The U.S. Federal Reserve has hiked interest rates to their highest level in over 22 years. It has raised them by a quarter of a percentage point to the range of 5.25% to 5.5%, which is in line with market expectations.
Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency by market capitalization, remains remarkably steady in the face of the most recent rate hike.
At press time, Bitcoin is trading at $29,256 on the Bitstamp exchange, showing an increase of a mere 0.25% over the past 24 hours, suggesting the cryptocurrency market may be shrugging off traditional financial news.
The Fed's decision, announced on Tuesday, approved a hike that takes the benchmark federal funds rate to a level not seen since 2001.
This move was unanimous, according to the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), marking a surprising unity amongst Fed officials who have publicly disagreed with each other between meetings throughout this year.
The FOMC cited robust job gains and low unemployment rates as some of the factors contributing to their decision, alongside a moderate pace of economic expansion.
Their future decisions, they noted, will depend on tightening impact, along with economic and financial developments.
Interest rate swaps continue to price in a 50% chance of an additional hike, indicating the possibility of further increases in the future.
Dan Burgin
