The bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrency market faces this Wednesday, March 18, 2026, a day that may outline its short-term development.
At 2:00 p.m. New York time, The USA Federal Reserve (FED) will announce its resolution on rates of interestan occasion that happens at a time of explicit sensitivity for digital property: bitcoin (BTC) reached near $76,000 on Tuesday evening earlier than retreating barely, and the altcoin market yesterday obtained a regulatory tailwind that triggered shopping for urge for food.
The graph beneath exhibits Bitcoin’s habits during the last 7 days:
On the time of this publication, the CriptoNoticias Value Calculator exhibits that bitcoin is buying and selling at $74,168.
This motion occurred whereas the market was positioning itself for the financial coverage announcement. The expectation is virtually unanimous: the rate of interest will stay unchanged at 3.75% per yrthe present degree because the 25 foundation level minimize carried out final December.
The warfare between america, Israel and Iran — which started on February 28 — raised the worth of oil above $100 per barrel for the primary time in 5 years, fueling inflationary pressures (on account of will increase in power, industrial manufacturing, transportation, and so on.) that complicate any shift towards looser financial coverage.
On this context, the true unknown is just not the quantity that the FED will announce, however the phrases of its president, Jerome Powell, within the subsequent press convention.
If Powell takes a restrictive tone and indicators that power inflation will persist, it may set off a correction in bitcoin. If, as an alternative, he hints at cuts for later within the yr, the market may interpret it as a bullish catalyst.
However, we should point out an extra factor that makes this announcement distinctive: it is going to be considered one of Jerome Powell’s final as head of the FED. His time period ends on Might 15, 2026 and President Donald Trump has already confirmed that he won’t renew it, having nominated Kevin Warsh as his successor, with a profile that the market perceives as extra expansive.
This circumstance may restrict the medium-term influence of any restrictive sign that Powell points as we speak. Longer-horizon buyers are already beginning to look towards incoming administration. However within the brief time period, each phrase from the FED chairman this afternoon can have the ability to maneuver the market in a matter of minutes.
The regulatory issue: the SEC cleared the way in which for altcoins
And, past bitcoin, yesterday introduced an occasion that positively shook the cryptocurrency market. The US Securities and Alternate Fee (SEC) issued steerage explaining the way it will outline cryptocurrencies regulatorycreating varied classes of digital property.
The SEC and the Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee (CFTC) issued joint steerage confirming that many crypto property aren’t securities.
This new joint interpretation offers cryptocurrency corporations a clearer line on whether or not a token falls beneath the jurisdiction of the SEC or CFTC and reduces the chance of the identical asset being handled in another way over time.
Within the phrases of SEC Chairman Paul Atkins, That is the primary time in additional than a decade that the group attracts clear traces in concrete phrases on the standing of digital property..
The measure is related as a result of eliminates the primary supply of authorized uncertainty that weighed on initiatives reminiscent of Solana, XRP, Cardano and different altcoins that for years operated beneath the specter of being labeled as unregistered securities.
The impact available on the market was rapid: a lot of the altcoins within the high 100 are within the inexperienced with weekly returns that exceed 40% in some circumstances.
In abstract, Right now is a Wednesday of assorted information that impacted, impacted or will influence the worth of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. All through the day, CriptoNoticias will report the information and clarify market actions.

