Crypto News

The U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) removed digital assets from its 2025 list of financial‑system “vulnerabilities,” reclassifying them as “significant market developments to monitor.” The report attributes the shift to 2025 regulatory milestones and growing institutional adoption: the GENIUS Act (federal framework for payment stablecoins with 100% reserve requirements and supervision by the Fed, OCC and FDIC), the SEC’s rescission of SAB 121 (altering custodial accounting), OCC interpretive guidance on custody and limited native token holding, and Executive Order 14178 (supporting responsible digital‑asset growth while banning a U.S. CBDC). FSOC highlighted institutional channels opening—spot BTC and ETH ETFs, tokenization and easing custody concerns—and noted regulators have pulled broad warnings that previously constrained banks, insurers and pension funds. The report retains warnings about illicit finance, stablecoin run risks and fragmented international implementation (FSB, FATF concerns). FSOC’s assessment is conditional on orderly ETF flows, full stablecoin backing, and no major custody or bridge failures. For traders: the reclassification reduces macroprudential stigma, likely easing institutional inflows into custody, ETFs, stablecoin reserves and regulated lending in the U.S.; however, ongoing regulatory development for custody, AML and tokenization and international fragmentation mean risks remain. Key keywords: FSOC, stablecoins, GENIUS Act, spot ETF, custody, regulation.

Visa has launched a global Stablecoins Advisory Practice within its Visa Consulting & Analytics unit to help banks, fintechs, merchants and businesses design, launch and manage stablecoin products. The service offers market-fit analysis, regulatory guidance, technology integration, training, go-to-market planning and use-case assessment, leveraging Visa’s existing infrastructure — including 130+ stablecoin-linked card programs across 40+ countries and USDC settlement activity on its network. Visa cited earlier pilots such as USDC settlement and stablecoin payouts via Visa Direct in select markets. Navy Federal Credit Union (15 million members) and other institutions are re-evaluating stablecoin rails for faster, lower-cost payments. The move follows broader industry momentum from firms like Stripe, PayPal (PYUSD) and JPMorgan (JPM Coin), and aligns with investor commentary (eg. ARK/Cathie Wood) about stablecoins taking on payment roles. For crypto traders, the announcement signals rising institutional support for on-chain USD rails, likely increasing demand for payment-focused tokens and stablecoin-related settlement flows while reinforcing Bitcoin’s evolving narrative as digital gold rather than a transactional currency. Primary keywords: Visa, stablecoin, on-chain dollar, USDC, payments.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published an investor bulletin explaining custody of crypto assets for retail investors. The guide defines custody as the methods and locations used to store and access crypto via wallets that rely on private and public keys, and warns that loss of private keys or recovery (seed) phrases results in permanent loss of funds. It explains wallet types — hot wallets (online, convenient but exposed to network risks) and cold wallets (offline, more secure but subject to physical/backup risks) — and stresses secure storage of recovery phrases. The bulletin contrasts two custody approaches: self‑custody, where users control private keys and bear technical and security responsibility; and third‑party custody, where exchanges or custodians hold keys. For third‑party providers the SEC recommends due diligence on regulatory status, background, insurance coverage, security protocols (hot/cold storage mix), asset use policies (including rehypothecation or commingling), fee structures and privacy protections. Practical investor tips include never sharing private keys or seed phrases, guarding against phishing, using strong passwords and multi‑factor authentication, and matching custody choice to technical ability, risk tolerance and cost. The guidance follows prior exchange and custodian failures that locked customers out of assets and aims to help retail traders weigh self‑custody versus third‑party custody risks before trading or storing digital assets. Keywords: SEC guidance, crypto custody, self‑custody, cold wallet, hot wallet, investor protection.

Fanatics has launched Fanatics Markets, a regulated, fan‑focused prediction‑market app built in partnership with Crypto.com. The iOS and Android app is live in multiple U.S. states (including California, Texas, Florida and Washington) with phased rollouts to additional states as regulatory approvals arrive. Phase one lets users trade outcome‑based contracts on sports, economic, political and finance events within a federally supervised framework; phase two will expand into crypto, stocks and IPOs, climate, pop culture, technology/AI, movies and music next year. Pricing, liquidity and clearing are provided by Crypto.com | Derivatives North America (CDNA), a CFTC‑registered exchange and clearinghouse, enabling onshore, compliant derivatives settlement rather than relying on offshore platforms. Fanatics retains the user interface and responsible‑trading tools (deposit/session limits, timeouts, self‑exclusion). The rollout follows Crypto.com’s strategy of offering regulated clearing to third‑party marketplaces and signals a push to mainstream regulated prediction trading and multi‑asset markets — a development traders should watch for potential shifts in retail order flow and derivatives demand, especially once crypto markets are added.

