Из жизни альткоинов

Министерство по развитию транспорта, энергетики и дорожного хозяйства республики Бурятия поддержало ввод круглогодичного запрета на добычу криптовалют. В ведомстве подчеркнули, что это поможет стабилизировать энергоснабжение региона.

Привычные для рынка четырехлетние циклы биткоина уходят в прошлое, уступая место более сложным макроэкономическим и инфляционным закономерностям, заявил председатель правления BitMine и сооснователь инвестфонда Fundstrat Том Ли (Tom Lee).

Two massive Ethereum transactions have just flowed out from FalconX, with Lookonchain linking them to ETH treasury company BitMine.

BitMine Has Received 48,049 Ethereum From FalconX

In a new post on X, on-chain sleuth Lookonchain has pointed out how BitMine appears to have acquired 48,049 ETH from a hot wallet connected to FalconX, an institutional digital asset trading platform.

The coins transferred through two transactions to two different wallets. The larger transfer involved 31,867 ETH, while the smaller one 16,182 ETH. In total, the tokens were worth about $140.58 million at the time that they were transacted.

The moves have come as Ethereum has plunged alongside the wider cryptocurrency sector, with its price dropping below the $3,000 level. Thus, it would appear possible that they are a sign of BitMine buying the dip.

Originally a Bitcoin mining-focused company, BitMine transitioned to being an Ethereum treasury vehicle under the leadership of chairman Tom Lee in June of this year. Since then, the firm has rapidly accumulated the cryptocurrency and has established itself as the “Strategy” of ETH.

On Monday, BitMine published a press release announcing that its holdings reached 3,967,210 ETH. So far, the company hasn’t made any official announcement of the latest buy, but if confirmed, it would take the total reserve past the 4 million ETH milestone.

The firm has set a target of 5% of the total circulating Ethereum supply. At present, the company still has some ways to go before this goal is hit, but at about 3.3% of the supply now sitting in its wallets, it has certainly made significant progress.

With holdings valued at more than $11 billion, BitMine is the second-largest cryptocurrency corporate holder in the world, only behind Strategy. Unlike Michael Saylor’s firm, however, the Ethereum hoarder has its treasury sitting in the red right now. Nonetheless, if the two blockchain transactions correspond to purchases, then it’s a sign that BitMine is still committed to accumulating more.

CryptoQuant community analyst Maartunn has talked in an X post about how the Ethereum price has changed since BitMine started its accumulation spree. It’s visible in the chart that during the initial buying period, ETH witnessed some rapid growth.

Clearly, however, despite continued buying from the treasury company, the asset’s price first flatlined and then declined. “Big buys ≠ sustained momentum,” noted the analyst.

ETH Price

Ethereum managed to make a recovery to $3,400 last week, but the coin has once again gone through bearish momentum since then, as its price has returned to the $2,930 level.

A bipartisan bill introduced on Dec. 15, 2025 would form a national response to rising cryptocurrency fraud, aiming to give law enforcement and regulators new tools to stop scams as they happen.

According to the sponsors, the Strengthening Agency Frameworks for Enforcement of Cryptocurrency (SAFE Crypto) Act creates a coordinated federal effort to detect, track, and shut down illicit schemes that use crypto rails.

Task Force To Target Crypto Scams

The bill would set up a task force that pulls together Treasury officials, federal and local law enforcement, regulators, and private-sector experts to share intelligence and act quickly on threats.

Reports have disclosed that the legislation is pitched as a way to get real-time visibility on suspicious activity and to give local police better technical help when they investigate.

Senators Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) are listed as the bill’s proponents. The measure appears in Congress under a title that would establish a “Task Force for Recognizing and Averting Cryptocurrency Scams,” and is referenced by bill number S.3428 in congressional records. As of Dec. 17, 2025, the full legislative text had not been posted on the Congressional site.

Public Education And Local Support

The sponsors say the task force will do more than hunt scammers. It will fund public awareness work so consumers can spot fake investment pitches, phishing schemes, and impersonation fraud.

Local law enforcement would get training and access to blockchain analytics tools, the backers say, so officers can follow illicit funds and identify criminal networks before victims lose large sums.

Industry figures quoted in the announcement said crypto fraud has been large and growing. According to one industry policy lead cited by the sponsors, “Over the last two years, we’ve tracked billions in scams and fraud across the crypto ecosystem.” That warning is a central piece of the case lawmakers are making for faster, coordinated action.

ngl a lot of memecoin etc scammers will probably end up shitting themselves if this goes hard, it fills a regulatory/enforcement gap that many probably assumed is permanent/long-term https://t.co/AdKlzVPh9D

— _gabrielShapir0 (@lex_node) December 16, 2025

Cybercriminals: Panic Mode

Gabriel Shapiro, general counsel at crypto investment firm Delphi Labs, said that if the SAFE Crypto Act is carried out effectively, it could leave crypto scammers scrambling to stay ahead of enforcement.

