Federal Reserve's Harker: November Inflation may have Data Collection Distortion, Neutral Rate may be Higher than Widely Expected

**December 21 – Per CoinMarketCap data, the Altcoin Season Index currently sits at 17.** The index briefly reached 78 on September 20, while last week’s weekly average stood at 21. This metric indicates that over the past 90 days, approximately 17 of the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market cap have outperformed Bitcoin in price gains. *Note: The CoinMarketCap Cryptocurrency Altseason Index is a real-time indicator used to determine if the crypto market is in an altcoin-dominated season. It is based on the performance of the top 100 altcoins relative to Bitcoin over the past 90 days.*

On December 21, Decenter reported—citing unnamed sources—that the Bank of Korea (BOK) has recently sent a formal document to major local banks outlining plans for a second round of central bank digital currency (CBDC) testing. A BOK official noted, “Details including specific methodologies and timelines are currently under discussion.” The upcoming round is considering distributing a portion of government subsidies via CBDC, with the goal of restricting how the funds are used and cutting administrative and management costs tied to subsidy disbursement. Back in April, the BOK launched a three-month CBDC pilot involving seven participating banks, but later paused the project. At the time, the pilot faced criticism for its limited practical value and for imposing billions of Korean won in costs on the participating institutions.

On December 21st, monitoring data from Hyperinsight (link: https://t.me/HyperInsight) indicates that "Buddy" Huang Licheng’s address has opened a 10x-leveraged long position in ZEC. The position size is approximately $390,000, with an entry price of $439.24.

HTX market data shows Bitcoin is currently trading at $88,661 as of December 21st. Strategy’s Bitcoin position has an unrealized profit of 18.3%, totaling approximately $91.9 billion. As of December 14, 2025, Strategy holds 671,268 Bitcoins with a total cost of around $50.33 billion—an average cost of roughly $74,972 per Bitcoin.

On December 21st, Coinglass data shows Coinbase’s Bitcoin Premium Index has stayed in negative territory for 7 consecutive days, currently at -0.044%. BlockBeats Note: The Coinbase Bitcoin Premium Index measures the gap between Bitcoin’s price on Coinbase (a leading U.S. exchange) and the global market average. It’s a key indicator for tracking U.S. market capital inflows, institutional investment interest, and shifts in market sentiment. A positive premium (Coinbase price > global average) typically signals: strong U.S. market buying pressure, active entry of institutional or compliant funds, ample USD liquidity, and broadly optimistic investor sentiment. A negative premium (Coinbase price < global average) usually reflects: significant U.S. market selling pressure, reduced investor risk appetite, rising market risk aversion, or capital outflows.

December 21: On Polymarket, the probability that Michael Hsu—acting Comptroller of the Currency—will be the next Federal Reserve Chair is 56%. Janet Yellen has a 22% chance, while Kevin Warsh stands at 12%. ### Notes on U.S. language habits adopted: 1. **Date format**: Simplified to "December 21" (common in U.S. news for brevity, omitting "st"). 2. **Conciseness**: Reordered to lead with the platform ("On Polymarket") for clarity, then key name/title (using em dashes for apposition, natural in U.S. writing). 3. **Avoid repetition**: Swapped "probability" for "chance" in Yellen’s line, and used "stands at" for Warsh to vary phrasing. 4. **Clarity**: Added full names (Janet Yellen, Kevin Warsh) since they’re public figures, standard in U.S. news for context. 5. **Flow**: Used "while" instead of "additionally" for smoother contrast between candidates.