U.S. CFTC Acting Chairman: Enforcement Division Restructured, Refocused on Combating Fraud

**December 13** – President Trump said Friday Kevin Warsh has emerged as the top candidate for the next Federal Reserve chair, though other contenders remain in the mix, according to *The Wall Street Journal*. Warsh, a former Fed governor who was not previously the front-runner, gained additional favor after meeting Trump on Wednesday. When asked Friday afternoon if Warsh topped his list, Trump told reporters, "Yes, I do, I do." On Kevin Hassett—director of the National Economic Council and a market-preferred contender—Trump noted, "I think both Kevins are great," adding several other candidates are also outstanding. Hassett had been the front-runner; he has been cautious when asked about the role, saying he would accept if invited. Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren voiced concern Thursday on CNBC that Trump might appoint a "puppet" Fed chair to carry out his wishes. Trump also repeated his past stance that the Fed chair should consult the president on inter

December 13 — Negotiations on the U.S. Senate’s cryptocurrency “Market Structure Bill” could be delayed until January 2024 due to several unresolved key disputes, informed sources revealed Wednesday. The bill is currently the crypto industry’s top lobbying priority, but with the holiday season approaching, multi-party talks between Democrats, Republicans, the White House and crypto stakeholders have yet to yield a consensus. Outstanding core issues include: ethical standards for government officials regarding digital assets (notably those involving former President Donald Trump), whether stablecoins can be tied to yields, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) regulatory authority over tokens, and the oversight boundaries for Decentralized Finance (DeFi). Despite these divides, Senate negotiations are still moving at a brisk pace with high intensity, and crypto lobbyists remain optimistic the bill will advance to formal committee consideration in the coming weeks.

As of December 13, Ethereum registered a cumulative net outflow of 69,300 ETH from centralized exchanges (CEXs) over the past 24 hours. Top three CEXs by Ethereum outflow: - Coinbase Pro: 72,900 ETH (outflow) - Gate: 265.93 ETH (outflow) - Gemini: 25.75 ETH (outflow) Additionally, Bybit led the inflow list with 2,031.03 ETH flowing into the exchange.

On December 13, Farside Investors reported that U.S.-listed Ethereum spot ETFs recorded a net inflow of $209.1 million this week.

December 13 (Reuters) - Publicly traded Bitcoin treasury firm Strategy will remain in the Nasdaq 100 Index, retaining its constituent status and extending its one-year tenure in the benchmark gauge. This development comes as analysts have raised questions about the company’s business model. Some market watchers argue Strategy’s pioneering “buy-and-hold Bitcoin” model — which has spawned dozens of imitators — is more akin to an investment fund than a traditionally operating company. Concerns about the sustainability of “crypto asset treasury firms” also continue to mount, with their stocks proven highly sensitive to Bitcoin price swings. Global index provider MSCI (MSCI.N) has voiced similar concerns over including digital asset treasury firms in its indices. The firm is expected to decide in January whether to exclude Strategy and similar companies from its benchmarks.

On December 13, data from Coinglass shows that if Ethereum (ETH) breaks above $3,200, the cumulative liquidation intensity for short positions across major centralized exchanges (CEXs) will hit $868 million. Conversely, if ETH falls below $3,000, the cumulative liquidation intensity for long positions across these mainstream CEXs will reach $1.289 billion. BlockBeats Note: Liquidation charts do not accurately display the exact number or precise value of contracts up for liquidation. Instead, the bars on these charts represent the relative importance of each liquidation cluster compared to neighboring clusters — meaning "intensity." In short, the chart reveals how sharply the underlying asset’s price will react at a given level: a taller "liquidation bar" signals a more intense price response driven by a liquidity surge when that price point is hit.