Security Alliance (SEAL) and MetaMask researcher Taylor Monahan report a widespread wave of social‑engineering attacks tied to North Korean‑linked groups that use staged Zoom and Microsoft Teams calls to deliver Remote Access Trojans (RATs) and other malware. Attackers contact targets on Telegram from compromised or familiar accounts, schedule meetings (often via Calendly), and present pre‑recorded video or real stolen footage to impersonate known contacts. During calls they prompt victims to install an “audio patch” or SDK update; the file contains malware that gives remote access to devices and can exfiltrate passwords, Telegram sessions, documents and private keys. Variations of the campaign — including fake job applications and staged interviews — have been linked to more than $300 million in crypto losses and are attempted multiple times daily across the sector. SEAL and Monahan warn that reused stolen Telegram accounts accelerate the campaign by reaching existing contact lists. Recommended trader defenses: treat unexpected meeting links and urgent patch requests as high risk, never execute files received in calls, enable strong passwords and 2FA, move funds to clean wallets using uncompromised devices, and, if compromise is suspected, disconnect Wi‑Fi and power down to interrupt exfiltration. The advisory frames these human‑centric video‑call malware attacks as a top operational risk for crypto firms and individuals, because compromised endpoints and leaked private keys can produce rapid wallet drains and significant financial loss.

ZCash (ZEC) led gains among the top 100 cryptocurrencies this week, rising roughly 28% over seven days and briefly touching $368 — its highest since Nov. 29. ZEC posted dramatic moves in Q4 2025, rallying about 20x from mid‑August to mid‑November and peaking near $705 on Nov. 17 after institutional developments: Cypherpunk Technologies announced a ZEC-denominated digital-asset treasury and Grayscale filed for a spot ZEC ETF in the U.S. Despite the weekly strength, ZEC pulled back intraday (down ~5.6% in 24 hours) as broader market losses (~2.7%) and rising volume accompanied the move. Other privacy coins — Monero (XMR), Dash (DASH), Decred (DCR), MimbleWimbleCoin (MWC) and Verge (XVG) — mostly lagged or declined; Monero recently reclaimed the largest privacy-coin market-cap spot (~$7.6B vs. ZEC’s ~$7.2B). Earlier coverage noted ZEC’s prior rallies (15–23% weekly and medium-term gains) and technical resistance near $487, with a sustained break potentially targeting above $600. Taken together, the latest reporting shows ZEC remains volatile and driven by institutional catalysts, but sector-wide momentum has not consistently broadened — suggesting any further upside depends on follow-through from institutional flows and clearing technical resistance levels. Traders should watch volatility, volume, resistance at $487–$600, and relative strength versus competing privacy coins for short-term setups and risk management.

The U.S. Senate could vote as soon as this week on President Trump’s nominee for Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) chair, Michael Selig, after the Senate Agriculture Committee advanced his nomination along party lines. If confirmed, Selig would replace acting chair Caroline Pham, who has led the agency amid multiple departures and pushed industry-facing moves such as withdrawing older digital-asset guidance and creating a CFTC CEO Innovation Council that includes executives from Kraken, Gemini, Crypto.com, Polymarket, Kalshi and Bitnomial. The Senate faces a limited window before its December 22 recess, making swift confirmation possible but uncertain. Selig, nominated in November after Brian Quintenz withdrew, emphasized during his confirmation hearing the need for strong CFTC enforcement capacity to regulate crypto markets. Confirmation would change the agency’s confirmed leadership and could influence U.S. crypto regulatory direction and enforcement posture.

