Crypto companies, including #Ripple , contribute millions to fund the inauguration celebrations of United States President-Elect Donald Trump. 
According to a FOX Business report, Ripple pledged to contribute $5 million worth of XRP to the Trump-Vance inaugural committee. This organization is responsible for funding the three-day inaugural celebration of Trump and his Vice JD Vance following their victory in last month’s presidential election. 
Notably, the activities, including dinners, parades, and galas, will occur before and after Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025. FOX Business claimed the company confirmed its contribution to the fund. 

Other Crypto Companies Donations 

Besides Ripple, other notable crypto companies have also donated heavily to the Trump-Vance inaugural committee. In particular, U.S. crypto exchanges Coinbase and Kraken donated $1 million each. 
Other crypto companies, such as MoonPay and Robinhood, have also promised to contribute to the fund. However, they did not reveal the exact amount of their upcoming contributions. 
Despite the contributions made by crypto outfits, their donations represent only a fraction of the $200 million the fund has raised so far. Interestingly, a source close to the fund expressed confidence that the figure could spike to $225 million before January 20. 

Metaplanet, a popular Japanese firm committed to accruing #Bitcoin , has concluded its latest move to raise capital for more acquisitions.
In a release on December 20, Metaplanet announced it has leveraged a debt instrument to buy more Bitcoin. It disclosed raising 5 billion yen ($32 million) through a bond offering to expand its holdings of the flagship cryptocurrency.
Per the announcement, the latest offering is its 5th ordinary bond issuance. The Japanese firm noted that it offered the financial instrument to EVO FUNDS, who indicated interest following an announcement that it intends to raise another 5 billion yen in its just-concluded 4th ordinary bond issuance.

Metaplanet Raises Zero-Interest Loan for Bitcoin Purchase

Meanwhile, the Japanese MicroStrategy disclosed that the $32 million raised today carries no interest rate. This means it will not share retributions from its Bitcoin purchase or pay APYs to EVO FUNDS.
Furthermore, the loan repayment is due in six months, specifically June 2025. Metaplanet noted that EVO FUNDS will redeem the bond in full at 100 yen per 100 yen principal amount for each bond.
According to the disclosure, the value of each bond is 250 million yen. Hence, the firm will redeem at the rate on the due date or with a written request stating its intention for early recompense.

Shytoshi Kusama, the #Shiba Inu ecosystem lead, reveals plans to silence critics of the SHIB project in the near future. 
The lead developer revealed this while reacting to an X post from popular crypto expert Del Crxpto. In the post, the pundit suggested that the Shiba Inu lead had made a move that effectively silenced critics.  
“Shytoshi Kusama makes haters quiet,” Del Crxpto remarked. 

Shiba Inu Inks New Partnership with Chainlink 

This statement comes after Shiba Inu announced a surprising partnership with Chainlink, expanding accessibility for its ecosystem tokens, such as SHIB, BONE, and LEASH. 
Under the partnership, Shiba Inu’s Layer-2 network, Shibarium, will leverage Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) to enhance its interoperability with other blockchains. 
Furthermore, SHIB, BONE, and LEASH adopted Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Token (CCT) standard, boosting their multi-chain capabilities across 12 blockchains. 
Some of the supported blockchains include Coinbase’s Base, Optimism, Ethereum, Avalanche, BNB Chain, Polygon, and Kroma. 

Kusama Says He’ll Soon Silence Critics 

The partnership has attracted the attention of the broader crypto community, with Del Crxpto suggesting that Kusama made haters quiet with the development. 
Interestingly, the Shiba Inu leader said he has yet to silence critics but promised to do so ‘soon.’ This response suggests that the Shiba Inu ecosystem, under Kusama’s leadership, could be preparing to make another groundbreaking move.

The crypto space witnessed a massive supply dump as the U.S. markets experienced a free fall. Amid the crash, #Bitcoin ’s price fell below $100,000 and tested a crucial level.
With market liquidations surging, bears are firmly in control. 

Bitcoin (BTC) Price Analysis

On the 4-hour chart, BTC’s price action shows a bearish breakdown of a long-term support trendline. This breakdown is accompanied by a 4-hour bearish engulfing candle, accounting for a 3.5% drop.
Compared to its recent all-time high of $108,364, Bitcoin’s price has dropped by 10.68%. Currently, the price of a single Bitcoin is $96,796. Amid the crash, BTC registered a 2.77% decline yesterday. Furthermore, the residual bearish momentum led to an intraday drop of 0.60%.
The breakdown rally tests the 200-EMA line on the 4-hour chart. However, as dynamic support holds the free-falling Bitcoin prices, incoming supply warns of a bearish continuation.
Additionally, the 20-EMA and 50-EMA lines on the 4-hour chart have given a bearish crossover, signaling a short-term trend reversal. Even the 4-hour RSI line has entered the overbought zone, reflecting a significant increase in selling pressure.

