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Last Updated:  
September 17, 2025
6 min read

The Fed Meeting That Can Change Everything?

The Federal Reserve is expected to announce its first rate cut of 2025, with futures implying a 96% chance of a 25 basis point reduction to 4%-4.25%. Gold eased slightly to $3,671.61 after hitting an all-time high of $3,702.95, while BTC and ETH options show compressed term volatility and moderately bearish short-tenor skews, despite ongoing ETF inflows totaling $2.8B for BTC and $935M for ETH since September 8. Core inflation in the Euro Area remained steady at 2.3% in August, the lowest since October 2021, while the UK’s annual core CPI edged down to 3.6%, with monthly CPI in line with forecasts. Ethereum-focused firm The Ether Machine filed for a SPAC merger with Dynamix Corporation, holding over 495K ETH valued at $2.1B.

Find out our latest reports in partnership with Bybit, listed below:

Daily Updates:

  • The Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting is set to conclude today, with the highly anticipated rate announcement expected to deliver the first cut to short-term interest rates of 2025.
  • The meeting opened with the swearing-in of Stephen Miran, a White House economist confirmed by the Senate late Monday in a fast-tracked vote. Miran immediately joined the Fed’s board of governors, and will cast a vote on today’s rate decision. Seen as a strong advocate for deeper cuts, he may dissent in favour of a 50 basis point reduction.
  • Analysts suggest that as many as three of the seven governors could dissent from a modest 25 basis point cut, favouring a larger half-point reduction—a level of dissent not seen since 1988.
  • Futures-implied rate cut odds show a 96% probability that the Fed will deliver a 25 basis point cut, bringing its key policy rate at  4%-4.25%.

  • Gold prices eased slightly on Wednesday. Spot gold fell 0.5% to $3,671.61 an ounce, following a record all-time peak of $3,702.95 on Tuesday.

  • The term structures of volatility have compressed for BTC and ETH options markets after a rise higher in demand for short-term optionality to the levels of longer dated expirations.
  • This indicates some signs of position taking ahead of the Fed’s Wednesday meeting as we see more action at expirations covering the event.
  • The skews of those short-tenor volatility smiles are moderately bearish for both coins once again, after briefly pricing a more neutral stance just yesterday.
  • However, while spot and options markets indicate a side-ways “wait-and-see” slog ahead of the meeting, Spot ETFs have been quietly accumulating in the second week of September. Net inflows to BTC products total $2.8B since Sep 8, while ETH products have seen a net total of $935M over the same period.

  • As markets await the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement, inflation figures from several major economies were already released.

  • The Euro Area’s annual core inflation rate remained steady at 2.3% in August 2025, marking the fourth consecutive month at this level. This figure aligns with the preliminary estimate and slightly exceeds initial market expectations of 2.2%.
  • Core Inflation is currently at its lowest since October 2021.
  • The UK’s annual inflation rate held steady at 3.8% in August 2025, unchanged from July and remaining close to the highs last seen in January 2024, in line with market expectations.
  • On a monthly basis, CPI increased 0.3% in August, following a 0.1% rise in July, in line with the forecasts. Annual core inflation eased to 3.6% from 3.8%.

  • Ethereum-focused treasury accumulation firm, The Ether Machine has filed an SEC Form S-4 to go public via a merger with special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), Dynamix Corporation.
  • The Ether Machine currently stands as one of the top corporate Ethereum holders with over 495K ETH, valued at over $2.1B.

This Week’s Calendar:

Charts of the Day:

Figure 1. BTC at-the-money implied volatility across selected tenors. Source: Deribit, Block Scholes

Figure 2. ETH at-the-money implied volatility across selected tenors. Source: Deribit, Block Scholes
Figure 3. BTC 25-delta put-call skew ratio across selected tenors. Source: Deribit, Block Scholes

Figure 4. ETH  25-delta put-call skew ratio across selected tenors. Source: Deribit, Block Scholes

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Find out our latest reports in partnership with Bybit, listed below:

Daily Updates:

  • The Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting is set to conclude today, with the highly anticipated rate announcement expected to deliver the first cut to short-term interest rates of 2025.
  • The meeting opened with the swearing-in of Stephen Miran, a White House economist confirmed by the Senate late Monday in a fast-tracked vote. Miran immediately joined the Fed’s board of governors, and will cast a vote on today’s rate decision. Seen as a strong advocate for deeper cuts, he may dissent in favour of a 50 basis point reduction.
  • Analysts suggest that as many as three of the seven governors could dissent from a modest 25 basis point cut, favouring a larger half-point reduction—a level of dissent not seen since 1988.
  • Futures-implied rate cut odds show a 96% probability that the Fed will deliver a 25 basis point cut, bringing its key policy rate at  4%-4.25%.

  • Gold prices eased slightly on Wednesday. Spot gold fell 0.5% to $3,671.61 an ounce, following a record all-time peak of $3,702.95 on Tuesday.

  • The term structures of volatility have compressed for BTC and ETH options markets after a rise higher in demand for short-term optionality to the levels of longer dated expirations.
  • This indicates some signs of position taking ahead of the Fed’s Wednesday meeting as we see more action at expirations covering the event.
  • The skews of those short-tenor volatility smiles are moderately bearish for both coins once again, after briefly pricing a more neutral stance just yesterday.
  • However, while spot and options markets indicate a side-ways “wait-and-see” slog ahead of the meeting, Spot ETFs have been quietly accumulating in the second week of September. Net inflows to BTC products total $2.8B since

Find out our latest reports in partnership with Bybit, listed below:

Daily Updates:

  • The Federal Reserve’s two-day policy meeting is set to conclude today, with the highly anticipated rate announcement expected to deliver the first cut to short-term interest rates of 2025.
  • The meeting opened with the swearing-in of Stephen Miran, a White House economist confirmed by the Senate late Monday in a fast-tracked vote. Miran immediately joined the Fed’s board of governors, and will cast a vote on today’s rate decision. Seen as a strong advocate for deeper cuts, he may dissent in favour of a 50 basis point reduction.
  • Analysts suggest that as many as three of the seven governors could dissent from a modest 25 basis point cut, favouring a larger half-point reduction—a level of dissent not seen since 1988.
  • Futures-implied rate cut odds show a 96% probability that the Fed will deliver a 25 basis point cut, bringing its key policy rate at  4%-4.25%.

  • Gold prices eased slightly on Wednesday. Spot gold fell 0.5% to $3,671.61 an ounce, following a record all-time peak of $3,702.95 on Tuesday.

  • The term structures of volatility have compressed for BTC and ETH options markets after a rise higher in demand for short-term optionality to the levels of longer dated expirations.
  • This indicates some signs of position taking ahead of the Fed’s Wednesday meeting as we see more action at expirations covering the event.
  • The skews of those short-tenor volatility smiles are moderately bearish for both coins once again, after briefly pricing a more neutral stance just yesterday.
  • However, while spot and options markets indicate a side-ways “wait-and-see” slog ahead of the meeting, Spot ETFs have been quietly accumulating in the second week of September. Net inflows to BTC products total $2.8B since