Cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency markets retreated on Tuesday, weighing on markets amid confirmation hearings for Federal Reserve chairman nominee Kevin Warsh and concerns about a stalemate in Iran peace talks.
Speaking before the Senate Banking Committee, Warsh emphasized the Fed’s independence and pushed back on speculation that interest rate decisions were subject to political pressure.
Meanwhile, uncertainty over negotiations between Iranian and U.S. officials has risen as Wednesday’s ceasefire deadline approaches, with reports that Vice President Vance’s trip to Pakistan for peace talks has been halted.
The U.S. government also imposed a series of sanctions on 14 individuals, entities and aircraft for their alleged “engagement in the procurement or transportation of weapons or weapons components for the Iranian regime.”
BTC was trading just below $77,000 earlier, but fell to near $75,000 during the US trading session before rebounding to $75,700, down around 0.9% in the past 24 hours.
The Nasdaq and S&P 500 both gave up early gains and fell 0.1%-0.2% in the afternoon.
Cryptocurrency-related stocks fell even further. Exchange Coinbase (COIN) fell more than 6%, while Robinhood (HOOD), a retail brokerage with significant cryptocurrency trading exposure, fell 4.5%. Digital asset investment company Galaxy (GLXY) fell 5.5%, and stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL) fell 8.3%.
Federal Reserve Independence
During a Senate Banking Committee hearing, Fed chairman nominee Warsh talked about interest rate policy and policy independence from Trump’s pressure to cut interest rates.
“I never said to the president what I thought rates should be… I wouldn’t even consider doing that,” Warsh said.
“The president has never asked me to predetermine, commit, anchor, determine any rate decision in any of our discussions, nor will I agree to do so,” he said.[Trump] I have never been asked to commit to any specific period for a rate decision, nor will I agree to do so. “
However, Trump has repeatedly publicly called for lower interest rates, putting pressure on current Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and raising concerns about the Fed’s independence.
The president even said in an interview with CNBC on Tuesday that he would be disappointed if Warsh doesn’t cut rates immediately.
Warsh also took a constructive stance on cryptocurrencies, saying digital assets are “already part of the fabric of our financial services industry.”
Matt Mena, senior cryptocurrency research strategist at asset management firm 21shares, said that while Wash’s comments suggest he feels less urgent about lowering rates, as chairman he may still be leaning toward lower rates.
“although [Warsh] Mena said in a note that despite his reputation for fiscal discipline, he has argued for years that the central bank’s reliance on lagging data has kept interest rates unnecessarily high, stifling economic growth and creating market volatility.
He added that Warsh’s appointment could also have a positive impact on cryptocurrency policy, noting that he would be the first Fed chair with deep ties to the digital asset industry. Warsh has invested in dozens of cryptocurrency and decentralized finance (DeFi) projects and sees Bitcoin as “the new gold for people under 40,” he added.
Looking ahead to the second half of 2026, Mena believes that a more aggressive easing stance could create a “high-liquidity environment” that has historically supported risk assets such as Bitcoin, potentially pushing prices back to $100,000.
Update (April 21, 19:39 UTC): Updated to add stalled Iran negotiations.
Update (April 21, 18:09 UTC): Adds Kevin Warsh on President Trump and interest rates.
