Fear and Greed Index: 17 (Extreme Fear)
Bitcoin Price: $85,940
BTC/ETH Spot ETF Fund Flow (12.17)
BTC Net Outflow: $45.37 M
ETH Net Inflow: 0
Hong Kong
BTC/ETH Spot ETF Fund Flow (12.17)
BTC Net Subscription: 0 BTC
ETH Net Subscription: 0 ETH
[In the Hong Kong JPEX fraud case, the prosecution has been granted permission to postpone the case until next year for the organization of case files during a hearing held on Monday at the Eastern District Court of the city. The next hearing will take place on March 16, where a group of social media influencers accused of promoting JPEX and acting as its "front" for over-the-counter cryptocurrency trading will stand trial.
]( $206 million JPEX fraud case postponed to March
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[]( $206 million JPEX fraud case postponed to March
<p class=)[The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission has announced that it has added the "Hong Kong Stablecoin Exchange" to its list of suspicious virtual asset trading platforms. The Hong Kong SFC stated that the entity claims to operate a virtual asset trading platform, suspected of engaging in unlicensed activities/related fraud, and falsely claims to be jointly established by the "Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the Stock Exchange, and the Hong Kong Futures Exchange," with no actual connection to any of the three.
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]( Completed $107 million Series B financing
The Hong Kong-based stablecoin payment fintech company RedotPay has completed $107 million in Series B financing, led by Goodwater Capital, with participation from Pantera Capital, Blockchain Capital, Circle Ventures, and existing investors including HSG (formerly Sequoia Capital China). RedotPay provides global payment services using stablecoins and currently claims to have over 6 million registered users across more than 100 markets worldwide.
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]( Selected Events in Hong Kong for December
We have specially compiled noteworthy events in the cryptocurrency field in Hong Kong for December, which will open a window to the future of Web3 for you.
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[Regulation/Macro]( Selected Events in Hong Kong for December
We have specially compiled noteworthy events in the cryptocurrency field in Hong Kong for December, which will open a window to the future of Web3 for you.
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[]( Implementation of "Declaration Separation Taxation" for Crypto Assets starting January 2028
The Japanese government plans to implement a "declaration separation taxation" system for crypto assets starting in January 2028. Although the market generally expects the new tax system to be implemented in 2027 in conjunction with the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA), the actual implementation may take more time. Under the current tax system, profits from crypto asset trading are considered "miscellaneous income" and are taxed together with other income, with a maximum tax rate of 55%. Industry insiders have long called for the crypto asset tax system to be adjusted to a 20% declaration separation taxation, similar to traditional assets like stocks.
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Bhutan will use 10,000 bitcoins (approximately $875 million) from its reserves to build the Gelephu Mindfulness City. This project, located in southern Bhutan's Gelephu town, is set to launch in 2024 and aims to create high-value local jobs to prevent the outflow of young Bhutanese, becoming a new economic hub for Bhutan. The project will be built in phases over the next 20 years, and it has already implemented crypto payments in merchants and tourism services, along with launching a national sovereign digital token TER pegged to physical gold.
]( 10,000 bitcoins to develop "Mindfulness City"<div class=)
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The People's Bank of China Shanghai headquarters has reminded that the digital renminbi is a digital form of legal currency, operating under a "central bank - digital renminbi business operation institution" dual-layer operational structure, with no private promotion centers established, and there is no digital renminbi promoter examination. The digital renminbi does not have speculative space, and there are no so-called "exchange subsidies" or "transaction rebates," nor will it promote high commissions or high returns from trading, nor will it induce users to disclose personal sensitive information or participate in pyramid schemes. In the face of promises of "high returns" and "guaranteed profits" from so-called "digital renminbi investments," one should remain clear-headed, avoid being misled, and guard against economic losses. If fraud is suspected, one should report it to the police immediately.
South Korean auditing agencies found that the government mistakenly issued over $15 million in debt relief funds to 269 cryptocurrency traders, which were originally intended to help small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem announced on Tuesday at the Montreal Chamber of Commerce that Canada will only approve stablecoins that are pegged 1:1 to central bank currency and backed by high-quality liquid assets. These assets mainly include treasury bills and government bonds, ensuring that stablecoins can be easily converted to cash. The framework will also require issuers to hold sufficient reserves, establish redemption policies, and implement risk management measures.
The Marshall Islands has successfully completed the world's first universal basic income (UBI) distribution based on blockchain, using digital sovereign bonds USDM1 on the Stellar blockchain. This multi-million dollar project, named ENRA, was developed in collaboration with the Marshall Islands government, the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), and infrastructure provider Crossmint, aiming to replace traditional quarterly cash distributions with direct digital transfer services for citizens dispersed across the islands. USDM1 is a dollar-denominated sovereign bond fully backed by short-term U.S. Treasury securities, distributed through a custom digital wallet application called Lomalo on the Stellar distribution platform.
The Russian government plans to implement a year-round ban on cryptocurrency mining in the Republic of Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory starting in 2026. These two regions currently only have a temporary ban in winter (from November 15, 2025, to March 2026), but a draft document from the government’s electricity industry development committee indicates that these restrictions will be expanded into permanent measures. This move is the latest effort by Russia to crack down on cryptocurrency mining, with at least 10 regions nationwide already implementing long-term mining bans that will last until spring 2031. The Russian Ministry of Energy has previously stated that it is closely monitoring the energy situation in these regions and is prepared to take swift action.
