State of Crypto: What Congress Has Left to Do This Year

There is not a lot of time left for Congress to make meaningful progress this year on crypto issues.

The restarted Senate is moving forward with certain crypto initiatives, but how much time is left compared to how much work is left, really?

Less than 40 Days

The narrative

Now that Congress is back from the government shutdown, all eyes are on how it will proceed on crypto issues. There are a few components to this: Mike Selig’s nomination to run the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, market structure legislation and other crypto matters.

Bitcoin Rebounds From ‘Extreme Oversold’ Levels; XRP Jumps 7%, ZEC Surges 14%

Bitcoin and major altcoins bounced Sunday after an oversold RSI reading and more than $200M in liquidations signaled seller exhaustion amid thin weekend liquidity.

• Bitcoin rebounded after hitting extreme oversold levels on the RSI, a zone that previously preceded short-term recoveries.
• More than $206 million in weekend liquidations and thinning liquidity pointed to seller exhaustion.
• XRP and ZEC led gains among major altcoins, with ZEC extending one of the strongest year-to-date rallies in crypto.

Crypto markets climbed Sunday as Bitcoin flashed an extreme oversold signal and more than $200 million in liquidations helped ease selling pressure across major tokens.

Advocacy group proposes DeFi solutions to address global poverty

The DeFi Education Fund estimated that decentralized finance technology could potentially save people up to $30 billion annually by reducing remittance costs.

The DeFi Education Fund, an advocacy organization focused on decentralized finance, has proposed utilizing the technology to reduce costs, aiming to address poverty in the United States and globally.

In a Wednesday blog post, the group said DeFi infrastructure could potentially save unbanked and underbanked people around the world about $30 billion annually through reducing remittance costs. The organization cited examples of workers sending funds home and paying fees to do so, which could be reduced “by up to 80%” with DeFi.

Fed Rate Cut Odds Plunge Further on Jobs Data Delays

Traders slash chances of a December cut to 33% as the Fed loses a key data point ahead of its final 2025 meeting.

• The BLS said that the October employment report will scrapped due to the government shutdown and the November jobs numbers won’t be released until after the Fed’s December meeting.
• The odds of a December Fed rate cut — nearly 100% as recently as three weeks ago — tumbled further to just 33%.
• U.S. stocks gave up large early gains and crypto prices fell further as the news hit.

Bitcoin Slips Back Below $90K — Crypto Correction Now Ranks Among Worst Since 2017, K33 Says

After a rare spot of outperformance on Tuesday, bitcoin has resumed sliding, with one analyst eyeing $84,000–$86,000 as potential local bottom.

• Bitcoin fell below $90,000, losing 4.2% during early U.S. trading hours on Wednesday, while ether dropped 6% to under $3,000.
• Crypto-related equities more than mirrored the decline, with Strategy (MSTR), BitMine (BMNR) and Circle (CRCL) booking 8%-9% selloffs.
• Bitcoin’s current slide from its early October record at $126,000 ranks among the steepest 43-day drawdowns since 2017, K33’s research head said.

The big news Tuesday was crypto not just posting gains, but also rising even as U.S. stocks sold off. That outperformance has been rare for what seems like months, with bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies watching from the sidelines as major stock market averages made new record highs on a regular basis.

Sadly for the bulls, though, normality has returned just 24 hours later, with bitcoin tumbling 4% back below $90,000 even as U.S. stocks manage gains. Ethereum’s ether slid 6.5% to below $3,000.

New Hampshire Awaits Bitcoin Bond Buyer to Get First State Effort Rolling

The New Hampshire Business Finance Authority took the opening steps toward shepherding a potential $100 million private-sector bitcoin bond.

• The New Hampshire Business Finance Authority, an organization meant to boost the state’s economy, made the first big maneuver to stand up a $100 million bitcoin bond.
• While the bond is initiated by the state entity, it would be backed and managed by a private-sector partner, assuming one comes forward.

Bitcoin miners retreat sharply as BTC pulls back from recent highs

Major mining stocks dropped 20%–50% this week, erasing billions in value as the sector continued to lag Bitcoin’s latest pullback.

Publicly traded Bitcoin mining companies had a tough week, with nearly every major miner posting double-digit declines as the sector sharply underperformed Bitcoin itself.

Over the past five trading days, names like Cipher, Applied Digital, Core Scientific, CleanSpark and Bitdeer slid between 23% and 52%, while other operators such as Riot and Hut 8 saw mid-teens losses.

Bitcoin was trading about $94,400 at the time of writing, down about 9% over the past seven days.

Crypto Markets Today: Bitcoin Breaches $98K as Liquidations Top $1.1B

A sharp liquidity crunch sent bitcoin and altcoins plunging, triggering over a billion dollars in derivatives liquidations as traders brace for a potential trend reversal.

• Roughly half the liquidations came from bitcoin positions, with the rest spread across altcoins as selling pressure built up.
• ETH dropped more than 9% over 24 hours while AAVE, JUP and SUI posted double-digit losses. Many tokens slumped to lows not seen for months.
• Zcash and Monero rallied, with ZEC now up more than 1,000% since August in a striking divergence from the broader market.

U.S. DOJ Pursues North Korea’s Illicit Money Machine, Seizes More Crypto

U.S. authorities secured several criminal convictions and gathered another $15 million in proceeds from North Korean crypto heists, the Justice Department said.

• Prosecutors and investigators in the U.S. Department of Justice rounded up another batch of convictions and crypto seizures in its ongoing pursuit of bad actors from North Korea.
• The latest seizure of $15 million in USDT adds to other recent digital asset confiscations from U.S. authorities, raising questions about how the funds may relate to the U.S. plans to establish crypto reserves.