A hooded, dissolving-figure Satoshi Nakamoto statue by artist Valentina Picozzi has been installed inside the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), sponsored by asset manager Twenty One Capital. The artwork is the sixth in a planned 21-piece global series that references Bitcoin’s 21 million supply cap; prior installations appeared in Switzerland, El Salvador, Japan, Vietnam and Miami. The NYSE placement underscores growing institutional recognition of Bitcoin and the ongoing cultural shift as Wall Street venues increasingly host crypto-related events and symbolism. The installation coincides with broader institutional accumulation — public companies, private firms, countries and ETFs now hold millions of BTC — and contributes to narratives around mainstream legitimacy, ETF demand and on‑exchange flows. The piece also sparks discussion of technical and regulatory topics (for example quantum risks and corporate treasury purchases) but is primarily symbolic. For traders: the event itself is not direct market-moving news, but it signals continued institutional engagement and positive sentiment that can support ETF inflows and longer-term demand for BTC.

Ondo Finance, State Street Investment Management and Galaxy Asset Management will launch the State Street Galaxy Onchain Liquidity Sweep Fund (SWEEP), a tokenized private liquidity fund, on Solana in early 2026. SWEEP tokenizes exposure to US Treasuries and aims to provide near‑instant, 24/7 on‑chain liquidity using PayPal’s stablecoin PYUSD, with State Street Bank & Trust as custodian and Galaxy supplying tokenization infrastructure. Ondo’s flagship tokenized fund OUSG will act as the anchor investor with a planned allocation of about $200 million; OUSG currently manages roughly $770 million and is distributed across Solana, Ethereum, Ripple and Polygon. The partners plan to expand cross‑chain support to Stellar and Ethereum after the Solana launch, using Chainlink for cross‑chain connectivity. The announcement follows the SEC’s closure of a two‑year probe into Ondo Finance regarding tokenization and the ONDO token — a development market participants say contributed to a recent relief rally in ONDO. Access to SWEEP will be restricted to qualified institutional purchasers under applicable regulations. Key SEO keywords: tokenized liquidity fund, SWEEP, Ondo Finance, State Street, Galaxy, Solana, OUSG, tokenization.

Surf, an AI research assistant for crypto, closed a $15 million funding round led by Pantera Capital with participation from Coinbase Ventures and DCG. The startup combines deep crypto-native data — on-chain across 40+ chains, whale tracking, sentiment from 100k+ key opinion leaders and 200+ technical indicators — with a domain-specific multi-agent AI to convert hours of analyst work into structured reports in minutes. Since launching five months ago, Surf says it has generated over one million reports, achieved strong institutional penetration (claims of ~80% of leading institutions), 50% monthly growth and ARR in the low millions. The new capital will fund ’Surf 2.0’: upgraded crypto-native AI models, expanded proprietary datasets, multi-agent analytical tooling and an API layer to serve B2B customers and other AI agents. For traders, Surf 2.0 promises faster, automated on-chain insights and workflow automation that can shorten research cycles, increase signal availability versus general-purpose LLMs, and enable agent-level monetization as crypto AI/agent payment rails mature. Primary keywords: Surf, crypto AI, on-chain data, research API, institutional adoption.

Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto arm, a16z Crypto, has opened its first Asia office in Seoul to deepen engagement across Asian blockchain markets. Led by SungMo Park (formerly of Polygon Labs and Monad Foundation), the Seoul hub will provide hands‑on go‑to‑market support, build local partnerships, and help portfolio startups navigate market-specific trends and operations across South Korea, Japan, India and Singapore. a16z cites strong regional crypto adoption—roughly one in three South Korean adults reportedly own digital assets, India leads global adoption metrics, Japan saw a 120% year‑on‑year rise in on‑chain activity, and Singapore hosts a large crypto user base. The firm frames Seoul as the starting point for broader regional expansion and emphasizes local integration over pure capital deployment. The announcement follows a16z Crypto’s recent industry commentary promoting “arcade tokens” as a user-acquisition and digital-economy tool. Key takeaways for traders: the move may increase venture-driven on‑chain initiatives and partnerships in Asia, potentially driving localized demand for tokens tied to projects supported by a16z, while signaling more concentrated geopolitical and regulatory engagement in major Asian markets.

