Bitcoin at $86K as Tom Lee and iTrustCapital CEO Call End of Downturn

Bitcoin (BTC) reached $86,423 on Tuesday, recovering from less than $76,000 seven days earlier. Both Tom Lee and Kevin Maloney, the chief executive of iTrustCapital, believe the market's lowest point has passed.

Their comments followed a Federal Reserve interest rate increase and the failure of the CLARITY Act, a crypto-focused piece of legislation. Neither development halted the digital currency's recovery.

iTrustCapital CEO Declares the Crypto Winter Finished

Kevin Maloney leads iTrustCapital, a retirement account platform for cryptocurrency and equity investments. Speaking to Paul Barron, he stated that the prolonged market downturn referred to as the "crypto winter" was over.

Maloney noted that his company had roughly $350 million in uninvested client funds. He further indicated that "significant portions" of that cash were now being deployed into the market.

“Bitcoin doesn’t need Clarity Act,” Maloney said in the interview.

The iTrustCapital CEO also highlighted a key price threshold. He stated that a weekly settlement above $85,000 would put Bitcoin in a favorable spot.

Tom Lee: Federal Reserve Cannot Tighten Further

Separately, Tom Lee, the chief investment officer at Fundstrat Capital, views the recent rate increase as the high point rather than the beginning of a tightening cycle. He has expressed this view multiple times during September.

In his regular weekly commentary, Lee referenced a change to the government's inflation measurement method scheduled for September 30. He noted that economists anticipate this will reduce the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index, which the Fed favors, from 3.4% to approximately 3%.

“They can’t get any more hawkish than this,” Tom Lee stated.

Lee also said that an additional quarter-point increase would not damage the economy or the stock market.

Comments Follow a Pair of Setbacks Within a Single Week

The CLARITY Act fell short in a Senate procedural vote on September 15, 50-49, lacking the required 60 votes. That legislation aimed to designate which United States regulator would supervise digital assets.

The following day, the Federal Reserve increased its benchmark rate by 0.25 percentage points, bringing it to a range of 3.75% to 4%. This marked the first rate hike since 2023. Bitcoin dropped under $76,000 following the vote but has since bounced back.

Fed Forecasts and ETF Withdrawals Suggest a Different Outlook

Not all indicators align. According to the central bank's projections, 16 out of 18 Federal Reserve officials anticipate a further rate increase in 2025.

On September 15, investors withdrew $450 million from Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as reported by ETF fund flow data.

Bitcoin is currently trading 0.6% higher for the day, according to BeInCrypto price data. The upcoming milestone is September 30, when updated inflation statistics are released.