Crypto Weekly Market UpdateTable of ContentsMarket Movements and TrendsCrypto Weekly RecapMajor Crypto Market TrendsTop 12 Crypto Headlines of 2024MicroStrategy's Bitcoin Holdings Reach 444,262 BTCBitwise Proposes Bitcoin Standard Corporations ETFCountry-Specific DevelopmentsRussia Legalizes Bitcoin for Global TradeRegulatory and Legal UpdatesIRS Sets New DeFi Tax RulesCrypto Exchanges and PlatformsBitget Combines Tokens to Boost EcosystemHyperliquid Faces Security Breach by Lazarus GroupOpenSea Teases OCEAN Token LaunchIndustry Insights and AdoptionWomen Lead Blockchain Gaming Revolution New Beta Version RolloutStep into the future of crypto tracking with Cryptoday Beta! Experience lightning-fast, customizable dashboards, interactive widgets, and effortless portfolio tracking—all designed to make your crypto game smarter and sharper.Try our new Beta version and share your feedback.Not sure where to start? Watch this tutorial to know.Thank you for your support!Crypto Weekly RecapBitcoin:Weekly performance: -3.36%US Spot Bitcoin ETFs: -$89.79MBTC experienced volatility this week due to low volume, thin holiday liquidity, and profit-taking.BTC started Monday at $95,270 but dropped to $92,600 by evening after confirming a bearish engulfing candlestick.Institutional adoption continued with reports of purchases by MicroStrategy, and adoption from Metaplanet, La Rosa, and Matador.Crypto investment products saw $308M in net inflows last week, with Bitcoin attracting $375M, marking the 11th consecutive positive week.BTC broke $99,000 twice, on Dec. 24 and Dec. 26, but both rallies faded, bringing it back above $94,000.Bearish sentiment increased as Spot Bitcoin ETFs lost $1.5B in a four-day outflow streak, including BlackRock's ETF. A TradingView chart error showing Bitcoin dominance at 0% caused BTC to drop toward $95,000, triggering $33M in long liquidations within four hours.Exchange-traded funds (ETFs), governments, and MicroStrategy owned 31% of all known Bitcoin holdings by Dec. 2024, up from 14% the previous year, per CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju.Amid the drop, predictions of BTC falling to $60,000 resurfaced, though most believe long-term prices will surpass $100,000.Ethereum:Weekly performance: +0.68%US Spot Bitcoin ETFs: +$301.40METH failed to surpass $3,500 during the holiday week, dipping to $3,233 on Monday before recovering to $3,360.Positive spot Ether ETF inflows continued during the week.Ethereum investment products recorded $51 million in inflows, pushing the month's total above $2 billion and year-to-date inflows to $4.5 billion.Justin Sun deposited 39,999 ETH ($143M) and later 70,182 ETH ($244.9M) to HTX but denied selling, citing "internal liquidity rebalancing."BlackRock invested $3.5 billion in Ethereum, acquiring 993,591.95 ETH.Altcoins:Michael Saylor published Bitcoin and crypto framework for U.S. government.Binance Launchpool introduced Bio Protocol (BIO), allowing users to farm rewards by staking BNB and FDUSD. Trading began January 3, 2025.Tether planned to launch its AI platform in 2025, said CEO Paolo Ardoino.Israel approved its first mutual funds tracking BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF.Thailand considered a Bitcoin payment pilot in Phuket’s tourism sector to attract tech-savvy visitors.Russia used Bitcoin for foreign trade despite crypto mining restrictions, said the finance minister.Robinhood maintained its crypto push but did not invest in Bitcoin, according to its CEO.Trump appointed Bo Hines, a former college football player and GOP House nominee, to lead the crypto council.SBI VC Trade completed the acquisition of hacked crypto exchange DMM Bitcoin's assets.Securitize proposed using BlackRock’s BUIDL fund as collateral for Frax USD.SEC fined Jump Crypto $123 million for manipulating Terra Luna’s UST peg.Uniswap announced plans to launch its Unichain mainnet by early 2025.Over 40% of Binance Alpha tokens dropped in value after a major announcement.NFT promoters faced fraud charges over an alleged $22M rug pull.MultiversX launched Growth Games, offering $1.5M for blockchain and AI innovation.Coinbase and Kraken each donated $1M to the Trump-Vance inaugural committee, while Ripple gave $5M in XRP.Telegram achieved profitability for the first time in 2024.Grayscale submitted an 8-K form for its Horizen (ZEN) trust to the SEC.Usual raised $10M in a Series A round led by Kraken and Binance Labs.Hyperliquid Labs denied