Bitcoin Rebounds to $77K as Fed Tone, Cardano Vote Loom

Bitcoin recovered toward $77,000 after President Donald Trump announced a US‑Iran peace memorandum had been largely negotiated, reducing immediate fears of a wider regional conflict. The rebound followed several days of selling that pushed Bitcoin to a one‑month low.

Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller warned earlier in the week that further rate increases could not be ruled out if inflation remains elevated. Markets began pricing a possible 25 basis point hike by October 2026, which contributed to higher real yields and a stronger dollar.

Waller wrote, “I thought markets were underpricing the risk of prolonged high energy prices, and I still think they are…” and cited broad consumer and producer price gains as reinforcing that view.

After the risk sentiment improved, traders rotated into selective altcoin themes. Tokens tied to artificial intelligence projects, privacy features and institutional blockchain use saw inflows. NEAR, Worldcoin, Zcash, ONDO, Morpho and Hyperliquid were among the stronger performers.

Grayscale indicated that if the CLARITY Act becomes law, institutional investors would likely direct capital toward chains with active tokenized assets, stablecoins, decentralized finance and regulated finance infrastructure. The firm highlighted Ethereum and Solana for liquidity and developer depth, BNB Chain for its broad user base, and Canton Network for its design aimed at regulated institutions.

Cardano faced an on‑chain governance vote on a 32.9 million ADA treasury proposal to fund research on post‑quantum cryptography, zero‑knowledge proofs, scalability and university partnerships. IOHK founder Charles Hoskinson wrote he was ‘deeply saddened’ that some community representatives opposed the plan. At the time of reporting, about 81% of active dRep stake had voted against the proposal, leaving it short of the 67% approval threshold required to pass.

Outside crypto, SanDisk led investable assets in 2026 through May 20 with a 509% gain driven by demand for memory chips used in AI data centers. Seagate, Intel, oil and copper also posted gains. Bitcoin remained down about 23% year‑to‑date.

Market participants noted that the week combined geopolitical remarks, central bank commentary and a high‑stakes governance vote alongside short‑term price moves in crypto. Uncertainty remained over final terms of any US‑Iran agreement and the Federal Reserve’s future interest‑rate path at the time of reporting.