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Binance has revealed a new three-stage process for listing projects on its platform. The system evaluates projects based on performance and potential, moving them through Binance Alpha, Binance Futures, and finally, Binance Spot. The initial stage, Binance Alpha, serves to pre-disclose promising projects to the community. Projects that meet certain criteria can then be listed on the perpetual futures market. Those that satisfy all final requirements are listed on the Binance spot market, allowing them to secure full liquidity. Binance explained that the phased structure is intended to systematically guide quality projects to market while increasing user trust in the listing process. The exchange added that advancement through the stages is based on a comprehensive evaluation that includes project fundamentals, user engagement, and regulatory compliance.

Bybit has announced that it will list SCOR spot at 10:00 a.m. UTC today.

The capacity of the Bitcoin Lightning Network has reached 5,606 BTC, its highest level since March 2023, Cointelegraph reported, citing data from LN analytics platform Amboss. The outlet noted that the network's capacity had been on a downward trend for the past year before beginning to increase in November. This growth is attributed to rising adoption by major cryptocurrency exchanges and functional improvements to the network.

An address presumed to belong to Matrixport deposited 1,000 BTC, worth $86.9 million, to Binance approximately 12 minutes ago, according to Onchain-lense.

Two former senior executives at Theta Labs, the developer of Theta Network (THETA), have filed a whistleblower lawsuit against CEO Mitch Liu, Decrypt reported. The suit alleges that Liu inflated the price of THETA through insider trading and false partnerships, including exaggerating a service contract with Google Cloud. The plaintiffs also claim Liu retaliated against employees who raised concerns. Liu has not issued a public statement regarding the lawsuit.

U.S. President Donald Trump plans to interview Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller as part of the selection process for the next Fed Chair, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported. Waller, who is known for his favorable stance on cryptocurrency and DeFi, is on a shortlist for the position. Other candidates include former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett, Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, and BlackRock executive Rick Rieder.

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has introduced legislation to establish a task force aimed at combating cryptocurrency fraud and scams, Cointelegraph reports. The proposed bill, named the SAFE Act, was co-sponsored by Senators Elissa Slotkin (D) and Jerry Moran (R). The legislation would create a joint effort between the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), other regulatory agencies, and private companies to track and disrupt illicit networks in real time.

According to CoinNess market monitoring, BTC has fallen below $87,000. BTC is trading at $86,991.83 on the Binance USDT market.

U.S. spot Ethereum ETFs experienced a total net outflow of $223.66 million on Dec. 16, marking the fourth consecutive day of withdrawals, according to data compiled by TraderT. BlackRock's ETHA led the outflows, with $220.72 million exiting the fund, while Fidelity's FETH saw a net outflow of $2.94 million. The remaining ETFs recorded no net inflows or outflows for the day.

U.S. Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded a total net outflow of $277.37 million (410.7 billion won) on Dec. 16, marking the second consecutive trading day of withdrawals, according to data compiled by TraderT. The outflows were led by BlackRock's IBIT, which saw $210 million exit the fund, and Bitwise's BITB, which had a net outflow of $50.93 million. Meanwhile, Fidelity's FBTC bucked the trend, attracting a net inflow of $26.72 million.

Animoca Brands Japan, a subsidiary of NFT and blockchain game developer Animoca Brands, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Bitcoin staking protocol developer Babylon Labs to foster a strategic partnership in the Japanese market. The two companies will explore ways to support self-custody Bitcoin finance (BTCFi) for Japanese corporations by utilizing Babylon Labs' trustless Bitcoin vault technology.

The Hyperliquid Foundation has introduced a governance proposal to permanently burn all HYPE tokens held in its Assistance Fund (AF) and has opened the matter to a validator vote. Validators must declare their stance on the governance forum by 4:00 a.m. UTC on Dec. 21. The final outcome will be determined by the weight of user staking aligned with each validator's position. The fund currently holds 37.114 million HYPE, valued at $1.02 billion and representing 13.7% of the token's total supply.

Binance has announced it will temporarily suspend deposits and withdrawals for Terra Classic (LUNC) at 2:10 p.m. UTC on Dec. 18 to support an upcoming network upgrade.

