What Investors Need To Watch
The cryptocurrency market is about to get off to a vibrant start to the new year, series A series of key events will reshape market sentiment and trading volumes. From the Fed’s macroeconomic decisions to protocol updates and legal proceedings, here are the key developments for investors to keep an eye on:
#1 Cryptocurrency Awaiting FOMC Minutes Release (January 8)
Minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) December meeting are due to be released on Wednesday and will provide insights into policymakers’ deliberations and possible hints at an upcoming interest rate decision. The minutes will reveal the Fed’s latest approach to controlling inflation while supporting economic stability.
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The Fed cut interest rates three times in a row after heated debate in late 2024, despite lowered forecast This year’s total annual rate cuts fell from four to two. Investors also recall Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s statement that “the decision to cut rates was a close call.” This highlights the importance of the upcoming minutes for anyone who wants to gauge how hawkish or dovish the central bank is likely to become over the course of 2025.
#2 Basic integration of THORChain
The cross-chain liquidity platform THORChain has confirmed that it will start supporting Base – currently the Layer 2 with the largest trading volume – next week. According to a THORChain development update, this integration enables more efficient ETH-BTC exchanges by circumventing Ethereum mainnet congestion and unlocking new liquidity avenues through cbBTC. Market watchers expect trading volumes to increase significantly as the community takes advantage of cheaper ETH-BTC swaps and expanded cross-chain functionality.
#3 Jupiter’s Airdrop Checker
Jupiter, a leading Solana-based decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator, is expected to release its air investment eligibility checker this week. The event is part of “Jupuary,” a multi-year airdrop program scheduled for January 2025 and 2026, during which the protocol will distribute a total of $700 million worth of JUP to its user base Tokens.
The purpose of the airdrop, the project claims, is to “make the pie bigger,” expand the scope of the Jupiter community and promote participation in one of the world’s most important decentralized autonomous organizations. In addition, 30% of the token supply will be burned live at the Jupiter Castanbul conference at the end of January.
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#4 Normal fee conversion activation (January 7th)
In the field of decentralized finance (DeFi), the USUAL ecosystem will activate its fee switch on January 7, 2025. This marks a key shift: USUAL holders who stake their tokens will begin receiving a portion of the protocol’s revenue. By rewarding transaction fees directly to stakeholders, the protocol hopes to cultivate a stronger, more engaged user base.
#5 Do Kwon’s second hearing in the United States (January 8)
Terra founder Do Kwon is faced with A key moment in his legal battle A second hearing is scheduled for January 8. If Quan is extradited to the United States, he faces up to 130 years in prison if convicted on widespread fraud charges detailed in the Justice Department’s 79-page indictment.
The DOJ case adds new charges to those reviewed in the SEC civil lawsuit, including alleging that Kwon acted with clear criminal intent to mislead investors. Prosecutors built their case around five alleged fraudulent schemes, including falsely advertising Terra’s stability, manipulating Luna Foundation guards and falsifying Chai’s use of Terra.
#6 GMX transaction fee reduction (January 6th)
Exchange focused on derivatives GMX Remarkable steps are being taken to encourage higher trading volumes by reducing fees across all markets. Effective January 6, 2025, GMX will cut opening and closing fees from 5 basis points (bps) and 7 bps to 4 bps and 6 bps respectively. The team said via Down to 4 bps / 6 bps.”
However, instead of a flat rate of 4.5 basis points, the new structure introduces a sliding scale: traders who establish positions that improve the balance between longs and shorts pay a lower 4 basis point fee, while those who exacerbate the imbalance Pay 6 basis points. “This adjustment ensures a balanced position, keeping funding fees and price impact low,” GMX said.
At the same time, GMX has updated the clearing fees to 20 basis points for asset-backed markets and 30 basis points for synthetic markets. GMX developers believe that together these measures will reduce transaction costs, incentivize balanced market participation, and enhance the overall user experience.
As of press time, the total market value of cryptocurrencies is $3.45 trillion.
Featured image created using DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com
