Crypto Jumps More Than 20% for the Week as Markets Await Warsh’s Jackson Hole Debut

Cryptocurrencies surged more than 20% on the week before pausing ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s first speech at Jackson Hole.

Bitcoin traded around $77,100 in early Asian trading on Aug. 24, according to CoinDesk. The token was down slightly from a day earlier but still up more than 21% for the week.

XRP led major cryptocurrencies with a weekly gain of more than 46%. It fell more than 1% on the day to just under $1.50, but still posted the largest weekly advance among the biggest tokens. Ether rose 0.5% to $2,442 and was up 28% for the week, while Hyperliquid climbed 35% over the same period to $80.

Dogecoin traded around $0.09, up 30% for the week. Solana gained 24% to $94, and BNB rose 15% to $697. Tron underperformed, advancing just 3.4% on the week to $0.344.

Investor focus is now shifting to this week’s Jackson Hole symposium. Warsh is set to make his first appearance there as Fed chair, with markets watching for any signal on the direction of interest rates. Jackson Hole is widely viewed as a forum where Fed chairs can hint at the monetary-policy outlook more freely than at formal meetings, and investors often treat the speech itself as a rate signal.

High oil prices are adding to inflation pressure, while long-term Treasury yields are hovering near their highest levels in decades. That has left expectations for rate cuts coexisting with market unease. Lower rates tend to drive money into risk assets, including cryptocurrencies, while higher rates can increase the appeal of Treasuries as safe-haven assets.

Stocks moved in the opposite direction from crypto. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell 1%. Samsung Electronics slumped 8.7% in Seoul trading after investors judged its 110 trillion won shareholder return plan to have fallen short of expectations. Alibaba dropped 9.6% in Hong Kong after announcing plans for a new share sale worth about $10.2 billion.