DPRK hacking claims after record outflows and confirmed funds were safe.Nokia patented an encryption system to address rising crypto asset vulnerabilities.Aave explored integrating Chainlink’s oracle to mitigate MEV issues.MoonPay reportedly planned to acquire Helio for $150M.Crypto.com launched a crypto custody trust service for US and Canadian institutions.IOTA unveiled a new sustainable tokenomics model.37% of UAE retail investors planned to increase crypto investments in 2025, according to an eToro survey.Binance and CZ filed a motion to dismiss the US SEC lawsuit.Ripple’s RLUSD stablecoin debuted on Singapore’s Independent Reserve Exchange.PancakeSwap achieved a record $310B year, up 179%, driven by L2 and DeFi growth.Aave and Lido surpassed $70B in net deposits in December, reported TokenTerminal.Crypto.com launched a sports prediction market ahead of Super Bowl LIX and US digital asset custody services.South Korea’s crypto investors exceeded 15.59M, holding $79B in assets.Turkey introduced stricter AML regulations for cryptocurrency.Binance revealed FTM to S swap and its rebranding.ZachXBT exposed a $500K scam targeting Solana meme coin investors on X.Swiss-based Hashgraph Group secured a license to launch a $100M Web3 fund.Hilbert Group integrated Liberty AI with its core services to lead asset management.Floki DAO voted on allocating treasury funds for a future memecoin ETP in Europe.Agridex completed its first on-chain coffee transaction on Solana’s platform.PENGU overtook BONK as Solana’s leading meme coin.The MIRA token, created for four-year-old Mira Chen, reached an $80M market cap within hours.Vitalik Buterin adopted Moo Deng and donated 88 ETH to a zoo.Jupiter Exchange announced a 700M JUP airdrop worth over $590M for 2.3M wallets, reserving 75M JUP.StakeStone’s Berachain Vault TVL exceeded $130M in 24 hours.Solana’s Jito staking pool generated over $100M in monthly tips, said Kairos Research.BONK completed BURNmas, removing $51M in tokens from circulation.Kyrgyzstan’s cryptocurrency mining tax revenue fell 50% year-on-year in 2024.Cambodia’s central bank approved compliant stablecoin services but banned unbacked assets like BTC.Montenegro’s justice minister signed Do Kwon’s extradition to the US.Top 12 Crypto Headlines of 2024In 2024, the cryptocurrency landscape was significantly shaped by Bitcoin's fourth halving, which reduced miner rewards and propelled its price past $100,000. The SEC approved spot Bitcoin ETFs and Ethereum ETFs, leading to over $108 billion in Bitcoin ETF assets. Donald Trump’s election as President, with pro-crypto policies, further fueled market optimism. Notable events included MicroStrategy acquiring 55,500 BTC and regulatory advancements in the U.S. and EU. The total airdrop distribution reached nearly $15 billion, while security issues resulted in over $2.3 billion lost in hacks, underscoring the industry's volatility and innovation amidst progress.MicroStrategy's Bitcoin Holdings Reach 444,262 BTCMicroStrategy continues to expand its Bitcoin holdings, recently acquiring an additional 5,262 BTC for approximately $561 million, raising its total to 444,262 BTC, valued at over $40 billion. The average purchase price was $106,662 per Bitcoin, marking seven consecutive weeks of acquisitions. The firm has invested about $27.7 billion in Bitcoin and plans to raise $42 billion to enhance its treasury reserves. Despite its aggressive strategy, concerns linger about the company's high valuation and reliance on a struggling software business, which reported unprofitability in the last quarter. MicroStrategy's inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 is expected to attract significant ETF interest.Bitwise Proposes Bitcoin Standard Corporations ETFBitwise Asset Management has filed for the Bitcoin Standard Corporations ETF, targeting public companies with substantial Bitcoin reserves. Eligible firms must hold at least 1,000 BTC, possess a market cap of $100 million, and maintain daily liquidity of over $1 million. Instead of traditional market cap metrics, the ETF will weight holdings based on Bitcoin treasury values, capping individual allocations at 25%. The fund will rebalance quarterly and operate as a non-diversified entity. This proposal comes amidst a 117% Bitcoin surge in 2024 and highlights the rising corporate interest in Bitcoin assets.Russia Legalizes Bitcoin for Global TradeOn December 25, 2024, Russia adopted Bitcoin for international