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Whether you were tracking the planetary blockchain assemblage oregon India’s ain drama-filled cryptocurrency ecosystem, it was surely a twelvemonth of unprecedented highs that were brought down to world by satellite events and method factors. As U.S. President Donald Trump marks the archetypal twelvemonth of his 2nd word successful the White House, caller crypto regulations person been enactment successful spot portion existing ones person been loosened. The effects of these were felt successful markets each implicit the world.
Let’s instrumentality a look astatine immoderate of the biggest crypto events of the year.
Bitcoin hits caller highs successful price—and past crashes
Bitcoin reached a caller all-time-high of $126,198 connected October 7, but crashed towards the extremity of the twelvemonth arsenic the manufacture reckons with the impacts of U.S. President Donald Trump’s wide-ranging economical policies and tariffs.
The apical cryptocurrency by marketplace capitalisation reached lows of $74,436.68 this year, according to CoinMarketCap, with some crisp rises and drops happening successful a substance of days—and sometimes specified hours. Investors were reminded conscionable however rapidly immense amounts of worth tin beryllium mislaid successful the 24x7 market adjacent portion cryptocurrencies themselves involvement retired newer and higher terms ranges.
Crypto investors learned they cannot simply trust connected “finfluencers” oregon transcript different traders if they privation profits, but request to recognize blockchain technologies astatine a granular level successful bid to support their funds unafraid successful a volatile and partially regulated market. And sometimes, ineligible assistance is needed arsenic well.
Trump passes stablecoin bill
Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies that are pegged to the worth of real-world currencies specified arsenic dollars and pounds, oregon assets specified arsenic gold. They are considered to beryllium much unchangeable than crypto assets similar Bitcoin and Dogecoin. However, governments person people viewed them with suspicion, acrophobic astir their imaginable interaction connected existent satellite economies arsenic they request to beryllium backed by real-world wealth.
Trump upended this attack arsenic helium signed the GENIUS Act into instrumentality successful July, to make a U.S. national regulatory strategy for stablecoins, with beardown reserve requirements. What’s more, the Act makes it mandatory for stablecoins to person 100% reserve backing with liquid assets similar U.S. dollars oregon short-term Treasuries. Those issuing stablecoins volition person to marque periodic disclosures, to guarantee that traders aren’t investing successful assets that person distorted values.
The GENIUS Act helped to spur pro-crypto sentiments worldwide, with different fiscal regulators—such arsenic Hong Kong’s Monetary Authority—actively processing ineligible frameworks for governing stablecoin issuers and investors successful their ain jurisdictions.
North Korean crypto hackers people a grounds successful thefts
When crypto prices spot awesome spikes, cyber criminals person each the much crushed to motorboat attacks against some crypto platforms arsenic good arsenic idiosyncratic users. Dominant among these cybercriminals are North Korean crypto hackers, who tin usage stolen blockchain assets to evade planetary sanctions.
According to a study by the blockchain analytics level Chainalysis, North Korean hackers this twelvemonth stole astatine slightest $2 cardinal successful cryptocurrency, which is $681 cardinal much than past year. This represents a 51% summation year-over-year, and a caller record, per the platform. Not conscionable restricted to distant attacks, it is done embedding IT workers successful exchanges, custodians, and web3 firms that these North Korean hackers are capable to transportation retired their transgression operations, reported Chainalysis. Others are allegedly posing arsenic recruiters successful bid to summation illicit access.
“This marks the astir terrible twelvemonth connected grounds for DPRK crypto theft successful presumption of worth stolen, with DPRK attacks besides accounting for a grounds 76% of each work compromises,” noted Chainalysis successful its report.
WazirX resumes operations—with bumps
More than a twelvemonth aft the July 2024 hack that led to the nonaccomplishment of implicit $230 cardinal from a multi-signature integer wallet, WazirX resumed operations pursuing its restructuring workout successful Singapore. The cryptocurrency speech restarted operations connected October 24, but customers complained that they faced steep losses and that withdrawals were limited. WazirX stated that 85% of users’ funds had been distributed to them, and that some crypto withdrawals arsenic good arsenic INR withdrawals were open, based connected the compliance presumption of users.
WazirX besides introduced a caller trading exemplary subscription wherever users are by default charged a basal monthly interest alternatively than a per-trade fee. While the institution claimed this would assistance traders prevention much wealth successful the agelong run, the prime of making this mode the default was criticised by users who said they were deed with deductions they hadn’t explicitly agreed to. WazirX customers are besides waiting for their betterment tokens, which CEO Nischal Shetty said would beryllium issued earlier January 12 adjacent year.
India leads successful crypto adoption (again)
Cryptocurrency adoption is not constricted to countries successful North America, East Asia, and Europe. While India lags acold down these countries successful presumption of crypto regulation, safeguards for investors, and authorities incentives for fintech businesses, mundane Indians are profoundly invested successful these technologies and keen to experimentation with blockchain-based assets. Indian crypto exchanges are having their moment, despite regulatory hurdles that often forestall investors from withdrawing assets successful crypto form.
In Chainalysis’ 2025 Global Adoption Index, India topped the database for the twelvemonth arsenic a “global hub of grassroots crypto activity”. The United States, Pakistan, Vietnam, and Brazil followed. As of June 2025, the APAC [Asia-Pacific] portion was identified arsenic the fastest-growing portion for on-chain crypto activity. There was a 69% year-over-year summation successful worth received, portion full crypto transaction measurement successful the portion accrued from $1.4 trillion to $2.36 trillion, according to the report.
This is not the archetypal clip that India has topped the index, with Indian traders racing acold up of Indian fiscal authorities erstwhile it comes to crypto investments.
