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Veteran trader Peter Brandt says Bitcoin (BTC) could decline to roughly $25,000 after the cryptocurrency breached its latest parabolic advance, arguing that historical bull-market patterns point toward a far deeper pullback than investors may expect.

What Happened

Brandt, known for his multi-cycle technical analysis of Bitcoin, outlined four data points that underpin his outlook, asserting that Bitcoin’s bull cycles have shown “exponential decay,” each cycle has been defined by a parabolic rise, every break of those parabolas has historically resulted in declines of more than 80%, and the current advance has now been violated.

Based on his framework, a 20% retracement from Bitcoin’s all-time high would place the downside target at $25,240.

Brandt’s view centers on the idea that Bitcoin’s major bull trends follow identifiable geometric structures.

In previous cycles, including 2011, 2013, 2017, and 2021, once Bitcoin broke below the curve supporting its parabolic uptrend, the market experienced a rapid and severe correction.

While Brandt is not forecasting an identical repeat of past drawdowns, he notes that the technical trigger is the same: the decisive failure of the parabola.

His comment about “exponential decay” refers to a long-observed reduction in Bitcoin’s upside amplitude with each successive bull cycle.

Early cycles delivered gains of several thousand percent, while later ones have produced increasingly smaller multiples.

Also Read: U.S. Crypto Regulation Slips To 2026 As Senate Prioritizes Budget Fight Over Market Rules

According to Brandt, this diminishing power makes each new parabola more fragile and reduces the likelihood of sustained vertical price behavior.

Why It Matters

By highlighting that previous breaks have resulted in >80% declines, Brandt is pointing to a structural vulnerability in Bitcoin’s long-term trend, that is, once a parabolic move fails, it can unwind sharply because market participants are no longer anchored to the same rate of accelerated growth.

The $25,000 level Brandt cites is not a prediction of full-cycle collapse but rather a technical reference point derived from his “20% of ATH” metric.

It represents what he considers the lower bound implied by the current broken parabola.

Brandt’s assessment comes as Bitcoin trades at $86,200 levels, down 31.5% from its all time high of $126,080, last seen on October 6 this year.

Read Next: What Happens If Quantum Computers Target Satoshi’s Wallet? Experts Say Bitcoin Has Time, But Not Forever

Even as Bitcoin (BTC) tumbled near the $85,000 mark on Monday, the underlying market conditions are deteriorating as short-term traders and speculative capital exert increasing influence over price behavior, according to a new analysis.

A Glassnode report on Monday stated that the market has shifted into a structurally fragile phase where liquidity is thinning, long-term demand is weakening, and volatility is being consistently underpriced.

What Happened

Bitcoin is trading down over 3% on Monday evening Eastern time, while other majors like Ethereum (ETH), BNB, XRP and Solana (SOL) are trading down 5%, 4%, 5% and 3.5% respectively.

One of the clearest signals comes from the distribution of supply between long-term and short-term holders.

The short-term holder (STH) share of supply has surged beyond its upper statistical band, meaning reactive market participants now command a disproportionately large portion of circulating coins.

At the same time, Glassnode’s Hot Capital Share, which measures the volume of capital that has recently entered Bitcoin and is likely to be price-sensitive, has climbed to 40.3%, also above its upper threshold.

Together, these metrics suggest the market is increasingly driven by fast-moving capital rather than long-term conviction.

Liquidity conditions paint a similar picture.

Spot trade volumes have fallen toward the lower end of their historical range, and cumulative volume delta (CVD) readings show persistent negative pressure from sellers.

Also Read: What Happens If Quantum Computers Target Satoshi’s Wallet? Experts Say Bitcoin Has Time, But Not Forever

With fewer buyers absorbing supply, price movements become more vulnerable to abrupt shifts in sentiment.

The demand side is weakening as well. Realized Cap Change, a proxy for the rate at which new, committed capital enters Bitcoin, has fallen to just 0.4 percent, dipping below its lower band.

This indicates a slowdown in long-term accumulation, reducing the stabilizing force that typically offsets short-term speculation.

Why It Matters

Despite these risks, volatility metrics show that markets may be complacent.

Glassnode’s volatility spread remains deeply negative, signaling that options traders are pricing in unusually low realized volatility relative to historical norms.

When paired with concentrated short-term ownership and softening inflows, this creates conditions for sharper, more disorderly moves if sentiment turns.

Glassnode’s data suggests that Bitcoin’s apparent calm masks a market structure leaning heavily on its most fragile participants.

Until long-term inflows re-accelerate or speculative dominance recedes, the report warns that BTC is likely to remain susceptible to sudden volatility spikes and deeper drawdowns. Read Next: BOJ To Start ETF Sales Next Month In Unwinding Plan That Could Take 100 Years

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has postponed any markup of the long-anticipated crypto market structure bill until next year, delaying momentum on legislation meant to clarify how federal regulators oversee digital asset markets.

What Happened

A committee spokesperson said Monday that Chairman Tim Scott and Democratic negotiators have made “strong progress,” but talks remain ongoing, according to Bloomberg.

The setback was widely expected, but it still frustrates crypto industry advocates who hoped for at least a preliminary markup before the end of the year.

With Congress returning in January to confront a government funding deadline on January 30, lawmakers will have limited bandwidth to revisit crypto oversight before the looming 2026 midterm cycle further constrains the legislative calendar.

According to the committee, Scott has insisted the bill must be bipartisan, and negotiations will continue with the aim of holding a markup in early 2026.

The legislation seeks to formally divide oversight responsibilities between the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, granting the CFTC clearer authority over spot crypto markets while outlining when digital assets may fall under securities rules.

