Warsh Takes Oath as Fed Chair; Bitcoin Steady Near $77.4K as Liquidity Risks Stay in Focus

Kevin Warsh was sworn in on Friday as the Federal Reserve's 17th chair during a White House ceremony, marking the first time since Alan Greenspan in 1987 that a Fed chair took the oath at the executive mansion. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas administered the oath. Warsh, 56, succeeds Jerome Powell, who will remain on the Fed's Board of Governors through 2028. The Senate confirmed Warsh on May 13 in a 54–45 vote, with Democratic Sen. John Fetterman the only Democrat to back the nomination. Warsh said he would lead a "reform-oriented Federal Reserve," emphasizing the central bank's dual mandate of price stability and maximum employment. He also pledged not to precommit on interest-rate decisions at the request of elected officials; President Trump told attendees he wants the new chair to be "totally independent." Warsh's first Federal Open Market Committee meeting as chair is scheduled for June 17, the next major waypoint for markets looking for clarity on the policy path. Bitcoin hovered around $77,400 during Friday's session, little changed as investors had largely priced in the leadership transition. Warsh is viewed by many as the most crypto-literate Fed chair to date. Public financial disclosures showed indirect exposure to DeFi lending, Layer-1 projects and prediction markets; he has since said he will fully divest. Policy-wise, Warsh may be less supportive of risk assets. He has argued the Fed's balance sheet is too large and should be reduced. A faster drawdown would likely tighten liquidity and could curb the tailwinds that have historically accompanied crypto rallies. Derivatives markets are currently assigning near-zero odds to a June rate cut, with some participants even pricing the possibility of rate hikes in early 2027. Warsh takes over with inflation still running above the Fed's 2% target, oil trading above $100 a barrel, and consumer sentiment weak—a backdrop that limits the Fed's ability to ease. Warsh's arrival is a mixed signal for crypto: his familiarity with digital assets could translate into more informed messaging, while a focus on inflation control and balance-sheet shrinkage risks tightening financial conditions. Investors are likely to look to the June 17 FOMC meeting for the first concrete indications of how his priorities will show up in policy.