Forced liquidations in the cryptocurrency perpetual futures market over the past 24 hours included $105 million in ETH, with long positions accounting for 69.92% of the total. BTC saw $61.81 million in liquidations, where short positions comprised 66.74%. PIPPIN also experienced $10.90 million in liquidations, with shorts making up 54.55% of that figure.

The South Korean won-U.S. dollar exchange rate touched 1480 during trading on Dec. 17, its first time reaching that level since April 9. The rate is currently trading at 1480.58, according to data from TradingView.

Total cryptocurrency trading volume on South Korean exchanges reached approximately 2,179 trillion won ($1.58 trillion) this year as of Dec. 15, a 5% decrease from the same period last year, Digital Asset reported. Performance varied among individual platforms. Upbit's trading volume fell by 11% to approximately 1,512 trillion won from 1,691 trillion won. In contrast, Bithumb's volume increased by 11% to around 613 trillion won from 553 trillion won. Coinone and Korbit also saw their volumes grow by 10% and 1%, respectively. Gopax recorded the largest decrease, with its volume falling by 65%.

Crypto venture capital firm Shima Capital is effectively shutting down after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued the firm and its founder, Yida Gao, for fraud, Decrypt reporter Kate Irwin stated on X. Irwin reported that Gao announced in an email to portfolio company founders that he would step down as managing partner and liquidate the fund. Shima Capital, which launched in 2021 with $200 million in capital, has invested in numerous crypto projects, including Berachain, Monad, and Pudgy Penguins. The SEC's allegations include claims that the firm secretly established an offshore entity and misappropriated assets from its venture fund without informing investors.

Shares of Hong Kong-based crypto investment firm HashKey Holdings Limited rose more than 3% on their first day of trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Dec. 17. The company raised $206 million in its initial public offering (IPO), with JPMorgan, Fidelity, and UBS among the participants, according to CNBC.

The waitlist is now open for Conviction, an Asia-focused prediction market platform built on the cross-chain Layer 1 blockchain ZetaChain (ZETA), the project announced on X. The platform supports a multi-chain structure, including Bitcoin, Solana, and EVM-compatible chains, and provides AI-based insights. Users can use cryptocurrency to bet on a variety of outcomes and trade their predictions to earn rewards.

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Upbit will begin backing up user data to Microsoft Azure data centers in addition to its existing storage on Amazon Web Services (AWS), Herald Business reported exclusively. An Upbit official stated that the move is part of a strategy to enhance operational resilience and ensure business continuity. The exchange aims to safeguard its operations by creating a secondary backup in case of emergencies, such as a fire or earthquake, affecting its primary AWS infrastructure.

The Russian government will reportedly make its cryptocurrency mining ban in two Siberian regions permanent starting next year to address power shortages. This measure expands on existing seasonal mining bans, which are in effect in 10 regions from November to March annually until 2031.

A Bitwise researcher predicts that over 100 new crypto exchange-traded products (ETPs) will launch in 2026 as the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) refines its guidelines for the sector, Cointelegraph reported. Ryan Rasmussen of Bitwise Research stated that the market will see a surge of diverse products, including spot, index, equity-linked, and smart beta ETPs. He noted that this marks a significant shift from the past, when investors had only two or three options. Rasmussen likened the future ETP landscape to a restaurant with an extensive menu, offering dozens or even hundreds of choices.

Younger generations are investing more than three times as much in alternative assets like cryptocurrency compared to traditional financial assets, as they feel it is difficult to access established paths to wealth, Coinbase stated in a post on X. The company added that these generations view cryptocurrency as a key vehicle for future wealth growth, signaling a paradigm shift in asset investment between generations. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong explained that the existing financial system has numerous problems, which is driving younger people to turn to alternative assets.

Security token platform Securitize plans to launch on-chain stocks within the next few months, according to The Block. These stocks will grant actual shareholder rights, including receiving dividends and exercising voting rights, and will be recorded on the issuer's shareholder ledger. Securitize stated that while most existing tokenized stocks only offer exposure rather than ownership, its on-chain stocks will be legally recognized shares.

South Korean crypto exchange Coinone announced it will list XPASS at 6:00 a.m. UTC today.