The cryptocurrency market is showing little reaction to the news of the Fed cutting interest rates as expected, but it had previously seen BTC price rise from around $89,000 to $94,000, pulling along many major altcoins.
The Fed cut interest rates. Photo: Bloomberg
In its meeting on the morning of December 11, 2025, the US Federal Reserve (Fed) announced its latest interest rate adjustment. As expected by experts and most investors, the Fed cut interest rates by another 0.25 percentage points . This marks the third consecutive interest rate reduction by the Fed following the September and October meetings, indicating a clear shift in policy.
The current interest rate maintained by the Fed will be in the range of 3.5% - 3.75%, a decrease of 0.75% compared to the 4.25% - 4.5% range maintained throughout the first nine months of this year.
The history of Fed interest rate adjustments. Source: CNBC (December 11, 2025)
This meeting saw increased disagreement among Fed officials regarding the decision to cut interest rates, with some arguing that the Federal Reserve should adjust rates more aggressively amid signs of declining employment, while others worried that continuously falling rates could once again cause inflation to spiral out of control. The meeting saw three votes against cutting interest rates, a level not seen since September 2019.
Nevertheless, the majority of Fed officials still express their intention to cut interest rates at least once more in 2026, targeting a range of 3% - 3.25% or 3.25% - 3.5%, with expected interest rates in 2027 and 2028 also hovering around this range - with a clearly hawkish stance.
Projected Fed interest rate adjustments over the years. Source: FOMC (December 11, 2025)
The Fed will also begin quantitative easing by purchasing $40 billion worth of Treasury bonds each month . This program is expected to last "just a few months," after which it will be significantly scaled back.
Speaking at a subsequent press conference, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell added:
- The Fed is evaluating further real-world economic data to decide whether to adjust interest rates further. Last December, the Federal Reserve made a similar statement, followed by nine consecutive months of keeping interest rates unchanged.
- The US economy is growing, with GDP projected to increase to 2.3% this year, up from 1.8% in September.
- Inflation is holding steady at 2.8% and shows no signs of slowing down towards the Fed's 2% target.
The Fed's policy at this time is receiving special attention from the financial world and the American political arena, because since taking office in early 2025, President Donald Trump has repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the Fed's delay in adjusting interest rates, which the most powerful man in the White House believes is harming the US economy because the Fed continues to maintain high interest rates despite a downward trend in inflation.
Despite repeatedly threatening the unprecedented act of firing Powell and plunging financial markets into chaos, President Trump ultimately allowed the Fed chairman to end his term in May 2026 and is in the process of selecting a replacement.
On the Polymarket prediction market, the name receiving the highest odds is Kevin Hassett, who is currently the Director of the Economic Council, a senior advisory group in the Trump administration.
Predicted percentages for the next Fed Chair candidate. Source: Polymarket (December 10, 2025)
Because the information was anticipated, Bitcoin's price didn't react strongly to the latest interest rate news. However, the world's largest cryptocurrency surged above $94,000 in the hours before the news broke, then corrected back below $91,000 on the morning of December 11th. Major altcoins also experienced similar fluctuations after a recovery period earlier in the month.
Fluctuations of top cryptocurrencies at 8:40 AM on December 11, 2025
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