Crypto Market Drops as BTC, ETH Slide; US CPI Data in Focus

I. Crypto Market Overview

Key Takeaways

Macro Environment

The US November CPI slowed to 2.7% year-over-year, raising expectations for further Fed rate cuts and supporting crypto liquidity. The ECB held rates steady at 2% with a more positive economic outlook, maintaining eurozone liquidity. The US Senate is set to vote on new CFTC and FDIC chairs, potentially accelerating regulatory clarity for digital assets.

Crypto Market

The crypto market saw broad declines over the past 12 hours, with BTC down 4.43% to $97,474 and ETH falling 9.27% to $3,144.86, pressured by ETF outflows and weak risk sentiment. Altcoins also dropped, led by FET (-12.59%), ARB (-11.73%), and SOL (-8.75%), while BEAT surged 16.69% on strong AI and gaming demand. BCH and ZEC outperformed most peers, each down less than 4%, supported by whale activity and privacy narratives.

Today's Outlook

Today, the release of US November CPI and PCE data will provide critical signals for global inflation and consumer spending, likely driving volatility across crypto and traditional markets.

Fear and Greed Index

94.00% Annual Percentile

22 Fear

Total Crypto Market Cap

$2.88T

1.21%

Total Market Trading Volume

$129.44B

12.83%

Altcoin Season Index

0.00%

Quarterly Percentile

17 / 100

Total Futures Market Open Interest

3.99B

14.84%

Futures

751.50B

4.49%

Perpetuals

II. Industry Updates

Macro-economic Policies

The Bank of England cut its policy rate by 25 basis points to 3.75%, the lowest since 2023, citing cooling inflation and weak GDP growth. This move is expected to boost crypto market liquidity and risk appetite as borrowing costs decline.

US November CPI inflation slowed to 2.7% year-over-year, below forecasts. The softer inflation print increases expectations for further Fed rate cuts, which could support Bitcoin and DeFi asset prices by improving global liquidity conditions.

The Bank of Japan is set for a landmark rate hike, raising its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 0.75% for the first time in 30 years. This shift may trigger global risk-off sentiment, impacting crypto market volatility and reducing leveraged flows into digital assets.

The European Central Bank held rates steady at 2% and signaled a more positive economic outlook. The ECB's cautious stance maintains eurozone liquidity, supporting stablecoin and cross-border DeFi activity denominated in EUR.

US labor market data showed rising unemployment and slowing wage growth, reinforcing the case for accommodative monetary policy. Easing conditions are likely to sustain investor interest in cryptocurrencies as alternative yield-generating assets.

Cryptocurrency Regulatory Trends

The U.S. Senate will vote today on confirming new chairs for the CFTC and FDIC, potentially accelerating regulatory clarity and enforcement in crypto markets, which could impact investor confidence and compliance strategies.

Coinbase has filed lawsuits against Connecticut, Michigan, and Illinois, challenging state-level regulation of prediction markets and arguing for exclusive CFTC oversight, highlighting ongoing federal-state jurisdictional tensions in crypto regulation.

The CLARITY Act, a major bipartisan crypto market structure bill, is set to enter the Senate markup phase in January, signaling imminent progress toward a unified U.S. regulatory framework and likely affecting market structure and institutional participation.

Brazil's B3 stock exchange announced plans to launch a tokenization platform and stablecoin in 2026, following new central bank rules classifying stablecoin transactions as foreign exchange, which may boost digital asset adoption and regulatory oversight in Latin America.

Audiera (BEAT): Audiera surged over 28% in the past 24 hours, leading Top Gainers as AI and gaming token demand spiked. Trading volume reached $96M, driven by renewed interest in Web3 music and AI-powered gaming.

Bitcoin Cash (BCH): Bitcoin Cash rose nearly 4% in 24 hours, with price action fueled by a major whale swapping dormant Ethereum for BCH and new Cashinals product launches. 24h volume exceeded $611M, supporting bullish sentiment.

Zcash (ZEC): Zcash gained over 3% in the last 24 hours, as privacy coin narratives and whale accumulation (+21% holdings) drove demand. Technical signals and rising privacy sector interest supported the rally.

Smart Money Movements

A Bitcoin whale acquired 12,406 ETH, increasing total Ethereum holdings to 203,341 ETH as ETH traded near $2,800, with the whale's portfolio experiencing a $70 million drawdown from its peak.

Pension-USDT.eth closed a short Ethereum position with a $2.097 million loss and shifted to a long Bitcoin position, accumulating 1,000 BTC worth $85.658 million, now facing a $716,000 unrealized loss.

FalconX transferred 30,074 ETH, valued at approximately $88.8 million, to an unknown wallet, prompting speculation about strategic repositioning by large holders.

A whale sold 20,599 ETH for $59.1 million at $2,869 each to repay loans, retaining 30,000 ETH ($85.2 million) on Aave and holding $15.7 million in USDT debt.

Institutional investors injected $2.6 billion into crypto asset vaults over the past two weeks, with the majority allocated to Bitcoin and Ethereum following the Federal Reserve's rate cut.

Events to Watch

Dec 19 (Fri)

US November CPI and PCE data will be released, providing key inflation and consumer spending signals for global markets.

Dec 18 (Thu)

ECB, Bank of England, and Bank of Japan announce monetary policy decisions; US November CPI data released, impacting USD and risk assets.

Dec 21 (Sun)

Hyperliquid governance vote: Validators signal on proposal to burn 1 billion HYPE tokens, potentially affecting token supply.

Dec 22 (Mon)

Astar launches fifth airdrop phase 'Crystal', distributing 1.2% of ASTER supply (~96M tokens) with three-month vesting.

Dec 23 (Tue)

US Q3 GDP initial estimate released at 8:30 a.m.; SOON unlocks 5.97% of supply; key for macro and token markets.

III. Phemex Market Focus

New Listings

Dec 18: (SCOR/USDT)

SCOR is an on-chain sports engagement protocol transforming fan participation into digital assets.

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