Since its launch in November, the US Spot XRP ETF has accumulated more than $1 billion in net inflows, signaling heightened institutional appetite for XRP-based products. While Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs have seen notable outflows, XRP trades around $1.90 with a market cap near $114.97 billion and a sharply higher 24-hour volume, highlighting a shift in market positioning toward alternative assets.

The UK Financial Conduct Authority has published new proposals for regulating crypto assets and opened them for public consultation until 12 February 2026. The draft rules cover asset issuance, disclosure standards, platform governance, staking and lending protections, and how they may apply to DeFi arrangements. Ethereum has seen sharp price swings and a multi‑month drawdown as these UK regulatory moves unfold alongside broader market volatility.

MANTRA plans to upgrade its OM token to MANTRA on 19 January 2026 with a 1:4 non-dilutive split at target block 11,888,888. On-chain OM holders on MANTRA Chain will be converted automatically, while off-chain EVM holders must migrate to avoid stranded balances. The upgrade is designed to simplify tokenomics, support governance Proposal 26, and strengthen the project's institutional positioning.

HashKey Holdings Ltd. priced its Hong Kong IPO at HK$6.68 per share, selling 240.6 million shares to raise HK$1.6 billion. Share trading is slated for December 17, 2025, with most allocation directed to major institutional investors. The company did not increase the offering size, and proceeds are expected to support technology and operations.

China’s Justice Network has issued a proposal to guide courts in handling criminal cases involving virtual currency, detailing standards for asset disposal and victim protection. The plan introduces third‑party auction assistants and dual technical standards for evidence and financial procedures, aiming to improve recovery and prevent seized assets from reentering markets.

On December 14, Pakistan's Ministry of Finance signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding with Binance to assess tokenizing up to $2 billion in sovereign bonds, treasury bills and commodity reserves. The initiative, which follows initial approval from the Pakistan Virtual Asset Regulatory Authority, aims to study blockchain’s role in financial instruments and its potential impact on liquidity, investor access and the country's wider digital reform agenda.

On December 13, 2025, OKX froze several OM-linked accounts and halted related trading after detecting coordinated price manipulation that triggered a sharp market drop and user losses. The exchange used its Security Fund to absorb substantial losses, while OM traded around $0.07 with a market cap of $81.92 million amid heightened volatility and potential regulatory scrutiny.

On December 10, 2025, the Federal Reserve unveiled a Treasury Reserve Management Purchases program that will add $40 billion in Treasury bill purchases beginning December 12. The shift toward renewed securities buying is seen as mild quantitative easing that could support risk assets, with Bitcoin trading around $90,366.13 amid recent price volatility. Market participants expect looser U.S. dollar liquidity to offer a more supportive backdrop for major cryptocurrencies despite ongoing regulatory uncertainty.

The U.S. Congress has begun reviewing Senator Josh Hawley's bill S.1498, known as the "Honest Act," which aims to tighten ethical trading rules for senior public officials. The proposal, introduced in April 2025 and advanced by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on July 30, 2025, would bar the President, Vice President, members of Congress and certain federal officials from trading individual stocks, derivatives and futures while allowing government bonds and diversified funds.