Bitcoin bounced all the way to $95,000 after reaching $80,000 lows, levels that have not been seen since Liberation Day. After the FOMC rate cut, defensive and traditional assets all rallied, but tech and related assets like digital assets and cryptocurrencies are confused. Bitcoin consolidates, and other altcoins are looking for direction. Time will tell if this was a bottom or a dead-cat bounce.
What are the top 5 stories in crypto since the start of December?
Cryptocurrencies rebound after reality check, but challenges persist
The total market cap for the cryptocurrency market has quickly turned from a new all-time high to a catastrophic correction.
Reaching $4.27 trillion on October 5, a shift in market sentiment, particularly around the AI and digital assets boom, led to significant selling flows. A 36% correction took the total valuation for the Market below the 2021 record (of $3.01T), levels not seen since the Liberation Day troughs.
Now hovering around the $3 trillion mark, it will be crucial to monitor whether the crypto market holds above or below this key level by the end of the year, which may also serve as a preview of appetite in 2026.
Crypto total market cap daily chart, December 12, 2025 – Source: TradingView. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Despite the downturn in cryptos, demand for new ETFs shines
Despite the broader market downturn, some major altcoins, including XRP (Ripple), saw robust institutional interest as both Franklin and Grayscale launched new spot Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) for the asset.
Most recent addition to the wave of crypto ETFs, allowing institutional and traditional investors to invest in the new asset class, XRP ETFs are coming close to $1B of valuation in total.1
Market corrections are to be expected after such booms, but with the consistent inflows in ETFs, drops are relatively contained compared to preceding cycles.
Ethereum gets ready for a significant upgrade to its protocol
Anticipation is high for Ethereum's "Fusaka" upgrade2, a major network enhancement initially slated for mid-December aimed at substantially increasing scalability and efficiency for the second-largest crypto.
This pivotal protocol change is a major update, introducing two new blockchain technologies: PeerDAS (Peer Data Availability Sampling) and Verkle Trees.
PeerDAS is crucial for improving the network's ability to handle vast amounts of data, a necessary step for broader adoption.
Concurrently, Verkle Trees will revolutionize data storage by making state data more compact and verification quicker. The synergy of these technologies is expected to dramatically reduce Layer-2 transaction costs across the entire Ethereum ecosystem. These lower gas costs and increased throughput are critical for making decentralized applications (dApps) more affordable, one of Ethereum’s main weak-point.
Fusaka comes after other key upgrades such as the Merge in 2022 and the recent Pectra.3
Binance gets challenged on illicit funds in cryptocurrencies
Following a global investigation from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists into dirty money in crypto, Binance released a report claiming a sharp drop in illicit funds.4
However, crypto analytics firm Chainalysis quickly published a statement on Binance’s figures, having omitted certain categories of crime, including funds stolen through hacks.
The difference could be as large as $1B to several billions in illicit funds still flowing through Binance’s platform, from different sanctioned nations and organizations such as North Korea. Illicit money has long been a concern for cryptocurrencies.
Nevertheless, freedom of access to everyone, transparency, and neutrality are founding principles for Blockchain technology.
The Federal Reserve 25 bps cut provides a boost to risk assets, but cryptocurrencies are still looking for direction.
Bitcoin has seen directionless up-and-down movement following the recent Fed meeting, ranging between $88,000 and $93,000 since last week. Meanwhile, Ethereum is steadily gaining market share from BTC, which, in turn, is holding reasonably resilient demand across the broader altcoin market. Trends and volatility are becoming increasingly muted as many traders begin to enter year-end vacation mode after what has been a highly explosive year.
Close attention must be paid to market sentiment and the year-end closing prices. The performance of cryptocurrencies in the coming year will be a critical test for the overall resilience and long-term viability of the revolutionary market.
Technical levels for Ethereum, Bitcoin, and Solana
Ethereum consolidates after it breaks its downtrend
Ethereum 8H chart, December 15, 2025 – Source: TradingView. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Support levels:
- $3,000 to $3,200 Major pivot (acting as support)
- $2,621 November 21 lows
- $2,500 to $2,700 June key support
- $2,100 June war support
Resistance levels:
- Current all-time highs $4,950
- $4,200 to $4,300 Resistance
- $4,000 to Dec 2024 top higher timeframe pivot zone
- $3,500 (+/- $50) Resistance
Bitcoin struggles to break its descending channel, hanging around $90,000
Bitcoin daily chart, December 15, 2025 – Source: TradingView. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Support levels:
- $88,000 to $93,000 major support turned pivot
- $80,000 to $83,000 mid-term support
- November 21 lows $80,531
- $75,000 Key long-term support
Resistance levels:
- Pre-FOMC highs $94,550
- $98,000 to $100,000 now resistance
- Resistance at previous ATH $106,000 to $108,000
- October 2025 all-time high record $126,255
Solana forms a muted range between $125 and $145
Solana daily chart, December 15, 2025 – Source: TradingView. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Support levels:
- $125 to $130 Range support
- $121 November 21 lows
- $100 to $115 Main support
Resistance levels:
- $140 to $150 Major pivot
- October pivot resistance $165 to $170
- $180 to $190 resistance
- Cycle highs $253.30
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