Shapiro added in a post on X on Tuesday that “scammers will probably end up sh*tting themselves if this goes hard,” stressing that the US attorney general, the director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and the director of the US Secret Service would be among the senior officials leading efforts to pursue the bad guys.

Why Lawmakers Are Pushing Now

Lawmakers argue that criminals have grown more skilled at using decentralized systems and cross-border services to hide proceeds. The SAFE Crypto Act is being presented as a way to narrow that gap by making public and private responders work from a shared playbook. The initiative is part of a wave of digital currency-related policy moves being discussed in Congress this year.

Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView

Bitcoin is struggling to break away from the bearish market structure that has been in place since late October. Despite several short-lived relief rallies, price action continues to reflect weakness, with bulls failing to reclaim key resistance levels or generate sustained momentum.

As uncertainty and fatigue spread across the market, many participants are questioning whether Bitcoin’s current behavior fits the traditional cycle framework that has defined previous bull and bear phases.

A recent analysis by Darkfost highlights a structural shift that adds important context to this debate. According to the data, the number of active Bitcoin addresses has been in a persistent decline since April 2021. Historically, bullish phases were characterized by a clear expansion in active addresses, as new investors entered the market and on-chain activity surged. This growth typically peaked near cycle tops, followed by a contraction during bear markets as participation dried up.

This cycle, however, looks markedly different. Even during periods of strong price performance since 2022, active addresses have failed to recover meaningfully and continue trending lower. This divergence suggests that Bitcoin’s market structure may be evolving away from a retail-driven, on-chain participation model toward something more concentrated and institutionally influenced.

As Bitcoin attempts to stabilize after weeks of downside pressure, understanding these structural changes is becoming critical. The decline in active addresses may not simply signal weakness, but rather a transformation in how Bitcoin is held, traded, and valued in this cycle.

Active Addresses Signal A Structural Shift In The Market

The analysis suggests that despite Bitcoin’s strong price performance since 2022, on-chain participation continues to deteriorate. Active addresses are once again approaching the lowest levels observed during this cycle, highlighting a growing disconnect between price action and network activity. At the peak in April 2021, Bitcoin recorded roughly 1.15 million active addresses. Today, that figure has nearly halved, sitting near 680,000, a contraction that cannot be ignored.

This decline is difficult to attribute to a single cause. Instead, it likely reflects a combination of structural changes in how Bitcoin is held and accessed. One contributing factor appears to be the rise in inactive addresses. While precise classification criteria vary, the broader trend points toward a stronger long-term holding mentality, where coins remain dormant rather than actively transacted on-chain. This behavior reduces visible network activity without necessarily implying bearish conviction.

At the same time, a portion of market participants may have shifted away from direct on-chain usage altogether. Centralized exchanges, custodial platforms, and financial products such as ETFs offer exposure to Bitcoin without requiring on-chain interaction. As a result, demand for block space declines even as capital allocation to Bitcoin remains significant.

Taken together, the sustained drop in active addresses suggests Bitcoin’s market structure is evolving. The network is becoming less retail-driven and more concentrated, reinforcing the idea that traditional cycle metrics may be losing some of their explanatory power in this environment.

Bitcoin Price Tests Long-Term Support as Structure Weakens

Bitcoin continues to trade under pressure, with the chart highlighting a clear deterioration in market structure. After failing to sustain prices above the $100K–$110K zone earlier in the year, BTC has entered a corrective phase marked by lower highs and heavy selling momentum. The recent move toward the $87K area places price directly on a critical demand zone, closely aligned with the rising long-term moving averages.

From a trend perspective, the loss of the short- and medium-term moving averages is significant. The blue and green averages have rolled over, acting as dynamic resistance rather than support, reinforcing the bearish bias.

Price is now hovering just above the red long-term moving average, a level that has historically defined the boundary between bull market corrections and deeper bearish transitions. A clean breakdown below this zone would materially increase downside risk toward the low-$80K region.

Volume behavior adds further context. Selling pressure expanded notably during the sharp drawdown from the highs, while recent bounce attempts have occurred on comparatively weaker volume. This suggests that dip-buying interest remains cautious rather than aggressive. Structurally, the market appears to be consolidating after distribution, not building a strong base yet.

In the near term, holding the $85K–$88K range is crucial. A failure to defend this area would confirm a broader trend shift, while reclaiming the $95K–$100K region is required to neutralize the current bearish structure.

Featured image from ChatGPT, chart from TradingView.com