Amid a significant shift in the US government's attitude towards digital assets, PwC, one of the Big Four accounting firms, is increasing its investment in cryptocurrencies and related businesses. Paul Griggs, PwC's US head, stated that this strategic shift began last year, primarily benefiting from the appointment of pro-crypto regulatory officials and the advancement of several digital asset-related legislations in the US Congress. Griggs pointed out that the regulatory framework surrounding stablecoins and the Genius Act are helping to boost market confidence in these assets, and asset tokenization will continue to develop, requiring PwC to be deeply involved in this emerging ecosystem. The report states that these statements reflect that changes in the policy environment are prompting traditional blue-chip institutions to reassess and gradually enter the digital asset market, which they had previously maintained a cautious stance towards. (Financial Times)

According to Cointelegraph, Visa-issued crypto cards experienced a substantial increase in usage in 2025, with the total net spend rising by 525% over the previous year. Data from Dune Analytics reveals that the total net spend for six crypto cards, issued by blockchain projects in collaboration with Visa, escalated from $14.6 million in January to $91.3 million by the end of December. The six cards monitored include those from crypto payment platforms GnosisPay and Cypher, as well as decentralized finance projects EtherFi, Avici Money, Exa App, and Moonwell. Among these, the Visa-partnered EtherFi card led the pack with a total spend of $55.4 million, significantly outpacing Cypher, which secured the second spot with $20.5 million. These figures highlight the rapid adoption of crypto cards among users and underscore the strategic significance of crypto and stablecoins within Visa's global payment ecosystem, as noted by Polygon researcher @obchakevich_ on X. The increase in spending volume indicates that crypto has evolved from an experimental technology to a fully integrated tool for everyday financial transactions. Visa is poised for further growth with its crypto cards in 2026, as the company has intensified its focus on stablecoin ventures in recent months. The traditional payments firm now supports stablecoins across four blockchains and has been actively forming partnerships and enhancing infrastructure to expand access to these assets for both retail and institutional clients. In mid-December, Visa advanced its efforts by launching a stablecoin advisory team dedicated to assisting banks, merchants, and fintechs in launching and managing stablecoin products.

PwC is one of the largest and most influential accounting and professional services companies in the world, with global revenues of around $56. 9 billion as of October last year. source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/pwc-leaning-crypto-us-regulation?utm_source=rss_feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound

According to BlockBeats, Japan's Finance Minister, Katayama Satsuki, announced at the Tokyo Stock Exchange's New Year opening ceremony that 2026 will be designated as the 'Digital Year.' Katayama emphasized the crucial role of commodity and securities exchanges in enabling citizens to benefit from digital and blockchain assets. She expressed hope that exchange infrastructure would facilitate the widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies and digital assets. Katayama noted that in the United States, crypto assets have become a tool for combating inflation through exchange-traded funds (ETFs), suggesting that Japan might consider similar measures. As the Minister of Finance, Katayama pledged full support for exchanges in their efforts to create a trading environment utilizing advanced financial technology and expressed optimism for a record-breaking stock market this year.

Dune Analytics data reveals a surge from $14. 6 million to $91. 3 million in net spend across Visa's key crypto cards, led by EtherFi, in 2025. source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/net-spend-visa-crypto-cards-increased-by-525-percent-2025?utm_source=rss_feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound

The Nikkei 225 index touched 52,000 points, its highest level since November 4th of last year. (Jinshi)

Chainfeeds founder Zhixiong Pan posted on the X platform that Ethereum gas fees have hit a record low since the mainnet launch and are continuing to break records. At certain times, gas fees have even fallen below 0.03 Gwei. Furthermore, Ethereum will continue to increase block size this year (meaning gas fees will decrease further).

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null source: https://x.com/decryptmedia/status/2008052090191434003

Analysts cite Bitcoin portfolio rebalancing as institutional investors price in three more years of Trump's "America First" policy. source: https://decrypt.co/353546/blackrocks-bitcoin-etf-biggest-inflow-three-months

The amount of crypto sent to Binance rose in the past week, but CryptoOnchain says the other side of the trade, the buyers, are yet to show up. source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/crypto-whales-deposit-binance-buyers-missing-analyst?utm_source=rss_feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound

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A small group of newly created Polymarket wallets made over $630,000 by betting on the removal of Venezuela’s president shortly before a surprise US military operation confirmed the outcome. The timing raised insider trading concerns and prompted US lawmakers to move towards banning government officials from trading on prediction markets.

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Ilya Lichtenstein, the hacker behind one of the largest Bitcoin thefts in history, has been released from prison — not through a presidential pardon, but under a criminal justice law signed by Trump during his first term.

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Golden (Shenzhen) Information Service Co., Ltd. - A professional provider of software development, artificial intelligence applications, and cybersecurity solutions.

Golden (Shenzhen) Information Service Co., Ltd. - A professional provider of software development, artificial intelligence applications, and cybersecurity solutions.

Golden (Shenzhen) Information Service Co., Ltd. - A professional provider of software development, artificial intelligence applications, and cybersecurity solutions.