Crypto Morning Brief: Brevis opens airdrop query, Trend Research accumulates over 46,000 ETH in a single day

Author: TechFlow

Yesterday's Market Dynamics

Cicely LaMothe, Deputy Director of the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance, Announces Retirement After Leading Key Crypto Policies

According to The Block, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on Monday that Cicely LaMothe, Deputy Director of the Division of Corporation Finance, is set to retire. Over the past year, LaMothe led several critical cryptocurrency policy initiatives, including clarifying that meme coins are not securities and articulating the SEC’s stance on staking. She joined the SEC’s Division of Corporation Finance in 2002 after working in the private sector and holds a CPA license. Her retirement comes during the second year of the SEC’s shift toward a more crypto-friendly direction, which has included approving listing standards for specific crypto ETFs, launching the “Crypto Project” to update digital asset rules, and dismissing enforcement actions against several prominent crypto firms. The SEC also announced that Nekia Hackworth Jones, Deputy Regional Director of the Southeast Regional Office in the Enforcement Division, concluded her term at the end of December.

Democrat Rep. Waters Criticizes SEC Chair Atkins for Halting Crypto Enforcement Actions, Demands Hearing

According to CoinDesk, Maxine Waters, senior Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, sent a letter on Monday to Republican Chair French Hill urging SEC Chair Paul Atkins to testify at a hearing regarding the termination of major enforcement actions against crypto companies such as Coinbase, Binance, and Justin Sun. Waters questioned the rationale behind the SEC’s decision to drop these cases and how market fraud would be prevented, noting that some companies announced the dismissals before any formal committee vote. She also criticized Atkins for using SEC agendas as government tools, implementing policy changes through staff statements rather than formal rulemaking.

Brevis Launches Airdrop Registration and Eligibility Check Portal

ZK-powered verifiable computing platform Brevis has launched its airdrop registration and eligibility verification portal. Users must first check their eligibility and complete all required steps before applying. The application window will be open from December 29 to January 3. The allocation amount will be disclosed when claims open in the future.

SlowMist: New Variant of NPM Supply Chain Attack, Shai-Hulud 3.0, Reemerges

23pds, Chief Information Security Officer at SlowMist, issued a security alert warning that the latest variant of the NPM supply chain attack, Shai-Hulud 3.0, has reappeared, urging projects and platforms to strengthen defenses. The earlier leak of Trust Wallet API keys may have been a result of the Shai-Hulud 2.0 attack.

Flow Foundation: Unveils No-Rollback Recovery Plan, Over 99.9% of Accounts Unaffected

The Flow Foundation has proposed a new recovery plan in response to the security vulnerability that occurred on December 27. Developed in consultation with bridge operators, exchanges, and infrastructure partners, the key features of the plan are:

• No network rollback: There will be no blockchain reorganization or requirement for partners to replay transactions

• Preservation of legitimate user activity: Over 99.9% of accounts remain unaffected and will resume normal operations after restart

• Precise remediation: Temporary restrictions apply only to accounts that received fraudulent tokens

• Transparent handling: Fraudulent tokens will be destroyed via transparent, auditable on-chain transactions, verified by an independent blockchain forensics firm

The recovery plan will be implemented in four phases:

1. Cadence environment restored online; EVM temporarily read-only

2. Cadence environment repair completed (approx. 24–48 hours)

3. EVM environment repaired and reactivated

4. Bridges/exchanges resume operations after verifying network stability

The attack resulted in approximately $3.9 million in assets being transferred. The Flow Foundation is now working closely with validators and the community to ensure secure network recovery.

Trust Wallet CEO: Security Incident Confirmed to Impact 2,596 Addresses, Payout Verification Ongoing

On December 29, Trust Wallet CEO Eowync.eth shared a progress update, stating the company is actively investigating the browser extension v2.68 security incident. So far, 2,596 wallet addresses have been confirmed affected, and the team has received around 5,000 compensation claims. Each claim is being carefully reviewed to distinguish genuine victims from malicious actors. More investigation details will be shared tomorrow. The incident and subsequent compensation efforts have become the company’s top priority, with all team members fully dedicated to resolving the matter.

Standard Chartered and Ant International Launch Blockchain-Based Tokenized Deposit Solution in Hong Kong

Standard Chartered Bank (SCBHK) and Ant International have officially commercialized a blockchain-based tokenized deposit solution enabling real-time, round-the-clock transfers of Hong Kong dollars, offshore renminbi, and U.S. dollars. Leveraging Ant International’s proprietary Whale platform, the system offers global enterprises “just-in-time” liquidity management, overcoming traditional banking time constraints and settlement delays.

Investment Bank Cantor Fitzgerald Predicts New “Crypto Winter” in 2026, But Institutional Adoption Continues to Grow

According to CoinDesk, Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brett Knoblauch predicted in a recent report that Bitcoin may be entering a prolonged downturn, reflecting its historical four-year cycle, potentially testing Strategy’s average cost basis of around $75,000. However, unlike previous cycles, this “crypto winter” is unlikely to see mass liquidations or structural collapse, but instead will be shaped primarily by institutional investors.

Trend Research Withdraws Another 13,462 ETH, Accumulates Over 46,000 ETH in Single Day

According to on-chain analyst Ai Auntie (@ai_9684xtpa), Trend Research withdrew another 13,462 ETH (worth approximately $39.31 million) from Binance five minutes ago.

The institution’s total on-chain ETH holdings have now increased to 626,071 ETH, valued at over $1.83 billion, with an average holding cost of about $3,105.50. The position currently shows an unrealized loss of approximately $110 million. Data indicates that Trend Research accumulated 46,036.72 ETH within a single day.

Strategy Adds 1,229 Bitcoins Last Week, Now Holds Total of 672,497 BTC

Michael Saylor, Founder and Executive Chairman of Strategy, disclosed on Twitter that the company purchased 1,229 bitcoins for approximately $108.8 million, at an average price of about $88,568 per bitcoin. As of December 28, 2025, Strategy holds a total of 672,497 bitcoins, representing a total investment of approximately $50.44 billion, with an average acquisition cost of $74,997 per bitcoin. Strategy’s year-to-date Bitcoin return for 2025 has reached 23.2%.

WLD Treasury Firm Eightco Holdings Launches $125 Million Share Buyback Program

According to PRNewswire, Eightco Holdings, the Nasdaq-listed treasury firm behind WLD, announced that its board has approved a share buyback program of up to $125 million. The company also stated it will pursue strategic investments and partnerships to advance a universal digital identity and authentication framework, addressing evolving challenges in the identity verification market driven by large-scale AI applications.

Market Movements

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