News•Dec 13, 2025
Bank of Japan Set to Hike Rates to 30-Year High, Posing Another Threat to Bitcoin
The Bank of Japan is set to raise its policy rate by 25 basis points to 0.75%, the highest level in three decades, with the decision slated for Dec. 19. A stronger yen and tighter global liquidity from the hike could pressure Bitcoin and broader crypto markets, echoing the August 2024 sell‑off that saw BTC fall from $65,000 to $50,000. However, market analysts note that speculators are currently net long the yen and Japanese bond yields have already risen, which may blunt an immediate risk‑off reaction. Meanwhile, the U.S. Federal Reserve’s recent 25‑basis‑point cut provides some offsetting liquidity support.
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 13, 2025
Crypto’s Machine Learning ‘iPhone Moment’ Comes Closer as AI Agents Trade the Market
Recall Labs hosted AI‑trading arenas where custom agents competed against foundational large language models on the Hyperliquid decentralized exchange. While base LLMs like GPT‑5 barely outperformed the market, specialized agents that added extra logic and data sources secured the top...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 13, 2025
Crypto for Kids: Binance Junior Looks Safe, but the App Creates a Psychological Imprint that Parental Controls Can’t Fix
Binance launched Binance Junior, a child‑focused savings account tied to a parent’s KYC and stripped of trading functions. The app’s UI mirrors a crypto exchange, displaying yield icons and growth dashboards despite being limited to savings. While the product promises...
By CryptoSlate
News•Dec 13, 2025
Brazil’s Largest Private Bank Advises Investors to Allocate 3% to Bitcoin in 2026
Itaú Asset Management, the investment arm of Brazil’s largest private bank, recommends allocating 1 % to 3 % of portfolios to Bitcoin in 2026, citing diversification and a currency‑hedging function amid geopolitical tension and shifting monetary policy. The note references Bitcoin’s volatile...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 13, 2025
Crypto Coin Minute for December 13th, 2025 at 05:15 AM Pacific Time.
HTX secured official registration as a crypto exchange in Pakistan, marking the country’s first licensed digital asset platform. In Russia, a previously banned exchange has reconstructed a $34 million crypto liquidity pipeline, navigating sanctions to sustain market activity. YouTube announced a...
By Crypto Coin Minute
News•Dec 12, 2025
Citadel Securities and DeFi Waging War of Words Through SEC Correspondence
Citadel Securities sent a 13‑page letter to the SEC urging that DeFi protocols handling tokenized securities be treated as regulated exchanges or broker‑dealers. A coalition of DeFi advocates—including the DeFi Education Fund, a16z, the Uniswap Foundation and others—replied with its...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Bitcoin Miners Turn to Renewable Energy Amid Profit Margin Squeeze
Bitcoin miners are increasingly turning to renewable energy as hash price slips to about $39.4 per petahash‑second per day, falling below the $40 breakeven level. Companies such as Sangha Renewables, the Phoenix Group, and Canaan‑Soluna are launching solar, hydro, and...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Short-Term Bitcoin Traders Were Profitable for 66% of 2025: Will Profits Rise in 2026?
Short‑term Bitcoin holders (STHs) logged profits on 229 of 345 days in 2025, equating to a 66% profitability rate despite a negative year‑to‑date price performance. The cohort’s realized price of $81,000 served as a psychological pivot, separating periods of panic...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Tools for Humanity Expands World App Toward Super-App Model
Tools for Humanity unveiled a major upgrade to its World app, adding end‑to‑end encrypted messaging, a suite of third‑party mini‑apps and DeFi‑driven yield products. The update expands stablecoin support to USDC, EURC and several peso‑linked tokens, and introduces QR‑code payments...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Bitcoin Swings Above $94K as Crypto Faces ‘Netscape’ Moment: Finance Redefined
Bitcoin surged past $94,330 on Tuesday after Strategy’s $962 million Bitcoin purchase, coinciding with the Federal Reserve’s 25‑basis‑point rate cut, but the rally proved short‑lived as the market had already priced in the policy move. Analysts argue the sector is approaching...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Pyth to Launch Reserve Using Buybacks From DAO Treasury Funds
Pyth Network announced it will create a reserve by using roughly one‑third of its DAO‑derived revenue to repurchase its native PYTH token on the open market. The buyback program is intended to strengthen the token’s price support and generate additional...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Tether May Tokenize Equity to Ensure Liquidity for Investors: Report
Tether, the issuer of the USD‑t stablecoin, is exploring tokenized equity and share‑buyback mechanisms to improve liquidity as it pursues a $500 billion valuation. The firm is in talks to raise $20 billion for a 3 % stake, after halting a shareholder’s attempt...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Paxos, Fidelity, Ripple, BitGo, and Circle Secure US Trust Bank Approvals
