European Central Bank President: The Digital Euro has now become an immediate priority for both the Governing Council and the Parliament.

**Breaking: Bank of Japan Rate Decision Today (Dec 19)** The Bank of Japan (BOJ) will announce its interest rate decision this morning between 10:30 AM and 12:30 PM UTC+8 (typically around 10:45–11:30 AM). Governor Haruhiko Kuroda will hold a press conference at 2:30 PM UTC+8. Market odds of a **25-basis-point December rate hike** have climbed to 98%. If the hike proceeds as expected, Japan’s benchmark rate will rise from 0.50% to 0.75%—its highest level since 1995, marking the end of Japan’s 30-year era of ultra-low interest rates. **U.S. Markets Jittery Over BOJ Move; Fed Cut Outlook Clouded** Japan’s renewed rate-hike signal is stoking U.S. market concerns, muddying the Federal Reserve’s rate-cut prospects. Japan is the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasuries, with ~$1.2 trillion in holdings as of September. Wall Street fears rising Japanese bond yields will pull capital out of U.S. investments, pushing up U.S. Treasury yields. This year’s drop in U.S. bond yields h

On December 19, White House Crypto and AI Czar David Sacks announced the CLARITY Act (formally the Crypto Market Structure Act) will be introduced in the Senate next month for debate and amendment, followed by a full up-or-down floor vote. Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott and Agriculture Committee Chair John Boozman have confirmed the bipartisan draft of the CLARITY Act will be taken up by the Senate next month. The legislation will define crypto assets as securities or commodities and clarify the regulatory jurisdictions of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and other relevant financial watchdogs.

On December 19, prediction market Kalshi noted that while filings submitted to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) show a U.S. college athlete transfer market contract is set to launch, the contract may not ultimately go live. Earlier, news that Kalshi could launch contracts tied to college athlete transfers angered the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The NCAA president issued a fierce critique Wednesday: "The NCAA strongly opposes college sports prediction markets. Student-athletes have already faced harassment and abuse from betting on their game performance—and now Kalshi wants to offer bets on their transfer decisions and status. This is completely unacceptable: it will put greater pressure on student-athletes and threaten the integrity of competitions and the recruitment process."

Intercontinental Exchange Group (ICE), parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, is reportedly in talks for a funding round with cryptocurrency payment firm MoonPay Inc., targeting a valuation of around $5 billion, sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday (Dec. 19). Neither ICE nor MoonPay has commented on the potential deal. Founded in 2019, MoonPay is a prominent player in the crypto payments space. Its last funding round, completed in late 2021, valued the company at $3.4 billion.

**December 19: On Thursday, Donald Trump heaped praise on several candidates for Federal Reserve chair. When asked about Fed Board member Christopher Waller, he noted the two had met again the prior day (Wednesday) and called Waller “great.” Trump also praised Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman but did not explicitly name her a final candidate.** **He added he is interviewing “three to four” candidates for the top Fed post and expects to decide “soon” on who will succeed Jerome Powell. “I think each would be a good choice. I’m not sure if an announcement will come by year’s end, but the decision will be made in the coming weeks.”** **Last week, during an interview, Trump hinted that National Economic Council (NEC) Director Kevin Hassett and former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh were leading contenders. At the time, he said: “Both Kevins are great, and there are several others who are too.”**