Powell talks, markets listen

The Fed cut interest rates by 25 basis points this week, marking the first reduction in over a year. However, the celebrations on Wall Street were short-lived as Chair Jerome Powell's post-meeting remarks were a masterclass in verbal intervention. Powell emphasized that the Fed remains vigilant about inflation, signaling the central bank isn’t ready to declare victory just yet.

The result? Markets got the message: further cuts are not a given. Treasury yields ticked up, and equity markets cooled off after an initial rally. Meanwhile, the dollar showed resilience, reminding traders that the path of monetary policy still leans hawkish.

Bitcoin Hits a Rough Patch

Bitcoin’s been having a week. After cruising to a record high of $108,268 earlier, the king of crypto has stumbled hard, dropping over 11% to as low as $92,115. What’s spooking the market? Two words: “death cross.”

Trouble on the charts

BTC’s 50-hour moving average just dipped below its 200-hour moving average—a technical indicator traders dread. Add in $1.42 billion in crypto liquidations over 24 hours, and it’s clear the broader sell-off is weighing heavy.

Blame the Fed

Cooling inflation data and the Fed’s recent rate cut to 4.25%-4.5% should’ve been good news. But Jerome Powell’s hawkish tone on fewer rate cuts in 2025? Not so much. That shift has traders hitting pause on riskier bets like Bitcoin.

Key levels to watch:

• Support: $90k. A break below could signal more pain.

• Resistance: $99,974. A strong rebound here might rekindle dreams of $100k+ territory.

Have your ever heard about ESG?!

ESG stands for Environmental, Social and Governance

It means we don’t finance companies that work in defense or sell health-harmful products like tobacco or alcohol. But why?

Because it’s not all about money, and it matters how we make it. As responsible investors, our primary goal should be to create value, not to support activities that have a negative impact on our society. The ESG movement is precisely about this.

The 'E' stands for all factors affecting the environment, emphasizing sustainability and environmental awareness—this excludes, for instance, oil extraction companies. The 'S' focuses on the social factor, meaning we do not fund arms manufacturers, tobacco companies, or businesses engaged in unethical practices. Finally, the 'G' represents proper governance, emphasizing corruption-free management, gender equality within companies, and what we can call responsible leadership.

ESG corporates

• Adecco Group AG

• Adobe Inc

• Allianz SE

• ASML Holding NV

• Magyar Telekom Nyrt

• Canadian Nation Railway

• Cisco

Non-ESG corporates

• British American Tobacco - sells harmful products

• Philip Morris Inc - sells harmful products

• Rheinmetall - defense and dealing with corrupt states

• Lockheed Martin - defense

• Inditex - fast fashion

• Saudi Aramco - oil

• Amazon - lack of workers’ rights