CoinDesk
Bitcoin pushed back above $60,000 on Thursday after Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh told the European Central Bank's annual forum in Sintra that inflation risks had come down, handing crypto its first clear boost after a grinding June. BTC traded above $60,700 intraday after a sharp overnight reversal, with Ether near $1,630 and Solana around $78 after roughly 4% daily gains.
Solana led the majors on the week, up about 16% and the only large token with meaningful weekly momentum. XRP held near $1.06, while BNB, dogecoin and Tron lagged over the trailing seven days.
Why it matters
Crypto has spent the first half of the year bleeding capital into AI infrastructure and chip stocks, a rotation that pulled bitcoin into a rare back-to-back quarterly loss, only the third in its history. Warsh's dovish lean, paired with cracks in that AI trade, is the first setup in weeks where both tides are pointing the same direction for risk.
The Fed chair stopped short of pre-positioning the July meeting, reiterating the 2% inflation target and insisting policymakers will weigh incoming data first. That kept rate-cut expectations broadly intact without forcing a repricing.
Market impact
The bigger move was in equities. A semiconductor selloff spread to South Korea, where the Kospi fell almost 7% before paring losses; Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix dropped more than 6% each, and Japan's Kioxia lost 13% after a year-long rally that had lifted the stock over 650%. Reports that Meta is building a cloud business to sell spare AI compute (raising overbuild concerns) and that Apple is in talks with Chinese chip suppliers (pressuring Korean incumbents) fed the unease.
Gold traded above $4,060 an ounce for a second day, the dollar steadied after two sessions of gains, and Brent crude slipped to about $70.60 a barrel, its lowest since late February before the Middle East war began, as Strait of Hormuz traffic normalised. Whether bitcoin's reclaim holds now depends on whether the AI wobble deepens into a real rotation back into risk, or fades as a one-day scare.
Frequently asked questions
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Why did bitcoin jump above $60,000 on Thursday?
Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh told the ECB's Sintra forum that inflation risks had come down, the first clearly dovish signal in weeks. Bitcoin pushed back above $60,700 after a sharp overnight reversal.
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How did Solana and Ether perform alongside bitcoin's move?
Solana led the majors with roughly 4% on the day and about 16% over the past week, the only large token with meaningful weekly momentum. Ether traded near $1,630, up about 3% intraday.
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What triggered the semiconductor selloff tied to the AI trade?
Reports that Meta is building a cloud business to monetise spare AI compute (raising overbuild concerns) and that Apple is in talks with Chinese chip suppliers (pressuring Korean incumbents) fed the rotation. Samsung and SK Hynix dropped over 6%, Kioxia fell 13%.
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How does a weaker AI trade affect bitcoin?
AI and chip stocks absorbed capital all quarter while bitcoin bled, producing a rare back-to-back quarterly loss. Cracks in that trade ease the pull on crypto and reopen the door for capital to rotate back into risk.
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Did Warsh signal a Fed rate cut at the July meeting?
No. Warsh said policymakers will weigh incoming data first and reiterated the 2% inflation target, keeping rate-cut expectations broadly intact without forcing a fresh repricing.
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