XRP Rises 10% as SEC Ends Case
North Carolina Plans 40K BTC Buy
Senator Proposes New Bitcoin Law
‘The Floodgates Open’—Bitcoin And Crypto Brace For A $9 Trillion Fed Price Flip
“When there’s financial distress, they always print money. It doesn’t matter the political leanings,” Hayes, the cofounder of crypto deivatives pioneer BitMex who went onto launch the Maelstrom investment company, said in a wide-ranging interview with Bitcoin News.
The bitcoin price and wider crypto market has followed stock markets lower in recent weeks as traders react to U.S. president Donald Trump’s on again-off again international trade tariffs and the rising risk of recession.
03/19 update: Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell is “between a rock and a hard place,” Wells Fargo’s chief economist has told the Wall Street Journal, with the Fed likely to hold rates steady today as it grapples with the prospect of Donald Trump’s trade war fueling an inflation bump but also dampening economic growth.
Traders are whispering that Powell could announce an end to the Fed’s balance sheet runoff program, known as quantitative tightening, which could boost the bitcoin price, crypto and stock markets.
“Our rates strategists expect the statement to indicate that the Fed is pausing quantitative tightening until the debt ceiling is resolved, as suggested in the January meeting minutes,” Bank of America analysts wrote in a note seen by Coindesk. “They do not expect to restart after the debt ceiling is addressed, but the announcement won’t be made until later this year.”
The Fed will announce its interest rate decision at 2pm ET, followed by Powell’s 2:30pm ET press conference.
“Late last year, Fed chair Powell hinted that the end of [quantitative tightening] was coming in 2025. If he mentions it in [today’s statement or press conference (I imagine someone will ask him), that would end up signalling that we’re in a new monetary regime, and that the Fed stands ready to resume additional debt purchases should [quantitative easing] become necessary again,” Noelle Acheson, editor of the Crypto Is Macro Now newsletter, wrote in an emailed note.
“While renewed [quantitative easing] is unlikely any time soon, the additional liquidity from a large buyer (the Fed) coming back into the market to replace maturing holdings would be good news,” Acheson wrote, adding the Treasury market is facing $9 trillion in debt maturity this year that quantitative tightening could disrupt.
“When the floodgates open, it’s go time,” Hayes said, referring to the return of liquidity to the market, and predicting “they’re going to reflate and print more money than anyone’s ever printed before.”
The last bitcoin price boom that saw the bitcoin price climb to around $70,000 in late 2021 came in the aftermath of huge Covid-era government stimulus spending and money-printing.
“We are experiencing a low in liquidity fiat money generation,” Hayes said.
Hayes has predicted the bitcoin price will reach $250,000 by the end of the year as the Fed is forced to flip dovish and move to prop up the economy and asset prices.
“All eyes are on the Federal Reserve policy meeting this week,” BlackRock analysts wrote in a note.
The Federal Reserve today begins its two-day policy meeting, with the Fed’s latest interest rate decision due tomorrow—expected to see interest rates left unchanged despite president Trump’s campaign to see them brought down.
Traders are pricing in two or three rate cuts later this year but that could change with Fed chair Jerome Powell’s all-important, post-decision press conference.
XRP Zooms 10% as Garlinghouse Says SEC Is Dropping Case Against Ripple
XRP jumped 10% on Wednesday during U.S. morning hours as Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse said the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is set to drop its appeal against Ripple, the company closely adjacent to XRP tokens.
Reports last week claimed that the long-standing legal battle between Ripple and the agency was nearing its end. The SEC filed a lawsuit against Ripple in 2020 — during President Donald Trump’s first term — alleging that the company raised $1.3 billion via unregistered securities sales of XRP tokens.
U.S. Judge Analisa Torres in 2023 ruled that while Ripple violated federal securities law with institutional sales, the programmatic sales of tokens to retail exchanges did not violate the laws, a ruling that many viewed as a partial victory for Ripple. The judge handed a $125 million fine against Ripple last August. The SEC filed a “notice of appeal” following the decision.
The SEC’s lawsuit against the crypto company, which Garlinghouse described as the “first major shot fired in the war on crypto” had resulted in $15 billion in losses for holders of XRP. Previous cases by the SEC had ended quickly, making this lawsuit against Ripple a prominent action against the crypto industry.
After the departure of former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, the Commission has dropped several cases, including its investigation into Coinbase. While Trump has nominated Paul Atkins to serve as the next chair, the Senate has not yet scheduled a hearing for his confirmation.
Ripple and its executives donated heavily during the 2024 election, including over $70 million to the Congress-focused Fairshake super PAC and over $5 million to Trump’s inaugural fund.
The end of this lawsuit also increases chances for an XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF) to be approved by the SEC. Several potential issuers, including Grayscale, Bitwise and Franklin Templeton, have filed for such a fund in previous months with ETF experts at Bloomberg previously placing odds for an approval at 65-75% for the end of this year. XRP was among the assets Trump said would be part of a strategic U.S. crypto reserve.
The SEC declined to comment on Garlinghouse’s statement, though in other crypto cases, these matters were agreed to at a staff level before eventually being approved by a vote of the commission.
