At the beginning of the new year, everything is new. Foresight News takes everyone to look forward to the major events of the new year and the annual summit, and together we start the industry exploration journey in 2025.
Written by angelilu, Foresight News
The crypto world has recorded several epoch-making breakthroughs in 2024: Bitcoin halving is on schedule, Ethereum completes Cancun upgrade, and the US crypto ETF is finally approved. Looking ahead to 2025, although there are fewer milestones with clear time nodes, this "uncertainty" may open up a broader imagination space for the industry. A year without a set script often contains more possibilities for innovation and breakthroughs.
To help industry insiders plan for the future, we have sorted out the important time nodes in the encryption field in 2025 and compiled more than 40 Web3 industry events worth paying attention to.
January 20: Trump returns to the White House
An important time point in 2025 that will affect crypto and the global economy is the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States. The inauguration ceremony is scheduled for January 20, 2025, and several crypto companies such as Ripple, Kraken and Ondo, as well as several technology companies, have provided financial support for Trump's inauguration ceremony.
All parties in the market are closely watching the policy direction of the Trump 2.0 administration. Although the specific policy details and implementation plans are not yet clear, Trump's positive attitude towards cryptocurrencies during the campaign indicates that the Web3 industry may usher in new development opportunities, and US regulatory policies are expected to become more open and inclusive. Gary Gensler, chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), will step down on the day of the president's inauguration, which may ease the long-standing tension between the crypto industry and regulators.
The three important bills that the Trump administration may promote include: the Bitcoin Reserve Act, the Financial Innovation Act (FIT21), and the Payment Stablecoin Clarity Act. Among them, the Bitcoin Reserve Act proposed by Senator Cynthia Lummis recommends that the U.S. Treasury purchase a total of 1 million bitcoins within five years. This bill will not only enhance the status of Bitcoin, but if passed, it may also lead to multiple countries following suit. As a comprehensive bill, FIT21 aims to build a complete legal framework for cryptocurrencies, blockchain technology, and digital assets, clearly define the commodity or security attributes of cryptocurrencies, and propose a regulatory model led by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and assisted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Looking ahead, the Trump administration’s policy dividends may also include: accelerating the approval of more crypto spot ETFs, supporting crypto unicorns such as Ripple and Circle to list in the United States, and opening up U.S. pension funds to invest in cryptocurrencies.
Q1: Ethereum Pectra Upgrade
The Ethereum Foundation plans to implement an important upgrade codenamed "Pectra" in the first quarter of 2025, which will further optimize the performance of the Ethereum network. Due to the large number of EIPs included in this upgrade, all Pectra EIPs are planned to be implemented in two hard forks. Key changes include allowing users to pay gas fees with different tokens, speeding up smart contract execution, and increasing staking rewards for validators. Some of them are expected to enhance the experience of users and smart contract developers. The biggest update for users is that they can use cryptocurrencies other than ETH to pay gas fees.
January 1: IRS implements new accounting rules
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will launch a new 1099-DA form reporting system on January 1, 2025, requiring all cryptocurrency exchanges to use the new 1099-DA form to report user transaction information. The new regulations require exchanges to record users' purchase prices, selling prices, holding periods and other information in detail, and provide relevant reports to users and the IRS before January 31 each year. This policy will help investors calculate capital gains taxes more accurately, while also bringing a more standardized tax compliance system to the cryptocurrency market, and is an important step for the cryptocurrency industry to move towards the mainstream financial market.
January 1: Basel Risk Framework for Crypto-Assets
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) will implement (Bank Crypto Asset Risk Disclosure Framework and Capital Standards) on January 1, 2025. The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) is an international organization composed of central banks and banking regulators around the world. The main task of BCBS is to develop standards and rules for the global banking industry to ensure the stability and security of banking systems in various countries. Although BCBS standards are not laws, their recommendations are usually adopted and implemented by central banks and regulators in various countries. The main changes and requirements of the new regulations are to increase risk assessment of crypto asset infrastructure, ensure the redemption ability of stablecoins under pressure, strengthen supervision of stablecoin issuers, and limit the number of high-risk crypto assets held by banks.