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The Russian government plans to implement a year-round ban on cryptocurrency mining in the Republic of Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory starting in 2026. These two regions currently only have a temporary ban in winter (from November 15, 2025, to March 2026), but a draft document from the government’s electricity industry development committee indicates that these restrictions will be expanded into permanent measures. This move is the latest effort by Russia to crack down on cryptocurrency mining, with at least 10 regions nationwide already implementing long-term mining bans that will last until spring 2031. The Russian Ministry of Energy has previously stated that it is closely monitoring the energy situation in these regions and is prepared to take swift action.
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The Russian government plans to implement a year-round ban on cryptocurrency mining in the Republic of Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory starting in 2026. These two regions currently only have a temporary ban in winter (from November 15, 2025, to March 2026), but a draft document from the government’s electricity industry development committee indicates that these restrictions will be expanded into permanent measures. This move is the latest effort by Russia to crack down on cryptocurrency mining, with at least 10 regions nationwide already implementing long-term mining bans that will last until spring 2031. The Russian Ministry of Energy has previously stated that it is closely monitoring the energy situation in these regions and is prepared to take swift action.
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The Russian government plans to implement a year-round ban on cryptocurrency mining in the Republic of Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory starting in 2026. These two regions currently only have a temporary ban in winter (from November 15, 2025, to March 2026), but a draft document from the government’s electricity industry development committee indicates that these restrictions will be expanded into permanent measures. This move is the latest effort by Russia to crack down on cryptocurrency mining, with at least 10 regions nationwide already implementing long-term mining bans that will last until spring 2031. The Russian Ministry of Energy has previously stated that it is closely monitoring the energy situation in these regions and is prepared to take swift action.
Cryptocurrency payment service provider CoinGate has obtained a MiCA (EU Crypto Asset Market Regulation) license issued by Lithuanian regulators, allowing it to operate as a compliant crypto asset service provider in Europe under the unified regulations of the EU MiCA framework.
The Hyper Foundation has posted on the X platform, proposing that validators vote to formally confirm that the aid fund HYPE has been destroyed and that these tokens will be permanently removed from circulation and total supply. The aid fund automatically converts transaction fees into HYPE during the L1 execution process. Similar to a zero address, the system address of the aid fund has never had the private key to control its funds. Unless a hard fork occurs, the funds are mathematically unrecoverable. Since these tokens have existed in a system address without a private key, no on-chain operations are required.
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The self-custody wallet company Exodus Movement is collaborating with MoonPay and M0 to launch a stablecoin backed by the US dollar. This stablecoin is developed based on M0's infrastructure and will be issued and managed by MoonPay, expected to complement the upcoming payment feature Exodus Pay in the Exodus App, allowing users to spend and manage funds using the stablecoin and earn rewards. The stablecoin is planned to launch in early 2026, with more details on supported networks, availability, and product integration to be announced closer to the launch date.
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[]( Joining forces with Robinhood in the "U.S. Tech Force" program to supply technical talent to the U.S. government
The Trump administration launched the "U.S. Tech Force" program this Monday, which will last for two years and aims to deploy technical experts to federal agencies. The plan is to recruit about 1,000 engineers and technical experts to be stationed at various federal agencies, including the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Defense, to participate in AI infrastructure and other key technology projects. Coinbase and Robinhood are two of nearly 30 private sector partners, which also include major tech companies like OpenAI, Nvidia, and Microsoft. Participants can earn between $150,000 and $200,000 annually, and after completing their government service, they can seek employment opportunities with private sector partners. This move is seen as a shift for the crypto industry from being a "regulatory target" to being recognized as a provider of technological capabilities by the government.
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JD.com's digital collection platform "Lingxi" announced today (December 16) the launch of a transfer function, stating that starting from December 15, new digital assets will officially open transfer services, with the opening time for existing assets to be determined.
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Visa will allow U.S. institutions to use USDC tokens for transaction settlements via Solana. Cross River Bank and Lead Bank are among the first banks to use this service. After the launch of the Arc network, Visa will also support it.
]( Opening stablecoin settlement services to U.S. institutions, supporting USDC on the Solana chain<div class=)
[In-Depth & Outlook]( Opening stablecoin settlement services to U.S. institutions, supporting USDC on the Solana chain<div class=)
[]( Annual keywords in crypto: stablecoins, prediction markets, DAT…
Setting aside dominance, Bitcoin has made significant strides in the broader mainstream world this year, becoming a "national reserve asset" in the U.S. and attracting continuous purchases from numerous publicly traded companies and ETFs.
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Perspective
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Some new banks derive value from earnings and savings. Some derive value from transaction volumes and stablecoin circulation. Others position themselves closer to the infrastructure layer, where profit margins are distinctly different.
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Some new banks derive value from earnings and savings. Some derive value from transaction volumes and stablecoin circulation. Others position themselves closer to the infrastructure layer, where profit margins are distinctly different.
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]( SEC ends four-year investigation, Aave DAO and Labs vie for sovereignty, what has Aave experienced recently?
Aave founder and CEO Stani Kulechov tweeted early this morning that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has officially concluded its four-year investigation into the Aave protocol. He expressed, "To protect Aave, the ecosystem, and the broader DeFi space, the Aave team has invested significant effort and resources. In recent years, DeFi has faced unfair regulatory pressure. We are pleased to break free from these constraints and enter a new era where developers can truly build the financial future."
