The era of historically low interest rates iscoming to an end, and not just in America. As early as next week, the Bank of Canada will start a campaign of tighter monetary policy that will test the country’s debt-laden consumers and reveal whether its economic recovery has staying power. In the U.S., volatility that’s gripped markets of late shows no sign of letting up, as the S&P 500 notched its worst week since March 2020. Optionexpirations of more than $3 trillion are adding to the turbulence. Here’syour markets wrap. —David E. Rovella andNatasha Solo-Lyons Bloomberg is tracking thecoronavirus pandemicand the progress ofglobal vaccination efforts. Here are today’s top stories |
For Bitcoin, there only seems to be one constant these days: losses. With the Fed looking to withdraw financial support from the market, riskier assetshave suffered. Bitcoin lost as much as 8.7% Friday and dropped below $38,000 to its lowest level in six months. Since its peak in November, it’s lost40% of its value. Other digital currencies have been smacked around as well, with Ether and meme coins mired in similar drawdowns. While crypto evangelists with lots of skin in the game continue to predict six-figure values, Bitcoin is inmeltdown mode. Still, that doesn’t mean everyone is hurting. Former Goldman Sachs bond trader Dan Morehead’s Pantera Bitcoin Fund has returned more than 65,000% since 2013, and Pantera Capital Management, once a traditional hedge fund that wagered on macroeconomic trends, oversees$5.6 billion of crypto assets. That’s on top of the $6 billion it’s returned to investors. |