More than 300 long‑dormant Bitcoin (BTC) wallets tied to the Silk Road darknet marketplace reactivated, transferring about $3.14 million in BTC on December 10, 2025 to a single unidentified bech32 address, while roughly $41.3 million linked to Silk Road‑era wallets remains untouched. Blockchain researchers, including Arkham Intelligence, attributed some 312 addresses to Silk Road holdings that had been inactive for over a decade. The movements follow Ross Ulbricht’s full pardon in January 2025, but investigators say there is no definitive on‑chain evidence linking the recent transfers directly to him. Market commentary notes that decade‑old wallet awakenings are often treated as whale activity and can affect short‑term BTC liquidity and price if funds are sold or routed to OTC desks. Conversely, holders sometimes move assets into cold storage or longer‑term custody rather than sell immediately. Traders should monitor subsequent on‑chain transactions, any consolidations or transfers to known exchange or OTC addresses, and alerts for large sell orders — these will indicate whether the event increases circulating supply and near‑term volatility. Primary keywords: Bitcoin, Silk Road, dormant wallets, whale movement, on‑chain activity.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has created a CEO Innovation Council to examine future derivatives market structure with a focus on asset tokenization, crypto assets, blockchain market infrastructure, 24/7 trading, perpetual contracts and prediction markets. Formed rapidly over two weeks, the council brings together CEOs and chairpersons from major traditional venues (CME Group, Nasdaq, ICE, Cboe, LSEG) and crypto firms including Polymarket, Gemini, Kraken, Crypto.com, Kalshi, Bitnomial and Bullish. Acting Chair Caroline Pham said the group will share industry experience to help the CFTC prepare and act quickly. The move follows recent CFTC initiatives such as a pilot allowing BTC, ETH and USDC as margin for registered futures commission merchants and public engagement on leveraged spot crypto trading. The council is convened amid an imminent leadership transition at the CFTC and is part of Pham’s accelerated crypto policy agenda. For traders: expect increased regulatory engagement and potential market-structure changes that could affect liquidity, margin rules, product approvals (e.g., perpetuals, leveraged spot), and trading hours. Monitor council outputs and the CFTC pilot results for signals on collateral policies, allowable products and infrastructure standards that could influence volatility and positioning.

Binance co‑CEO Yi He’s WeChat account was hijacked in a Web2 account‑takeover used to promote the BNB Chain memecoin Mubarakah (MUBARA). Attackers took control of the phone number tied to her account, pre‑purchased low‑liquidity MUBARA (about $19,479 USDT for 21.16 million tokens) via PancakeSwap and related routes, then posted buy links and a promotional message. The post triggered an ~800% spike; attackers sold at the peak, liquidating at least 11.95 million MUBARA for roughly $43,520 in USDT and later swapping proceeds into ETH. They still hold around 9.21 million MUBARA (≈$31,000), for estimated net proceeds near $55,000 so far. Yi recovered her account after external verification, changed the password and warned users not to buy tokens promoted from the hacked profile. The incident follows other social‑account compromises in crypto and highlights the recurring tactic of using Web2 channel takeovers to front‑run memecoin pumps. Key trader takeaways: verify on‑chain liquidity before buying social‑promoted tokens; treat sudden social media promotion of newly listed coins on PancakeSwap/BNB Chain as high‑risk; monitor related wallet flows and liquidity pools for early signs of rugging or dump behavior.

PNC Private Bank has launched an integrated Bitcoin service that lets eligible high‑ and ultra‑high‑net‑worth clients buy, hold and sell BTC directly within the bank’s digital platform. Announced December 9, the feature embeds Coinbase’s institutional infrastructure — including Coinbase Custody-as-a-Service, trading, security and compliance — into PNC’s Portfolio View so clients can see crypto and traditional holdings in one place. Initially available to private‑bank clients across PNC’s more than 100 offices, the offering aims to simplify operations for clients who prefer a single institution to manage all assets and to provide a compliant, bank‑managed route to include Bitcoin in financial plans. PNC intends to expand access and add more crypto features over time. Coinbase and PNC describe the partnership as a model for safe integration between traditional banks and crypto firms, using institutional custody and compliance to reduce operational risk.

