[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":27},["ShallowReactive",2],{"post:en:top-5-crypto-news-of-the-week-22-28-december":3},{"post":4,"related":26},{"id":5,"uuid":6,"slug":7,"source":8,"language":9,"title":10,"excerpt":11,"readingTime":12,"featured":13,"featureImage":14,"featureImageAlt":10,"publishedAt":15,"author":16,"primaryTag":14,"tags":20,"html":21,"featureImageCaption":14,"updatedAt":15,"availableLanguages":22,"seo":23},913,"dd52e2c8-4a79-4636-b833-ecf76608854c","top-5-crypto-news-of-the-week-22-28-december","pointpay","en","Top 5 Crypto News of the Week (22–28 December)","Dear PointPay Family,\nThe holiday season didn’t “pause” the market - it just changed how it moves. Liquidity is thinner, reactions are slower, and the biggest drivers are often derivatives flows, headlines, and risk management. Here are the five stories that shaped the week.\nRecord BTC Options Expiry: $23.8B - $27B Reset\nThe biggest year-end derivatives event landed on Dec 26, with roughly $23.8B in BTC options (and total BTC+ETH expiries nearing ~$27B). A large share of open interest was cluste",2,false,null,"2025-12-29T00:05:18+00:00",{"slug":17,"name":18,"profileImage":19},"pointpay-team","PointPay Team","https:\u002F\u002Fpointpay-blog-prod.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\u002Fblog\u002Fauthors\u002F2026\u002F11\u002F4JkYLp4GwGYUTTjtkNR02wsrCVP0RrxQnL5UdyHF.png",[],"\u003Cfigure class=\"kg-card kg-image-card\">\u003Cimg src=\"https:\u002F\u002Fpointpay-blog-prod.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\u002Fblog\u002Fghost\u002Fimages\u002F2025\u002F12\u002FWebsite_Top_5_crypto_news_of_the_week_26.12.25.jpg\" class=\"kg-image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1250\" srcset=\"https:\u002F\u002Fpointpay-blog-prod.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\u002Fblog\u002Fghost\u002Fimages\u002Fsize\u002Fw600\u002F2025\u002F12\u002FWebsite_Top_5_crypto_news_of_the_week_26.12.25.jpg 600w, https:\u002F\u002Fpointpay-blog-prod.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\u002Fblog\u002Fghost\u002Fimages\u002Fsize\u002Fw1000\u002F2025\u002F12\u002FWebsite_Top_5_crypto_news_of_the_week_26.12.25.jpg 1000w, https:\u002F\u002Fpointpay-blog-prod.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\u002Fblog\u002Fghost\u002Fimages\u002Fsize\u002Fw1600\u002F2025\u002F12\u002FWebsite_Top_5_crypto_news_of_the_week_26.12.25.jpg 1600w, https:\u002F\u002Fpointpay-blog-prod.s3.eu-north-1.amazonaws.com\u002Fblog\u002Fghost\u002Fimages\u002F2025\u002F12\u002FWebsite_Top_5_crypto_news_of_the_week_26.12.25.jpg 2160w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 720px) 720px\">\u003C\u002Ffigure>\u003Cp>Dear PointPay Family,\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>The holiday season didn’t “pause” the market - it just changed how it moves. Liquidity is thinner, reactions are slower, and the biggest drivers are often derivatives flows, headlines, and risk management. Here are the five stories that shaped the week.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3 id=\"record-btc-options-expiry-238b27b-reset\">\u003Cstrong>Record BTC Options Expiry: $23.8B - $27B Reset\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>The biggest year-end derivatives event landed on \u003Cstrong>Dec 26\u003C\u002Fstrong>, with roughly \u003Cstrong>$23.8B in BTC options\u003C\u002Fstrong> (and total \u003Cstrong>BTC+ETH expiries nearing ~$27B\u003C\u002Fstrong>). A large share of open interest was clustered around \u003Cstrong>$85K\u003C\u002Fstrong> and \u003Cstrong>$100K\u003C\u002Fstrong>, which matters because price often “gravitates” toward heavy strike zones into expiry. In practical terms: even if the spot looks calm, options flows can temporarily amplify moves - especially in holiday liquidity. That’s why this expiry was treated as a potential volatility trigger, not just a calendar event. \u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3 id=\"crypto-ma-hits-a-2025-high-86b-across-267-deals\">\u003Cstrong>Crypto M&A Hits a 2025 High: $8.6B Across 267 Deals\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>Crypto dealmaking in 2025 reached \u003Cstrong>$8.6B across 267 deals\u003C\u002Fstrong>, a record pace that signals something important: big players are still building in “quiet” weeks, not waiting for perfect market conditions. The pattern is clear - exchanges, infrastructure, and regulated rails are the main targets. It’s less about hype acquisitions and more about positioning for 2026 scale.