January 1: South Korean crypto exchanges asked to pay regulatory fees
South Korea has a large number of retail crypto traders, and the country has been working hard on regulating crypto transactions. According to Korean media reports, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) Establishment Act will be implemented on January 1. From 2025, Korean virtual asset service providers including Dunamu (Upbit), Bithumb and Coinone will be required to pay regulatory fees. Regulatory fees are calculated based on operating income and paid by financial institutions such as banks, investment companies, and insurance companies to cover FSC inspection and supervision services.
The specific contribution rate will be determined around March. The regulator has notified the annual contribution level of around 6 billion won. It is expected that Upbit will bear a regulatory contribution of approximately 5 billion won (based on the operating income of Dunamu's 2023 consolidated financial statements), and Bithumb and Coinone will pay approximately 600 million won each. The actual payment scale may vary depending on the scale of operating income this year.
January 3: FTX restructuring plan takes effect
After two years of waiting, FTX creditors are finally waiting for asset compensation. FTX's Chapter 11 reorganization plan will officially take effect on January 3, 2025, and the first round of distribution will start within 60 days after the effective date. Sunil, an FTX creditor activist, said that FTX has recovered about $13 billion, which is expected to increase to $14 billion by March. The venture capital portfolio and litigation are expected to recover $5-7 billion. About $7 billion (50%) is reserved for disputed claims, which will not participate in the initial distribution for the time being. The first batch of about $7 billion in cash will be distributed in March 2024. Subsequent distributions will be made after the disputed claims are resolved, and the recovery of the remaining assets is expected to be completed in the next 2-3 years. According to its bankruptcy plan, FTX will first compensate 98% of creditors in cash based on the dollar value of their claims at the time of bankruptcy in November 2022, with an estimated compensation ratio of 118%; the remaining creditors will also receive a 100% compensation ratio, plus time value compensation totaling billions of dollars.
FTX's initial allocation is for approved claim holders in the Convenience Classes. FTX has reached an agreement with cryptocurrency custodian BitGo and exchange Kraken to provide asset allocation services to retail and institutional clients. To qualify for the first round of allocations, users must complete the following steps before January 3, 2025: Log in to the FTX Debtor Client Portal, complete KYC identity verification, submit necessary tax forms, and open an account at BitGo or Kraken.
January 15: Crypto Man released
The cryptocurrency-themed movie (Crypto Man) directed by Korean director Hyun Hae-ri will be released on January 15, 2025. It is adapted from a $34.9 billion cryptocurrency crash and starred by the late actor Song Jae-rim. The film tells the story of the protagonist Yang Daoxian (played by Song Jae-rim) who successfully issued the cryptocurrency MOMMY with his friends after experiencing many entrepreneurial failures, but then encountered regulatory scrutiny. After strict legal consultation, the film will show the current life of young Koreans "stock trading during the day and cryptocurrency trading at night" in a black humor form. According to Upbit data, as of the end of 2023, there were 3,759 cryptocurrency millionaires in South Korea, among which investors in their 20s held $3.65 million in digital assets per person.
June 30: End of the first transition period for EU MiCA regulations
The European Union (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation Act) (MiCA) has been fully implemented since the end of December last year. It is the world's first comprehensive regulatory framework specifically for crypto assets. The regulation will require all crypto service providers operating in the EU to obtain specific licenses and comply with strict capital adequacy requirements. At the same time, the regulation will also introduce stablecoin issuance standards, requiring issuers to hold sufficient reserves and disclose reserve status regularly. The implementation of this framework will bring greater transparency and stability to the EU crypto market and promote the mainstreaming of crypto assets. Many EU countries have provided local crypto companies with a transition period of at least 6 months, so June 30 is the end of the transition period for the MiCA regulation.