North Carolina Proposes Bitcoin Reserve Bill To Buy 40K BTCs Using Rainy Day Funds
US Representatives Stephen Ross, Mark Brody, Mike Schietzelt and Destin Hall introduced the NC Digital Assets Investments Act in the North Carolina House of Representatives. This bill would allow the state treasurer to invest in qualified digital assets to create a reserve fund.
House Bill 92 mentioned that exchange-traded products (ETPs) of digital assets with an average market cap of at least £606.78 billion could be bought using state funds up to an amount equal to 10% of the state’s funds.
The interest and other income from the investments would be paid into the state’s General Fund, except funds from ETPs of the Highway Fund and Highway Trust Fund.
According to Bitcoin Reserve Monitor, North Carolina could purchase 40,733 BTC, assuming a BTC price of £79,423. While the bill doesn’t mention Bitcoin specifically, it is the only cryptocurrency that would qualify under its provisions.
Furthermore, the bill stated that it could use funds from state special (“rainy day”) funds, such as the teachers’ retirement fund, the state lottery fund, the state property fire insurance fund, and the needs-based public school capital fund, among many others, which are held by the state treasurer.
The Crypto Reserve Fund Bill Likely To Pass
The proposed bill will establish a framework for digital asset investments, create a regulatory structure that enables state investments in digital assets, and offer guidelines for custody and management.
Blockchain Association head of industrial affairs, Dan Spuller, described the bill in an X post as “a big deal,” as Hall is “one of NC’s most powerful leaders.”
Meanwhile, Hall said on X, formerly Twitter, that the state was “aligning with President Trump’s vision for a national Bitcoin stockpile and ensuring North Carolina leads at the state level.”
Plans to create a national digital asset reserve gained momentum after President Donald Trump assumed office. On 23rd January, he signed an executive order forming a working group to establish a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.
Several US States Mulling A Crypto Reserve
Per the Bitcoin Reserve Monitor, the Utah and Arizona legislatures are mulling digital asset reserve bills. Furthermore, 19 US states, including North Carolina, have legislature pending. Interestingly, seven of those 19 states target Bitcoin as the reserve cryptocurrency.
By the end of last week, states like Montana, Maryland, Ohio, Florida, and Kentucky, among others, had floored Bitcoin reserve bills to allow digital asset investments.
Recession Would Be ‘A Big Catalyst For Bitcoin,’ BlackRock’s Head Of Digital Assets Says
Despite some optimism following policy shifts in Washington, Bitcoin’s performance has been subdued, currently hovering near $83,550 after giving back its late-2024 rally gains.
“The crypto market may have gotten ahead of itself with expectations about how fast deregulation and other catalysts would arrive,” Mitchnick said.
He noted that while Bitcoin rose sharply into the end of 2024, the early part of 2025 has been marked by modest ETF outflows and cautious sentiment.
Mitchnick argued that Bitcoin’s fundamental characteristics—its scarcity, decentralization, and independence from traditional monetary systems—position it as a long-term hedge, especially during periods of economic stress.
“A recession would be a big catalyst for Bitcoin,” he said.
“It’s long liquidity, meaning it benefits from increased fiscal spending, deficit accumulation, and lower interest rates—all typical features of a recessionary environment.”
While gold has recently surged to record highs amid growing economic uncertainty, Bitcoin has struggled to mirror that trend.
Mitchnick attributed this partially to short-term correlations and how the crypto market narrative has leaned into viewing Bitcoin as a “risk-on” asset.
“There’s a self-fulfilling element to how Bitcoin is being traded in the short term,” he noted.
Why It Matters: He also discussed ETF market dynamics, highlighting that recent Bitcoin ETF outflows have been driven primarily by hedge funds unwinding spot-futures arbitrage trades.
“The core long-term holders are still in,” he explained, pointing to continued interest from institutional investors despite the volatile price action.
Minnesota Senator Turns BTC Believer, Proposes New Bitcoin Act
Colorado and Utah now permit Bitcoin payments to fulfill tax obligations. Utah also extends Bitcoin usage for other official state services. Louisiana has also approved Bitcoin payments for state services. Minnesota’s adoption of this would boost Bitcoin’s role in daily finance.
Minnesota Joins the Bitcoin Movement
Minnesota isn’t alone in this. Across the U.S., 23 states have introduced bills to establish Bitcoin reserves, with 39 different proposals in circulation. The momentum follows Senator Cynthia Lummis’ Strategic Bitcoin Reserve Act. The proposal suggests the federal government buy 200,000 BTC per year for five years, totaling 1 million BTC.
Lummis recently introduced an updated Bitcoin Act to expand federal Bitcoin holdings further. State and federal authorities are progressively expanding the use of Bitcoin as a financial tool.
Why Bitcoin?
Miller’s proposal aligns with Bitcoin’s strong performance over time. According to Curvo data, Bitcoin’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR) has been 102.36% since August 2011, far outpacing the S&P 500’s 14.83%. The expansive value that Bitcoin provides is the main reason why more legislators view it as a strong investment for the future.
Conclusion
The Bitcoin Act of Minnesota represents further growth in mainstream Bitcoin integration. If enacted, it would turn Minnesota into a leading state with crypto-centric policies in the United States. The regulatory challenges continue, but Bitcoin maintains a growing influence on government finances. No matter how Minnesota enacts these policies, its success will be clear, and Bitcoin supporters will continue to grow.
