The market has indeed cooled down. After BTC attempted to break through the $90,000 mark but failed, it has now retreated and is oscillating in the range of $87,300-$87,500, with a 24-hour drop of about 2.4%; Ethereum has even fallen below the psychological level of $3,000, quoted at around $2,960, with a drop of 1 percentage point. Meanwhile, gold is on fire, with prices reaching a historical high of $4,380-$4,470 per ounce, as funds are piling into traditional safe-haven assets. This comparison is quite interesting—while the crypto world is adjusting, safe-haven assets are heating up.

But don't panic, the actions of institutions tell another story. Trump-related media increased their holdings by 450 BTC this week, bringing their total holdings to 11,542 coins; the Ethereum whale BitMine added nearly 100,000 ETH last week, with total holdings surpassing 4 million coins. Last week, global listed companies net bought 26.35 million USD worth of BTC. Although Strategy (formerly MicroStrategy) did not follow suit this time, JPMorgan is considering offering crypto spot and derivatives trading services to institutional clients. You see, the big players are buying, and institutions are also making moves.

There are some mixed messages regarding XRP. XRP ETF has seen a net inflow of funds for 31 consecutive days, with the scale exceeding $1 billion; in Japan, SBI VC is set to launch XRP lending services tonight, which is a positive signal. However, a major exchange has a plan to delist 9 tokens, including XRP, which is a bit disappointing.

There are also reminders regarding security. The Ethereum Foundation issued a warning about the 50 million USDT phishing attack, suggesting that everyone should avoid using shortened addresses for convenience and instead use the full address. The Litecoin official also debunked the claim that "the founder regrets creating LTC," stating that the video was maliciously edited, and everyone should be cautious of such rumors.

In the short term, a certain options trading platform has $28.5 billion worth of Bitcoin and Ether options expiring on December 26, which may increase market volatility. According to the market sentiment index, the current fear and greed index is only 29, in the "fear" zone, but it has not yet reached the bottom. The voices from institutions are optimistic about the market in 2026, believing that 2025 will be a period of "retail selling and institutions buying." Overall, the market is diverging, institutions are accumulating, and retail investors are on the sidelines—maintaining the status quo may be the optimal strategy at the moment.