The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has conditionally approved five national bank charter applications from firms tied to digital assets. BitGo, Fidelity and Paxos will convert their state‑level trust companies into federally chartered national trust banks,...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Bitcoin Plunges Below $90K as AI Worries Drag Nasdaq, Crypto Stocks Down
Bitcoin fell below $90,000 as AI‑focused equities tumbled, led by Broadcom’s 10% slide despite solid earnings. The Nasdaq slipped more than 1%, extending a broader tech pullback that began with Oracle’s sharp decline. Crypto‑related stocks, including miners and exchanges, mirrored...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Europe Reconsiders Crypto Oversight as ESMA Centralization Gains Momentum
Europe is weighing a shift of crypto supervision from national regulators to the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) as the Markets in Crypto‑Assets (MiCA) regime enters its implementation phase. Enforcement gaps have emerged, with Germany issuing around 30 licences...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Prediction Markets Are Coming to Phantom's 20M User Via Kalshi
Crypto wallet Phantom is integrating U.S.-regulated prediction‑market platform Kalshi into its app, giving its 20 million users the ability to trade outcomes like elections, macro events, and crypto prices directly from the wallet. The feature supports any Solana‑based token, from SOL...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Most Influential: Jesse Pollak
Base, Coinbase’s layer‑2 network launched in 2023, surged to $15 billion total value locked in January 2025, making it the second‑largest L2 after Arbitrum. The growth was driven by sub‑cent transaction fees and a burst of DeFi, social and meme applications,...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Most Influential: Changpeng “CZ” Zhao
Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who stepped down as Binance CEO in 2023 and served a brief prison term for a Bank Secrecy Act violation, received a presidential pardon from Donald Trump in 2025, reinforcing his standing in the crypto world. The...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Backed, Chainlink Unveil xBridge to Move Tokenized Stocks Between Solana and Ethereum
Backed Finance unveiled xBridge, a cross‑chain bridge that moves tokenized stocks—called xStocks—between Ethereum and Solana. Built with Chainlink’s Cross‑Chain Interoperability Protocol, the bridge preserves corporate actions such as splits and dividend payouts when assets migrate. xStocks are 1:1 backed by...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Most Influential: David Bailey
David Bailey, former Bitcoin Magazine CEO, launched the bitcoin‑treasury venture KindlyMD (ticker NAKA) after a $700 million‑backed merger with Nakamoto Holdings. The stock surged from about $2 to over $30 in May, only to tumble as Bitcoin rose, falling to $0.45...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Ripple Expands European Footprint with AMINA Stablecoin Payment Partnership
Ripple Payments announced a partnership with Swiss‑regulated bank Amina, integrating its fiat‑to‑stablecoin payment infrastructure into the FINMA‑supervised institution. The collaboration enables Amina to settle cross‑border transactions faster, cheaper, and with greater transparency using Ripple’s USD‑stablecoin (RLUSD). Amina’s Austrian subsidiary also...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
MiCA Will Make or Break Euro-Pegged Stablecoins by 2026: DECTA
German payments processor DECTA projects that euro‑pegged stablecoins will gain traction as the EU's Markets in Crypto‑Assets regulation (MiCA) comes fully into force by 2026. The new regulatory framework standardises reserve requirements, issuer oversight and operational rules, making it simpler...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Scaramucci Predicts ‘Exponential Opportunity’ for Crypto at LONGITUDE
At Cointelegraph’s LONGITUDE conference, Anthony Scaramucci and other crypto leaders highlighted an "exponential opportunity" as regulatory clarity and institutional interest surge into 2026. They noted that the United States is finally aligning policy, enabling banks such as BlackRock, Blackstone and JPMorgan...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Ripple Payments Lands First European Bank Client in AMINA
Ripple has secured its first European bank client, Switzerland‑based AMINA, to use Ripple Payments for near‑real‑time cross‑border transfers. The licensed payments stack bridges traditional fiat rails with blockchain settlement, allowing AMINA to move fiat and stablecoins—including Ripple’s RLUSD—without multiple correspondent...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
XRP Ledger Upgrade Lays Groundwork for Lending, Tokenization Expansion