Also Read: What Happens If Quantum Computers Target Satoshi’s Wallet? Experts Say Bitcoin Has Time, But Not Forever

The Banking Committee, which oversees the SEC, has produced several versions of the proposal, while the Senate Agriculture Committee, which supervises the CFTC, has issued one discussion draft and will need its own markup before the bill can advance.

Democratic lawmakers have raised concerns around financial stability, market risks, and ethical issues, the latter heightened by President Donald Trump’s and his family’s increasing involvement in crypto businesses, which have reportedly generated significant profits.

Why It Matters

Even without new legislation, both regulators have begun adjusting their posture toward the industry.

The SEC has issued staff bulletins and hosted public roundtables, including one earlier Monday, exploring how securities rules should apply to different crypto activities.

The CFTC, meanwhile, has taken steps to widen institutional access to spot crypto trading and recently granted no-action relief to certain prediction market platforms.

The delay pushes comprehensive crypto regulation further into the future, leaving the industry operating under patchwork guidance as negotiations continue into 2026.

Read Next: Crypto’s Next Breakthrough Is The Death of Chains, Says Glider CEO

The UK Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal in a $13 billion lawsuit by Bitcoin Satoshi Vision investors.

The decision upholds lower-court rulings that narrowed claims against major cryptocurrency exchanges over BSV's 2019 delisting.

In a brief ruling released December 8, the court said BSV Claims Limited's "application does not raise an arguable point of law or a point of law of general public importance."

The decision represents a significant victory for exchanges including Binance and Kraken.

What Happened

BSV Claims Limited brought the lawsuit on behalf of approximately 243,000 UK-based BSV holders.

The claimants alleged exchanges coordinated to remove BSV in violation of UK competition law.

Multiple exchanges delisted BSV between April 15 and June 5, 2019, following controversy surrounding the project and its supporters.

The exchanges named as defendants included Binance, Kraken, ShapeShift, and Bittylicious.

BSV Claims argued the delistings caused the token's price to collapse and prevented it from achieving growth comparable to Bitcoin.

A subgroup of approximately 75,000 investors sought damages for "foregone growth" based on speculative future value.

The Court of Appeal dismissed this "lost chance" theory in May.

The appellate court ruled BSV holders aware of the delistings were required to mitigate losses by selling in available markets.

The Supreme Court's refusal to hear the case effectively ends this legal avenue for claimants.

Read also: Bitcoin Wholecoiner Deposits Reach Lowest Levels Since 2018 Market Cycle

Why It Matters

The ruling establishes important precedent on exchange liability for delisting decisions.

Irina Heaver, a Dubai-based crypto lawyer and founder of NeosLegal, said the outcome sends a clear signal to the industry.

"Repeated litigation cannot substitute for market acceptance and trust," Heaver told CoinDesk.

"Courts are not a tool for reversing reputational decline or reviving contested projects when the market has already rendered its verdict."

The decision blocks claims that exchanges can be held liable for speculative future gains allegedly lost after delisting tokens.

The court rejected the "lost chance" theory that stretched damages law to enforce speculative narratives in cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin has risen 2,322% since BSV's April 2019 delisting to reach all-time highs above $124,000.

BSV has traded around $18 to $19 in recent months, highlighting the token's divergent trajectory.

Heaver emphasized that exchanges are permitted to act to protect their traders and business operations.

"Delisting is not market abuse," she said.

"Trust, reputation, and risk perception are fundamental in the crypto industry."

BSV Claims Limited did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Read next: Market Analysts Warn Of Potential Supply Shock As XRP Exchange Holdings Decline

Bitcoin holders controlling full coins have significantly reduced deposits to major exchanges as the asset trades below $90,000, marking a departure from historical patterns that typically accompany price rallies.

What Happened: Exchange Deposit Patterns Shift

Binance has recorded sharp declines in deposits from investors holding at least one whole Bitcoin, according to data analyzed by Darkfost, a market analyst at CryptoQuant. The yearly average for these deposits now stands at approximately 6,500 BTC, matching levels last seen in 2018.

Weekly averages have fallen to roughly 5,200 BTC, among the lowest readings recorded during the current market cycle.

These figures represent transactions of one Bitcoin or larger, which analysts use to gauge selling pressure and institutional behavior.

The decline contradicts previous cycles, when rising prices typically corresponded with increased exchange deposits from large holders.

Also Read: Market Analysts Warn Of Potential Supply Shock As XRP Exchange Holdings Decline

Why It Matters: Technical Threshold Tests

Bitcoin continues trading below $105,400, the Short-Term Holder Cost Basis that measures the average acquisition price for recent buyers. The asset has remained beneath this threshold for nearly two months.

However, sustained weakness below the cost basis has preceded bear markets in the past, making additional price declines a key risk factor.

The analyst suggested these periods may offer accumulation opportunities for long-term investors, though cautioned that entry points require careful evaluation given the metric's tendency to remain negative during prolonged downturns.

Read Next: Visa Launches Global Stablecoin Advisory Practice For Banks And Fintechs

XRP supply on centralized exchanges has dropped to 4 billion tokens, representing just 8% of circulating supply, according to recent market analysis. The decline comes as investors move holdings into long-term storage despite declining prices.

What Happened: Exchange Holdings Drop

More than 30 million XRP tokens left exchanges in a single day over the weekend, according to Ripple Bull Winkle's analysis posted on the X platform.

The withdrawal pattern suggests investors are prioritizing self-custody over immediate trading access.