October 31: Mt. Gox compensation deadline
Mt.Gox changed the deadline for compensation from October 31, 2024 to October 31, 2025. Mt.Gox said that as of October 2024, it had basically completed the compensation requests of creditors who applied. This extension was mainly due to the fact that some creditors may not be able to complete the application process within the original deadline due to various reasons (such as insufficient document preparation, communication barriers, etc.).
Mt.Gox was once one of the world's largest Bitcoin exchanges. In February 2014, it filed for bankruptcy after suffering a hacker attack and losing about 850,000 Bitcoins, affecting more than 24,000 users worldwide. According to the compensation plan, since the stolen assets can no longer be recovered, Mt.Gox can only pay creditors about 23.6% of their original claims. The composition of the compensation assets is divided into two parts, one is cash, which comes from the proceeds of BTC sold by the Japanese government during the high point in 2017, and the other is BTC. Cash is 5%-10%, and BTC is 95%-90%. The specific ratio can be selected.
2025: Hong Kong virtual asset regulation development
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority expects to launch a comprehensive stablecoin regulatory framework in 2025. The (Stablecoin Bill) was first read in December 2024, and the legislative process is accelerating. If passed, this will be one of the most comprehensive stablecoin regulatory systems in Asia. Under the proposed licensing system, issuing fiat stablecoins in Hong Kong or actively promoting their issuance of fiat stablecoins to the Hong Kong public must first obtain a license from the Monetary Authority.
In addition, according to the virtual asset regulatory roadmap previously released by the Hong Kong government, Hong Kong will set up a virtual asset licensed platform advisory group in early 2025 and propose a licensing system for virtual asset custody service providers in 2025. The system will require custody service providers to obtain a license before conducting business in Hong Kong to strengthen the protection of investors' assets.
In addition to the above-mentioned important events with confirmed dates or announced approximate date ranges, Uniswap's new network Unichain mainnet will be launched in early 2025, and the Linea token will be launched in the first quarter of 2025. The Foresight News calendar will update industry trends in real time. Click here for updates.
A sneak peek at Web3 events worth watching in 2025
January
METAVSUMMIT
Date: January 7-8, 2025
Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Link: https://metavsummit.com/
Move DevCon
Date: January 11, 2025
Location: Shenzhen, China
Link: https://www.bagevent.com/event/8949498
DavosWeb3
Date: January 22, 2025
Location: Davos, Switzerland
Link: https://davosweb3.com/
WAGMI 2025
Date: January 22-24, 2025
Location: Florida, USA
Link: https://wagmi.miami/
February
NFT Paris 2025
Date: February 13-14, 2025
Location: Paris, France
Link: https://www.nftparis.xyz/
Consensus 2025
Date: February 18-20, 2025
Location: Hong Kong, China
Link: https://consensus-hongkong2025.coindesk.com/
ETHDenver 2025
Date: February 23 to March 2, 2025
Location: Denver, USA
Link: https://www.ethdenver.com/
Pragma Denver 2025
Date: February 25, 2025
Location: Denver, USA
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events/pragma-denver2025
March
Crypto Expo Europe
Date: March 2-3, 2025
Location: New York, USA
Link: https://cryptoexpoeurope.com/
Web3 Amsterdam
Date: March 13-14, 2025
Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Link: https://web3amsterdam.com/
Digital Asset Summit 2025
Date: March 18 to March 20, 2025
Location: New York, USA
Link: https://blockworks.co/event/digital-asset-summit-2025-new-york
Next Block Expo - Warsaw 2025
