Over the past 24 hours, a sharp pullback in Bitcoin, Ethereum and other major tokens triggered a wave of liquidations on derivatives venues. CoinGlass data shows totals surpassed $650 million, with about $584 million from longs; Ethereum led with over $235 million versus Bitcoin at $186 million, while Glassnode flagged BTC's spot near $87,200 below the $87,900 Active Realized Price.

U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to interview Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller on Wednesday as one of five candidates to succeed Jerome Powell as Fed Chair. Waller, known for his supportive views on stablecoins and DeFi, currently has a 15% chance of being nominated on Polymarket, compared with higher odds for Kevin Hassett and Kevin Warsh. Some market observers expect that a new Fed Chair more inclined toward rate cuts could become a constructive signal for the crypto market.

On Tuesday, a California administrative law judge found Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self-Driving marketing deceptive, according to the state DMV. The agency gave Tesla 90 days to revise or remove misleading language or face separate 30-day suspensions of its sales and manufacturing licenses. Tesla shares closed at $489.88, up 3.1%, and the company's market cap reached $1.63 trillion.

In its 2025 Annual Report, the U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council removed cryptocurrencies from its list of systemic financial threats and shifted focus toward responsible integration and regulatory clarity. The council cited the July 2025 GENIUS Act, relaxed banking constraints on certain crypto activities, and urged member agencies to issue broad guidance on custody, tokenization, and blockchain use, even as the Financial Stability Board warned that uneven global rules may still endanger financial stability.

Bitcoin climbed about 2% in Asian trading on Wednesday to around $87,000, while regional equities posted modest gains following a mixed US jobs report. Analysts highlighted record-low Bitcoin exchange reserves and upcoming US CPI data as key drivers for expectations on 2026 Federal Reserve rate cuts and a potential move toward $90,000.

On December 17, 2025, HashKey began trading in Hong Kong with a brief 3% jump before sliding 2.1% by press time. Its IPO raised $206 million at HK$6.68 per share, near the top of the HK$5.95–HK$6.95 range, and early backers included Fidelity, UBS, CDH Investments and Cithara Fund.

HashKey Holdings (3887.HK) began trading on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on December 17, 2025, with shares opening at HK$6.70 and reaching a high of HK$7.12. The company, which positions itself as Asia's largest onshore digital asset platform, is using IPO proceeds for product development and branding while emphasizing a regulatory-compliant growth strategy.

The FDIC released a 38-page proposal setting out how FDIC‑supervised banks could issue payment stablecoins through subsidiaries under the GENIUS Act. The plan outlines approval criteria spanning reserves, redemption, governance, and safety and soundness, and is open for public consultation before further rule-making. If approved, the FDIC would serve as the primary federal regulator for those subsidiary activities.