According to Odaily, the Central Bank of Russia has outlined its business model for the central bank digital currency (CBDC), the digital ruble. By the end of 2025, all digital ruble transactions will be free of charge, with the first banks and merchants expected to go live by July 1. The central bank aims to generate revenue by operating the system. However, during a recent hearing at the Russian State Duma, the Association of Russian Banks (ABR) expressed dissatisfaction with the plan. Banks are concerned about potential outflows of deposits and high deployment costs. The central bank reportedly does not intend to limit the amount of CBDC holdings. According to Info24, ABR Chairman Anatoly Kozlachkov noted that the setup cost for each bank is approximately 100 million rubles (1 million USD), while some banks have capital as low as 3 million USD.

The Central Bank of Russia recently shared the business model of its central bank digital currency (CBDC). By the end of 2025, all digital ruble transactions will be free, and the first banks and merchants are expected to go live on July 1. The central bank plans to earn fees by operating the system. Meanwhile, at a hearing in the Russian State Duma last week, the Russian Banking Association (ABR) said that banks are unhappy about this. They are worried about the possible outflow of bank deposits and the high cost of deployment. It is reported that the Central Bank of Russia does not intend to limit the holding of CBDC. According to Info24, ABR Chairman Anatoly Kozlachkov said that the cost of setting up each bank is about 100 million rubles ($1 million), while some banks have only $3 million in capital.

Swell posted on X that its bridge funds have exceeded $120 million, with more funds coming in. Major assets, such as Ethena Labs' USDe, ether.fi's weETH, and Swell's rswETH, are flowing at scale and speed. Most of the funds are transferred in through Stargate, a full-chain transmission liquidity protocol (powered by LayerZero technology).

According to Odaily, Germany's DekaBank has received a cryptocurrency custody license from the country's financial regulator BaFin and the European Central Bank (ECB). This makes DekaBank the second German bank to obtain such a license, following Commerzbank, which was the first to receive approval last year. Other major banks, including DZ Bank, have yet to secure similar licenses. BaFin has issued a total of 11 cryptocurrency custody licenses, primarily to cryptocurrency companies. Among these is the digital asset custody subsidiary of Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe Privatbank. Unlike cryptocurrency companies, DekaBank and Commerzbank are licensed under the German Banking Act (KWG). This marks the second new license DekaBank has acquired this year. In July, the bank obtained a license to register crypto securities based on distributed ledger technology (DLT) in Germany, allowing the issuance of these securities without the need for a central securities depository (CSD).

Germany’s DekaBank has received a bank crypto custody license from the country’s regulator, BaFin, and the European Central Bank (ECB). Commerzbank was the first German bank to receive the license last year, and other major banks have yet to receive the license, including DZ Bank. BaFin has issued 11 other crypto custody licenses, mainly for crypto companies. One of them is the digital asset custody subsidiary of Hauck Aufhäuser Lampe Privatbank. The difference between DekaBank and Commerzbank and crypto companies is that the former is licensed under the Banking Act (KWG). This is the second new license DekaBank has received this year. In July, the company received a license for the German crypto securities registrar for the issuance of DLT-based digital securities. These crypto securities do not require a central securities depository (CSD) to be issued.

According to BlockBeats, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump announced via social media on December 22 that he has nominated Tilman J. Fertitta, owner of the NBA's Houston Rockets and a prominent entertainment and real estate businessman, as the U.S. Ambassador to Italy. Additionally, Trump appointed Mark Burnett, a reality TV producer and former chairman of MGM Television, as a special envoy for British affairs. Burnett is known for producing the reality show 'The Apprentice,' which significantly boosted Trump's public profile.

According to Odaily, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has opened applications for its Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS) at the end of September, easing certain rules for distributed ledger technology (DLT) market infrastructure. Two entities have received preliminary approval: Montis, a prospective central securities depository (CSD) owned by Archax, and ClearToken, which plans to operate as a central clearinghouse for crypto and tokenized assets. ClearToken is backed by companies such as Nomura's Laser Digital and Standard Chartered's Zodia Custody. Similar to the EU's DLT pilot regime, the DSS program relaxes the requirement for exchanges and central securities depositories to remain separate, acknowledging that such separation can be impractical for DLT.

The UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) opened its Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS) for applications in late September, relaxing certain rules for DLT market infrastructure. The two entities that have announced preliminary approvals so far are (expected) central securities depository (CSD) Montis (owned by Archax) and ClearToken, which plans to operate as a central clearing house for crypto and tokenized assets. ClearToken is backed by firms including Nomura’s Laser Digital and Standard Chartered’s Zodia Custody. Like the EU’s DLT pilot regime, the DSS plans to relax the requirement that exchanges and central securities depositories must always be separated (a separation that is sometimes impractical for DLT).

MemeFi released a MEMEFI staking claim update on X: "The cache issue has been resolved. The queue has been restarted and more than 22,000 claims have been processed. If users still encounter problems receiving tokens to Sui wallets after off-chain claims, please report the relevant cases below the official post."

قوة الدولار الامريكى الاخيرة والتى تخطت الاعلى منذ عامين مع تهدئة التوترات الجيوسياسية العالمية نسبيا ساهمت فى تجدد عمليات بيع مؤشر سعر الذهب بخسائر أمتدت الى مستوى الدعم 2583 دولار للاوقية الادنى للاسعار منذ شهر. هذا الشارت من منصة tradingview وذلك قبل أن يغلق سعر الذهب تداولات الاسبوع مستقرا حول مستوى 2625 دولار للاوقية. يتوقع … The post توقعات محللى الذهب الايام المقبلة. الشراء ستظل أفضل... source: https://www.tradersup.com/%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%82%d8%b9%d8%a7%d8%aa-%d9%88%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%aa%d8%ad%d9%84%d9%8a%d9%84%d8%a7%d8%aa-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a7%d8%b3%d8%a8%d9%88%d8%b9%d9%8a%d8%a9/%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%82%d8%b9%d8%a7%d8%aa-%d8%a3%d8%b3%d8%b9%d8%a7%d8%b1-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b0%d9%87%d8%a8-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a3%d8%b3%d8%a8%d9%88%d8%b9%d9%8a%d8%a9/%d8%aa%d9%88%d9%82%d8%b9%d8%a7%d8%aa-%d9%85%d8%ad%d9%84%d9%84%d9%89-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b0%d9%87%d8%a8-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%a7%d9%8a%d8%a7%d9%85-%d8%a7%d9%84%d9%85%d9%82%d8%a8%d9%84%d8%a9-%d8%a7%d9%84%d8%b4/139521

Metallica's official X account was hacked to promote the Solana token METAL, making them the latest victim of celebrity meme coin scams. Rapper 50 Cent and wrestler Hulk Logan also joined the growing list of victims this month.

Andrew Tate's meme coin, Daddy Tate ($DADDY), surged on Solana with his massive online following but faced steep price drops amid controversy and insider trading allegations, posing high risk for investors due to its dependency on Tate's influence and volatile market nature.