Ripple Expands RLUSD to the Ethereum Layer 2 Network

On December 18, Circle announced the launch of the Arc Developer Fund, per official sources. Circle Ventures is earmarking special funds and mobilizing its investor network to back early-stage teams building real-world financial applications and services on Arc—Circle’s Internet Economic Operating System. The Arc Developer Fund (focused on accelerating innovation) supports projects that leverage Arc’s unique design, including: - On-chain markets built on low-latency architecture - Real-world asset and private credit markets powered by private, composable infrastructure - On-chain forex liquidity systems integrating Circle StableFX and the Circle Payments Network - Smart contract solutions serving autonomous systems and the machine economy - Energy and computation protocols driven by deterministic settlement

QCP Capital took to its official channel on December 18 to note that markets are ending the year in a fragile balance of confidence and caution. The Fed’s dovish rate-cut stance is mixed with hawkish undertones: signals back the labor market while keeping inflation firmly in focus. Its dot plot points to a flattening interest rate path, with current market pricing indicating roughly 2-3 rate cuts next year. The stock market remains a key macro swing factor. Capital continues flowing into AI infrastructure, but monetization is lagging. If revenue growth fails to keep up with investment, risks could spill over from the AI sector—potentially triggering a broader stock market revaluation in 2026. The crypto market remains under pressure as MSCI reviews index eligibility for digital asset managers. This could spark up to $28 billion in passive outflows.

December 18th — Per HTX market data, the crypto market is broadly declining following Bitcoin’s overnight surge to $90,000 and subsequent pullback, with the following notable 24-hour moves: - STABLE: Down 23.3% | Last trading at $0.01 - MON: Down 13.1% | Currently at $0.0183 - PUMP: Down 12.7% | Trading at $0.002 - ZORA: Down 12.4% | At $0.0458 - BERA: Down 11.5% | Last seen at $0.5649 This rewrite uses concise, news-style language common in U.S. crypto updates: - "Per" (instead of "according to") for brevity; - "Overnight surge" / "pullback" (natural terms for price moves); - Vertical dividers to organize asset data clearly; - Varied phrasing ("last trading at," "currently at") to avoid repetition while keeping info scannable.

On December 18, AAA blockchain action game **Seraph** announced that Season 5 officially launched at 11:00 AM UTC+8 the same day. To celebrate the new season, the dev team is offering all players a **$100 welcome pack** as a login reward: a Season Pass, Advanced Upgrade Pill, and Booth Voucher bundle—valued at roughly $100—to help players hit the ground running and dive into Season 5’s content. This season retains the fan-favorite *Abyssal Treasures* mode, which earned rave reviews when it debuted in Season 4. Focused on low-barrier entry and a "play-to-earn without spending" model, it has already drawn in tons of new and returning players. Per the team’s earlier announcements, Seraph will roll out a **back-to-back launch schedule** for Season 5 and Season 6, plus refine its seasonal cycle system to enable **co-creation and mutual growth** between users and the ecosystem.

As of December 18th, Coinglass data shows that if Bitcoin drops below $84,000, the cumulative long liquidation strength across major centralized exchanges (CEXs) will reach $915 million. Conversely, should Bitcoin rise above $89,000, the cumulative short liquidation strength for these mainstream CEXs will hit $1.463 billion. **BlockBeats Note:** Liquidation charts do not display the exact number or value of contracts subject to liquidation. Instead, the bars on these charts represent the relative importance of each liquidation cluster compared to neighboring clusters—i.e., their "strength." This means the charts indicate how significantly Bitcoin’s price will be impacted when it hits a given level: a taller "liquidation bar" signals a more intense price reaction due to a liquidity cascade once that price point is reached.

On December 18, Coinbase announced that its Base App—previously available only by invitation—has opened to the general public. Over 1 million people had been waiting patiently for access as the team gradually expanded spots. Over the past few months, the team has continuously gathered feedback, rolled out updates, and worked to refine the experience daily. Today, the invitation-only phase officially concludes, and the all-new Base App is now accessible to everyone.