1. Federal Reserve Sets Interest Rate Ceiling at 4.50% link

The Federal Reserve announced its rate decision, setting the upper limit at 4.50%, in line with expectations and lower than the previous rate of 4.75%. According to the Fed’s statement, recent data indicates steady economic growth, a cooling labor market, a rise in unemployment though still at low levels, and inflation nearing but slightly above target. The committee will continue reducing the balance sheet, with the decision receiving majority support. Beth Hammack dissented, advocating to maintain rates at 4.5%-4.75%.

During the press conference, Chair Jerome Powell stated that the Fed is not permitted to own Bitcoin and has no intention to change the law. The dot plot revealed a reduction in next year’s rate cut projections from four to two. Powell emphasized a more cautious approach to future rate adjustments, contingent on further progress in reducing inflation. He noted it could take one to two years to reach the inflation target and deemed it unlikely for rates to increase next year.

2. Trump: Ensuring Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies Thrive in the U.S. link

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump attended the Blockchain Association’s Annual Policy Summit Gala and delivered a significant speech. Trump pledged full support for the development of the blockchain industry within the United States, emphasizing the importance of keeping related businesses domestic rather than losing them to other countries. He stated, “This is an emerging concept and industry that is thriving. We will ensure that the United States maintains its global leadership in this field.”

3. Bitcoin Strategy Institute Drafts Executive Order for Bitcoin as a U.S. Strategic Reserve Asset link

The Bitcoin Policy Institute has drafted a presidential executive order for the Trump administration, proposing the inclusion of Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset for the United States. The order recommends establishing a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) under the Treasury’s Exchange Stabilization Fund (ESF). It advocates recognizing Bitcoin as “digital gold” to enhance national economic security, strengthen U.S. financial dominance, and promote the growth of the digital asset industry. Furthermore, the order calls for the consolidation of government-held Bitcoin and mandates the initiation of procurement and management plans within 60 days.

4. Arthur Hayes: Trump Administration Could Circumvent Federal Reserve for “Money Printing” link

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes tweeted that Powell may not cooperate with Trump as he did with Biden. However, this is irrelevant as Trump’s nominee for Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, could act as a counterbalance to Powell, similar to how “bad girl” Yellen did. Hayes speculates that the Trump administration might bypass Federal Reserve interference and implement “money printing” through three key strategies: ending the conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, devaluing the dollar relative to gold to stimulate the economy, and implementing exemptions for the Supplementary Leverage Ratio (SLR).

5. Cathie Wood: Trump’s Election May Spark Private M&A Boom; Bitcoin’s Scarcity Surpasses Gold link

ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood stated in an interview that Trump’s election could ignite a wave of private company acquisitions previously hindered by cumbersome regulatory procedures. She highlighted that policy shifts within the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would unlock merger and acquisition opportunities, providing venture capitalists with liquidity. Additionally, Wood suggested Elon Musk could play a key role in reducing government scale. Reiterating her prediction that Bitcoin will surpass $1 million by 2030, she emphasized Bitcoin’s scarcity advantage over gold. Unlike gold, where rising prices lead to increased mining and supply expansion, Bitcoin’s fixed supply ensures its rarity remains unchanged.

6. Crypto ETF Forecast for 2024: BTC/ETH Pair Leading, LTC and HBAR Likely to Gain Approval First link

Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart noted that the approval of Solana and XRP ETFs by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been delayed and will likely only be reconsidered after a new SEC leadership takes office, with key legal issues still unresolved. In contrast, Litecoin and HBAR ETFs have a better chance of approval, as Litecoin is considered a Bitcoin fork and has not been classified as a security by the SEC. Currently, Canary is the sole issuer to have filed for Litecoin and HBAR ETFs, though investor demand remains uncertain. Additionally, Bloomberg analyst Eric Balchunas predicted a wave of cryptocurrency ETFs next year, starting with BTC + ETH combo ETFs, followed by Litecoin, HBAR, and later XRP/Solana.

