Crypto sentiment has fallen back into the fear zone, with the Fear and Greed Index sitting in the high-20s. Although similar readings have historically aligned with market bottoms, current data on altcoin performance and liquidity indicates a controlled de-risking phase rather than classic capitulation. With altcoin weakness, muted trading volumes, and limited fresh capital, fear alone may not be a strong buy signal in the present cycle.

Midnight (NIGHT) traded at $0.07326 after a 3.5% drop over the past 24 hours, while still up 12% week-on-week and 15.5% over two weeks. Technical signals point to a short-term correction near oversold levels, and potential catalysts include major exchange listings that have yet to add the token.

Anthropic's Claude AI published projections for Solana, XRP, and Sui as 2025 nears its end, flagging potential volatility around Christmas that could carry into early 2026. It sets bullish ranges at $275–$400 for SOL, $5–$8 for XRP, and $4–$7 for SUI, while mapping bearish consolidation zones linked to macro headwinds and technical levels.

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.

In August 2025, Ethereum (ETH) exceeded its 2021 peak, touching $4,945 and a $600 billion market capitalization. Institutional flows dominate this cycle: reserves on centralized exchanges fell to 10.5% by December 21, more than 35.6 million ETH are staked, and Exchange Traded Products attracted about $12.7 billion in 2025.

Large Ether holders increased purchases while price remains below $3,000. Since Nov. 4, one "66k ETH Borrow Whale" accumulated 569,247 ETH ($1.69 billion), and in the past 24 hours Bitmine bought 67,886 ETH ($201 million). About 70% of derivatives positions are net long, and ETH's leverage ratio hit 0.611 last week.

In the last 12 hours, according to CoinGlass, Solana saw an 8,392% liquidation imbalance as $4.94 million in long positions were erased. SOL tested the $124.11–$125.42 death cross zone at $125.28 before sliding to $120.78, and it now trades at $121.43 with volume down 14.93% to $2.74 billion. RSI between 37 and 39 signaled mild oversold conditions, while short liquidations reached $58,170.

Vitalik Buterin backed EIP 7864, aiming to lift Ethereum's smart contract size cap. In 2025, Layer 2 activity concentrated around leading rollups such as Base, while ETH stalled below $3,000 with a noted support area near $2,800. A recent chart snapshot showed price around $2,931 amid defined resistance bands.