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U.S. Added 256K Jobs in December, Blowing Past 160K Estimate

The employment market in the U.S. picked up steam in December, with job growth topping economist forecasts by a mile and the unemployment rate unexpectedly dipping.
The economy added 256,000 jobs last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday, topping forecasts for 160,000 and up from 212,000 in November (revised from an originally reported 227,000).
The unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in December versus an expected 4.2% and November’s 4.2%.
Attempting to rally from sizable declines earlier this week, bitcoin (BTC) fell more than 2% in the immediate aftermath of the report to $92,800.
Today’s job market readings came after a number of recent economic reports triggered a broad-market pullback across asset classes as investors quickly scaled back the idea of a continued series of Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2025.
Previously high-flying crypto markets bore the brunt of the selloff, with bitcoin tumbling from nearly $103,000 on Monday to below $92,000 at one point on Thursday. Major altcoins suffered even larger declines on a percentage basis.
A check of traditional markets finds U.S. stock index futures down roughly 1% following the jobs print. The strongest reaction is in the bond market, with the 10-year Treasury yield popping nine basis points higher to 4.78%. The dollar index is also surging, up 0.6%. Gold has moved modestly lower to just below $2,700 per ounce.
Traders are quickly scaling back bets on further Fed rate cuts in 2025, with the odds of a March move falling to 28% from 41% just ahead of the report, according to CME FedWatch. The odds of a May rate cut have declined to 34% from 44% prior.
In other closely watched report details, average hourly earnings rose 0.3% in December compared with forecasts for 0.3% and November’s 0.4%. On a year-over-year basis, average hourly earnings were higher by 3.9% versus expectations for 4% and November’s 4% reading.
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UK’s FCA Seeks Views on Stablecoins, Crypto Custody to Prevent Firm Failures

The U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is seeking additional views on its upcoming stablecoins regime, it said on Wednesday.
«In support of the opportunities stablecoins present to financial services and the broader economy, the FCA will explore adding a specific focus on stablecoins to its innovation services in the coming months,» the FCA’s statement said.
The FCA’s proposed rules are meant to ensure stablecoins maintain their value and seek to reduce the likelihood of stablecoin and crypto custody companies failing.
Stablecoins have been something regulators have been watching carefully following the collapse of the algorithmic stablecoin terraUSD in 2022 that resulted in investors losing out on their life savings.
The FCA has been establishing its new crypto regime since 2023. In 2023 it published a discussion paper with proposals for a stablecoins regime. The regulator has since upped its efforts to regulate the sector by releasing a series of discussion papers for the industry and the U.K. government is working on establishing new legislation to ensure the country’s regulators have all the powers they need to launch their new regimes for the digital asset sector.
The FCA will be working with the Bank of England to regulate stablecoins.
«For those stablecoins that expect to operate at systemic scale, the Bank of England will publish a complementary consultation paper later this year, including responding to industry feedback around allowing some return on backing assets,» Sarah Breeden, deputy governor for financial stability at the Bank of England said.
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Bitcoin and Web3 Wallet Firm Ledger Brings ‘Crypto Life’ Visa Card to U.S. Users

Cryptocurrency hardware wallet firm Ledger has launched its Crypto Life (CL) Visa card in the U.S., offering users 1% cashback in bitcoin (BTC) or USDC on purchases and the ability to directly deposit paychecks into the on-chain card account via bank transfer.
Ledger’s CL Visa card is facilitated by fiat-to-on-chain card enabler Baanx, which also provides self-custody crypto cards for the likes of MetaMask, Tools for Humanity and most recently wallet firm Exodus.
Big card networks Mastercard and Visa are aligning themselves with the self-custodial crypto world and the rapid growth in areas like stablecoin payments. Data on CL card usage shows household purchases dominated crypto card usage at 63% of total transactions, with entertainment and fashion categories showing the strongest growth.
Jean-Francois Rochet, EVP of Consumer Services at Ledger, said the collaboration brings the CL card to millions of users in the U.S. with attractive cashback features for bitcoin holders. “Living the crypto life means having ownership, access and real world utility over your digital assets,” he said in a statement.
“The CL Card, designed for Ledger, is a step toward mainstream, non-custodial crypto payments—right in your pocket”, said Simon Jones, Chief Commercial Officer of Baanx.
The CL Card will be available in the U.S. (excluding New York and Vermont) on June 30, 2025.
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VivoPower Raises $121M to Launch XRP Treasury Strategy With Saudi Royal Backing

VivoPower International (VVPR), a Nasdaq-listed energy company, said on Wednesday it has secured $121 million in a private share placement to fund its pivot to digital asset treasury focusing on XRP XRP, the fourth largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.
The raise was led by Saudi Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Abdulaziz Al Saud, investing $100 million, a spokesperson to the company told CoinDesk. The company sold 20 million ordinary shares priced at $6.05 per share.
Adam Traidman, a former Ripple executive who led the SBI Ripple Asia, is joining the company as chairman of the board of advisors, according to the press release. Ripple is an enterprise-focused blockchain service provider closely related to the XRP Ledger.
VivoPower shares surged as much as 26% on the news before giving back some of the gains. Recently, they were up over 11%, trading around $6.75.
The move is the latest example of public firms raising money to purchase and add digital assets to their treasuries, a playbook popularized by Michael Saylor’s Strategy (MSTR) that has become the largest corporate holder of bitcoin BTC. While BTC has been the most sought-after asset among these firms, recent newcomers like DeFi Development and SharpLink Gaming directed their focus to Solana’s SOL SOL and Ethereum’s ether ETH, respectively.
VivoPower, founded in 2014, aims to be the first publicly traded company with a crypto treasury strategy centered around XRP. It also plans to spin off its legacy business.
«After reviewing a number of listed vehicles seeking to embrace a digital asset treasury model, we selected VivoPower given its strategic focus on XRP and its objective to contribute to building out of the XRPL ecosystem,» Prince Abdulaziz said in a statement. «We have been investors in the digital asset sector for a decade and have been long-term holders of XRP.»
Read more: Dubai Unveils Real Estate Tokenization Platform on XRP Ledger Amid $16B Initiative
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