7. FTX Announces Restructuring Plan Effective January 3, 2025, with Initial Distribution Launch link

FTX and its affiliated debtors have announced that their court-approved Chapter 11 reorganization plan will take effect on January 3, 2025, with the initial distributions expected within 60 days of the effective date. FTX also disclosed agreements with BitGo and Kraken to assist in distributing recovery funds to retail and institutional customers, as well as other creditors, within supported jurisdictions under the plan. Additionally, on November 24, FTX filed a lawsuit against Gate seeking the recovery of $40 million to return crypto assets held by the exchange. On-chain transfers indicate that at least $35 million has already been returned to wallets controlled by FTX.

8. Deutsche Bank Develops Ethereum L2 Blockchain Powered by ZKsync Technology link

According to Bloomberg, Deutsche Bank is developing an Ethereum Layer 2 blockchain based on ZKsync technology. Named “Project Dama 2,” the L2 solution will integrate directly with the Ethereum mainnet. The design incorporates a trusted validator mechanism and grants regulators special oversight capabilities to mitigate risks of interaction with sanctioned entities while balancing blockchain transparency and financial compliance requirements. Deutsche Bank aims to launch a minimum viable product (MVP) by 2025 and is currently awaiting regulatory approval.

9. MicroStrategy (MSTR) Added to Nasdaq 100 Index link

MicroStrategy (MSTR) has been added to the Nasdaq-100 Index, becoming the 40th largest company in the index. This inclusion will secure a position for MicroStrategy in one of the world’s largest ETFs, Invesco’s QQQ Trust (QQQ), which has assets under management exceeding $300 billion.

On December 16, MicroStrategy purchased an additional 15,350 BTC for approximately $1.5 billion, at an average acquisition price of $100,386. The BTC return for the quarter so far is 46.4%, and the year-to-date return is 72.4%. As of December 15, 2024, MicroStrategy holds a total of 439,000 BTC, with an average acquisition price of $61,725, representing a total cost of around $27.1 billion.

10. Binance Survey: Meme Coin Holders Surpass Bitcoin Owners; Nearly Half Entered Crypto in 2024 link

Binance has released a global user survey report, surveying 27,230 respondents. In the emerging sub-industries, 23.89% of respondents believe that AI tokens will drive market growth, making them the most promising digital asset category. Memecoins ranked second, with 19.09% of respondents confident in their potential for growth, followed by DeFi tokens (12.37%) and layer-1 tokens (12.28%).

Regarding the most popular tokens among users, meme coins took the lead, with 16.1% of respondents currently holding memecoins. Bitcoin ranked second with a 14.44% holding rate. The survey also highlighted a significant influx of new users into the cryptocurrency space, with nearly half (45%) of respondents having entered the market in 2024.

Fundraising

• Aave, Lens, and Family developer Avara completed a $31 million funding round. link

• AI agent startup /dev/agents raised $56 million in seed funding. link

• UK-based stablecoin infrastructure company BVNK announced $50 million in Series B funding. link

• Tokenized securities firm Prometheum completed a $20 million funding round. link

• Content tokenization platform Promeet raised $3.1 million in a pre-seed round. link

• Tokenized startup Plume secured $20 million in funding. link

• Decentralized AI data chain project Masa raised a new round of strategic financing, led by DCG. link

• Fraction AI completed $6 million in pre-seed funding, focusing on decentralized data labeling. link

• Lightning Network liquidity staking protocol UTXO Stack raised Series A funding and announced airdrop incentives for CKB and RGB++ assets. link

• Decentralized AI model development platform FLock.io secured $3 million in funding. link

• BitDCA announced $2 million in seed funding. link

• TON ecosystem L2 project DuckChain completed $5 million in funding. link

• VanEck’s fund invested $2.5 million in DAWN, a Solana-based DePIN project. link

Learn more, check out crypto-fundraising.info.

Follow us
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WuBlockchain
Telegram: https://t.me/wublockchainenglish