A #Bitcoin user has mistakenly paid an outrageous 8.18 Bitcoin ($808,564) for a single transaction, paying over 98% of the intended transfer amount on fees.
In today’s Bitcoin news, an unlucky user has paid one of the highest Bitcoin transaction fees in history. Per data, he accidentally spent 8.18 BTC ($808,564) on a single transaction.

Transaction Details

Whale Alert drew the crypto community’s attention to the outrageous fee. The on-chain tracker tweeted that a user had just spent 8.18 bitcoin on a single transaction.
Further analysis from Mempool shows that the wallet “bc1qdf” made the blunder on Thursday by 20:27 (UTC). The address moved 0.142 BTC ($14,042) to two addresses for a staggering 8.18 BTC ($808,564) transaction fee.
Mempool shows that the wallet overpaid the transaction cost by 98,720 times the average gas fee on the Bitcoin network. Furthermore, the fee is the second most expensive in the network, lagging only to a user’s 83.65 BTC ($3.1 million at the time) transfer cost.
Meanwhile, data shows that Foundry Services USA is the miner behind the transaction, which was approved at block height 875475.
At the time of writing, the sending wallet’s confirmed balance is 0.042 BTC ($4,067), indicating that the miner has yet to return the overpaid fees. All indications suggest the user mistakenly paid the outrageous fee, but this remains unconfirmed at press time.
#Cryptonews

The #Ripple -USD (RLUSD) stablecoin reached a value of $1,200 per coin before launch, with CTO David Schwartz explaining the reason behind the pricing.
Ripple’s RLUSD launched on December 17, birthing a native stablecoin on the XRPL network. The launch sparked positive sentiments around the XRP ecosystem and contributed to a short-lived bullish push above $2.70.
Before then, RLUSD saw an unusual pricing on some wallets, with its valuation reaching as high as $1,200. Notably, this was abnormal, considering it is a stablecoin that should maintain a $1 valuation.

Community Discloses Abnormal RLUSD Pricing

Some XRP enthusiasts disclosed the abnormal pricing on X (formerly Twitter). For instance, a user shared a screenshot of the RLUSD’s pricing against XRP on the Xaman wallet, with 1 RLUSD valued at 511.20 XRP ($1,200 at the time).
Furthermore, a community figure confirmed the pricing, inquiring if it would stay that way until the launch, potentially pushing XRP to the lofty price. Notably, his comments align with a faction of the XRP community speculating that the RLUSD stablecoin will push XRP’s price higher.

Ripple CTO Provides Clarification

However, Ripple’s Chief Technology Officer David Schwartz explained the factor driving the RLUSD price spike using simple economics. He tweeted that the XRPL-based stablecoin will see price spikes in its early days due to limited supply and growing demand.

#Cryptonews

El Salvador has significantly expanded its Strategic #Bitcoin Reserve by purchasing $1 million worth of BTC following a recent policy review and financing deal.
According to an update from the National Bitcoin Office, the country added 11 Bitcoin tokens to its holdings in a single transaction. This acquisition, reflected on the official website, brings El Salvador’s total Bitcoin reserve to 5,980.77 BTC, valued at approximately $586.5 million. 
The move represents a notable shift from its previous strategy of daily Bitcoin purchases, which began on November 18, 2022, as announced by President Nayib Bukele.

Bitcoin Office Outlines Accelerated Plans

The purchase comes a day after National Bitcoin Office Director Stacy Herbert announced plans to potentially accelerate Bitcoin purchases. In a December 19 update, the director emphasized the office’s commitment to ongoing Bitcoin acquisitions, strengthening Bitcoin capital markets, and fostering education initiatives.
Among these initiatives are new educational programs, including Grades 2 and 3 Little HODLer workbooks on Bitcoin and money, set for release in January 2025.
Other efforts include the continued development of Bitcoin policy, attracting investors, and building education programs for developers and public servants.
For instance, the CUBO+ program will graduate more than 20 Bitcoin and Lightning developers by January 2025, while the Mi Primer Bitcoin and Node Nation initiatives remain active in high schools across El Salvador. 
Additionally, 80,000 civil servants are undergoing Bitcoin certification through the ESIAP program. The Chivo Wallet, previously introduced by the government, will be wound down, with private-sector Bitcoin wallets continuing to serve the population.
#Cryptonews