The current 4 billion token exchange supply marks a significant contraction in readily available trading inventory. Ripple Bull Winkle noted that most exchange supply represents non-liquid holdings rather than active sell orders.

Also Read: Juventus JUV Token Falls After Tether €1.1 Billion Bid Rejected By Exor

"Such thin float with growing institutional demand is likely to lead to explosive conditions," Ripple Bull Winkle wrote. "Supply shocks don't show warnings; they just detonate."

Why It Matters: Institutional Positioning

The supply reduction occurs as XRP Spot Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) maintain $1.34 billion in assets under management with 669 million tokens locked.

X Finance Bull reported the funds recorded zero daily outflows during the past 30 days, the only crypto ETFs with that distinction.

Market analysts view declining exchange supply as a precursor to reduced sell pressure and heightened price sensitivity to demand changes. "Liquidity disappears first," Ripple Bull Winkle stated. "Most people won't notice until sellers are gone."

Read Next: Visa Launches Global Stablecoin Advisory Practice For Banks And Fintechs

Juventus Football Club's fan token tumbled more than 13% after stablecoin issuer Tether's €1.1 billion takeover bid was swiftly rejected by the Agnelli family.

The JUV token climbed to $0.85 Sunday evening, its highest level since early November, before sliding below $0.74 by Monday morning.

Club shares moved in the opposite direction, surging 14% to €2.50 following news of the rejected crypto bid.

What Happened

Tether submitted a binding all-cash proposal Friday to acquire Exor's 65.4% controlling stake for €2.66 per share, valuing the Italian Serie A club at approximately €1.1 billion ($1.3 billion).

The offer represented a 21% premium over Juventus' Friday closing price of €2.19.

Exor, the Agnelli family's holding company whose assets include automaker Stellantis, released a statement Saturday saying it has "no intention of selling" its stake to any third party, including Tether.

CEO John Elkann emphasized the family's century-old commitment to the Turin club in a video message.

Tether currently holds an 11.53% stake in Juventus, making it the club's second-largest shareholder behind Exor.

The stablecoin issuer had pledged an additional €1 billion investment to strengthen the team if the acquisition succeeded.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said the company was prepared to support Juventus with "stable capital and a long horizon."

The bid marked one of the most significant crypto-backed attempts to acquire a major European football club.

Juventus has faced persistent financial challenges, requiring more than €1 billion in capital injections over the past seven years.

Why It Matters

The rejection highlights tensions between traditional sports ownership dynasties and cryptocurrency firms seeking mainstream legitimacy through high-profile acquisitions.

The Agnelli family has controlled Juventus since 1923, navigating multiple crises including the 2006 Calciopoli scandal that relegated the club to Serie B.

Crypto exchanges invested $565 million in global sports sponsorships for the 2024-2025 season, a 20% year-over-year increase, according to sports marketing firm SportQuake.

Football accounts for 59% of all new crypto sponsorship deals.

The divergence between JUV token performance and club share price underscores growing separation between equity and tokenized sports assets.

Tether operates USDT, the world's largest stablecoin with $176 billion market capitalization.

The company generated $10 billion in revenue during the first nine months of 2025.

Tether's minority stake purchase in February signaled strategic intent beyond simple investment.

Despite the rebuff, the company indicated willingness to maintain its position as a long-term suitor for potential future opportunities.

The failed bid leaves Tether's strategic options limited to maintaining its minority position or potentially divesting entirely.

A speculative scenario circulating on social media reignited long-running concerns about whether future quantum computers could breach early Bitcoin addresses, including wallets believed to belong to Satoshi Nakamoto, and dump a massive tranche of coins onto the market.

The debate was triggered by YouTuber and satirist Josh Otten, who posted a mock price chart showing Bitcoin collapsing to $3.

He suggested such a meltdown could occur if a sufficiently advanced quantum machine cracked Satoshi’s estimated 1.1 million BTC and immediately sold the holdings.

While the chart was designed as hyperbole, it resurfaced a genuine technical question: what happens when quantum computing becomes powerful enough to derive private keys from exposed public keys on older Bitcoin addresses?

Experts Warn Early Bitcoin Wallets Remain The Most Exposed

On-chain analyst Willy Woo noted that several million Bitcoin, including Satoshi’s, reside in early pay-to-public-key (P2PK) addresses, where the full public key is published on-chain once spent.

In theory, those keys are more vulnerable to future quantum attacks than modern formats.

“Many early investors would buy the dip. The network would survive; most coins aren’t at immediate risk,” Woo said, while stressing that P2PK outputs represent a unique weak point that quantum computing could eventually exploit.

Analysts echoed that risk, pointing out that once a public key is revealed, a sufficiently advanced quantum machine could one day compute the corresponding private key, a possibility that does not apply to newer address types where the public key remains hidden unless spent.

Also Read: Crypto’s Next Breakthrough Is The Death of Chains, Says Glider CEO

Modern Bitcoin Addresses Offer Stronger Defenses

Developers have long noted that quantum-resistant practices already exist.

Newer Bitcoin addresses avoid exposing their public keys unless coins are actively moved, significantly reducing attack surface.

As long as public keys remain undisclosed, even a sophisticated quantum machine would have nothing to target.

Some in the community say the greater risk is market psychology, not cryptographic failure

Veteran cryptographer Adam Back, co-founder of Blockstream, downplayed near-term fears, arguing that Bitcoin is decades away from facing a real quantum threat.

He believes there is ample time, 20 to 40 years, for the industry to migrate to post-quantum cryptography standards that already exist today.

Market analyst James Check agreed that quantum-resistant upgrades will likely be adopted before any practical attack is possible.

