Market Recap: Precious Metals Rally, Regulatory Clarity Emerges, and Major Whales Make Strategic Moves

Precious Metals Hit Historic Peaks

The commodity markets delivered striking performances over the past 48 hours. Shanghai silver futures surged past the 16,000 yuan per kilogram threshold for the first time in history, marking a 5% intraday jump. The momentum has been relentless—accumulated gains now stand at over 114% since the year began, making it one of 2025’s standout performers as we enter the final days of December. On the 21st in kg measurements, silver’s strength remains undeniable.

Simultaneously, the precious metals complex saw spot gold breach through previous resistance at $4,381.4 per ounce, establishing new all-time highs. Both moves reflect broader investor risk reassessment and safe-haven demand amid macroeconomic uncertainties.

U.S. Lawmakers Push for Crypto Tax Framework

Bipartisan efforts in the U.S. House of Representatives are moving forward to establish clearer tax treatment for digital assets. Representatives Max Miller (R-Ohio) and Steven Horsford (D-Nevada) have drafted legislation designed to align cryptocurrency taxation with traditional securities frameworks.

The proposal includes several key provisions: regulated stablecoins maintaining value between $0.99 and $1.01 would receive capital gains tax exemptions on qualifying transactions. Additionally, the framework introduces safe harbor protections for staking and mining rewards, removing barriers that have historically complicated tax filing for blockchain participants. The draft also extends existing tax benefits—such as foreign investor exemptions and securities lending privileges—to digital asset transactions, creating a more coherent regulatory environment.

China Implements One-Time Credit Repair Initiative

The People’s Bank of China announced a targeted credit reconstruction program for pandemic-affected individuals. Under this policy, single overdue payment records not exceeding 10,000 yuan incurred between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2025 will be expunged from credit files, provided repayment occurs by March 31, 2026.

The initiative requires no individual application and will roll out in phases beginning 2026. Furthermore, from January through June 2026, eligible individuals gain access to two additional complimentary credit report inquiries beyond their standard annual allowance—a temporary measure designed to support credit rebuilding efforts.

Crypto Market Volatility: Token Dumps and Liquidations

The past 24 hours witnessed significant market turbulence. A substantial whale deposited 230,350 AAVE tokens onto the market, receiving approximately $17.52 million in stETH and $20.07 million in WBTC. This liquidation triggered roughly a 10% correction in AAVE’s trading price.

Network-wide contract liquidations reached $30 million across the four-hour period, with LIGHT and BEAT ranking as the top two tokens by liquidation volume at $6.52 million and $5.08 million respectively. LIGHT experienced particularly severe price action, plummeting approximately 80% from $4.6 to below $0.8 during early morning hours, while BEAT also registered significant volatility.

Strategic Positioning: Whales and Large Holders

On-chain monitoring reveals several whale activities worth noting:

Chainlink Accumulation: A newly-created wallet withdrew 104,503 LINK tokens from a major exchange, valued at $1.32 million. This follows larger whale movements, with another significant holder liquidating approximately 630,000 LINK tokens over recent days—worth nearly $8 million—signaling potential accumulation phases.

Ethereum Movement: A whale that had profited $1.506 million from three ETH swing trades over an 11-month period initiated its fourth position. The address withdrew 2,000 ETH at $2,991.65 per token (approximately $5.98 million), marking a fresh entry after its previous swing concluded during last month’s sharp decline.

Token Unlock Calendar: Major Events Ahead

Several tokens face significant unlock events in the coming week, creating potential market pressures:

• Humanity (H): 105 million tokens (4.79% of supply, ~$14.8 million) on December 25th at 8:00 AM Beijing time
• Plasma (XPL): 88.89 million tokens (4.5% of supply, ~$11.7 million) on December 25th at 8:00 PM Beijing time
• SOON (SOON): 21.88 million tokens (5.97% of supply, ~$8 million) on December 23rd at 4:30 PM Beijing time
• MBG by Multibank Group (MBG): 15.84 million tokens (8.42% of supply, ~$8.1 million) on December 22nd at 8:00 PM Beijing time
• Undeads Games (UDS): 2.15 million tokens (1.46% of supply, ~$5.2 million) on December 23rd at 8:00 AM Beijing time

Leveraged Positions and Liquidation Risk

On-chain analyst data shows trader Huang Licheng maintaining aggressive leverage exposure. His portfolio includes a 10x leveraged ZEC position worth approximately $390,000 with entry near $439.24, alongside a 25x leveraged ETH holding of 5,200 tokens showing $266,000 in floating profit against a liquidation level around $2,789.

Recent trading activity shows Huang closed all long positions in Bitcoin and HYPE 15 minutes prior to this report, crystallizing approximately $1.46 million in weekly losses. However, his Ethereum position remains active, maintaining the significant leveraged exposure mentioned above.

Federal Reserve Signals on Rates and Inflation

Fed official Hamak addressed inflation data complexity, suggesting November’s positive readings may reflect measurement distortions from October-November government shutdown effects. While the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 2.7% year-on-year CPI growth, adjusted estimates point closer to 2.9-3.0%, the range many forecasters anticipated.

Hamak emphasized that the neutral interest rate likely exceeds conventional assumptions, with the economy possessing sufficient momentum to support robust growth through 2026, potentially constraining future rate reduction scenarios.

Market Outlook and Strategic Implications

The convergence of regulatory clarity, precious metals strength, and active whale positioning suggests markets are repricing amid shifting macro conditions. Token unlock schedules present near-term technical factors that traders should monitor, while the broader push toward clearer cryptocurrency taxation frameworks may reduce regulatory uncertainty heading into 2026.