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- The Federal Reserve looks certain to raise rates despite pressure from the White House.
- The Senate votes against the Clarity Act, dealing a blow to the crypto space.
- AI warning alarms keep sounding, but Nvidia and Meta diverge from their peers.
- A CNBC survey predicts a hike from the Bank of Japan on Friday.
Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Hello, this is Leonie Kidd coming to you from London. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.
The theme of the day — breaking ranks.
The Fed looks almost certain to put the fight against inflation ahead of the White House’s wishes by raising rates on Wednesday.
It’s not gone President Trump’s way on crypto regulation either, with the Senate voting down the Clarity Act.
And the AI rebellion continues, despite President Trump gaining the support of Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg in his push to stay ahead in the AI race.
Read on for more.
What you need to know today
It’s decision day for the Federal Reserve, in a moment that could mark the beginning of a new hiking cycle for the central bank.
With a 92% probability the Fed will hike by 25 basis points, it comes amid immense pressure from the White House to leave rates where they are. On Sunday, President Donald Trump once again reiterated his belief that the U.S. should have “the lowest interest rate in the world.”
Investors are staying on the sidelines in early trade on Wednesday, with U.S. futures edging marginally higher ahead of the decisions and press conference with Chairman Kevin Warsh.
No Clarity for crypto
In another blow to the Trump administration, the U.S. Senate has voted against advancing the Clarity Act, a bill that would have established a framework for cryptocurrency oversight. The move is a major setback for the crypto industry after months of negotiations.
Cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, fell sharply, while Coinbase and Circle also came under heavy selling. Crypto data group CoinGlass calculated that $571 million was wiped off long positions in the overnight sell-off.
The vote was largely along party lines, with Democrats voicing their concerns that public officials have benefited from their crypto ventures.
During President Trump’s second term, crypto has also become a major source of personal income for the president. Trump reported more than $1.4 billion in income from his family’s cryptocurrency ventures in 2025.
Breaking AI ranks
The AI industry continues to sound the alarm about the pace of the model frontier. But there is some divergence within the industry. Nvidia boss Jensen Huang contradicted his peers at Anthropic, OpenAI and xAI, telling CNBC’s Jim Cramer AI will be “incredibly safe,” adding that “we don’t need new laws, we have plenty of laws.”
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg sided with Huang, saying on X and other social media platforms that he believes AI labs that fail to “focus on alignment will fall behind.”
Huang is expected to attend President Trump’s state dinner with Chinese President Xi Jinping next week, according to a CNBC source familiar with the matter.
The news comes as Chinese companies have remained largely quiet on the AI safety debate. Find out more from Beijing here.
Bank of Japan decision
Meanwhile, a CNBC survey has revealed that another central bank looks set to hike rates.
The Bank of Japan will raise rates by 25 basis points to 1.25% at its Friday meeting, 89% of survey respondents predicted. They cited higher inflation, higher wages and pressure from the U.S. to continue its hiking cycle.
Most recently, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda to take “decisive market and monetary steps” at the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting earlier this month.
— Leonie Kidd
And Finally…
Inside South Korea’s university programs offering a direct route to Samsung and SK Hynix
AI disruption has led several prominent entrepreneurs to question the value of traditional college graduate programs. But top South Korean tech companies continue to ascribe value to degrees.
In fact, they are helping craft university courses that fast-track entry into the AI sector, with some offering guaranteed jobs to graduates.
Jung Chae-rin is a second-year student at Sogang University’s Department of System Semiconductor Engineering, a four-year degree established in partnership with memory-chip maker SK Hynix.
Her course comes with a guarantee of employment in SK Hynix upon graduation.
— Lim Hui Jie, Miko Jang
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