He suggested the more immediate concern is how markets might react to the possibility of a quantum breakthrough rather than an actual compromise of Bitcoin’s encryption.

Check added that the community is unlikely to support freezing or altering Satoshi’s coins preemptively, even if the threat materializes, meaning any long-dormant holdings remain part of Bitcoin’s future, quantum risks included.

Read Next: BOJ To Start ETF Sales Next Month In Unwinding Plan That Could Take 100 Years

Ripple announced Monday it is testing its RLUSD stablecoin on Ethereum Layer 2 blockchains using Wormhole's cross-chain technology.

The pilot targets Optimism, Coinbase's Base, Kraken's Ink and Uniswap's Unichain ahead of a broader 2026 rollout.

RLUSD has grown to over $1.3 billion in total supply since launching in December 2024 on Ethereum and XRP Ledger.

What Happened

Ripple partnered with Wormhole to implement Native Token Transfers standard for testing RLUSD across four Layer 2 networks.

The NTT standard allows RLUSD to move natively between chains without wrapping or synthetic assets, maintaining liquidity and regulatory control.

The testing phase precedes regulatory approval from the New York Department of Financial Services required before public launch next year.

Jack McDonald, Ripple's senior vice president of stablecoins, said the expansion makes RLUSD "the first U.S. trust-regulated stablecoin on these layer-2 networks."

The integration extends to wrapped XRP (wXRP), enabling users to swap between wXRP and RLUSD within DeFi applications on supported chains.

RLUSD was issued under NYDFS Trust Charter and operates on Ethereum and XRP Ledger.

Ripple received conditional approval last week from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for a national trust bank charter.

Final OCC approval would make RLUSD the first stablecoin under both state and federal regulatory oversight.

McDonald said stablecoins are "the gateway to DeFi and institutional adoption" as RLUSD aims to become a "trusted, liquid on-ramp into the broader digital-asset economy."

This marks Ripple's second major Wormhole integration after expanding XRP Ledger's multichain interoperability through the protocol in June.

Read also: Visa Launches Global Stablecoin Advisory Practice For Banks And Fintechs

Why It Matters

The Layer 2 expansion positions RLUSD to compete more directly with established stablecoins like Circle's USDC and Tether's USDT in the rapidly growing decentralized finance sector.

Layer 2 networks offer faster transaction speeds and lower costs than Ethereum mainnet, making them popular for DeFi applications, cross-border payments and business-to-business transactions.

Ripple raised $500 million at a $40 billion valuation in November from Fortress Investment Group, Citadel Securities, Galaxy Digital, Pantera Capital, Brevan Howard and Marshall Wace.

The stablecoin market surpassed $300 billion in total capitalization in October and continues expanding as traditional finance increasingly embraces digital assets.

Regulatory clarity following the GENIUS Act passage in July accelerated institutional stablecoin adoption across banking and payments sectors.

Ripple's dual regulatory structure combining NYDFS oversight with pending federal OCC approval differentiates RLUSD from competitors operating under single regulatory frameworks.

The multichain strategy aims to position RLUSD wherever demand exists across institutional finance and decentralized protocols.

Singapore's central bank recently expanded Ripple's license to use XRP and RLUSD in payment services, signaling growing international regulatory acceptance.

Read next: Strategy Buys 10,645 Bitcoin For $980M, Bringing Holdings To 671,268 BTC

Visa announced Monday the launch of its Stablecoins Advisory Practice, a consulting service designed to help banks, fintechs and businesses implement stablecoin strategies.

The new practice under Visa Consulting & Analytics already has dozens of clients and expects to grow to hundreds, according to Carl Rutstein, global head of Visa Consulting and Analytics.

Visa's stablecoin settlement volume has reached $3.5 billion annualized run rate as of November 30.

What Happened

The Stablecoins Advisory Practice has been operating for several months and completed more than 20 engagements globally, Visa said in a statement.

Early clients include Navy Federal Credit Union with its 15 million members worldwide, VyStar Credit Union and financial institution Pathward.

Services include stablecoin training through a new Visa University course, market trend analysis, strategy development, market entry planning and technology integration support.

The practice addresses cross-border transactions, business-to-business payments and transfers to countries with volatile currencies.

Navy Federal's Matt Freeman said stablecoins may enhance payment speed and lower costs as the credit union evaluates how the technology fits its strategy.

The launch comes as stablecoin market capitalization exceeds $300 billion, driven by regulatory clarity following the GENIUS Act passage in July.

The payments giant piloted stablecoin settlement using Circle's USDC in 2023.

Read also: Strategy Buys 10,645 Bitcoin For $980M, Bringing Holdings To 671,268 BTC

Why It Matters

The advisory service represents Visa's strategic bet on stablecoins becoming essential payment infrastructure as traditional finance embraces digital assets.

The GENIUS Act signed by President Trump in July established the first federal regulatory framework for stablecoins, requiring full dollar backing and creating licensing standards.

Visa CEO Ryan McInerney wrote in his December shareholder letter that stablecoins represent next-generation settlement infrastructure.

The company's roadmap includes stablecoin-linked cards, USDC settlements, stablecoin prefunding for cross-border payouts and pilots delivering payouts directly to stablecoin wallets.

Major financial institutions are following Visa's lead after the regulatory breakthrough.

PayPal and Mastercard have expanded their stablecoin capabilities in recent months.

Banks co-owned by JPMorgan, Bank of America and Citigroup are reportedly developing a joint stablecoin project.

Rutstein told Fortune that helping clients grow is "frankly the reason we exist in stablecoin."

The practice allows some businesses to conclude stablecoins don't fit their customer needs after evaluation, rather than requiring adoption.