Strive Asset Management announced a $500 million preferred stock offering to raise funds for additional Bitcoin purchases, working capital, share repurchases and acquisitions of income-generating assets. The firm — co-founded by Vivek Ramaswamy and which shifted to a Bitcoin-treasury strategy via a 2025 reverse merger — currently holds 7,525 BTC (about $695m) and manages over $2 billion in AUM since launching an ETF in 2022. Strive stated proceeds will be used for “general corporate purposes,” explicitly including Bitcoin and related products. The move echoes a treasury-led accumulation model that uses equity issuance to buy BTC. The announcement follows Strive’s public opposition to MSCI’s proposal to exclude companies with crypto treasuries exceeding 50% of assets from major indices, a change that could prompt significant passive outflows from index-tracking funds starting February 2026. Traders should note that a full deployment of the $500m into BTC would materially expand Strive’s holdings and concentrate corporate demand; market reaction to similar equity-funded Bitcoin acquisitions has varied, with some treasury-style listings seeing sharp share volatility on debut.

Circle has received a regulated crypto-asset business licence from the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), authorising its Circle International unit to provide USD Coin (USDC) payment, settlement and digital-asset services in Abu Dhabi’s financial free zone. The licence enables Circle to offer institutional-grade payment rails, wholesale and cross-border settlement, and custody-linked services to businesses and financial institutions under a clear regulatory framework. This expands Circle’s Middle East footprint and complements earlier UAE steps to recognise stablecoins and attract digital-asset firms through clearer licensing regimes. Market implications: the ADGM approval could ease onshore access to USDC for regional banks, payment providers and corporates, potentially increasing fiat-to-stablecoin flows and institutional adoption in the Gulf. Traders should watch for higher USDC onshore liquidity and partnerships between Circle and Gulf financial institutions, which may support demand for USDC. Primary keywords: Circle, ADGM, USDC, UAE crypto licence, institutional payments. Secondary keywords: stablecoin regulation, onshore liquidity, cross-border settlement.

PNC Bank has integrated Coinbase’s custody and execution infrastructure to enable eligible customers to buy, hold and sell Bitcoin directly within PNC’s digital channels. The offering uses Coinbase’s Crypto-as-a-Service (CaaS) backend so clients can trade BTC without opening a separate Coinbase account. Initially targeted at eligible retail/private banking clients, PNC plans to expand integrated crypto services to broader institutional audiences over time. No new regulatory approvals were reported; the partnership responds to rising retail demand and may increase on‑ramp flows into Bitcoin while setting a precedent for other banks to embed crypto trading into their platforms.

A U.S. federal judge in the Southern District of New York has asked prosecutors and defense counsel detailed questions ahead of Terraform Labs co‑founder Do Kwon’s Dec. 11 sentencing. Key issues include whether Kwon faces additional criminal exposure in South Korea for the same conduct, whether any agreements exist between U.S. and Korean authorities, and whether a Korean sentence would run concurrently or consecutively with a U.S. term. The court also seeks clarification on credit for roughly 21 months Kwon spent detained in Montenegro and whether the government’s recommendation—a 12‑year prison term and a $19m fine—assumes that time will or will not be credited. The defense is urging a five‑year sentence, citing harsh detention conditions in Montenegro and potential further punishment in South Korea. The judge asked whether victims wish to speak at sentencing, how victim compensation and asset forfeiture should be administered across jurisdictions, whether supervised release can apply if Kwon is removed from the U.S., and practical assurances that foreign jurisdictions would enforce remaining sentences. Parties must respond by Dec. 10. For traders: the hearing clarifies cross‑border enforcement and restitution mechanics in one of the largest crypto fraud cases tied to the 2022 collapse of Terraform (once valued at over $50bn), but does not introduce new market‑moving tech or protocol developments.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has closed a two-year confidential investigation into tokenization platform Ondo Finance without filing charges, the company said. The probe, opened under the Biden administration, reviewed Ondo’s tokenization of real-world assets (RWA) and whether the native ONDO token should be treated as a security. Ondo described the inquiry as broad and costly. After the announcement ONDO rallied roughly 8%, reaching an intraday high near $0.50. Ondo reports about $1.8 billion in total value locked (TVL) and disclosed token holders’ annual net income of $6.93 million. The firm said it will unveil the next phase of its roadmap at a New York summit in February and has been expanding its market presence with partnerships and a new Layer-1 focused on bridging traditional finance and DeFi. Traders should note this regulatory clarity signal for tokenized assets and monitor ONDO price action, TVL trends, and broader RWA tokenization developments for potential market reactions.

