Share this article
Bitcoin Falls to 1-Month Low as Fed Minutes Reveal Talks to Shrink Balance Sheet
A reduction in the balance sheet might undermine bitcoin’s appeal as an inflation hedge.
Updated May 11, 2023, 5:31 p.m. Published Jan 5, 2022, 8:27 p.m.
Bitcoin tumbled to its lowest price in a month as minutes from the Federal Reserve’s last meeting in December showed officials discussed whether to start shrinking the U.S. central bank’s swollen $8.3 trillion balance sheet.
Prices for the cryptocurrency rallied in recent years as a growing number of investors bet that more than $4 trillion of money printing by the Fed to support the coronavirus-racked economy and markets would spur faster inflation – and that bitcoin could serve as a hedge against rising prices.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
So a move to shrink the balance sheet might put downward pressure on bitcoin.
“Some participants judged that a significant amount of balance sheet shrinkage could be appropriate over the normalization process, especially in light of abundant liquidity in money markets,” according to the minutes from the Fed’s Dec. 14-15 meeting, published Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET (19:00 UTC).
The price of bitcoin (BTC) slid 3.3% on Wednesday, at one point dropping to $43,678, the lowest since Dec. 4.
The original cryptocurrency gained about 60% in 2021 but is down almost 5% so far this year.
More For You
What to know:
- As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M.
- GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025 , with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month.
- Since its January 2025 launch , the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B , while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B.
More For You
Bitcoin’s Deep Correction Sets Stage for December Rebound, Says K33 Research
K33 Research says market fear is outweighing fundamentals as bitcoin nears key levels. December could offer an entry point for bold investors.
What to know:
- K33 Research says bitcoin’s steep correction shows signs of bottoming, with December potentially marking a turning point.
- The firm has argued that the market is overreacting to long-term risks while ignoring near-term signals of strength, like low leverage and solid support levels.
- With likely policy shifts ahead and cautious positioning in futures, K33 sees more upside potential than risk of another major collapse.
Top Stories