RippleX released XRPL server version 3.0.0, introducing a suite of amendments and bug fixes focused on accounting accuracy and protocol extensibility. The key fix, fixTokenEscrowV1, resolves an escrow accounting error that previously mis‑recorded issuer balances after fee‑bearing token releases. Additional...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Binance Hints at Stock Perps in Push to Join Global Tokenized Equities Race
Binance has quietly added three new API endpoints that enable a TradFi‑Perps agreement and trading‑session queries, indicating a forthcoming launch of stock perpetual futures. The move revives the exchange’s 2021 tokenized‑stock experiment, which was halted after regulator scrutiny. By structuring...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
From Lockstep to Lag, Bitcoin Poised to Catch Up With Small Cap Highs
The Russell 2000 index posted an all‑time high, while Bitcoin lagged 27% below its October peak. The Federal Reserve began a $8.2 billion Treasury‑bill purchase program, part of a $40 billion liquidity effort. Market participants price in roughly 50 basis points of...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 12, 2025
Bitcoin First, Crypto at Scale: Inside the UAE’s Layered Digital Asset Strategy
The United Arab Emirates is pursuing a two‑track digital‑asset strategy: Abu Dhabi is positioning itself as a Bitcoin‑centric institutional hub, offering regulated custody, OTC liquidity and mining infrastructure, while Dubai is building a broader crypto economy that includes payments, stablecoins,...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Upbit Hack Puts Binance’s Emergency Freeze Policy Under Scrutiny
South Korean police asked Binance to freeze roughly 470 million won (about $370,000) in Solana tokens tied to the Upbit hack, but the exchange only blocked $55,000—about 17% of the amount—after a 15‑hour delay. The Upbit breach resulted in unauthorized withdrawals...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Coinbase May Debut Prediction Markets, Tokenized Stocks on Wednesday: Report
Coinbase is slated to showcase new products in a Wednesday livestream, potentially unveiling its first prediction‑market platform and a tokenized‑equities offering. The exchange recently joined the Coalition for Prediction Markets, a group led by Kalshi and other U.S. operators, signaling...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
CFTC Pulls ‘Actual Delivery’ Crypto Guidance, Giving Flexibility to Exchanges
Acting CFTC Chairman Caroline Pham announced the withdrawal of the agency’s 2020 “actual delivery” guidance for crypto transactions, citing outdated and overly complex rules. The scrapped guidance had required physical delivery of digital assets within 28 days, limiting exchanges’ ability...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
YouTube Enables PYUSD Stablecoin Payouts for US Creators: Report
YouTube has launched a payout option that lets U.S. creators receive earnings in PayPal’s PYUSD stablecoin. The feature, confirmed by PayPal’s crypto head, is live but limited to creators based in the United States. YouTube’s integration does not require the...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 12, 2025
Solana Lending Markets Surge as Network Positions for Trillion-Dollar DeFi Future: Redstone
Solana’s lending sector saw total value locked climb to $3.6 billion in December 2025, a 33 % increase from the previous year. The network’s 400‑millisecond finality, $0.001 median transaction fee, and 100 % uptime underpin this growth, while daily DEX volume peaked at $35.9 billion....
By The Defiant
News•Dec 12, 2025
HyENA Volume Crosses $50 Million in First 48 Hours
DeFi protocols Ethena and Based launched HyENA, a Hyperliquid HIP‑3 frontend, on Dec 9. In its first 48 hours the platform processed over $50 million in trades, becoming the second‑largest permissionless perpetual market on Hyperliquid after TradeXYZ. HyENA leverages Ethena’s USDe synthetic dollar...
By The Defiant
News•Dec 12, 2025
Crypto Coin Minute for December 12th, 2025 at 07:32 AM Pacific Time.
The Crypto Coin Minute highlighted three major developments: a Zodia study shows stablecoins underpinning Australia’s financial infrastructure, a US federal court sentenced Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon to 15 years for fraud, and Senate Democrats are urging a halt to stablecoin...
By Crypto Coin Minute
News•Dec 11, 2025
CFTC Gives No-Action Leeway to Polymarket, Gemini, PredictIt, LedgerX Over Data Rules
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission issued no‑action letters to Polymarket, PredictIt, Gemini and LedgerX, allowing them to sidestep certain swap‑related record‑keeping and data‑reporting rules. In exchange, the platforms must keep contracts fully collateralized, clear trades only through designated channels,...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 11, 2025
Bitcoin Liquidity Is Drying up in Specific Regions as a New “Pay-to-Exit” Model Quietly Takes Over
Belarus expanded its telecom‑level platform blocking in December, adding domains to the BelGIE list and restricting crypto activity to High‑Tech Park operators, while the EU banned Belarusians from EU‑based wallets. The move mirrors a broader EMEA‑APAC playbook that uses DNS/IP...
