Gold, silver and bitcoin under pressure. Is the market pricing in a more hawkish Fed?
Investor sentiment towards assets previously seen as beneficiaries of uncertainty is clearly shifting across global financial markets. Gold, silver and bitcoin have come under selling pressure, while capital has increasingly moved towards the US dollar and US government bonds.
One of the main reasons for this change is rising expectations of a more restrictive Federal Reserve policy stance. Markets have started to price in the possibility that interest rates could remain high for longer, while speculation around Kevin Warsh potentially taking a more prominent role at the Fed has strengthened the narrative around a tougher approach to inflation.
Warsh has long been regarded as one of the more hawkish economists associated with the Fed. In financial markets, he is associated with higher interest rates, a stronger dollar and a firm stance against inflation. The very possibility of his influence increasing has been enough to trigger a clear repricing across asset classes.
Source: own research, as of 26 June 2026.
As a result, capital has started to flow out of assets that do not generate current income. This applies to gold and silver, as well as bitcoin, which despite frequent comparisons with “digital gold” is once again behaving like a higher-risk asset.
At the same time, rising US Treasury yields are increasing the appeal of the bond market. For many investors, the ability to generate a relatively high return with a much lower level of risk is becoming a more attractive alternative to holding precious metals or cryptocurrencies.
