This week saw Bitcoin (BTC) plummet after setting a new all-time high, thanks to comments by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who raised concerns about inflation and said there may be only two rate cuts in 2025. Let’s look at some more major developments. 

Bitcoin (BTC)

President-elect Donald Trump has reiterated his plans to sign an executive order and create a Bitcoin reserve on his first day in office. This has left many wondering how it could impact Bitcoin’s current four-year boom-bust cycle.

El Salvador plans to continue buying Bitcoin (BTC) for its strategic reserve despite reaching a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Central American country had agreed to modify its Bitcoin policy to secure a $1.4 billion loan deal with the IMF.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has said the Federal Reserve is not allowed to own Bitcoin and does not intend to be involved in any government effort to create a Bitcoin strategic reserve.

Bitcoin (BTC) surged to an all-time high on Monday, hitting $106,500 and giving buyers hope the current bull run will continue. However, indicators have signaled a highly overbought market, with a correction imminent.

Bitcoin (BTC) slumped almost 6% thanks to remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell after the FOMC meeting. Powell stated there would be only two rate cuts in 2025, plunging the crypto market into the red.

Technology

Kraken has launched its Layer2 blockchain Ink ahead of schedule. Initially set for a 2025 launch, Ink launched on mainnet on Wednesday thanks to considerable developer enthusiasm and community support. Ink was built using Optimism’s OP Stack.

Business

Leading Bitcoin mining company Riot Platforms has added $510 million worth of BTC to its holdings. The company bought its latest tranche between December 10 and 12, increasing the value of its BTC holdings to almost $1.7 billion.

Web3

Binance is setting the stage for blockchain innovation in 2025 through its newly launched Binance Alpha platform, identifying and showcasing platforms that could shape the Web3 landscape in the coming year.

Web3 gaming platform Pixelverse has partnered with leading meme coins on Base. The partnership will see Pixelverse launch meme coin-based games on the Base Network and bring the meme coin characters to life.

Io.net has joined the Dell Technologies partner program. The partnership will extend scalable and cost-effective cloud services to partners in Dell’s program, extending the global collaborations between io.net and its Web2 partners.

Web3 wallet MetaMask has added support for EOS Network. The integration will allow millions of users to access EOS without modifying their Web3 setup.

Fraction AI is pioneering a new approach to data labeling by combining the efficiency of AI agents with human insights. The company recently concluded a $6 million pre-seed round led by Symbolic and Spartan and strategic investments from Illia Polosukhin (Near) and Sandeep Nailwal (Polygon).

How to cash out your crypto holdings? There are several ways to convert crypto to fiat, with some of the most common avenues being crypto exchanges, peer-to-peer platforms, and crypto on-and-off ramps.

Zoth and Singularity Finance have partnered to launch a DeFi product for institutional investors called Zoth Tokenized Liquid Notes Prime, or ZTLN-P.

AI meme coin TURBO has partnered with Aurora Labs and NEAR Protocol to launch a native blockchain platform called TurboChain. The partnership will also launch a portal called TurboSwap to simplify buying and selling cryptocurrency.

Io.net has entered into a strategic partnership with AI agent provider Zerebro. The partnership will allow Zerebro to leverage io, net’s GPU network, and launch its Ethereum validator operations.

OpenLedger has partnered with restaking platform Ether.Fi to enhance security and scalability. The partnership will allow OpenLedger to leverage Ether.fi’s $6 billion in TVL to boost network security and scalability.

Ape Terminal is all set to host its next big launch, EARN’M. Ape Terminal is connected to over $1.7 billion worth of assets and 500,000 active accounts.

The methods used to deploy smart contracts are complex and challenging, even for experienced developers. Easing smart contract deployment is crucial to drive innovation in decentralized AI.

Decentralized AI frameworks are the key to making AI accessible to all and helping support a greater diversity of contributors to the AI industry.

Security

North Korean hackers stole over $1.4 billion worth of crypto in 2024, double what they stole in 2023. This puts North Korea’s share of global crypto theft at 61%, with total losses hitting $2.2 billion.

Regulation

Crypto.com has dropped its lawsuit against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) after CEO Kris Marszalek met with President-elect Donald Trump.

Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

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