At its Institutional Gala in Dubai, Bybit said it has secured full authorization under the UAE's Virtual Asset Platform Operator framework and outlined plans for a regulated, institution-focused digital asset platform. The exchange reported that institutional asset inflows rose from about $1.3 billion in Q3 to $2.88 billion in Q4, with assets under management increasing from $40 million to $200 million over the same period. Bybit also upgraded its INS Credit Suite to offer up to 5X leverage and support custody-based real-world asset tokens, while cutting Market Maker Gateway execution latency from 30 milliseconds to 5 milliseconds.

Nearly half of high-net-worth investors in Asia-Pacific now allocate more than 10% of their portfolios to crypto, with 87% of over 270 respondents already holding digital assets, according to Sygnum's APAC HNWI Report 2025. Most plan to increase exposure, with median allocations in the 10%–20% range and a weighted average close to 17%.

Bitcoin slipped nearly 2% during early Asian trading on Thursday, even as regional equity markets advanced after the U.S. Federal Reserve delivered a widely expected 25 bps rate cut on December 10, 2025. Fed Chair Jerome Powell struck a cautiously optimistic tone on policy normalization, prompting traders to reassess the pace of easing heading into 2026.

On December 11, the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a report on banks’ debanking of controversial sectors, signaling potential accountability measures for JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup. Bitcoin traded at $91,139.17 with a $1.82 trillion market cap, showing -1.10% over 24 hours and -21.22% across 90 days.

MicroStrategy’s stock has reportedly seen higher trading volume than Amazon, with Wall Street institutions using the shares for Bitcoin-linked exposure. Michael Saylor’s advocacy of Bitcoin and the company’s large corporate holdings are viewed as key reasons why its equity trading closely tracks crypto market dynamics, according to posts on Binance Square and KuCoin. Bitcoin is quoted around $92,040.78 with a $1.84 trillion market capitalization and $65.07 billion in daily volume, based on CoinMarketCap data. The figures show active trading and liquidity in Bitcoin despite recent price declines.

According to the analysis, Ethereum has delivered its strongest rebound since mid-October and is now challenging the 50-day EMA near $3,350. XRP is moving toward a resistance cluster around $2.15–$2.25, with short-term confirmation expected above roughly $2.28. SHIB was rejected at $0.0000089–$0.0000091, leaving its short-term downtrend in place.

In 2025, meme coins again topped crypto narratives, drawing 25.02% of global investor interest alongside 35 related trends. AI-focused narratives collectively accounted for 22.39% of attention, with AI agents rising from 1.17% to 5.03%. RWA narratives fell from third to fourth place. Stablecoins climbed into the top 20.

On Wednesday, Cisco’s stock reached $80.25, topping its split-adjusted high of $80.06 last set on March 27, 2000. The new peak puts the company’s market value at $317 billion, up 36% in 2025 versus the Nasdaq’s 22%. The advance follows CEO Chuck Robbins saying in November the company booked $1.3 billion in quarterly AI infrastructure orders.