Stablecoin

On December 23, Philippine internet providers began blocking access to major exchanges including Coinbase and Gemini as regulators enforced local licensing rules. Manila Bulletin reported that the National Telecommunications Commission directed carriers to restrict around 50 platforms lacking Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas authorization. Authorities had earlier moved against Binance, culminating in a shutdown order on March 25, 2024.

World Liberty Financial's USD1 saw its market capitalization increase by about $150 million on Wednesday after Binance announced the limited-time "USD1 Boost Program" offering up to 20% APR on Simple Earn Flexible products. The campaign runs from December 24, 2025 to January 23, 2026, with first‑come‑first‑served subscriptions, a per‑user cap of 2 million USD1, and bonus tiers up to 50,000 USD1.

Five jurisdictions moved to streamline crypto licensing in 2025, with major milestones: the US GENIUS Act in July, EU MiCA passporting from January, Dubai VARA's Version 2.0 in May, Hong Kong's stablecoin regime in August, and UK HM Treasury and FCA steps in April and December. These changes created clearer pathways and reduced duplication for compliant firms.

On December 24, 2025, Circle announced a digital metals expansion that lets customers swap USDC for tokenized gold (GLDC) and silver (SILC) at live market prices. The service cites COMEX-linked liquidity, on-chain settlement, and 24/7 availability, aiming to integrate precious metal exposure into public blockchains for institutional and developer use.

On December 24, 2025 in Belgrade, Serbia, Streamflow unveiled USD+, a Solana-based stablecoin backed by short-term U.S. Treasury Bills. The token is designed to distribute variable daily yield on-chain, cited at approximately ~3.6% APY, without staking or lockups. A waitlist is open ahead of launch, targeting Web3 treasuries and crypto-native capital managers.

On Wednesday, the Trump family-associated USD1 stablecoin saw its market capitalization rise by $150 million to $2.89 billion after Binance launched a booster program with yields of up to 20% APR for large deposits. The promotion, which runs until Jan. 23, 2026, targets USD1 flexible products above $50,000 and distributes tiered bonus rewards directly to users' earn accounts.

In its 2026 outlook, VanEck says Bitcoin has trailed the Nasdaq 100 by roughly 50% year to date in 2025, a gap it argues could precede outperformance next year. David Schassler also pointed to gold's surge past $4,500 an ounce and projected $5,000 in 2026, while Matthew Sigel expects a consolidation phase.

The United States entered a new fiscal phase in 2025 as interest on federal debt exceeded $1 trillion, outpacing defense and Medicare. Net interest climbed from $345 billion in FY2020 to about $970 billion in FY2025. A July 2025 law mandates stablecoin issuers hold 100% USD or T‑bill reserves, potentially channeling major demand into Treasuries.

Arthur Hayes reduced his Ethereum exposure, selling about 1,871 ETH worth roughly $5.53 million over the past week and reallocating into ENA, PENDLE, and ETHFI. On December 24, 2025, he sent 682 ETH (about $2 million) to Binance while building a USDC position nearing $48 million. His ETH balance has fallen to approximately 3,160 ETH.

CryptoQuant data shows that decentralized borrowing on Aave has dropped sharply since August 2025, with weekly USDT and USDC loans falling from $6.2 billion to $1.9 billion by late November. At the same time, Nexo's weekly retail credit withdrawals fell from $34 million in mid-July to $8.8 million in mid-November before rebounding to $23 million, suggesting users increasingly prefer borrowing against collateral over selling in a weak market. Overall, CeFi lenders appear to be acting as a liquidity backstop while DeFi leverage contracts.