Rick Rieder, a senior BlackRock executive overseeing over $2.4 trillion in assets, has become the front-runner to become the next head of the Federal Reserve after impressing Donald Trump in his recent interview.
Summary
- Rick Rieder has emerged as the front-runner for the Fed Chair position.
- His odds have jumped to over 50% on Polymarket and Kalshi.
- Rieder has supported having Bitcoin in portfolios.
A Polymarket poll places his odds at 51, much higher than Kevin Warsh’s 31% and Kevin Hasset’s 6%. Odds of other officials like Christopher Waller, Scott Bessent, and Judy Shelton have retreated. A similar Kalshi poll places Rieder’s odds at 52 and Warsh’s at 29%.
Rieder caught the attention of the White House a few months ago for advocating for more interest rate cuts and maintaining a bullish view of the stock market. At the time, he made the case on why the Fed should have slashed interest rates by 50 basis points instead of 25.
Most notably, Rieder has continued to advocate for Bitcoin (BTC). In a recent statement, he argued that investors will do well by adding assets like stocks, Bitcoin, and gold to their portfolios. Other potential Fed nominees like Kevin Warsh and Kevin Hassett have also expressed their support for the crypto industry.
However, a Fed Chair does not have a direct role in the crypto industry. In most cases, their impact is on the monetary policy. A highly dovish view, including on cutting interest rates and quantitative easing would boost the industry. All these officials have hinted that they will support rate cuts.
Instead, the most important entities in the crypto industry are the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as they are responsible for policies.
Rick Rieder’s odds have jumped as the Federal Reserve considers its first interest rate decision of the year. Economists expect that the Fed will leave interest rates unchanged in this meeting.
