The current crypto market is a complex web: Regulatory authorities are releasing policy benefits, the SEC and the Federal Reserve are successively introducing loosening measures, Coinbase is branching into stock trading, and Binance is planning to restart its U.S. operations, with leading platforms constantly taking action; however, both BTC and ETH have lost key support levels, with over $500 million in liquidations across the network, short-term volatility is intensifying, and the crypto market is at a critical crossroads.
1. Regulatory relief is bringing warmth, and the crypto industry is welcoming policy loosening.
The global crypto regulatory attitude is turning friendly, and two core policies have removed development obstacles. The U.S. SEC has issued a statement clarifying the regulatory rules for broker-dealers holding crypto asset securities, providing clear compliance guidance for institutions entering the market; the Federal Reserve has lifted restrictions on uninsured banks participating in crypto business, lowering the policy threshold for traditional finance to enter crypto, helping to enhance industry liquidity and accelerating the integration of crypto and traditional finance.
2. Major platforms are frequently taking action, cross-industry and returns are stirring the industry landscape.
Under favorable regulations, leading platforms are accelerating their layouts, each making strong moves to seize market opportunities.
1. Coinbase is sprinting across industries to become an all-in-one trading platform: On December 18, it officially announced its entry into stock trading and prediction markets, with newly listed stock trading covering hundreds of high market cap targets, and plans to expand to thousands of stocks and ETFs, featuring zero commissions and 24/7 uninterrupted trading for five days; partnering with Kalshi to launch prediction markets covering elections, economic indicators, etc., while simultaneously launching AI wealth management tools and enterprise-specific services, leveraging the Coinbase Tokenize platform to connect virtual and physical assets, creating an ecosystem of "everything can be traded."
2. Binance plans to restart its U.S. operations: Riding on the crypto-friendly policies of the Trump administration, Binance intends to reduce CZ's control through capital restructuring and replace management to avoid regulatory disputes, thereby restarting Binance.US; meanwhile, they are in discussions with BlackRock to seek deep cooperation to pave the way for a return to the U.S. market.
3. Tether is expanding into the security field: Launching a decentralized password manager, PearPass, using a P2P architecture to avoid cloud storage leak risks, initially compatible with mainstream browsers, and will later expand to mobile, directly addressing users' core concerns about password security.
3. Market volatility is intensifying, and BTC falling below $86,000 hides stop-loss selling risks.
Policies and platform benefits are hard to resist against short-term adjustments, and the volatility risk in the crypto market is prominent. HTX data shows that BTC has fallen below $86,000, ETH has simultaneously dropped below $2,800, with over $537 million in liquidations across the network within 24 hours, leading to massive long position closures. Analysts warn that BTC's average cost is around $81,500, and if it drops below this price, it could trigger concentrated stop-loss selling, with the $85,000 support level in jeopardy, potentially causing a chain reaction of declines. However, the spot market still has a net inflow of $100,000, indicating that bottom-fishing funds have entered the market. On the positive side, Federal Reserve Governor Waller has signaled interest rate cuts, stating that persistent employment weakness requires continuous rate cuts, and the 2026 economy may improve, reinforcing market expectations for easing, which is expected to alleviate selling pressure in the crypto market and provide liquidity support.
4. The industry ecosystem coexists in multiple forms, with opportunities and risks emerging simultaneously.
The dynamics of the crypto industry ecosystem are frequent, with companies, projects, and platforms all taking action, intertwining opportunities and risks.
1. Companies are taking impressive actions: CIMG has increased its holdings of 230 bitcoins, bringing total holdings to 730; Canaan Creative has launched a $30 million stock buyback plan; mining company Hut 8 has signed a 15-year data center lease agreement worth $7 billion to expand its mining business; Norway's sovereign wealth fund has expressed support for the Metaplanet management proposal, demonstrating long-term capital recognition.
2. Projects and financing are accelerating: Circle is partnering with LianLian International to explore cross-border payments with stablecoins; Polygon's PoS network has repaired its faults, and Hyper Foundation has proposed to permanently destroy some HYPE tokens; DTCC has received SEC support to promote the tokenization of U.S. debt, and SBI Ripple Asia is laying out XRP yield products and the tokenization of physical assets; blockchain company Harbor has completed $4.2 million in financing.
3. Risk event warnings: Binance is cracking down on "listing agents" fraud, collecting relevant criminal evidence across the network; crypto venture Shima Capital has shut down due to an SEC fraud lawsuit, and its founder needs to pay $4 million in settlement.
4. Platform function upgrades: Binance wallet launches on-chain lending features, supporting mainstream crypto asset collateralized loans, and concurrently launches an exclusive activity to share $400,000 USDT, enhancing on-chain wealth management services.
Currently, the crypto market presents a pattern of "favorable support, accelerated expansion, and short-term fluctuations;" regulatory loosening and leading platforms' layouts are solidifying the long-term development foundation of the industry, with a clear trend of integration between traditional and crypto finance. However, in the short term, BTC has lost key support levels, and volatility risks remain, so investors need to closely monitor the $85,000 and $81,500 support levels, paying attention to the Federal Reserve's interest rate cut rhythm and做好风险防控。In terms of the industry, compliance operations are the core main line, and the tokenization of traditional assets and the expansion of stablecoin payment scenarios will become the core growth tracks in the future.$BTC