Visa's move signals confidence that stablecoins will play a central role in payments innovation while strengthening the dollar's global reserve status through increased demand for U.S. Treasuries backing the tokens.

Read next: Japan Rate Hike Could Send Bitcoin to $70K, Analysts Warn

Glider CEO Brian Huang believes the most significant shift in crypto over the next cycle will not come from tokens, new chains, or even automated trading, but from making blockchains effectively invisible to users.

In an interview with Yellow.com on the sidelines of Solana's Breakpoint event, Huang said the current requirement to choose networks, manage gas, and manually bridge assets is “broken,” and that the industry is moving toward erasing these frictions entirely.

Chain Selection Should Not Exist

Huang argues that the idea of users selecting a blockchain before making an investment or moving assets is fundamentally outdated.

“Anytime I go to an app and it tells me select network, I lose it,” he said. “This should not be a thing. I shouldn’t have to select what network I’m on.”

According to him, the decisive UX breakthrough will come when investing across chains feels more like using a brokerage account than interacting with blockchain infrastructure.

A user should be able to say what they want like buy, sell, lend, rebalance, shift exposure, without having to understand the underlying chain mechanics.

“The chain doesn’t matter,” Huang said. “It’s like SWIFT. You don’t think about how money moves from the US to Canada. You only care about the asset you’re buying or selling.”

The Missing Link: Real Assets And On-Chain Stocks

Huang said cross-chain portfolio management has stalled partly because most blockchains still lack the assets that ordinary investors care about.

While the crypto market is roughly $4 trillion, he noted that “Nvidia alone is $4 trillion,” arguing that chains must offer real-world assets and on-chain stocks before user behavior meaningfully converges.

His view is that the future of investing involves holding assets such as equities directly on-chain, not for novelty, but for yield and efficiency. “Why would you hold Tesla on Robinhood when you can hold Tesla on-chain and lend it for yield?” he asked.

Also Read: BOJ To Start ETF Sales Next Month In Unwinding Plan That Could Take 100 Years

Automation As Safeguard, Not Speculation

Huang rejected the growing narrative around AI agents and fully autonomous trading bots, calling most such offerings “hype” and noting that “magical trading bots don’t exist.”

Instead, he said automation should focus on removing operational overhead, simplifying tasks like rebalancing, exits during de-pegs, and shifting liquidity across chains, not speculating on behalf of users.

“There’s too much plumbing today,” he said. “This should be automated. What you want is the intent. Everything else like gas, bridging, signatures should get abstracted away.”

A Normalization Of Long-Term Behavior

Huang also believes a more profound behavioral shift is coming. After years of meme-driven speculation, he expects users to gradually return to more traditional, long-term investing habits.

“The idea of hitting a lottery ticket on a meme is far and few between,” he said. “Growing wealth happens over long periods of compounding. I think we’re going to see people get a little bit lazier and that’s a good thing.”

Huang argues that automation, yield-bearing assets, and cross-chain simplicity will ultimately reshape how crypto portfolios are managed.

“The majority of people using Glider make money because they’re not hunting memes — they’re holding BTC, SOL, lending stablecoins, and investing in RWAs,” he said. “That’s the future of on-chain investing.”

Read Next: Bitcoin Wipes Out All Fed Gains As Traders Brace For BOJ Liquidity Shock

Strategy acquired 10,645 Bitcoin (BTC) for approximately $980.3 million between December 8 and December 14.

The purchase marks the second consecutive week of roughly $1 billion in Bitcoin acquisitions, bringing total holdings to 671,268 BTC worth approximately $60 billion at current prices.

The company funded the purchase primarily through $888.2 million in Class A common stock sales, with additional proceeds from perpetual preferred stock offerings.

What Happened

Strategy purchased the Bitcoin at an average price of $92,098 per coin during the week-long period, according to Monday's Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

The acquisition follows the previous week's purchase of 10,624 BTC for $962.7 million at an average of $90,615 per Bitcoin.

Total holdings now represent approximately 3.2% of Bitcoin's 21 million supply cap, acquired for an aggregate $50.3 billion at an average cost basis of $74,972 per coin.

The company sold 4.79 million MSTR shares generating $888.2 million in net proceeds alongside sales of STRD, STRK and STRF perpetual preferred stock totaling an additional $101 million.

Strategy retained its position in the Nasdaq 100 index after the annual rebalancing announced December 12, with changes effective December 22.

The company faces potentially larger index inclusion challenges from MSCI, which is consulting on whether to exclude digital asset treasury companies with over 50% of assets in cryptocurrencies.

Strategy submitted a 12-page letter December 10 opposing MSCI's proposal, calling the 50% threshold "discriminatory, arbitrary, and unworkable."

MSCI will announce its final decision by January 15, 2026, with potential implementation at the February index review.

Read also: Japan Rate Hike Could Send Bitcoin to $70K, Analysts Warn

Why It Matters

The aggressive share issuance strategy marks a shift from Strategy's more constrained capital raising earlier in 2025.

MSTR stock closed Friday at $176.45, down 41.2% year-to-date compared to Bitcoin's 3.8% decline over the same period.

The company's market capitalization has fallen below the fair market value of its Bitcoin holdings at various points, inverting the premium that previously powered its financing model.

JPMorgan estimates MSCI exclusion could trigger up to $8.8 billion in passive fund outflows if other index providers follow suit.

Strategy argues it operates as an active business rather than a passive investment vehicle, comparing its model to real estate investment trusts and energy companies with concentrated asset holdings.