Date: March 19 to March 20, 2025
Location: Warsaw, Poland
Link: https://nextblockexpo.com/
Southeast Asia Blockchain Week 2025
Time: March 30 to April 5, 2025
Location: Bangkok, Thailand
Link: https://seablockchainweek.org/
April
Pragma Taipei
Date: April 3, 2025
Location: Taiwan
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
ETHGlobal Taipei 2025
Date: April 4-6, 2025
Location: Taiwan
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events/taipei
Hong Kong Web3 Carnival 2025
Date: April 6-9, 2025
Location: Hong Kong, China
Link: https://www.web3festival.org/hongkong2025
Paris Blockchain Week 2025
Date: April 8-10, 2025
Location: Paris, France
Link: https://www.parisblockchainweek.com/
TEAMZ Web3/AI Summit 2025
Date: April 16-17, 2025
Location: Tokyo, Japan
Link: https://web3.teamz.co.jp/
TOKEN2049 Dubai 2025
Date: April 30 to May 1, 2025
Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Link: https://www.dubai.token2049.com/
May
Canada Crypto Week
Date: May 11-17, 2025
Location: Toronto, Canada
Link: https://www.canadacryptoweek.com/
ETHWomen
Date: May 13, 2025
Location: Toronto, Canada
Link: https://www.ethwomen.com/
Bitcoin Las Vegas 2025
Date: May 27-29, 2025
Location: Las Vegas, USA
Link: https://b.tc/conference/2025
Pragma Prague
Date: May 29, 2025
Location: Prague, Czech Republic
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
ETHGlobal Prague
Time: May 30-June 1, 2025
Location: Prague, Czech Republic
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
June
Non Fungible Conference 2025
Date: June 4-6, 2025
Location: Lisbon, Portugal
Link: https://www.nonfungibleconference.com/
Istanbul Blockchain Week
Date: June 18-19, 2025
Location: Istanbul, Turkey
Link: https://istanbulblockchainweek.com/
BTC Prague
Date: June 19-21, 2025
Location: Prague, Czech Republic
Link: https://btcprague.com/#
NFT NYC 2026
Date: June 23-25, 2025
Location: New York, USA
Link: https://www.nft.nyc/
Permissionless IV
Date: June 24-26, 2025
Location: New York, USA
Link: https://blockworks.co/event/permissionless-iv
EthCC 8
Time: June 30 to July 3, 2025
Location: Cannes, France
Link: https://ethcc.io/
July
IVS2025 KYOTO
Date: July 2-4, 2025
Location: Kyoto, Japan
Link: https://www.ivs.events/2025
Pragma Cannes
Date: July 3, 2025
Location: Cannes, France
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
ETHGlobal Cannes
Time: July 4-6, 2025
Location: Cannes, France
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
August
FORESIGHT 2025
Time: August 2025
Location: Asia
Link: Stay tuned
Pragma New York 2025
Date: August 14, 2025
Location: New York, USA
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
WebX Asia 2025
Date: August 28-29, 2025
Location: Tokyo, Japan
Link: https://webx-asia.com/2025/
September
ETHSofia
Time: September 2025
Location: Sofia, Bulgaria
Link: https://www.ethsofia.com/
Pragma New Delhi
Date: September 25, 2025
Location: New Delhi, India
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
ETHGlobal New Delhi
Date: September 26-28, 2025
Location: New Delhi, India
Link: https://ethglobal.com/events
October
TOKEN2049 Singapore 2025
Date: October 1-2, 2025
Location: Singapore
Link: https://www.asia.token2049.com/
Blockchain Life 2025
Date: October 28-29, 2025
Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Link: https://blockchain-life.com/
November
Australian Crypto Convention 2025
Date: November 22-23, 2025
Location: Sydney, Australia
Link: https://auscryptocon.com/
ETHWomen
Date: November 5-6, 2025
Location: Florida, USA
Link: https://www.ethwomen.com/
December
Solana Breakpoint 2025
Date: December 11-13, 2025
Location: Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Link: https://solana.com/breakpoint
Time to be determined
GM Vietnam 2025
Bitcoin 2025
Bitcoin AMSTERDAM 2025
EDCON 2025
KBW2025
Mainnet 2025
Devconnect 2025
Thailand Blockchain Week2025
IBW2025
Taipei Blockchain Week 2025
