As of December 19, 2025, total crypto market capitalization fell to $2.93 trillion, an eight‑month low that erased 2025 gains. Fear gauges hit "extreme" levels, with Bitcoin swinging between $90,200 and $84,800 and some analysts flagging possible downside toward $10,000.

Charles Hoskinson, co-founder of IOHK and the Cardano blockchain, criticized several of US President Donald Trump's crypto initiatives, including a meme coin and the World Liberty Financial project. He argued these moves risked turning previously bipartisan efforts on US digital asset regulation into a partisan issue and damaging the industry's image in Washington. Hoskinson also claimed many crypto founders stayed silent after being warned that speaking out could jeopardize their access to lawmakers and the legislative process.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has outlined a push for radical simplification of the Ethereum protocol to maintain genuine trustlessness and prevent excessive reliance on a small group of developers. He argues that features such as stateless clients, lightweight nodes, data compression and upgrades like Verkle Trees should reduce hardware demands, support decentralization and align with the previously published Trustless Manifesto.

On December 18, 2025, Ava Labs CBO John Nahas said the network’s future lies in sovereign, purpose‑built chains rather than monolithic block space. He noted nearly 80 Avalanche layer‑one chains are live and more than 100 are in testing, with deployments by Toyota, FIFA, and SMBC aimed at finance, identity, and enterprise workflows.

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.

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.

The Bank of Canada has set out guidance that from 2026 it will only approve high-quality stablecoins that are fully backed, maintain 100% reserves, and are pegged 1:1 to a central bank currency. Issuers will need robust risk management, transparent redemption terms, and strong data and cybersecurity protections as part of a broader effort to modernize Canada's financial system and make digital payments faster and safer.

On December 16, 2025, the FTC said it has proposed a settlement with Illusory Systems, operator of the Nomad bridge, following the August 1, 2022 exploit. The order would prohibit misleading security claims, mandate a formal program with biennial independent assessments, and require the return of recovered funds after about $186 million was stolen and client losses exceeded $100 million.