Bitcoin and other altcoins rose in the first days of last week as a report by the US showed that consumer prices rose slightly in May even as companies adjusted their prices to Donald Trump’s tariffs.
These assets then suffered a harsh reversal on Friday after Israel attacked Iran, risking a prolonged conflict in the region. This crisis will have a major impact as it will stimulate inflation and potentially higher interest rates for longer.
This article explores the top catalysts for Bitcoin and other altcoins like Ripple (XRP), LayerZero (ZRO), and Centrifuge (CFG).
Federal Reserve interest rate decision
The first major catalyst for Bitcoin and altcoins like XRP, LayerZero, and Centrifuge will be the Federal Reserve interest rate decision on Wednesday this week.
Most economists believe that the bank will maintain status quo and leave interest rates unchanged between 4.25% and 4.50%. It will then maintain a wait-and-see attitude as it observes the impact of tariffs on inflation.
The most likely scenario is where the Fed slashes interest rates either in September or October.
A dovish Fed decision will be a bullish catalyst for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies this week. On the other hand, a more hawkish Fed will negatively affect these tokens.
SEC XRP ETF Decision to impact altcoins
The other key catalyst for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is the upcoming decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on the Franklin Templeton XRP ETF.
The agency will likely decide to delay the decision as it assesses other ETF proposals by companies like 21Shares, Bitwise, and Invesco. It will do that because it wants to approve all ETFs on the same day as approving Franklin’s first will give it an advantage compared to the others.
However, an XRP ETF approval would be a highly bullish catalyst for Bitcoin and other altcoins.
Top Token Unlocks
The other important catalyst for altcoins will be the planned unlocks this week. The most notable one will be LayerZero’s unlock on Thursday. ZRO will unlock tokens worth over $384 million, accounting for 179% of the float. The other top token unlocks to watch will be Solana (SOL), Zetachain (ZETA), and zkSync (ZK).
Token unlocks are often seen as being bearish because they increase the supply of those in circulation.
Read more: Pepe Price Prediction: Elliot Wave and Other Reasons it Will Soar
Iran and Israel Crisis
Further, Bitcoin and altcoins will also react to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. Signs of escalation will lead to more fear among investors, and push tokens lower.
It will also lead to higher crude oil and natural gas prices that will contribute to inflation in the US and other countries.
Additionally, crypto traders will watch out for the ongoing Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, which have been firing on all cylinders this year. Bitcoin ETFs have had over $45 billion in inflows since inception, while Ethereum ones have gained millions of assets in the past few months.
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