Itâs all about the memes as we enter 2025.
I mean, what other conclusions can one draw when fartcoin is up some 18% in the past day, per CoinGecko.
(Disclaimer: Iâm writing this Friday, so who knows how fartcoin will be doing as of Sunday â and thatâs the point.)
One imagines that memecoins, at least for the time being, will continue to drive the overall crypto market narrative.
Sure, maybe Trump and/or his administration will throw some energy into the mix from time to time. But the gears of politics are by nature slow and deliberate, whereas memecoins are ephemeral, lightning-quick â perfectly suited for the never-gonna-sleep mentality of the degens.
Perhaps others will emerge. As linked below, growth signs are unmistakable in the realm of decentralized infrastructure. Real-world asset porting, too, is drawing strength. And letâs not forget about the wave of ETFs likely to pile into the market in the coming months, should a more permissive regulatory environment take hold.
But the memecoins may well still set the tempo, for better or for worse, as 2025 plays out. Hereâs hoping the memes get funnier, at least.
And now, on to the roundup:
â Michael McSweeney
Byron dug into some recent DePIN data as 2024 drew to a close, positing that the sector is "one of cryptoâs best chances to stop eating its tail."
Got some free time as the new year unfolds? Felix Jauvinâs got a list of banger podcast episodes to throw on.
The EUâs very-long-in-the-making crypto rules framework, MiCA, is finally alive. What does it mean for crypto firms? The 0xResearch teamâs got the goods.
Who were Solanaâs biggest money makers of 2024, in terms of fees? Well, read Jackâs Thursday edition to find out!
Some of cryptoâs top execs rank among the worldâs biggest stock sellers, according to data collected by Empire.
recent research
Research
Figure, founded by former SoFi CEO Mike Cagney, has emerged as a leader in onchain RWAs, with ~$17.5B publicly tokenized. The platformâs ecosystem volume is growing ~40% YoY as it expands beyond HELOCs into student loans, DSCR loans, unsecured loans, bankruptcy claims, and more. Operationally, Figure cuts average loan production cost by ~93% and compresses median funding time from ~42 days to ~10, creating a durable speed-and-cost advantage.