The bloodbath in the crypto market is reaching new heights as the price of #Bitcoin continues to show significant volatility, impacting the broader altcoin market.
In the last 24 hours, as many as 361,972 crypto traders have been liquidated, incurring losses exceeding $1.17 billion. This development emerged as the price of Bitcoin tanked by 7% over the past day, revisiting lows of $95,500.
Notably, Bitcoin traded at an all-time high of $108,268 just three days ago. With the recent lows, the premier asset has lost approximately 12% of its value in the past few days.
Traders in the derivative market have borne the brunt of the Bitcoin price slump, most of whom had bet on further increases in Bitcoin. However, the market tilted to the side of the bears.

One Trader Sees Massive $15M Liquidation

Of the $1.17 billion liquidated in the market over the past day, a staggering $1.02 billion came from those who were long on the market. Shorts only suffered a loss of $143.3 million.
Bitcoin traders alone saw losses of $238.76 million, while Ethereum traders followed closely with $220 million liquidated. Notably, the biggest single liquidation order came from an Ethereum investor on Binance, who saw a trade of $15.8 million wiped out. This liquidation order was triggered when the price of Ethereum crashed to $3,432.
Meanwhile, the price of Ethereum didn’t stop there. It went on to touch lows of $3,330, with more traders incurring losses.
Aside from Bitcoin and Ethereum, traders of other crypto assets also saw significant value depreciation over the past day. Traders of Dogecoin, in particular, came next in line with liquidations exceeding $56.53 million.
Other notable liquidations include those from traders of XRP, with $47 million wiped out, and Solana, which also saw $38.53 million in losses.
#Cryptonews

World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a cryptocurrency initiative linked to the Trump family, has significantly increased its on-chain activity over the past week.
According to blockchain data, the project has invested millions of dollars into expanding its crypto holdings, including #Ethereum (ETH), Aave (AAVE), Chainlink (LINK), Ethena (ENA), and Ondo (ONDO). 

Strategic Ethereum Investment

World Liberty Financial’s latest acquisition involves 722.213 ETH for $2.5 million USDC through Cow Protocol on December 20. Notably, Ethereum remains the largest asset in WLFI’s portfolio. This latest acquisition, coming amid the market-wide dip, elevated the project’s total ETH holdings to 15,598 ETH, now worth $52.98 million.
Meanwhile, a $254.28 drop in Ethereum’s price since the earlier purchase has led to a $3.97 million decline in the value of these holdings.

Other Major Holdings

In addition to Ethereum, WLFI has actively increased its stakes in other major cryptocurrencies. Last week, it utilized $1 million in USDC to acquire 3,357 AAVE tokens at an average price of $297.8 per token. This brings the total AAVE holdings to 6,137 tokens, valued at $1.93 million as of December 20. 
The current price of AAVE has dropped to $314.25, resulting in a $135,760 decrease in the holding’s value. Similarly, the project expanded its Chainlink holdings by purchasing 41,335 LINK tokens for $1 million at an average price of $24.2 per token. WLFI now holds 78,387 LINK, valued at $1.81 million, following a notable price decline.
#Cryptonews

The #Bitcoin community reacts to a recent advertisement from asset manager BlackRock, which raised doubt about the 21 million BTC supply cap.
The ad, while promoting Bitcoin’s fixed supply of 21 million as a key feature, included a disclaimer that has sparked intense debate. The statement noted that there is no absolute guarantee that Bitcoin’s supply cap will remain unchanged.  
The video disclosure, shared by prominent Bitcoin advocate Michael Saylor, triggered concerns among some proponents. Some individuals in the community felt that the message could undermine Bitcoin’s core principles.  
#Crypto

The #Shiba Inu ecosystem faces yet another scam attempt as Susbarium, the trusted ecosystem watchdog, issues a new scam alert on Thursday.
The latest alert flagged a fraudulent post claiming to offer SHIFU token rewards to users who register within a 24-hour window. The fake announcement shared via X directed users to a suspicious website and urged them to “act quickly” to claim rewards.

Warning for the Shiba Inu Army

According to Susbarium’s warning, the disclosure is a phishing attempt to deceive users and steal their assets. The post included an image featuring the SHIFU branding, a token of Shiba Inu’s gaming project, Play With Shib. However, the watchdog clarified that the post was not from an official or credible source. 
#Cryptonews