Crypto investors got some breathing room this week as the IRS pushed back its new tax reporting rules for brokers to Jan. 1, 2026. The delay gives centralized exchanges time to adapt to regulations requiring investors to choose how their crypto sales are taxed. If no method is selected, brokers will use First-In, First-Out (FIFO), where the oldest (and often cheapest) assets are sold first — potentially leading to bigger tax bills in a rising market. Tax experts flagged this as a disaster waiting to happen, so the postponement is welcome news.
This follows another IRS rule stirring controversy in DeFi, set for 2027, requiring brokers to report users' personal data and trades. Critics, like the Blockchain Association, argue it threatens privacy and innovation, prompting a lawsuit.
2️⃣ Bitcoin Price Action Sees Stability Amid Cautious Optimism
Bitcoin began its recovery this week, rising ~4% to ~ $97.5K after its dip to ~$91.5K. Meanwhile, AI tokens have surged, with the entire market cap up ~50% over the past 7 days, while popular tokens like AI16Z have netted triple-digit gains.
Other popular alts like ENA and VIRTUAL have also experienced strong gains, up ~25-30% with “dino” coins like XLM, ALGO, and ADA right on their heels. Hopefully, that isn’t a bad sign…
3️⃣ Do Kwon Extradited to the U.S., Pleads Not Guilty
After finally being extradited from Montenegro, Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon appeared in a New York court this week to face multiple charges, including money laundering, securities fraud, and market manipulation. Kwon, whose Terra USD (UST) stablecoin collapsed in 2022, pleaded not guilty to all charges.
U.S. prosecutors claim Kwon built a “financial world” on deception, manipulating Terraform's products to mislead investors and regulators. If convicted on all counts, Kwon could face up to 130 years in prison. His next court appearance is scheduled for Jan. 8th. Despite the gravity of the charges, Kwon was reported to be in “good spirits” during his arraignment.
4️⃣ Tether's Market Cap Declines Amid MiCA Challenges
Tether saw its sharpest market cap drop since the FTX crash, falling over 1% to ~$137B this week. European exchanges and Coinbase delisted USDT due to MiCA compliance concerns, limiting its trade in the euro area — a situation long in the making.
Despite the dip, Tether continues to dominate stablecoin markets, with particular resilience provided by the fact that 80% of USDT trading volume comes from Asia. Further, it has invested in MiCA-compliant firms, signaling a move to align with evolving regulations.
5️⃣ Ethena Outlines 2025 Vision
Ethena continues to run full steam ahead, outlining their 2025 plans to launch new projects bridging DeFi and TradFi. To begin, Ethena will launch iUSDenext month, a wrapped version of sUSDe designed for institutional use. With features like transfer restrictions, iUSDe will be distributed through traditional finance partners, targeting $10B in additional capacity as a high-yield alternative to fixed-income products.
Ethena is also developing a Telegram-based neobank, integrating sUSDe savings, payments, and Apple Pay support for the platform’s 900M+ users. Finally, in DeFi, Ethena will launch Ethereal, a spot and perpetual exchange, and Derive, an options platform, both leveraging sUSDe.
FRIEND & SPONSOR: CARTESI
Season 2: Methamorphosis is now live on mETH Protocol, following the launch of their governance token, COOK, and cmETH, the liquid restaked version of mETH. With cmETH, holders can enjoy yields across multiple restaking protocols like Karak, EigenLayer, Symbiotic, while earning Powder for more COOK.
This week’s rollup kicks off our 5th year with exciting updates!
We dive into our top 10 predictions for 2025, from AI-driven crypto market surges to ETH hitting $15K. DeFi faces new challenges with the IRS’s rule to KYC all “DeFi brokers” by 2027, while Ethereum’s “blobs” dominate as the top ETH burners. DEX volumes soared to record highs in December, and Do Kwon’s extradition to the U.S. moves forward. On a lighter note, Vitalik Buterin adopted a memecoin-inspired pygmy hippo!
Dive into market updates and insights on what’s next for Ethereum this year 👇
Not financial or tax advice. Bankless content is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This newsletter is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
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