Bitcoin and most altcoins traded sideways on Aug. 19 as traders await the release of this week’s Federal Reserve minutes and the upcoming Jackson Hole symposium.
Monero, Polkadot, and Polygon rose
Monero (XMR), the largest privacy coin, was among the best performers, rising for three consecutive days to reach a high of $156, its highest level since Aug. 14. This uptick comes as Binance prepares to convert all XMR tokens in its ecosystem to Tether (USDT) as part of its delisting process.
Polkadot (DOT) and Polygon (MATIC) were also among the top gainers as both coins have now risen for four consecutive days. Polygon’s rise is linked to the upcoming Sep. 2 conversion of the MATIC token to POL. Initially, POL will serve as the the native gas and staking token and will later play a key role in the AggLayer.
Polkadot’s rally coincided with the start of the Web3 Summit in Berlin, a significant event in the ecosystem featuring over 60 speakers.
The crypto industry has been underperforming compared to the stock market recently, largely due to the lack of a clear narrative. Important events, such as Exchange Traded Fund approvals and Bitcoin (BTC) halving, have already occurred, leaving the market in a holding pattern.
FOMC minutes and Jackson Hole Symposium
A potential catalyst for these tokens could be the Federal Reserve, which might begin lowering interest rates as early as September. The Fed will release the minutes of its July meeting on Wednesday, which could provide more insight into the committee’s deliberations.
However, the most significant central bank-related event will be the annual Jackson Hole Symposium in Wyoming, where Fed officials, global central bankers, and economists gather to discuss economic issues.
With the Fed not meeting in August, this symposium will give Fed Chair Jerome Powell an opportunity to signal whether the bank will cut rates in September. Historically, assets like stocks and cryptocurrencies have shown volatility during this meeting.
This time, however, movements may be more subdued since many economists expect the Fed to cut rates by 0.25%. The central bank is particularly concerned about the labor market, which has shown signs of weakening, with the jobless rate rising to 4.3% in July and wage growth slowing to 3.4%.
Recently, cryptocurrencies have reacted mildly to Fed actions. For instance, Bitcoin dropped by just 2% following the Fed’s last decision on July 31. Before that, it dipped by 3% after the June meeting.