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3 id=\"market-stayed-stableeven-as-total-cap-drifted\">\u003Cstrong>Market Stayed Stable - Even as Total Cap Drifted\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>This week’s backdrop was “controlled movement,” not panic. Reports tracked global market cap roughly in the \u003Cstrong>$2.96T–$3.04T\u003C\u002Fstrong> zone, with BTC trading around the \u003Cstrong>high-$80Ks to low-$90Ks\u003C\u002Fstrong> range. What stood out wasn’t a single breakout - it was \u003Cstrong>rotation\u003C\u002Fstrong>. Capital attention kept circling themes (AI, DeFi, privacy), even while overall activity slowed for the holidays.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3 id=\"trust-wallet-hack-7m-lostcz-promised-coverage\">\u003Cstrong>Trust Wallet Hack: ~$7M Lost - CZ Promised Coverage\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>A real reminder that security doesn’t take holidays: Trust Wallet users reportedly lost about \u003Cstrong>$7M\u003C\u002Fstrong> tied to a compromised Chrome extension incident. Public messaging emphasized that losses would be covered and users should update\u002Favoid affected versions. Market takeaway: incidents like this don’t just hit one wallet - they increase scrutiny around \u003Cstrong>browser extensions and supply-chain risk\u003C\u002Fstrong>, especially for retail-heavy tools. \u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3 id=\"altcoin-micro-trends-night-61-bch-8-on-speculation\">\u003Cstrong>Altcoin Micro-Trends: NIGHT +61%, BCH +8% on Speculation\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>Even in a slow week, some altcoins moved hard on narrative bursts. \u003Cstrong>NIGHT\u003C\u002Fstrong> was cited as jumping \u003Cstrong>~61%\u003C\u002Fstrong>, while \u003Cstrong>BCH\u003C\u002Fstrong>saw an \u003Cstrong>~8%\u003C\u002Fstrong> lift tied to speculation around a large transaction (despite pushback on the rumor). The signal here is simple: holiday liquidity makes these moves easier - upside and downside. If you’re trading alts in this period, execution and risk limits matter more than usual.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Chr>\u003Cp>\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fexchange.pointpay.io\u002Ftrade\u002FPXP\u002FUSDT\">\u003Cu>Happy trading at PointPay!\u003C\u002Fu>\u003C\u002Fa>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>🔥 Buy PXP tokens on MEXC: \u003Ca href=\"http:\u002F\u002Fbit.ly\u002F3UhCgZn\">\u003Cu>http:\u002F\u002Fbit.ly\u002F3UhCgZn\u003C\u002Fu>\u003C\u002Fa>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>🔥 Buy PXP tokens on Bitrue: \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbit.ly\u002F3JEreHu\">\u003Cu>https:\u002F\u002Fbit.ly\u002F3JEreHu\u003C\u002Fu>\u003C\u002Fa>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>🔥 Buy PXP tokens on WhiteBIT: \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fbit.ly\u002F3qJrjRH\">\u003Cu>https:\u002F\u002Fbit.ly\u002F3qJrjRH\u003C\u002Fu>\u003C\u002Fa>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>💰 Earn up to 7% yearly with PXP \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fexchange.pointpay.io\u002Fstaking\">\u003Cu>staking\u003C\u002Fu>\u003C\u002Fa>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>🏦 PointPay - all crypto services in one place!\u003C\u002Fp>",[9],{"metaTitle":10,"metaDescription":11,"canonicalUrl":14,"og":24,"twitter":25,"publishedTime":15,"modifiedTime":15},{"title":10,"description":11,"image":14},{"title":10,"description":11,"image":14},[],1793989656603]