On the night of December 17, 2025, Coinbase activated live U.S. stock trading in its app, allowing users to purchase American equities using USDC. The company is also rolling out futures, perpetuals, prediction markets, and a tokenization stack for institutions, positioning the platform as a hub for traditional assets, derivatives, and on-chain products.

On December 18, the Federal Reserve said it would rescind its 2023 restrictions on state member banks' crypto activities and introduce a new, more flexible framework effective in 2025. The change lets state banks seek approval for digital-asset services under risk and supervisory criteria, signaling a broader shift toward integrating assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum into regulated banking.

Bitfinex has removed all trading fees across its exchange, covering spot, margin, derivatives, tokenized securities, and OTC products with immediate effect. The company expects the zero‑fee model to boost liquidity, support financial inclusion, and make it one of the most cost‑effective venues for BTC and other digital assets. At the same time, Solana‑based wallet Phantom has rolled out Phantom Prediction Markets, a Kalshi‑powered feature that lets users trade tokenized positions on real‑world events directly in the app.

India’s Competition Commission cleared Coinbase Global’s minority investment in CoinDCX, according to a regulatory notice and a post by CLO Paul Grewal on Wednesday. The approval follows an October notice indicating a post‑money valuation of approximately $2.4 billion and Coinbase’s report of about $141 million in annual revenue as of July. Coinbase has also reopened its app for India and targets a fiat on‑ramp in 2026.

Bitcoin's drop into the mid-$80,000s has drawn buying interest and set up a potential rebound as price compresses below key moving averages. Ethereum sits under $3,000 and needs a swift recovery toward $3,100–$3,200 to preserve its higher‑time‑frame structure. Cardano trades well below major EMAs, with RSI in the low 40s signaling late‑stage downside exhaustion risk.

A $10 million settlement involving Silvergate Bank is allowing investors tied to FTX and Alameda Research accounts to submit claims by Jan. 30 in a case pending in the Southern District of California. A final approval hearing is scheduled for Feb. 9, while separately former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison has been moved from federal prison to a community confinement program after serving part of her two-year sentence.

On April 24, 2025, the Federal Reserve Board withdrew its 2023 guidance that limited uninsured banks from engaging in crypto-asset activities, a policy previously linked to Custodia Bank’s master account outcome. The Board indicated it will rely on standard supervisory monitoring going forward, a shift that could broaden bank participation in digital-asset services while elevating discussions on oversight and risk.

On December 15, 2025, Kalshi's John Wang called prediction markets "the memecoins of 2023," underscoring a shift as memecoin activity cooled by late 2025. The article reports that Kalshi, Polymarket and Limitless saw $44 billion in volume this year, while on-chain monthly activity exceeded $13 billion, according to Keyrock and Dune Analytics.