On Wednesday, Bolivia’s central bank announced that it had signed a formal agreement with El Salvador’s digital asset regulator, marking a significant step toward developing a legal and technical framework for cryptocurrency adoption in the Andean nation.

The Central Bank of Bolivia (BCB) and El Salvador’s Comisión Nacional de Activos Digitales (CNAD) will collaborate on a broad range of crypto policy initiatives under the terms of a newly signed memorandum of understanding. The agreement includes joint work on blockchain intelligence tools, regulatory frameworks, and risk analysis models. It is open-ended and takes effect immediately.

The policy shift comes as crypto use accelerates in Bolivia. According to figures released by the BCB, digital asset transaction volume grew from $46.5 million in June 2024 to $294 million in June 2025, a more than sixfold increase following the passage of Decree No. 082/2024, which authorized broader use of cryptoassets across the country.

The new agreement draws on El Salvador’s experience as the first country to adopt bitcoin as legal tender and build a formal digital asset regulatory system. The CNAD, established after El Salvador’s 2021 Bitcoin Law, oversees the authorization of token offerings, the registration of digital asset service providers, and the supervision of crypto-related platforms.

BCB Acting President Edwin Rojas Ulo and CNAD President Juan Carlos Reyes García signed the agreement in La Paz. The two institutions will share best practices aimed at supporting Bolivia’s goal of building a transparent, inclusive, and well-regulated digital asset ecosystem, particularly for populations underserved by traditional finance.

While Bolivia has historically taken a cautious stance on crypto, the agreement signals a move toward gradual regulatory engagement rather than restriction. Officials emphasized that cooperation with El Salvador will help Bolivia modernize its financial infrastructure while safeguarding stability and promoting innovation.

The deal aligns Bolivia with a growing number of countries exploring tailored crypto regulations in response to rapid adoption, especially in Latin America. It also reinforces El Salvador’s role as a regional reference point for crypto integration at the institutional level.

Major cryptocurrencies have reversed overnight losses, with analysts asserting that Wednesday’s Fed decision underscored President Trump’s growing influence over the central bank, strengthening the long-term bullish case for crypto.

The Fed kept the benchmark interest rate steady at 4.25% as expected, and Chairman Jerome Powell dampened prospects of renewed rate cuts from September, stressing that the central bank is focused on controlling inflation—not on government borrowing or home mortgage costs that Trump wants lowered.

Powell’s comments rocked the crypto market, with bitcoin (BTC) falling to $116,000. XRP, ether (ETH) and solana (SOL) also fell, shaking out leveraged bets from futures markets.

These losses, however, have been reversed. As of the time of writing, BTC was trading at $118,400, with XRP and ETH changing hands at $ 0.00314 and $3,870, according to CoinDesk data. The CoinDesk 80 Index, a broader market gauge, hovered near 915 points, up 0.8% over the 24 hours.

Jimmy Yang, co-founder of Orbit Markets, said that the overnight Fed decision revealed a threat to the Fed’s independence.

While the central bank held rates steady, two policymakers – Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman and Governor Christopher Waller, both appointed to the board by President Donald Trump — dissented, favoring a rate cut.

Trump has repeatedly criticised Powell for keeping interest rates elevated and costing the United States billions of dollars. Note that both Wallet and Bowman have publicly advocated for rate cuts in recent weeks.

«There are increasing concerns about the Fed’s independence as two of Trump’s appointees voted for a rate cut last night; this should strengthen the case for crypto in the long term,» Yang told CoinDesk.

He added that with no immediate rate cut in sight, the market could continue to trade largely directionless, awaiting fresh catalysts – the July CPI release.

«CPI is likely to rise when the tariffs kick in over the next few months. Cryptocurrencies might sell off initially alongside broader risk assets. However, if inflation fears persist, crypto might rebound as a hedge narrative re-emerges, especially for bitcoin,» Yang noted.

Greg Magadini, director of derivatives at Amberdata, said that while the Fed’s decision was in line with expectations, concerns about the Fed’s independence linger.