Executive Chairman Michael Saylor reported the company achieved 24.9% Bitcoin yield year-to-date in 2025, measuring growth in Bitcoin holdings per diluted share rather than dollar value appreciation.

The metric has become central to Strategy's investor messaging as it positions itself as a Bitcoin-focused treasury and structured finance business.

Bitcoin traded near $90,000 Monday morning after pulling back from recent highs, creating volatility for Strategy shares that move in correlation with cryptocurrency price swings.

The company maintains it has no plans to sell Bitcoin holdings, emphasizing a multi-decade accumulation strategy regardless of short-term market conditions.

Read also: SEC Dropped 60% of Crypto Cases After Trump Returned to Office, NYT Finds

The Bank of Japan is expected to raise interest rates by 25 basis points this week.

Analysts warn the move could push Bitcoin (BTC) to $70,000.

The central bank's policy meeting begins Wednesday, with the rate decision announcement scheduled for Thursday.

Prediction markets assign a 98% probability to the rate increase, according to Polymarket data.

What Happened

The Bank of Japan is poised to raise its benchmark rate from 0.5% to 0.75%.

The increase would mark the first rate hike since January and the highest level since 1995.

Anonymous sources told Japan Times that policymakers favor the quarter-point move barring major disruptions.

The decision reflects Japan's exit from decades of ultra-low and negative interest rates.

Bitcoin has historically suffered sharp declines following Bank of Japan rate hikes.

In March 2024, Bitcoin dropped 23% after Japan raised rates by 10 basis points.

In July 2024, the cryptocurrency fell 26% following a 25-basis-point increase.

Most recently, Bitcoin plunged 31% in January after another 25-basis-point hike.

The pattern suggests a potential decline to around $70,000 if history repeats.

Bitcoin currently trades near $89,000, down from its recent high above $100,000.

Read also: SEC Dropped 60% of Crypto Cases After Trump Returned to Office, NYT Finds

Why It Matters

Higher Japanese rates threaten the yen carry trade, a popular investment strategy.

For decades, investors borrowed cheap yen to fund purchases of higher-yielding assets like Bitcoin.

Rising borrowing costs force traders to unwind these positions by selling cryptocurrency holdings.

Japan holds the largest foreign position in U.S. government debt, making its monetary policy shifts globally significant.

Yen strength tightens worldwide liquidity conditions, which particularly impacts risk assets like Bitcoin.

However, some analysts see early warning signs that much of the impact is already priced in.

Exchange inflows have risen ahead of the announcement, suggesting proactive selling by traders.

Funding rates have collapsed, indicating leverage is being reduced before the event.

The timing coincides with a busy week for macroeconomic data.

U.S. unemployment figures and non-farm payrolls are due Tuesday.

Consumer price index data and jobless claims will arrive Thursday.

The European Central Bank also announces its rate decision this week.

Analysts advise positioning for volatility as multiple central bank decisions converge.

Read next: JPMorgan Launches $100M Tokenized Money Fund on Ethereum

The Securities and Exchange Commission has eased enforcement on over 60% of cryptocurrency cases since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.

A New York Times investigation published Sunday analyzed thousands of government documents and court records from recent presidential administrations.

The analysis found the SEC dismissed, paused, or reduced penalties in more than 60% of crypto cases that were active when Trump's second term began January 20.

The pullback rate for cryptocurrency cases far exceeded the 4% dismissal rate for non-crypto cases during the same period.

What Happened

The SEC outright dismissed seven cryptocurrency cases.

Five of those dismissed cases involved firms with known Trump ties.

The agency moved to freeze, propose favorable settlements, or concede in seven other cryptocurrency cases.

Three of those cases also involved defendants with Trump connections.

Nine cases without apparent Trump ties did not receive similar treatment.

The SEC has filed zero new cryptocurrency cases since Trump's inauguration, while continuing to file dozens of cases against other types of defendants.

During the Biden administration, the SEC brought an average of more than two crypto cases per month.

Trump's first term averaged about one crypto case monthly, including the high-profile action against Ripple Labs.

Cases involving Binance, Ripple, and a Winklevoss-backed firm saw enforcement actions dropped or softened after the administration change.

Paul S. Atkins, Trump's newly appointed SEC chairman, has called this shift a "new day" for the industry.

Read also: JPMorgan Launches $100M Tokenized Money Fund on Ethereum

Why It Matters

The enforcement retreat marks an unprecedented pullback for a single industry, according to the investigation.

Career SEC lawyers who brought some of these cases expressed alarm at the agency's reversal.

The pullback occurred as many defendants formed financial or political connections to Trump or his family's cryptocurrency businesses.

However, the Times reported it found no direct evidence firms influenced cases through donations or business ties made after the SEC changed course.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump's policies aim to "make the United States the crypto capital of the world by driving innovation and economic opportunity."

The SEC stated in a statement that political favoritism "had nothing to do with" its cryptocurrency enforcement decisions.

The agency said it was pivoting for legal and policy reasons, including concerns about its authority to police the industry.

Trump launched a Presidential Council of Advisers for Digital Assets in his first week and signed the GENIUS Act establishing regulatory clarity for stablecoins.

The administration's approach represents a sharp contrast to the Biden administration's aggressive cryptocurrency enforcement strategy.

Read next: Coinbase Rumored To Announce Prediction Markets Partnership With Kalshi Next Week

JPMorgan Chase has launched its first tokenized money market fund on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain.

The fund, called My OnChain Net Yield Fund (MONY), went live Sunday with $100 million in initial capital from the bank's asset management division.

John Donohue, head of global liquidity at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, said client demand for tokenization drove the launch.