By CryptoSlate
News•Dec 11, 2025
U.S. Financial-Risk Watchdog, FSOC, Erased Digital Assets as a Potential Hazard
The Financial Stability Oversight Council’s 2025 annual report removed digital assets from its list of systemic vulnerabilities, marking a clear policy shift under the Trump administration. The prior 2024 report had highlighted stablecoin and crypto‑ETF risks and urged Congress to...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 11, 2025
Netflix Teases Comedy Movie About Missing $35M Crypto Password
Netflix announced a new comedy feature titled “One Attempt Remaining,” starring Jennifer Garner, about a divorced couple racing against a 48‑hour deadline to retrieve a forgotten password and access $35 million in cryptocurrency. The plot mirrors real‑world crypto lockout stories, such...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 11, 2025
Xiaomi to Pre-Install Sei Crypto Wallet on Millions of Phones in Global Rollout
Sei Labs has struck a distribution agreement with Xiaomi to pre‑install its crypto wallet and discovery app on every Xiaomi smartphone sold outside mainland China and the United States. The app will integrate Google or Xiaomi ID sign‑in, a multiparty...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 11, 2025
Chainlink's LINK Drops 5% Despite Coinbase Bridge Deal, But Bottoming Signs Emerge
Chainlink’s LINK token slipped nearly 5% to $13.74 despite Coinbase’s announcement that it will use Chainlink’s Cross‑Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) to power a $7 billion bridge for wrapped assets. The price decline reflected broader altcoin weakness and Fed‑rate concerns, pulling LINK...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 11, 2025
How Do Kwon’s Jail Sentence Forces a Brutal “Truth Test” That Many Algorithmic Tokens Will Instantly Fail
Do Kwon is scheduled for sentencing in U.S. federal court on Dec. 11, 2025, with prosecutors seeking a 12‑year term after a $4.47 billion SEC civil judgment. The case sharpens regulatory focus on algorithmic stablecoins, treating misstatements about peg mechanisms as securities fraud....
By CryptoSlate
News•Dec 11, 2025
U.S. CFTC's Pham Moves for Do-Over on 'Actual Delivery' Guidance on Crypto
Acting CFTC Chairman Caroline Pham announced the withdrawal of the 2020 guidance defining “actual delivery” of crypto commodities. The agency said the rule was outdated and impeded innovation, prompting a reevaluation in light of five years of market evolution. The...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 11, 2025
Coinbase Expands Reach of Stablecoin-Based AI Agent Payments Tool
Coinbase has launched x402 V2, the second version of its stablecoin‑based payments protocol designed for AI agents. The upgrade introduces a modular SDK, wallet‑based identity, automatic API discovery, dynamic recipients, and support for multiple blockchains and fiat via CAIP standards....
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 11, 2025
U.S. Senate Rolls Toward Last Vote on Confirming Crypto Regulators at CFTC, FDIC
The U.S. Senate is set to vote early next week on two pivotal crypto‑regulatory appointments after a 52‑47 procedural win. Mike Selig, a senior SEC official, is nominated to chair the CFTC, while Travis Hill, a veteran banking regulator, is...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 11, 2025
Vote on Trump’s CFTC Chair Pick Could Come Today, US Senator Says
Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn Thompson signaled that the full Senate could vote as early as Thursday afternoon on President Donald Trump's nominee, Michael Selig, to lead the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The vote would occur before the chamber recesses...
By Cointelegraph
News•Dec 11, 2025
Binance Overhauls Stablecoin Trading with Trump-Linked USD1
Binance is replacing its BUSD collateral with the Trump‑linked stablecoin USD1 and launching new BNB/USD1, ETH/USD1 and SOL/USD1 trading pairs. The exchange will also enable zero‑fee swaps between USD1, USDC and USDT, and convert all BUSD reserves to USD1 within...
By CoinDesk
News•Dec 11, 2025
Bitcoin Is Now the Ultimate “Divorce Loophole” Because Courts Physically Cannot Seize the Keys
Bitcoin holdings are increasingly moving out of exchanges, with only about 14‑15% of the supply on custodial platforms. This custody shift is colliding with family law, as courts can order disclosure but cannot seize or broadcast transactions without the private...
By CryptoSlate
News•Dec 11, 2025
Arbitrum DAO Votes on $1.5 Million Program to Reward Active Delegates
Arbitrum DAO is voting on a $1.5 million annual incentive program to reward active governance delegates. The proposal requires delegates to hold at least 200,000 ARB, vote on proposals, and publicly explain their rationale within five days, with payouts ranging from $300...
By The Defiant
News•Dec 11, 2025
Robinhood Stock Slides 8% After Big Decline in November Trading Volumes
Robinhood’s shares slipped 8% after the broker reported a sharp decline in November trading activity across equities, options and crypto. Platform assets fell 5% month‑over‑month to $325 billion. Crypto trading volume dropped 12% from October and was 19% below a year‑ago...
By CoinDesk