The pause in Bitcoin purchases and increased cash reserves may enhance financial stability and flexibility amid market volatility.
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Crypto funds broke three weeks of net positive flows, after US investor sentiment took a hit following delays to the long-awaited CLARITY Act, set to reach the Senate in January 2026.
The APT token has support at $1.59 and resistance at $1.65.
In today’s crypto world, the option to have access to liquidity and not sell your assets has become a valuable portfolio management technique. Crypto-backed loans offer an accessible method of borrowing Bitcoin or other digital assets with competitive rates and simple repayment options. These services include a vast number of users who can choose either …
A screenshot attributed to Fundstrat Research is stirring debate over whether Tom Lee’s firm is projecting a sharp first-half 2026 correction in crypto markets—despite Lee’s recent public bullishness on Ethereum. Wu Blockchain shared the image via X, describing it as an internal client note titled “2026 Crypto Outlook: Near-Term Headwinds, Second-Half Upside,” timestamped Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025 at 7:34 p.m. ET. Fundstrat’s Bearish Call Vs. Tom Lee’s Bull Case The document is credited to Sean Farrell, Fundstrat’s head of digital asset strategy, and includes a base-case scenario calling for a “meaningful drawdown in 1H 2026,” with target ranges of bitcoin at $60,000–$65,000, ether at $1,800–$2,000, and solana at $50–$75. The note adds that those levels would represent “attractive opportunities into year-end,” and that if the view is wrong, the preference is still to “play defense” until strength is confirmed. The ETH range is what set the market chatter off. Ether is trading around the $3,000 area, making $1,800 a material downside scenario if taken at face value. Related Reading: Ethereum ETFs Record Over $600M In Outflows — Warning Signal For Traders? The controversy, such as it is, comes from the proximity to Lee’s own messaging. At Binance Blockchain Week, Lee said ethereum at roughly $3,000 looked “severely undervalued,” a stance that reads very differently than a research framework explicitly mapping a potential move to the high-$1,000s. Over the past few weeks, Lee even publicly shared his predictions that ETH could reach $20,000 next year and $62,000 over the next several years. Farrell responded directly on X on Dec. 20, arguing the framing of “internal conflict” misunderstands how Fundstrat operates. The firm, he said, houses several analysts with independent processes, each designed for different client objectives and time horizons. Lee’s work, Farrell wrote, is aimed at large institutions that might allocate 1%–5% to BTC and ETH and is structured around longer-term macro and “secular” trends. Farrell’s research, by contrast, is positioned for investors with heavier crypto exposure—he referenced portfolios with ~20%+ allocations—where active risk management and rebalancing matter more than maintaining a single long-duration thesis through volatility. Related Reading: Ethereum Exchange Outflows Soar To $978M: Sign Of Dip Buying? That distinction is central to interpreting the leaked-style targets. Farrell’s public explanation wasn’t “we are bearish,” but rather “we are cautious in the near term.” He said markets appear priced for “near-perfection” while risks remain elevated—citing government shutdown dynamics, trade volatility, uncertainty around AI capex, and a Federal Reserve chair transition, alongside tight high-yield spreads and low cross-asset volatility. He also highlighted mixed flow conditions. In Farrell’s telling, long-term ETF demand could improve as wirehouses onboard, but near-term pressures persist from “OG selling,” miners, fund redemptions, and even the possibility of an MSCI MicroStrategy delisting—an item that stood out because it suggests the risk lens extends beyond spot crypto into the crypto-equity complex that has become a key liquidity and sentiment barometer. Farrell’s stated base case: “an early-year bounce followed by another 1H drawdown, creating a more attractive opportunity into year-end.If I’m wrong, I’d rather wait for confirmation (trend breaks, flows, momentum, or a clear catalyst). Crypto is reflexive, and for my objective, patience matters in no-man’s land.” The thread ends on a point many readers missed in the initial screenshot-driven outrage cycle: Farrell still expects BTC and ETH to “challenge new ATHs by year-end,” describing a shorter, shallower bear that could compress the traditional four-year cycle narrative. “For those who tuned into the outlook: I still expect BTC and ETH to challenge new ATHs by year-end, effectively ending the traditional four-year cycle with a shorter, shallower bear,” he wrote via X. At press time, Ethereum traded at $3,043. Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
Strategy added $748 million to its cash, reaching $2.19 billion while keeping 671,268 Bitcoins steady. No Bitcoin buys happened from December 15-21 as they build cash from stock sales. Michael Saylor posted the update on X on December 22, ready for big buys in market dips. This builds on a $1.44 billion reserve from late …
Binance let a network of 13 high‑risk accounts move $1.7 billion in crypto, including $144 million, after its 2023 US plea deal, according to the Financial Times.
A time-honored Wall Street pattern could bring relief to battered BTC bulls as the year end nears.
Led by Executive Chairman Michael Saylor, the company raised the funds entirely by sales of common stock.
Futures open interest rose steadily as BTC pushed higher, climbing toward $60 billion across major venues.
Critics say the decision to fast-track a brand ownership vote exposed weaknesses in how one of DeFi’s largest DAOs handles governance process.
Aster is launching Phase 5 of its ASTER buyback program on December 23, committing up to 80% of daily platform fees to repurchasing tokens. Forty percent will drive automated on-chain buybacks to maintain steady market demand, while the remaining 20%-40% will focus on strategic opportunities in favorable market conditions. This balanced approach aims to stabilize …
Cantor Fitzgerald is predicting a HYPE rally to $200 by 2035, but rival DEXs are attracting a growing share of crypto traders as they emerge with lucrative reward farming systems.
