US Stock Futures Dive Further

Dec 17 (Reuters) — A sharp recent pullback in cryptocurrency markets has left investors more cautious, with high-leverage, high-valuation sectors hit hardest—pushing active risk management strategies into the spotlight. As investment tools proliferate, investors can tap the market via multiple avenues: direct holdings, spot ETFs, options/futures, mining firms, “Bitcoin reserve companies” (like Strategy), exchanges, and infrastructure players. But risk exposure varies drastically by approach, notes John D’Agostino, Coinbase’s Head of Institutional Strategy. The key, he says, is how investors use leverage and whether they hedge their positions. Bitcoin has dropped 36% since hitting a $126,223 high on Oct 6, and is now ~30% off its peak. Bitcoin reserve firms led by Strategy have seen steeper declines: Strategy’s stock is down 54% from Bitcoin’s October peak and 63% from mid-July. Japan’s Metaplanet and its peers are also under pressure. Lyn Alden points out these sectors previously

December 17 – HashKey Holdings Limited, a leading comprehensive digital asset firm in Asia (stock code: 3887.HK; “HashKey” or “the Company”), officially listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) main board today and held a ceremonial listing. Key officials from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government and top figures in Hong Kong’s financial sector attended the event, including: - HKSAR Financial Secretary Paul Chan - Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) Chairman CK Chow - HKEX Group Chief Executive Nicolas Aguzin - Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) Chairman Tim Lui - SFC Executive Director of Corporate Finance Mary Cai - Legislative Councillor Christopher Cheung - Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Ltd. Chairman Lee George Lam - Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Ltd. CEO Dr. George Tee HashKey Group Chairman and CEO Dr. Xiao Feng and HashKey Group Director Dr. Luo Weiding (Vice Chairman of the 14th Nat

On December 17, Binance Wallet announced the launch of Web3 Loan—its new on-chain lending feature—now live on the Web3 Earn page. Web3 Loan lets users directly tap into third-party protocols to borrow crypto, using their existing holdings as collateral. It’s integrated with Venus and supports over 40 assets. At launch, supported assets include: Collateral assets: BTCB, ETH, USDT, USDC, FDUSD, WETH Borrowed assets: USDT, USDC, BNB

On December 17, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) added four new entities to its "Suspected Virtual Asset Trading Platforms" list over the past two months. The newly added platforms—HKTWeb3, AmazingTech, 9M AI, and the Hong Kong Stablecoin Exchange—are all suspected of operating without a license. Among them, HKTWeb3 claimed on its website to have partnered with a licensed virtual asset trading platform recognized by the SFC, but this claim was debunked. The Hong Kong Stablecoin Exchange falsely stated it was co-founded by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (Joint Exchange), and Hong Kong Futures Exchange, though it has no connection to any of the three.

On December 17th, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) noted in a December 15 interview: “The crypto industry has more comeback opportunities than any other sector. Traditional finance has extremely high barriers to entry, and its window for new players is effectively closed. AI startups also require computing power, data, and chips—all industries that demand resources and connections. But in crypto, the entry barrier is zero, and building a community or protocol doesn’t take much. Most players in the space are still in the early stages, meaning everyone has a shot.”

**As of December 17, DeFiLlama data shows major perpetual DEX platforms saw cooled trading activity over the past 24 hours. Lighter led a rebound in trading volume, followed by Aster and Hyperliquid. Meanwhile, open interest across most platforms remains elevated—signaling existing positions are still being contested even as market activity slowed.** Key platform metrics (24-hour): - **Lighter**: Trading volume ≈ $75.1B | TVL ≈ $14.6B | Open interest ≈ $16.7B - **Aster**: Trading volume ≈ $69.1B | TVL ≈ $13.2B | Open interest ≈ $25.3B [Referral: https://www.asterdex.com/en/referral/aboter] - **Hyperliquid**: Trading volume ≈ $53.7B | TVL ≈ $41.3B | Open interest ≈ $72.3B [Join: https://app.hyperliquid.xyz/join/NTOD] - **ApeX**: Trading volume ≈ $28.3B | TVL ≈ $46.24M | Open interest ≈ $1.01B - **EdgeX**: Trading volume ≈ $22.8B | TVL ≈ $3.89B | Open interest ≈ $7.86B - **Variational**: Trading volume ≈ $12.4B | TVL ≈ $66.18M | Open interest ≈ $3.37B - **Backpac