Fed, ECB and BOJ decisions headline a packed week for crypto, with Coinbase earnings also due

Fed, ECB and BOJ decisions headline a packed week for crypto, with Coinbase earnings also due

N
News Editor
2026-10-26 09:14:47
A dense calendar is set to shape crypto markets in the week starting Oct. 26, with central bank decisions, U.S. macro data, crypto protocol deadlines and major earnings all landing within a few days. According to CoinDesk’s weekly preview, the Federal Reserve and Bank of Canada are due on Wednesday, followed by the European Central Bank on Thursday and the Bank of Japan on Friday. Attention is expected to center less on the rate numbers themselves and more on policy guidance, including remarks tied to the Fed’s December meeting. MEXC CEO Vugar Usi Zade told CoinDesk that markets have largely priced in a hold, making official commentary more important than the decision alone. Beyond macro, the schedule includes an IRS comment deadline, Unichain’s planned sequencer transfer, Balancer’s BIP-928 wind-down steps, DAO governance votes, token unlocks and a run of industry events. Earnings from Galaxy Digital, Robinhood, Coinbase, Strategy, PayPal, Mastercard and others add another layer of potential volatility for digital asset traders.

Crypto markets are heading into a crowded week starting Oct. 26, with interest-rate decisions from the Federal Reserve, the Bank of Canada, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan sharing the calendar with major earnings, U.S. economic releases, protocol deadlines and token unlocks.

CoinDesk said central bank policy decisions will dominate the week. The Fed and the Bank of Canada are scheduled for Wednesday, followed by the ECB on Thursday and the BOJ on Friday. The main focus, however, may not be the rate figures themselves but what policymakers say afterward.

"Traders are currently less focused on the specific rate decision and more interested in any statements from Warsh regarding the upcoming December meeting," MEXC CEO Vugar Usi Zade told CoinDesk. "Since keeping rates steady is already priced into market expectations, such a move is unlikely to serve as a significant positive catalyst."

Crypto-specific events

  • Oct. 26: Blast’s normal withdrawal interface closes. Assets remain withdrawable through its bridge contracts on Ethereum.
  • Oct. 28: Comments are due on IRS Notice 2026-62, which addresses potentially abusive investment-fund tax strategies in the U.S.
  • Oct. 29: Unichain is targeting the transfer of its sequencer operations from Uniswap Labs to the Optimism Foundation through OP Enterprise.
  • Oct. 30: Balancer’s BIP-928 wind-down timetable calls for pausable pools to move to withdrawals-only, for protocol fees to be set to zero where contracts allow, and for bug-bounty coverage to end.

Macro calendar

  • Oct. 27, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. Durable Goods Orders MoM for September, preliminary estimate 1.5% (previous 0.0%).
  • Oct. 27, 10 a.m.: U.S. New Home Sales for September, estimate 0.65M (previous 0.684M).
  • Oct. 28, 9:45 a.m.: Bank of Canada interest-rate decision (previous 2.25%); Monetary Policy Report.
  • Oct. 28, 2 p.m.: Federal Reserve interest-rate decision (previous 3.75%–4.00%).
  • Oct. 28, 2:30 p.m.: Fed press conference.
  • Oct. 29, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. GDP Annualized QoQ for Q3, advance estimate 3.2% (previous 2.2%).
  • Oct. 29, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. PCE Price Index YoY for September (previous 3.4%); Core PCE Price Index YoY (previous 3.0%).
  • Oct. 29, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. Initial Jobless Claims for the week ending Oct. 24, estimate 196K (previous 194K).
  • Oct. 29, 9:15 a.m.: ECB interest-rate decision (previous deposit rate 2.50%), followed by President Christine Lagarde’s press conference at 9:45 a.m.
  • Oct. 30, 11 p.m.: Bank of Japan interest-rate decision and Outlook Report (previous 1.25%).
  • Oct. 30, 6 a.m.: Eurozone GDP QoQ for Q3, preliminary flash (previous Q2 0.6%); GDP YoY (previous 1.2%); September unemployment rate.
  • Oct. 30, 8:30 a.m.: U.S. Employment Cost Index QoQ for Q3 (previous 0.9%).

Earnings to watch

CoinDesk said Wall Street faces a busy earnings week that could turn volatile. Crypto-linked and payments names on the schedule include Galaxy Digital, Robinhood Markets, Coinbase Global, Strategy, PayPal and Mastercard.

  • Oct. 27: Galaxy Digital (GLXY), pre-market, $0.03.
  • Oct. 27: PayPal Holdings (PYPL), pre-market, $1.34.
  • Oct. 27: SoFi Technologies (SOFI), pre-market, $0.17.
  • Oct. 27: Robinhood Markets (HOOD), post-market, $0.55.
  • Oct. 29: Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), pre-market, $1.98.
  • Oct. 29: Mastercard (MA), pre-market, $5.16.
  • Oct. 29: Coinbase Global (COIN), post-market, -$0.10.
  • Oct. 29: Strategy (MSTR), post-market, $8.34.
  • Oct. 30: Cboe Global Markets (CBOE), pre-market, $3.42.

Governance votes and token unlocks

  • ENS DAO is voting on a 201,559 USDC funding request to cover the meta-governance working group’s operating expenses through Term 7. Voting ends Oct. 26.
  • CoW DAO is voting on whether to grant its core team a standing mandate to set and adjust protocol fee policies within predefined ranges to generate revenue. Voting ends Oct. 28.
  • Space Token is voting to select its November 2026 Coin of the Month for the Coin Roll Game and a dedicated staking pool. Voting ends Nov. 1.
  • Oct. 29: Collector Crypt CARDS, priced at $0.3526, is set to unlock 0.6% of its circulating supply, worth $20.9 million.
  • Nov. 1: MemeCore M, priced at $0.7460, is set to unlock 56.11 million tokens, about 2.8% of its circulating supply, worth $50.34 million.

Listings and industry events

  • Oct. 27, 11 p.m.: Binance ends spot trading in Epic Chain (EPIC) and QuickSwap (QUICK).
  • Oct. 27: The Bridge, New York.
  • Oct. 27–29: Ripple Swell, New York.
  • Oct. 27–29: Zcon7, Cancún, Mexico.
  • Oct. 27–29: MERGE Madrid, Madrid.
  • Oct. 28–29: Meridian 2026, Lisbon.
  • Oct. 29–31: TUM Blockchain Conference, Munich.
This article was originally published by Bit.Fan. For more cryptocurrency news and market insights, visit www.bit.fan.
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