Interest Rate Cut in Focus: BCH, LINK, and PIPPIN Could Benefit, Bitcoin Fluctuates, Whales Are Buying – A Brief Crypto Overview.

Crypto markets are trading defensively as Bitcoin slips toward $90,000 and traders position ahead of key US labor data. Altcoins remain under pressure, the Fear & Greed Index has fallen back into fear territory, and institutional developments across North America and Asia continue to shape sentiment.

On December 9, 2025, a post on X claiming BlackRock had filed an S-1 for a staked ASTER ETF sparked speculation and short-lived price volatility before key figures debunked the rumor as fake. ASTER had previously been the subject of similar ETF rumors involving Grayscale, and recent trading has also been shaped by buybacks and a DEX token unlock that released $9.47 million worth of tokens. Developers criticized parts of the community for spreading false ETF headlines, warning that such behavior undermines the project’s long-term growth.

On Tuesday, Solana's official account posted the number "589", reviving long-running XRP meme speculation. Ripple CTO David Schwartz said markets undervalue the company's XRP escrow in light of a $500 million secondary share sale at a $40 billion valuation, according to the article. Andrew Tate reiterated he is "huge on Bitcoin" and questioned why a 10,000 BTC purchase had little visible impact on price.

On December 5, Binance posted net inflows of 162,084 ETH, the largest daily increase since April 2023, with exchange reserves rising to 3.88M ETH. ETH open interest held above $17.62B, with more than 70% of traders positioned long. The token traded just above $3,000 as large whale deposits boosted spot inflows.

Over the past 24 hours, Bitcoin retreated to around $90,200 after briefly moving above $92,000. Hyperliquid posted a 9% daily loss, while major altcoins including Quant and Kaspa also declined. Total crypto market capitalization eased to about $3.16 trillion, roughly 2% lower than the previous day.

On Dec. 7 at 05:29 UTC, a token named "year of yellow fruit" was deployed on-chain, and less than a minute later the official Binance Futures social media account promoted it, driving a 4,600% price surge and pushing its market capitalization to nearly $4 million within two hours, according to Binance. An internal audit later found that a Binance employee had used the corporate brand account for personal promotion, leading to the staffer’s suspension, a referral to legal authorities, and a $100,000 whistleblower bounty split among five reporters, while the token gained another 782% in one hour after a public announcement on Dec. 8. The incident is being discussed alongside suspicious TNSR price action around Coinbase’s Nov. 21 Vector acquisition news, underscoring wider concerns over information leakage and the abuse of exchange infrastructure.

Jonathan Gould of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said on December 8 that cryptocurrency and fintech firms seeking federal bank charters should be evaluated using the same criteria as conventional banks. He pointed to recent OCC approvals of crypto-focused trust banks and a sharp increase in charter applications, according to the OCC. Banks and financial industry groups remain uneasy about supervision, while Argentina’s central bank is considering whether to let local banks offer cryptocurrency trading.