The bitcoin rally continued this week, with BTC approaching the much-anticipated $100,000 milestone amid record inflows into US Bitcoin spot ETFs. The twelve major US funds surpassed $100 billion in assets under management last week, representing about 5.5% of Bitcoin’s market capitalization. The global crypto asset market cap also hit a new all-time high at more than $3.5 trillion this week, driven in part by a strong rally in Layer 1 tokens such as ADA, ALGO, ATOM, DOT, XRP, and XLM. Weekly gains ranged from 48% (ATOM) to 142% (XLM). The rally may have been partially fueled by the announcement that SEC Chair Gary Gensler will depart the agency on January 20, 2025.
Gensler, a long-time critic of cryptoassets, has previously stated that much of the industry is “non-compliant” with securities laws and has harmed millions of investors. However, key crypto advocates, such as billionaire Mark Cuban, criticized the SEC’s approach under Gensler, calling its enforcement “regulation by litigation” that stifles innovation and hinders businesses. Over the past few years, the SEC has pursued high-profile cases against token projects and major industry players, including a landmark lawsuit against crypto exchange Coinbase.
One of the three Democratic Commissioners, Jaime Lizárraga, also announced plans to leave the agency early next year. The Trump transition team is reportedly considering Teresa Goody Guillén, a partner at BakerHostetler and co-lead of its blockchain team, among several candidates for the next SEC chair, according to industry sources. Meanwhile, Robinhood executive Dan Gallagher has ruled out leading the SEC after being previously considered for the position under the Trump administration.
President-elect Donald Trump’s team is reportedly considering to create a new position focused exclusively on crypto policy, marking a first for the White House, according to a Bloomberg report. In other pro-crypto appointments, Trump has nominated hedge fund manager and cryptocurrency enthusiast Scott Bessent as his pick for Treasury Secretary. Additionally, he named crypto-friendly Howard Lutnick to lead the US Department of Commerce.
Market Overview
The global cryptoasset market capitalization currently amounts to roughly $3.53 trillion – up from $3.1 trillion last week, with bitcoin accounting for 55.3%. Among the Top 30 cryptoassets by market cap, Stellar (XLM) outperformed, gaining 142% over the week. The price of bitcoin (BTC) rose by another 8.6% to $98,868 while the price of ether (ETH) increased by 9.7% to $3,473. The total value locked (TVL) in DeFi is sitting at almost $118.5 billion, with Ethereum (excluding Layer 2s) accounting for about 55% of TVL. Arbitrum One remains the largest Layer 2 by value locked, accounting for about 37% of the $48 billion in assets.
This Week’s Headlines
- US spot bitcoin ETFs surpass $100 billion in assets, now represents roughly 5.5% of Bitcoin’s market capitalization
- FTX plans to start reimbursing users by March 2025
- Coinbase delists Wrapped Bitcoin wBTC, citing “listing concerns”
- Cboe announces December debut of spot bitcoin ETF index options
- UK set to unveil crypto and stablecoin regulations in early 2025
- Ethereum futures open interest hits new all-time high of over $20 billion
- Charles Schwab seeks direct crypto investment offerings upon regulatory changes, Bloomberg reports
- MicroStrategy completes its $3 billion debt offering to buy more bitcoin
- Tron founder Justin Sun buys Maurizio Cattelan’s banana artwork “Comedian” for $6.24 million
Notable Deals and Fundraising
- Stablecoin issuer Paxos to acquire Finland-based regulated electronic money institution Membrane Finance
- Former Coatue Management exec co-founds new venture firm aiming to raise up to $500 million, Bloomberg reports
- Modular DEX protocol Valantis raises seed round at $40 million valuation
- Crypto casino Monkey Tilt raises $30 million Series A led by Pantera Capital
- Market-based media platform Truemarkets raises $4 million from public NFT sale, attracting Vitalik Buterin as a buyer
- Former Robinhood employees raise $5 million for crypto-AI startup OpenLayer
- DeFi liquidity solver system Barter raises $3 million seed round led by Maven 11
