On December 17, Cardano released a 2030 roadmap repositioning the blockchain from a research-focused network to a commercially driven "World's Operating System" anchored on clear KPIs. The plan targets 1 million monthly active wallets, $3 billion in TVL and 324 million annual transactions by 2030, supported by upgrades like Hydra and Ouroboros Leios. The framework also reforms treasury funding, introduces batched grant rounds and sets revenue goals of at least 16 million ADA, based on an assumed ADA price of $5.

AVAX climbed more than 2% after VanEck revised its Avalanche ETF filing with the U.S. SEC to incorporate on-chain staking and appointed Coinbase Crypto Services as staking provider. The planned ETF aims to mirror AVAX price performance and staking returns with a 0.30% management fee, while AVAX traded around $12.22 amid rising open interest but softer trading volumes.

Jim Cramer said OpenAI should raise at least $200B, citing a $300B obligation to Oracle, to shore up the data center trade. He warned the sector could slump without swift funding and floated a $1T valuation. U.S. stocks rose on December 19, with AI-linked names such as Oracle and Nvidia gaining.

As of December 20, 2025, new Bitcoin whales account for nearly 50% of the asset's realized cap, up from 22% before this year. Corporate treasuries span 151 firms holding over 1 million BTC, and U.S. spot ETFs have recorded year‑to‑date inflows above $22 billion, highlighting rising institutional demand and firmer price bases.

On December 20, 2025, a crypto investor mistakenly sent $50 million in USDT to a poisoned address. Within 30 minutes, the funds were swapped to DAI and then 16,690 ETH, with 16,680 ETH routed through Tornado Cash; on-chain timestamps show a 0.005 USDT test and the large transfer minutes apart.

The Eigen Foundation has proposed ELIP-12, an incentive overhaul that would increase rewards for active restakers and fee-paying AVSs on the EigenLayer network. A new Incentives Committee would manage EIGEN emissions, redirect fees from EigenCloud services, and discourage idle stakes. Weekly EIGEN minting levels would be set by governance but could only be changed with Protocol Council approval.

On December 20, 2025, the Museum of Modern Art added eight CryptoPunks to its permanent collection, recognizing the series' significance in digital and cultural history. According to CryptoPunks, the gift was facilitated by donors including Mara Calderon and ArtOnBlockchain, with additional contributions from collectors, and the collection continues to show steady market activity.

On December 20, 2025, BitMex co-founder Arthur Hayes argued that altcoin season is continuous and that many traders overlook the true winners. He cited Hyperliquid's move from $2–$3 to $60 and Solana's rebound from about $7 in 2022 to nearly $300 early this year. The Altcoin Season Index stood at 35, indicating conditions not yet consistent with an altcoin season.

On December 19, 2025, the U.S. SEC filed proposed final consent judgments in the Southern District of New York against Caroline Ellison, Gary Wang, and Nishad Singh. The trio consented, without admitting or denying, to permanent antifraud injunctions under Section 17(a), Section 10(b), and Rule 10b-5, plus five-year conduct-based limits and multi-year officer/director bans tied to alleged misuse of FTX customer funds.