further guidance on the Fed’s stance.
The geopolitical flare‑up involved the first exchange of strikes between the U.S. and Iran in over a month. President Donald Trump threatened to attack Iran’s key oil‑exporting hub, Kharg Island, while Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signaled additional sanctions on Tehran. The conflict caused oil prices to surge, adding to concerns about higher inflation and reinforcing expectations of tighter monetary policy, which traditionally weighs on speculative assets such as cryptocurrencies.
In the corporate crypto arena, MicroStrategy Inc. (ticker MSTR) announced its first Bitcoin purchase since late June. The company acquired 4,603 Bitcoin at an average price of $80,318 per coin, spending $369.7 million. Funding came from a $602.8 million sale of common stock, with $151.8 million of the proceeds used to buy back the company’s STRC preferred shares; the remainder was added to cash reserves. Following the transaction, MicroStrategy’s total Bitcoin holdings rose to 845,050 coins, representing a cumulative investment of $63.73 billion at an average cost of $75,412 per coin.
Other major cryptocurrencies also slipped on Monday but remained on track for strong August performance. Ethereum fell 1.5% to $2,439.27, yet is up nearly 31% for the month. XRP dropped 3.5% but is up 28.4% in August. Solana and Cardano fell 2.9% and 3.8% respectively, while still posting monthly gains of over 40% and 15%. BNB slipped 2% but is set for a roughly 17% rise in August. Among meme coins, Dogecoin fell 4.3% and $TRUMP fell 8%, though Dogecoin is up over 18% for the month and $TRUMP is projected to add nearly 67%.
The report was contributed by Vahid Karaahmetovic.