OCC Comptroller Jonathan Gould said crypto and fintech firms seeking US federal charters should be treated the same as traditional banks, arguing blockchain is a technology for delivering established banking services such as custody and safekeeping. Speaking at a December 8 blockchain policy summit, Gould noted the OCC has received about 14 new national trust bank applications this year, including from digital-asset firms, and highlighted the agency’s supervisory experience with crypto-native trust banks (Anchorage Digital and Erebor). He rejected arguments that digital assets require special regulatory treatment, dismissed concerns about the OCC’s supervisory capacity, and warned that resistance from incumbent banks and trade groups could slow clarity on charters and limit benefits to clients and communities. The stance signals the OCC’s willingness to provide clearer charter pathways for crypto firms, potentially increasing regulatory oversight and encouraging broader banking integration of blockchain custody services. Key SEO keywords: OCC, federal bank charter, crypto firms, custody, blockchain.

GoTyme Bank, one of the Philippines’ fastest‑growing digital banks with over 6.5 million customers, has launched in‑app crypto buying and custody via a partnership with US fintech Alpaca. The feature lets users convert PHP to USD inside the GoTyme app and buy and hold 11 cryptocurrencies — including BTC, ETH, SOL and DOT — without leaving the mobile wallet or using external exchanges. Users can open a GoTyme Crypto USD account from an existing GoTyme Everyday account in minutes. The interface is simplified for retail and first‑time buyers, offering basic market data and news rather than advanced trading tools. Alpaca supplies the regulated custody and trading infrastructure via API, handling the backend while keeping customers within GoTyme’s environment. The rollout leverages the Philippines’ high crypto adoption (Chainalysis ranks it ninth globally, ~10% penetration) and fits GoTyme’s regional expansion plans for Southeast Asia, including Vietnam and Indonesia. For traders, this may increase local on‑ramp volume and retail demand for the listed tokens, while limiting direct access to advanced order types — a development to watch for flows into BTC, ETH, SOL and DOT from Philippine retail users.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has closed its multi-year investigation into Ondo Finance’s tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) and the ONDO governance token without filing charges. The probe, opened in 2023 to determine whether Ondo’s tokenized equities, bonds and other on‑chain RWAs and the ONDO token qualified as unregistered securities, was ended after a shift in SEC leadership and enforcement stance. Ondo reported over $500 million in tokenized assets under management by late 2024, while industry trackers show RWA tokenization exceeded $10 billion in TVL by early 2025. Traders should note the removal of a major regulatory overhang that may enable Ondo and similar platforms to expand U.S. market access, accelerate product launches (tokenized stocks, bonds) and boost liquidity in on‑chain RWA markets. The decision also offers greater clarity on the regulatory treatment of governance tokens like ONDO, reducing legal tail risk for related token listings and secondary-market activity. Primary keywords: Ondo Finance, ONDO token, RWA tokenization, SEC probe, tokenized equities.

Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas pushed back on comparisons between Bitcoin and the 17th‑century Dutch tulip mania, arguing that Bitcoin’s 17 years of survival, repeated recoveries and structural supply/demand drivers distinguish it from a short‑lived speculative bubble. Balchunas highlighted recent performance — roughly +250% over three years and +122% in 2024, though about 27% off October highs — and noted resilience through exchange hacks, the 2018 ICO downturn, banking crises and other shocks. He pointed to key fundamentals supporting Bitcoin: halving‑driven reductions in new supply, growing institutional accumulation via spot Bitcoin ETFs, and on‑chain metrics (larger holders accumulating, significant share of supply unmoved for 12+ months). Market indicators such as the MVRV Z‑Score suggest recent weakness was consolidation after excess gains rather than systemic collapse. The analysis urges traders to prioritize fundamentals — halving schedules, ETF flows, on‑chain accumulation and regulatory developments — and treats Bitcoin more as a potential portfolio diversifier backed by scarcity than a transient craze. Primary SEO keywords: Bitcoin, ETF, halving, on‑chain accumulation, scarcity. Secondary keywords: MVRV Z‑Score, institutional demand, corrections, store of value.

