The US SEC concludes its investigation into Aave; US non-farm payrolls in November exceed expectations.

Headline

▌US SEC Ends Four-Year Investigation into Aave Protocol

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ended its four-year investigation into the Aave protocol. Aave's founder stated that the team invested significant resources in responding to the SEC's investigation.

▌US November Non-Farm Payrolls Exceed Expectations

US non-farm payrolls increased by 64,000 in November, exceeding the estimated increase of 50,000.

As of press time, according to CoinGecko data: BTC price is $87,738.03, a 24-hour change of +1.5%; ETH price is $2,956.73, a 24-hour change of -0.2%; BNB price is $873.29, a 24-hour change of +1.7%. SOL price is $128.50, up 0.8% in the last 24 hours; DOGE price is $0.1315, up 1.7% in the last 24 hours; XRP price is $1.92, up 1.6% in the last 24 hours; TRX price is $0.2804, up 0.7% in the last 24 hours. WLFI price is $0.1347, up 0.7% in the last 24 hours; HYPE price is $26.63, down 3.2% in the last 24 hours. Policy ▌US Senator Warren calls for investigation into DeFi projects related to Trump, further delaying the crypto market structure bill. Senator Elizabeth Warren, the senior Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, has called for a national security investigation into certain DeFi platforms, focusing on their potential ties to Trump's business interests. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant and Attorney General Pam Bondi, Warren specifically named PancakeSwap, alleging it could amplify tokens issued by World Liberty Financial, a company linked to Trump, and demanded an investigation into whether the Trump administration exerted undue political influence on law enforcement decisions. This move comes amid ongoing wrangling in the US Senate over legislation concerning the structure of the crypto market. Warren criticized DeFi platforms for their massive daily transaction volumes coupled with a lack of identity verification, highlighting regulatory disagreements as a key "red line" for the bill's ability to gain industry support. Due to significant differences between Democrats and Republicans on DeFi regulation and conflicts of interest among senior officials, the bill has been postponed until January and still faces the risk of further delays due to budget negotiations.

▌US FDIC to Establish Application Process for Regulated Entities Seeking to Issue Payment Stablecoins

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced the approval of a proposed rule to establish an application process for regulated entities seeking to issue payment stablecoins. A 60-day public comment period has begun. This is reportedly the first formal rule proposal since the passage of the GENIUS Act, the "US Stablecoin Innovation Act."

▌UK Regulators Launch Consultation on New Cryptocurrency Rules

According to Reuters, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) launched a broad consultation on a series of proposed rules for the cryptocurrency industry on Tuesday. This comes a day after the UK government announced it would begin regulating the industry from October 2027.

▌PBOC Shanghai Headquarters: Digital RMB Has No Room for Speculation; Beware of Scams

On December 16, the Shanghai Headquarters of the People's Bank of China (PBOC) issued a reminder that the digital RMB is a digital form of legal tender, employing a two-tier operating structure of "PBOC-Digital RMB Business Operation Institution." No private promotion centers have been established, and there is no examination for digital RMB promoters. The digital RMB has no room for speculation; there are no so-called "exchange subsidies" or "transaction rebates," and it will not promote high commissions or high returns from cryptocurrency trading. It will not induce users to disclose sensitive personal information or participate in pyramid schemes. When faced with promises of "high returns" and "guaranteed profits" from so-called "digital RMB investments," remain vigilant, do not easily believe them, and beware of being scammed to avoid financial losses. If you suspect you have been scammed, report it to the police immediately.

Blockchain Applications

▌US FTC Demands Nomad Cross-Chain Bridge Operator Compensate Users and Pursue Accountability for $186 Million Theft in 2022

According to Jinse Finance, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a proposed settlement with Illusory Systems, the operator of the Nomad cross-chain bridge, demanding that it return recovered funds to users for a hacking attack in 2022 caused by a code update vulnerability. This incident resulted in the theft of approximately $186 million in digital assets, with users suffering a net loss exceeding $100 million. The FTC accused Illusory of advertising Nomad as "security-first," but failing to adequately test the code, lacking effective vulnerability disclosure and emergency response mechanisms, and even failing to shut down the system in a timely manner when the attack occurred. Under the settlement terms, Illusory must rectify its information security system, undergo an independent biennial security audit, and refrain from making false claims about its security measures.

▌Coinbase moves its registered office from Delaware to Texas

According to filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Coinbase has moved its registered office from Delaware to Texas. This change in registered office will not alter the company's business operations or management structure.

▌Stablecoin payment company RedotPay completes $107 million Series B funding

Hong Kong-based fintech company RedotPay, specializing in stablecoin payments, announced the completion of a $107 million Series B funding round, led by Goodwater Capital, with participation from Pantera Capital, Blockchain Capital, Circle Ventures, and existing investor HSG (formerly Sequoia Capital China).

▌predict.fun Airdrop Coming Soon

Predict.fun announced the official launch of Predict.fun. The team has taken snapshots of the following user addresses: addresses that have traded a significant amount of Meme coins on BNB Chain; addresses that have participated in perpetual contract trading on Aster DEX; and users active in prediction markets such as Polymarket, Limitless, Myriad Markets, and Opinion Labs; as well as existing participants in Predict (Blast). The airdrop query page will also be open.

▌Coinbase to List Theoriq (THQ) Spot Trading

Coinbase will list Theoriq (THQ) spot trading. If liquidity conditions are met, the THQ-USD trading pair will open later today.

▌Binance Wallet to Launch Infrared (IR) Exclusive TGE on December 17th

According to the official announcement, Binance Wallet will launch an exclusive Infrared (IR) TGE. Subscription period: December 17, 2025, 4 PM to 6 PM (UTC+8). Eligibility: Eligible users must use Binance Alpha Points to participate. An additional 5,000,000 IR will be used for future activities; specific details will be announced separately. TGE details and the event page will be released soon.

▌Bessenter: Speculation that the Fed chair nominee will be announced in early January

US Treasury Secretary Bessenter: Speculation that the Fed chair nominee will be announced in early January. There may be one or two more Fed interviews this week, and President Trump has been very frank about policy-related questions during these interviews.

According to Jinse Finance, citing CME's "FedWatch," the probability of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates by 25 basis points in January is 24.4%, while the probability of keeping rates unchanged is 75.6%. By March, the probability of a cumulative 25 basis point rate cut is 43.5%, the probability of keeping rates unchanged is 47.5%, and the probability of a cumulative 50 basis point rate cut is 9.1%. (Jinse Encyclopedia) Prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket are booming, with trading volumes reaching billions of dollars. However, observers are concerned about the ethical issues and potential credit risks posed by large prediction betting platforms. In recent weeks, concerns about false reporting and insider trading have intensified, with some analysts arguing that this is further exacerbating credit risk. Prediction markets open up a wide range of possibilities for betting events, from specific segments of sports matches to the outcome of wars. In some cases, this has led to insider manipulation of the market for specific purposes. Allegations of market manipulation are not limited to insider trading. A report released in November by researchers at Columbia Business School showed that false trading—that is, "buying and selling securities to artificially inflate trading volume without holding actual net positions"—had rebounded to nearly 20% of total trading volume by October 2025, and averaged 25% of all trading volume on Polymarket. This year, prediction platforms have received several significant regulatory approvals. Others argue that this could pose a risk to the financial and credit system. These risks could put pressure on credit quality, and the online betting market "presents a new kind of risk to lenders that they have never encountered before, and underwriting models may need to be adjusted." In addition to lacking proper gambling licenses, these platforms pose a "serious risk" to consumers, who may not realize that betting on these illegal platforms does not guarantee the security of their funds or information.