"There is a massive amount of interest from clients around tokenization," Donohue told the Wall Street Journal.

What Happened

The MONY fund operates on Ethereum through JPMorgan's Kinexys Digital Assets platform.

Qualified investors can subscribe using either cash or Circle's USDC stablecoin with a $1 million minimum investment.

The fund holds short-term debt instruments and pays interest daily.

Investors receive digital tokens representing their fund shares, which can be transferred on-chain to other pre-approved participants.

JPMorgan's $4 trillion asset management arm joins competitors BlackRock and Franklin Templeton in offering blockchain-based money market products.

BlackRock's BUIDL fund has attracted approximately $2 billion in assets since launching in March 2024.

Read also: Coinbase Rumored To Announce Prediction Markets Partnership With Kalshi Next Week

Why It Matters

The launch signals growing institutional confidence in public blockchain infrastructure for regulated financial products.

Tokenized money market funds have grown to $9 billion from $3 billion over the past year, according to RWA.xyz data.

These on-chain vehicles offer faster settlement times, 24/7 trading access, and real-time ownership transparency compared to traditional money market funds.

JPMorgan plans to expand MONY access over time and introduce additional currencies, subject to regulatory approval.

The fund represents a shift from closed, permissioned blockchain systems toward public infrastructure for institutional finance.

Major financial institutions increasingly view deposit-based tokenized products as alternatives to stablecoins for institutional clients.

These yield-bearing instruments can integrate with regulated banking frameworks while offering blockchain efficiency benefits.

The broader tokenized asset market is projected to reach $18.9 trillion by 2033, according to a BCG and Ripple report.

Read next: Bitcoin Exchange Deposits Drop 76% Since Mid-November as Selling Pressure Eases

The Bank of Japan is preparing to begin selling portions of its massive exchange-traded fund portfolio as early as next month, marking the first step in an unwinding process so slow and controlled that it could run for more than a century.

What Happened

The central bank intends to sell small amounts of its ETF holdings each year to avoid shaking equity markets, Bloomberg reported, quoting sources.

That approach was formalized in a September policy board decision outlining annual sales of roughly ¥330 billion based on book value.

Given the BOJ’s ¥37.1 trillion book value in ETF holdings at the end of September, the math implies a drawdown timeline of about 112 years if the pace is not adjusted.

The BOJ’s ETF position, originally accumulated as part of its unconventional monetary easing, has grown dramatically in market value.

As of late September, the portfolio was worth roughly ¥83 trillion ($534 billion), lifted by Japan's surging stock market over recent years.

Also Read: Bitcoin Wipes Out All Fed Gains As Traders Brace For BOJ Liquidity Shock

Officials want the exit process to be largely invisible to market participants, mirroring the central bank’s steady, decade-long disposal of shares purchased from distressed lenders in the 2000s.

Why It Matters

That earlier program concluded in July without causing market dislocation, and policymakers hope to replicate that outcome with the far larger ETF portfolio.

BOJ planners expect to maintain a consistent monthly selling rhythm, the people said, emphasizing that minimizing volatility remains the priority.

However, they added that the central bank would pause ETF sales if markets faced a systemic shock akin to the 2008 global financial crisis.

Earlier this month, the BOJ said Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank had won the mandate to execute the sales program.

Read Next: Bitcoin L2s Face A Shakeout As Liquidity Failures Expose The Real Risk Problem, Says Bitlayer’s Charlie Hu

Bitcoin exchange deposits have dropped 76% since mid-November as selling pressure eases, potentially setting up a relief rally following the Federal Reserve's 25 basis point rate cut announced at this week's Federal Open Market Committee meeting. The cryptocurrency recovered from $80,000 on Nov. 21 to $94,000 before settling near $90,000, up 1% for the week.

What Happened: Exchange Deposits Plummet

CryptoQuant analysts reported Bitcoin deposits into exchanges fell from 88,000 BTC in mid-November to 21,000 BTC currently, with the decline beginning after the asset reached its all-time high of $126,000, according to CryptoPotato.

Large investors reduced their transfers to trading platforms significantly during this period.

The share of total deposits from large players dropped from a 24-hour average high of 47% in mid-November to 21% currently.

Average deposit size decreased 36% over the same timeframe, falling from 1.1 BTC to 0.7 BTC, according to the blockchain analytics firm.

Also Read: XRP Buy Signal Hinges on Critical $1.90 Support Level, Analyst Warns

Why It Matters: Loss Realization Signals

The decline in exchange deposits coincides with substantial loss realization by major market participants.

Large investors and short-term holders realized $646 million in losses approximately one month ago—the largest since July—as Bitcoin first fell below $100,000, with this investor cohort realizing at least $3.2 billion in losses since then.

Short-term holders have been selling at negative profit margins over the past four weeks, with the Spent Output Profit Ratio hovering below 1 and the lowest reading at -7%.

"Historically, selling pressure eases when market participants realize they have incurred heavy losses," CryptoQuant analysts stated.

If current conditions persist, Bitcoin could return to $99,000, the lower band of the Trader On-chain Realized Price range that typically marks resistance during bear cycles.

Other key resistance levels include the one-year moving average at $102,000 and the Trader On-chain Realized Price at $112,000.

Read Next: Kalshi Partners With Phantom, Bringing Prediction Markets to 20 Million Crypto Wallet Users

XRP has generated a technical buy signal that could push prices toward $2.50, but the rally depends entirely on whether the token maintains support above $1.90.

