Singapore's largest money laundering case suspect Wang Shuiming may be extradited to China, with his accomplice being the mastermind behind the Hong Kong crypto platform scam AAX.

On December 31, six major Chinese banks—Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), China Construction Bank (CCB), Bank of China (BOC), Postal Savings Bank of China (PSBC), and Bank of Communications (BoCom)—announced in succession that starting January 1, 2026, they will pay interest on balances in their digital RMB real-name wallets at the benchmark demand deposit interest rate. Their interest calculation and settlement rules will align with those for regular demand deposits.

On December 31, per Coinglass data, Coinbase’s Bitcoin Premium Index has held a negative premium for 17 consecutive days, currently at -0.1011%. BlockBeats Note: The Coinbase Bitcoin Premium Index measures the gap between Bitcoin’s price on Coinbase (a top U.S. exchange) and the global market average. It is a key indicator for tracking U.S. market fund inflows, institutional investment interest, and shifts in market sentiment. A positive premium means Coinbase’s Bitcoin price is above the global average, typically signaling: strong buying pressure in the U.S. market, active entry of institutional or regulated funds, ample U.S. dollar liquidity, and broadly optimistic investor sentiment. A negative premium indicates Coinbase’s price is below the global average, usually reflecting: heavy selling pressure in the U.S. market, reduced investor risk appetite, rising market risk aversion, or capital outflows.

On December 31, Bubblemaps released data showing the $6.75 billion Lighter airdrop has become the tenth-largest in cryptocurrency history. Approximately 75% of token recipients still hold the LIT token, while 7% have added to their holdings. The Lighter airdrop surpassed 1inch’s $6.71 billion airdrop to claim the tenth spot, though it trails LooksRare’s $7.12 billion 2022 airdrop. To date, the crypto industry’s largest airdrop remains Uniswap’s 2020 distribution, totaling $64.3 billion in value.

On December 31st, the Neo Foundation (NF) and Neo Global Development (NGD) acknowledged a recent conversation between the two founders on X and the community attention it has drawn, clarifying that any controversies stemming from the conversation will not impact the day-to-day operations of either organization. NF is currently preparing financial reports for both itself and NGD, slated for release in Q1 2026.

On December 31, per HTX market data, LIGHT (from Bitlight Labs) saw a short-term surge—breaking above $1.1 and climbing more than 250% in roughly two hours. The token’s current market cap stands at $45 million.