Hey folks! Welcome back to our Blockchain Bulletin, where we explore the key incidents in the past 24 hours. The 18th of December witnessed major updates as Bitcoin stood steady above the $100k level for the fourth consecutive day.
Despite a temporary pause in its upward trajectory today, Bitcoin‘s remarkable surge past $108,000 has sparked widespread optimism among investors and analysts. Notably, Bitfinex analysts have made a bold prediction, forecasting that the cryptocurrency’s target price will exceed $200,000. Experts pinpointed the bull run to global powers’ Bitcoin reserve strategy and growing institutional demand.
Amidst Bitcoin’s surge, altcoins like XRP have remained resilient. In November alone, XRP appreciated by 464%, increasing from a mere $0.51 to a high of $2.90 by December 3. In anticipation of continued momentum, analysts are setting their sights on the new target—$5.
Stablecoins were also strong during this bull run after the US elections of November. Tether (USDC), in particular, retained its dominance in the stablecoin market, recording a substantial daily net inflow of $40 million. In addition, Tether announced its strategic investment in European stablecoin provider StablR to accelerate adoption in the region.
In contrast, the meme coin market experienced a downturn, with its trading volume decreasing by over 50% in a month. Reportedly, meme coins saw their volume reaching below $14 billion, from a notable $30 billion. Popular meme tokens like Dogecoin (DOGE), Pepe (PEPE), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and dogwifhat (WIF) were down by a significant percentage.
Considering the political front, President-elect Donald Trump’s appointment of David Sacks as the US’ first-ever crypto czar has evoked optimism. Prominent figures like Senator Cynthia Lummis and MicroStrategy founder Michael Saylor welcome Sacks, boosting crypto leadership prospects. Saylor believes that Sacks could turn America into a global leader in financial innovation. Lummis echoed this sentiment, predicting 2025 to be a landmark year for Bitcoin and digital assets.
Meanwhile, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has sued Binance Australia for allegedly misclassifying retail clients as wholesale investors. The regulators claimed that the exchange provided false evidence of wholesale status to more than 500 retail clients. The ASIC also accused Binance of having poor compliance standards, resulting in customers’ loss of funds.
At the same time, Asia’s MicroStrategy, Metaplanet, announced the launch of Bitcoin Treasury Operations to strengthen crypto market presence. The company has decided to integrate Bitcoin into its financial framework, indicating a major shift in the platform’s business strategy.
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