What Happened: Technical Signal Emerges

Analyst Ali Martinez posted on X that the TD Sequential indicator—a technical tool measuring price exhaustion—has flashed a buy signal for the asset. Martinez emphasized that the bullish scenario remains valid only if XRP holds above the $1.90 threshold, a level he previously identified as critical for determining the token's trajectory.

Martinez's analysis indicates XRP could reach $2.50 if it maintains current support levels.

However, there are three significant sell walls standing between current prices and that target: $2.10, $2.15 and $2.25.

The $2.50 level was last observed over a month ago, just before Canary Capital launched XRPC, the first XRP exchange-traded fund.

Since then, the token has declined to approximately $2.00 despite nearly $1 billion in net inflows across five XRP ETFs and multiple partnerships and regulatory approvals from Ripple.

Also Read: Kalshi Partners With Phantom, Bringing Prediction Markets to 20 Million Crypto Wallet Users

Why It Matters: Technical Crossroads

The technical signal arrives as XRP faces contradictory market conditions—substantial institutional inflows through ETF products contrasted with persistent price weakness.

The $1.90 support level now represents a critical decision point that could determine whether the token reverses recent declines or extends losses toward the $1.20 level Martinez previously identified as a downside target.

Read Next: Ukraine, Nigeria And Vietnam Show Strongest Necessity-Driven Crypto Growth, Bybit Report Shows

Kalshi announced Friday it will integrate its CFTC-regulated prediction markets into Phantom, a cryptocurrency wallet with more than 20 million users. The partnership allows Phantom users to trade event contracts on political, economic, sports and cultural outcomes directly within their wallets without establishing separate Kalshi accounts.

What Happened: Wallet Integration

Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour said the integration opens "a major new channel for growth by bringing our markets to millions of crypto-native users who want to express opinions on real-world events."

Users can open positions using assets already supported in the wallet, including Solana-based tokens and Phantom's CASH stablecoin.

Phantom CEO Brandon Millman said the company built its wallet "to make crypto feel intuitive for everyone, and now we are bringing that same simplicity to prediction markets."

The integration places Kalshi's markets alongside other financial tools in an interface users already navigate regularly.

Also Read: Ukraine, Nigeria And Vietnam Show Strongest Necessity-Driven Crypto Growth, Bybit Report Shows

Why It Matters: Market Competition

The deal positions Kalshi to compete more directly with Polymarket, which began rolling out a U.S.-specific app to waitlisted users this month following CFTC clearance.

Kalshi now has distribution into the same crypto-native environment where Polymarket built much of its user base.

Legal challenges continue mounting across multiple states. Massachusetts asked a judge Dec. 9 to issue an injunction blocking Kalshi from offering sports event contracts in the state, with Assistant Attorney General Louisa Castrucci arguing that "a sports wager by any other name is still a sports wager."

A judge in Nevada ruled in November that Kalshi must comply with state gaming rules, rejecting arguments that federal commodities regulation preempts state enforcement.

Ohio and New Jersey have cited the Nevada ruling to argue sports event contracts should be treated as sports betting under state law.

Kalshi also faces a class-action lawsuit alleging users were effectively betting against the house rather than participating in a neutral marketplace.

Read Next: Bitcoin Falls Below $90,000 As Bart Simpson Pattern Emerges Again

Ukraine, Nigeria and Vietnam lead global cryptocurrency adoption in regions where traditional banking systems fail to meet basic financial needs, according to a new ranking from Bybit.

The exchange's 2025 report identifies stablecoins as the most widely used crypto product worldwide, with adoption concentrated in markets facing currency instability and restricted access to conventional financial services.

What Happened: Emerging Markets Drive Adoption

Bybit measured global adoption across four categories: user penetration, transactional use, institutional readiness and cultural penetration.

Singapore and the United States ranked highest overall due to balanced performance across all metrics, but the most significant growth emerged from countries where residents rely on digital assets to address systemic financial failures.

Vietnam placed ninth with a user penetration rating of 0.68 and transactional use level of 0.81.

Nearly 20% of the country's population owns digital assets, using them primarily for remittances, inflation protection and savings. The nation has become an active center for decentralized physical infrastructure network activity as device-based participation expands rapidly.

Ukraine ranked thirteenth despite demonstrating the highest usage relative to economic size. More than $6.9 billion in stablecoin flows moved through the country's economy against a GDP of $190 billion.

Digital assets support cross-border transfers and value preservation during wartime, functioning as a critical component of financial survival.

Nigeria appeared in nineteenth place with a transactional use score of 0.83, well above the global average. Inflation, currency devaluation and capital controls push households and businesses toward stablecoins, peer-to-peer platforms and digital savings tools.

The launch of cNGN, a naira-backed stablecoin, has contributed to rising adoption rates.

Bybit predicts that if cNGN use expands beyond pilot stages, Nigeria could become one of the first major emerging economies where a local currency stablecoin is used alongside dollar-based options.

Also Read: Bitcoin Falls Below $90,000 As Bart Simpson Pattern Emerges Again

Why It Matters: Stablecoins Reshape Finance

Stablecoins now lead global crypto adoption and represent the most evenly distributed product across markets, according to Bybit's findings.

Usage falls into two categories: daily payments and financial stability in emerging markets, and as a bridge to investment products and broader crypto participation in developed economies.

In Ukraine, stablecoins function as safe-haven assets during political and economic instability.

Nigerians use them to bypass banking restrictions and currency shortages. In Hong Kong, they support capital mobility in high-volume trading environments. Across both advanced and emerging markets, these assets expand access to decentralized finance platforms, centralized exchanges and tokenized assets.

Read Next: XRP Price Consolidates At $2 As Ripple Secures OCC National Trust Bank Charter