«The biggest looming question this year for the bond market is around Fed independence. Wednesday’s decision helped the Fed defend its independence. Still, if Powell is fired or begins to cut rates too early, I expect hard assets (BTC, especially) to rally significantly. At the same time, inflation and bonds would likely lose considerable value,» Magadini noted. «Today the U.S. credit markets rely on Fed independence.»

Magadini explained bond markets continue to price in long-term inflation, which weakens the case for rapid fire rate cuts to ultra-low levels, as desired by Trump.

«We’ve seen long-bond yields rise a lot since Trump’s election. 10s30s moved from 15bps to 55bps and 2s10s from 5bps to 45bps.

This means the bond market continues to price in long-term inflation, especially given that «real yields» are historically positive… should inflation remain where it is today,» Magadini said.

Good Morning, Asia. Here’s what’s making news in the markets:

Welcome to Asia Morning Briefing, a daily summary of top stories during U.S. hours and an overview of market moves and analysis. For a detailed overview of U.S. markets, see CoinDesk’s Crypto Daybook Americas.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) majors are slightly down despite blockbuster earnings by tech giants Microsoft (MSFT) and Meta, which cited their respective AI efforts as a catalyst for beating earnings.

Microsoft’s cloud revenue jumped 27% to $46.7 billion, with Azure crossing $75 billion annually as demand for AI workloads pushed datacenter capacity past two gigawatts. Meta, meanwhile, reported a 22% year-over-year revenue increase to $47.5 billion, with a 43% operating margin, as AI-powered ad models lifted conversions by up to 5% and engagement on Facebook and Instagram surged.

CoinGecko’s AI token category, which includes majors like TAO, NEAR, ICP, and RENDER is down 1.4%. In contrast, the CoinDesk 20, a measure of the performance of the world’s largest digital assets, is flat and trading below 4,000.

Typically, AI tokens move in sync with earnings from big tech. Nvidia’s record-breaking rally in 2024 helped the category push beyond a $10 billion market cap, but bitcoin’s rising dominance in the first half of 2025 pulled some air out of the category — and other types of altcoins — pushing it down to below $5 billion.

Traders across the crypto world today also took a breather, given the Fed’s recent messaging, which perhaps explains AI tokens’ muted reception to MSFT and Meta’s success.

«While policy remained unchanged, Powell’s remark that tariff-driven inflation may only be beginning added a layer of uncertainty that pressured risk assets across the board,» market maker Enflux wrote in a note to CoinDesk.

«With risk appetite fading and macro messaging turning less predictable, markets may remain in a holding pattern until participants gain clarity on inflation direction and policy response for the next few days or weeks,» Enflux continued.

Nvidia is set to report its earnings towards the end of August. Time will tell if the GPU giant’s expected solid results will serve as a catalyst for AI token growth.

Market Movements:

BTC: Crypto markets turned volatile on Wednesday as hawkish remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell triggered over $200 million in liquidations, with bitcoin briefly falling below $116,000.

ETH: Ether (ETH) is holding above $3,800, up 1.47%, as corporate treasuries, like SharpLink Gaming continue to bid on the asset for their balance sheet.

Gold: Gold fell 1.17% to $3,288.02 on Wednesday as strong U.S. economic data reduced safe-haven demand and reinforced expectations that the Fed will keep rates steady.

Nikkei 225: Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Thursday as investors weighed new U.S. tariffs on South Korean imports and awaited the Bank of Japan’s expected decision to hold rates steady.

S&P 500: The S&P 500 slipped 0.12% to 6,362.90 after Fed Chair Powell signaled no imminent rate cuts amid tariff-driven inflation concerns.

Elsewhere in Crypto:

• Trump’s Top Crypto Guys: U.S. DeFi Will Thrive, Assures Bitcoin Reserve Is Coming (CoinDesk)
• Polygon suffers hour-long outage weeks after complex hard fork (The Block)
• 10 years on, Ethereum has rebuilt itself time and again without compromising on its values, community members say (The Block)