trade, prompted by legislative changes that legalized cryptocurrency mining and its trade use. This strategy aims to circumvent Western sanctions, bolstering financial resilience. While becoming a leader in Bitcoin mining, Russia plans to impose regional and seasonal mining restrictions in 2025 to manage energy demands, particularly during winter. A total ban will affect ten regions, with partial restrictions in others. Expected new taxes on mining could generate 200 billion roubles ($2 billion) annually, contributing to a broader objective of reducing oil and gas exports to 23% of GDP by 2027.IRS Sets New DeFi Tax RulesThe IRS has announced new tax reporting requirements for decentralized finance (DeFi) participants, mandating that they reveal customer names and addresses. This rule aims to align digital asset reporting with traditional assets to simplify tax filing and close the tax gap. Criticism arises due to the unique nature of DeFi, lacking centralized entities to collect user data. Effective from January 1, 2027, this initiative follows provisions from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Industry experts predict potential legal challenges and Congressional review under the Congressional Review Act by groups like the Blockchain Association, which opposes the rule.Bitget Combines Tokens to Boost EcosystemBitget is merging its Bitget Token (BGB) and Bitget Wallet Token (BWB) to create a unified token that enhances functionalities like Fair Launchpool access and multi-chain gas payments. With a user base exceeding 100 million, this merger aims to integrate BGB into decentralized finance ecosystems and offline payments. Following the announcement, BGB surged nearly 29% within 24 hours and over 50% in a week. Bitget plans to burn 800 million BGB, 40% of its total supply, to strengthen the token's value, while retaining a market cap that positions BGB as a leading player in the cryptocurrency market.Hyperliquid Faces Security Breach by Lazarus GroupHyperliquid, a decentralized trading platform, faced security concerns after linking suspicious activities to North Korea's Lazarus Group, leading to a drop in Total Value Locked from $3.44 billion to $2.08 billion within six days. Daily USDC outflows peaked at $211 million, with the native token, HYPE, falling 20%. The group reportedly lost $700,000 during probing activities, indicating vulnerability testing. Hyperliquid relies on four validators, raising risks if three are compromised. Despite these challenges, the platform maintains 271,000 users and $12.14 billion in total deposits, emphasizing its resilience amidst escalating cyber threats in the cryptocurrency space. Top Weekly Altcoin Gainers and LosersGainers:Bitget Token BGB (+93.85%)Virtuals Protocol VIRTUAL (+35.32%)Movement MOVE (+27.54%)Pudgy Penguins PENGU (+25.17%)Gate Token GT (+25.73%)Losers:Aptos APT (-17.54%)Ethena ENA (-16.00%)Ondo ONDO (-15.93%)Fantom FTM (-10.64%)Hyperliquid HYPE (-9.21%) NFT Market MapOpenSea Teases OCEAN Token LaunchOpenSea has reignited speculation about a potential token launch, possibly named "OCEAN," following a cryptic post on its new OpenSea Foundation X account, which stated, "Ocean enters the chat." This shift in sentiment contrasts with earlier skepticism, as community members initially criticized OpenSea’s plans. The company also registered the OpenSea Foundation in the Cayman Islands, suggesting a strategic, long-term approach. Despite challenges in the NFT market, including declining trade volumes and regulatory scrutiny, renewed optimism surrounds OpenSea’s potential moves. Currently, OpenSea has not provided details on the timeline or utility of the prospective token launch.Women Lead Blockchain Gaming RevolutionA recent report by the Blockchain Gaming Alliance highlights a significant optimism among female gamers regarding blockchain adoption, with 38.9% expecting it to exceed 40% in the upcoming year, compared to only 25.1% of male gamers. This growing trend is mirrored in the cryptocurrency sector, where women are increasingly taking on leadership roles and, notably, out-earning men. According to Pantera Capital, as the crypto landscape evolves, women are becoming crucial in shaping its future across technology, policy, and culture, indicating a transformative shift in both gaming and cryptocurrency industries towards greater female influence and participation.This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.