On December 22, 2025, JPMorgan Chase began evaluating institutional cryptocurrency trading, with potential spot and derivatives offerings under review. The bank is in an early exploratory phase, assessing compliance, operations, and risk, amid rising client demand and expanding competitor services.

SEC Chair Paul Atkins, speaking at an SEC Crypto Task Force roundtable, warned that expanding government oversight could turn blockchain and crypto systems into a financial surveillance tool. He argued that treating every wallet as a broker and every transaction as reportable risks creating a financial panopticon, and called for a regulatory framework that protects lawful activity and individual privacy while still allowing innovation.

MetaMask enabled native Bitcoin functionality on December 15, 2025, letting users buy, send, receive, and swap BTC within the wallet. The update supports SegWit addresses, with Taproot planned, and offers purchasing via credit cards, PayPal, and bank transfers. MetaMask also introduced a $30 million rewards program to drive user engagement.

YO Labs said it raised $10 million in a Series A round to scale its cross-chain yield protocol, YO Protocol. Foundation Capital led, with Coinbase Ventures, Scribble Ventures, and Launchpad Capital participating. The funds will extend support to more blockchains and strengthen risk-adjusted infrastructure for wallets, fintechs, and developers.

Coinbase plans to introduce prediction markets and tokenized equities on December 17, based on information attributed to Bloomberg sources. The exchange intends to let users trade outcomes of real-world events and on-chain representations of stocks, while issuing the tokenized equities internally to keep tighter control over infrastructure.

Swiss-based AMINA Bank adopted Ripple Payments, becoming the first European bank to go live with the system on December 12, 2025. According to Ripple, the integration enables near real-time cross-border transfers over fiat and blockchain rails and supports multi-currency payouts and RLUSD flows within a regulated framework. Ripple says the network already processes more than $95 billion.

Revolut and Trust Wallet rolled out instant crypto purchases for EU users, with assets delivered directly into Trust Wallet for self-custody. The integration supports RevolutPay, debit cards, and bank transfers, with 0% Revolut Pay fees in some cases and possible network or third‑party charges. Supported assets include Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, USDC, and USDT.

Bhutan has introduced TER, a physical gold-backed digital token issued via Gelephu Mindfulness City on the Solana blockchain, with custody provided by DK Bank, the country’s first licensed digital bank. Scheduled to launch on December 17, 2025, TER is intended to give global investors on-chain exposure to gold as part of Bhutan’s wider blockchain and economic strategy, according to Bhutan. The project seeks to combine the perceived stability of gold with the mobility and transparency of blockchain-based assets.

On December 10, 2025, Tether introduced QVAC Health, an AI-powered wellness app that keeps fitness, nutrition, and biometric data encrypted and stored locally on users’ devices, according to QVAC. The issuer of the $186 billion USDT stablecoin is expanding further into artificial intelligence and decentralized technology. Tether also holds a majority stake in brain-computer interface firm Blackrock Neurotech valued at $200 million.