BlackRock moved 24,791 ETH (about $78.3 million at transfer time) into a Coinbase Prime institutional custody account, according to on-chain data reported by PANews. This follows earlier reports that BlackRock previously transferred 44,140 ETH to Coinbase Prime, suggesting recurring operational deposits tied to ETF management or rebalancing. The reports did not disclose the transfer purpose—staking, trading, client custody, or portfolio rebalancing remain possible. Coinbase Prime is commonly used by large asset managers for custody and trading operations for spot crypto ETFs. For traders, the transfers indicate continued institutional engagement with Ether and ongoing operational flows between asset managers and centralized custodial venues, which can support liquidity and signalling but do not by themselves confirm directional price pressure.

zkSync Lite (formerly zkSync 1.0), an early ZK-rollup payments-focused Layer-2 on Ethereum, will be deprecated and fully shut down by 2026. The team announced the planned sunset on Dec. 7 and urged users to withdraw funds before the shutdown; withdrawals and bridging to Ethereum L1 will remain available through the exit period. Lite processed fewer than 200 daily transactions and held roughly $50 million in user assets per L2BEAT. Development on Lite was paused in March 2023 as Matter Labs shifted focus to zkSync Era, a full zkEVM that supports arbitrary smart contracts. The project says user assets are secure and migration guidance and a detailed timeline will be published ahead of the shutdown. Traders and dApp developers are advised to move to zkSync Era or other modern zk-rollups; token, NFT and contract support already exists on successor networks, so ecosystem disruption should be limited. Key SEO keywords: zkSync Lite, zkSync Era, zk-rollup, Ethereum L2, withdrawals, migration.

Ethereum exchange balances have fallen to a historic low of about 8.7% of total supply, roughly a 43% decline since early July, according to Glassnode. Large volumes of ETH are being moved off exchanges into staking, long-term custody, Layer‑2 activity and other non‑liquid uses, tightening readily available supply. On‑chain observers including Milk Road call this the tightest supply environment ever, and note the gap with Bitcoin’s exchange share. Technical indicators show an On‑Balance Volume (OBV) breakout above prior resistance, signalling latent buying pressure despite price struggling around the $3,000–$3,200 range. Traders should monitor exchange reserves, staking flows, and OBV divergence: lower exchange liquidity raises the potential for sharp price moves if demand spikes, while continued staking and treasury accumulation create persistent supply strain that can support longer‑term upside. Key keywords: Ether, ETH, exchange balances, staking, supply strain, OBV, liquidity, L2.

South Korea’s two largest exchanges, Upbit and Bithumb, recorded a sharp 24-hour surge in trading volumes across 21 altcoins, led by XRP and MOODENG. Combined exchange data show XRP and MOODENG as the top-traded tokens (roughly $210m and $178.7m respectively). Major cryptocurrencies also saw elevated activity: BTC ~$139m, ETH ~$134.6m, and USDT ~$94.2m. Mid-cap and niche tokens posted significant volumes too — SOL ~$55.8m, Doodles ~$45m, Pudgy Penguins ~$36.9m — alongside several smaller projects with multi-million-dollar turnover. Earlier reports highlighted slightly different totals and additional tokens but the core development is the same: concentrated demand from Korean traders driving short-term, high-liquidity flows on domestic venues. Traders should watch volume spikes on Upbit and Bithumb as potential precursors to increased volatility and near-term price moves for the listed coins. This is market reporting, not investment advice.

LILSHIB, a new utility-focused meme token, is holding a single-stage, first-come-first-served (FCFS) presale at $0.0002 per token aiming to raise $11 million with no private rounds. The project activates staking at Token Generation Event (TGE) and allocates 20% of supply (22 billion tokens) to a staking pool offering headline yields; the presale allocates 50% of supply (55 billion tokens). Tokenomics include a 5.5 billion token burn and a rule to allocate 50% of protocol revenue to buyback-and-burn. A referral program pays an aggregate 10% instant cashback to referrers — 5% in LILSHIB tokens and 5% in USDT/USDC/ETH — to encourage viral growth. Purchases are made via MetaMask, WalletConnect or Coinbase Wallet and can be paid with ETH, USDC or USDT. Early interest was reported (small initial buys), and marketing positions the token as a low-cost, community-driven entry with staking yield and token-sink mechanics that could compress adoption timelines seen in projects like SHIB and PEPE. The piece is disclosed as sponsored content and is not investment advice.