Tether increased its Bitcoin holdings by 8,888.8 BTC in Q4 2025.

On January 1, Bitcoin ecosystem wallet UniSat announced that the Runes index encountered an issue, causing its internal ord instance to exit unexpectedly. During system recovery, the Runes index data will temporarily stop updating, and the recovery process may take several hours.

Upbit has temporarily suspended deposits and withdrawals for the NKN network as of January 1st, the exchange announced today. The pause is due to delays in block generation on the NKN network, and a restart time will be notified separately.

On January 1, 2025, the Reporting Center of China’s Cyberspace Administration (CAC) announced that it had lawfully accepted and handled 1,418 counterfeit website cases by the end of that year. Among these, 61 cases involved fake sites impersonating financial institutions—including CMB Securities and CITIC Bank. These fraudulent platforms tricked internet users into downloading stock-trading apps or buying so-called “stablecoins” and other financial products, leading to financial losses. The CAC’s center noted that counterfeit websites typically use false pretexts like “claiming subsidies,” “recharging phone bills,” “business cooperation,” or “investment/wealth management” to illegally collect personal information, commit fraud, and violate people’s legitimate rights and property security—posing significant social harm.

### **CFTC Taps Amir Zaidi as Chief of Staff Amid Digital Asset Regulation Push** January 1: The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced Wednesday that Amir Zaidi— a key policymaker who helped launch regulated Bitcoin futures in the U.S.— has returned after six years to serve as the agency’s Chief of Staff. CFTC Chairman Michael Selig noted that as Congress moves to send digital asset market structure legislation to the President’s desk, Zaidi will bring critical experience and expertise to the CFTC as it develops rules for the rapidly evolving commodity market. Zaidi previously held multiple roles at the CFTC from 2010 to 2019, including serving as Director of the Division of Market Oversight in his final two years there. In that role, he oversaw and fostered the establishment of the U.S.’s regulated Bitcoin futures market. ### Notes on U.S. Language Habits: 1. **Headline first**: Leads with the core news (personnel + context) to grab attention (standar

On January 1st, Glassnode shared data on social media, noting there are currently no signs of new demand in ETF flows—and the 30-day moving average of net inflows for Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs remains in negative territory.

**Crypto Funding Rates: Broad Bearishness on Altcoins, ETH Neutral, BTC Mixed (Jan 1)** Per Coinglass data, mainstream centralized (CEX) and decentralized (DEX) exchanges show broad bearish sentiment toward altcoins—but all ETH funding rates have shifted back to neutral. Only OKX, Bybit, and LBank posted slightly bearish rates for BTC pairs; other platforms have returned to neutral. Funding rates for major coins are detailed in the attached chart. **BlockBeats Note:** Funding rates are set by crypto exchanges to keep contract prices aligned with underlying asset prices—typically for perpetual contracts. They’re a mechanism for transferring funds between long and short traders; exchanges do not collect this fee. The goal is to adjust the cost or profit of traders holding positions, ensuring contract prices stay near underlying asset values. - 0.01% = benchmark rate - >0.01% = bullish market sentiment - <0.005% = bearish market sentiment