After the rebound from the local lows below $85,000, the Bitcoin bulls have been gaining significant strength. The price has now surged above $90,000, following a consolidated weekend, hinting towards a sustained ascending trend for the rest of the week. The volume has been raised gradually since the early trading hours, pushing the BTC price …
BlackRock's significant crypto transfers to Coinbase Prime may signal strategic shifts, influencing market sentiment and potential volatility.
The post BlackRock moves $182M in Bitcoin and $91M in Ethereum to Coinbase Prime appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
Ghana has officially made crypto trading legal. After years of fast-growing but loosely regulated crypto activity, Ghana’s parliament has passed the Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) Bill, 2025, giving the country a clear legal framework for digital assets. The move brings crypto trading into the open, placing exchanges and service providers under formal oversight for …
Hong Kong’s insurance regulator is reportedly weighing a proposal to let insurers invest in cryptocurrencies with a 100% capital charge.
If you’ve ever bought a stock and assumed you “owned it” the moment you hit confirm, you’ve already met the least glamorous part of markets: settlement. Settlement is the back-end handoff where the system ensures that the buyer’s cash and the seller’s security actually swap places for good, with no take-backs and no missing pieces. […]
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Your day-ahead look for Dec. 22, 2025
The contrasting investment trends in crypto funds highlight shifting investor confidence and potential market realignment opportunities.
The post Crypto funds shed $952M but XRP and Solana buck the outflow trend appeared first on Crypto Briefing.
A dispute over who controls Aave’s brand and online assets has moved to a vote, sending the token sharply lower.
Expectations around XRP reaching the $100 price level have circulated within the crypto industry in the past few months, often resurfacing during periods of strong bullish momentum. As 2025 draws to a close, those expectations are facing reevaluations. Despite intermittent rallies during the year and strong conviction among long-term holders, XRP is currently trading far from triple-digit territory. This gap between optimism and market reality has pushed some voices within the XRP community to reassess timelines to reach such a valuation. Zach Rector Pushes The $100 XRP Perspective To 2030 One of the most notable revisions comes from Zach Rector, a longtime XRP supporter who has openly adjusted his outlook. In a recent post on the social media platform X, Rector stated plainly that his expectation for XRP to reach $100 now sits around the year 2030. This position is a clear review of chatter from many XRP enthusiasts that envisions a $100 XRP as an imminent outcome within the current cycle. Related Reading: Bitcoin Just Entered Extreme Oversold Levels And Analysts Predict New ATH Targets Rector had already begun tempering expectations as far back as early November, when he acknowledged that XRP was unlikely to reach $100 before the end of the year. At the time, he noted that meaningful price appreciation was still possible, even if the most extreme targets are out of reach. At the time, he noted that saying XRP isn’t going to $100 this year feels like telling a kid Santa isn’t real. Why $100 In 2025 Has Become Increasingly Unlikely The idea of XRP reaching $100 within a single market cycle faces mathematical and liquidity constraints. At current supply levels of 60 billion XRP, such a price would imply a market capitalization deep into the multi-trillion-dollar range, putting XRP among the most valuable assets in the global financial system. As the year winds down, there is little evidence of the scale of capital inflows required to support that kind of valuation in the near term. Although bullish sentiment is strong in parts of the XRP community, market conditions have not aligned with the aggressive assumptions. Therefore, a 2025 timeline for $100 XRP has moved from ambitious to implausible, even for optimistic analysts. Related Reading: Bitcoin Just Entered Extreme Oversold Levels And Analysts Predict New ATH Targets Rector has previously attempted to ground the $100 discussion in simple market principles. In a post shared earlier this year, he outlined the scale of inflows required to drive XRP to major price milestones using conservative market cap multipliers. According to his estimates, reaching $100 would require between $11 billion and $58 billion in net inflows, assuming a 100x market cap multiplier. Higher targets, such as $1,000, would demand inflows between $118 billion and $589 billion. Therefore, the $100 target is achievable towards the end of the decade, though not without sustained institutional participation and inflows into Spot XRP ETFs. Featured image created with Dall.E, chart from Tradingview.com
Ghana’s parliament has passed the Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill, officially legalizing cryptocurrency trading and creating a clear regulatory framework for digital assets and service providers. The new law gives the Bank of Ghana power to license and oversee exchanges, wallet providers, and other crypto platforms while enforcing consumer protections and anti-money-laundering rules. This move …
Hyperliquid is pushing back after a wave of claims questioned its solvency, transparency, and internal controls. In a detailed public response, the perpetuals trading platform said several accusations circulating online were based on incorrect or misunderstood information. “Hyperliquid is built on a foundation of onchain transparency,” the team wrote, addressing the claims one by one. …
Bitcoin approached $90,000 amid Santa Rally speculation, backed by bullish derivatives and chart patterns that target a BTC price above $100,000.
Cardano continues to lag the broader crypto market, trading near $0.36–0.37 after a prolonged decline, while an extended sell-off has kept the price locked inside a descending structure. Despite a modest intraday bounce, ADA remains well below key resistance zones, leaving traders focused on whether this move marks early base-building or just another pause within …
XRP price today again fails to reclaim the key $2 level after falling nearly 22% over the past two months. While whales quietly reduce exposure and on-chain data shows growing stress among holders, institutional money continues to flow in through XRP ETFs. This contrast raises one key question for traders, is XRP preparing for another …
Ghana's regulatory framework for crypto could boost economic diversification, attract fintech investment, and enhance financial inclusion.
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Tokyo-listed Metaplanet, holding 30,823 BTC worth $2.75 billion, approved issuing preferred shares without affecting common stock. Following MicroStrategy’s approach, the company doubled its Class A (MARS) and Class B (MERCURY) shares, added floating-rate and quarterly dividends, and targeted institutional investors. Recently, it raised $150 million through MERCURY shares and $250 million via credit for Bitcoin purchases. The stock jumped 18% to …