Release Date: December 31, 2025
Author: BlockBeats Editorial Team

In the past 24 hours, the cryptocurrency market has shown a parallel evolution on multiple levels. Mainstream discussions have focused on the long-term incentive and sustainability issues exposed by token distribution and income quality, with considerable controversy surrounding the distribution structure of Lighter, the revenue decline of Perp DEX, and the compliance path for U.S. companies issuing tokens. In terms of ecological development, Ethereum has conducted an annual reflection on infrastructure positioning and power balance, while the privacy sector has seen a phased breakthrough following the implementation of fully homomorphic encryption stablecoins. Payment chains and the AI × Crypto narrative are beginning to lay the groundwork for the execution and validation phase in 2026.

I. Mainstream Topics

Lighter Token Distribution Sparks Controversy

The Lighter project launched the $LIT token and completed its first mainstream CEX spot listing on Coinbase. According to official disclosures, 50% of the total token supply is allocated to the ecosystem: 25% is immediately airdropped to participants in the 2025 points season, and the remaining 25% will be used for future points seasons, partner incentives, and growth plans; another 50% is allocated to the team (26%) and investors (24%), corresponding to a vesting arrangement of 1 year cliff + 3 years linear unlocking.

The project team emphasized that the value generated by the protocol will accumulate to $LIT holders and mentioned a potential buyback in the future, but did not disclose specific execution paths or timelines. This distribution structure has sparked significant controversy in the community, with many viewing it as a typical VC-led model, contrasting it with projects that lean more towards community distribution (such as Hyperliquid).

The overall community response has been negative. Some users bluntly stated that the 50% allocation to the team/investors is too high, expressing concerns about the selling pressure and price volatility that may arise from future unlocks; others mocked Coinbase's listing choice and compared the airdrop structures of Lighter and Hyperliquid. The latter still has 42.888% allocated for future airdrops, while Lighter has only 25% reserved for all future airdrops.

At the same time, a few opinions defended the team and investors, arguing that they took on early risks and should receive corresponding returns, likening it to the "long-term holding logic of traditional capital."

Plasma Releases December Progress Report

The Plasma project released its December 2025 update report, reviewing its progress over the year and looking ahead to the next stage of development. The report defines 2025 as a critical turning point: Plasma has expanded from zero to a scale of billions while laying the regulatory and technical foundation for Plasma One. Its core narrative still revolves around one phrase, "Stablecoins should feel like money."

The report expressed high expectations for 2026, believing that the main task at this stage has shifted from "building theory" to "execution and scaling." Although specific technical and metric details are limited, it overall emphasizes the transition from proof of concept to a real payment network.

Community discussions have been generally positive. Supporters compared Plasma's current stage to the early development path of perps chains, believing that 2026 is likely to be a key year for payment chains to validate their own value. Some opinions pointed out that the market is gradually moving away from a "single L1 valuation narrative," with Plasma seen as one of the few platforms that clearly emphasizes value accumulation and a closed-loop payment application. Overall sentiment is optimistic, with no significant negative feedback observed.

Zama Privacy Stablecoin Officially Launched

The Zama protocol officially launched its mainnet and completed the first on-chain transfer of the confidential stablecoin cUSDT on Ethereum. This solution is based on fully homomorphic encryption (FHE), allowing direct computation on encrypted data, thereby achieving complete concealment of transaction amounts and account balances without the need to reconstruct the existing blockchain architecture.

It has been disclosed that the cost of a single transfer is approximately $0.13, marking an important milestone for FHE technology transitioning from theory to production environment. Meanwhile, the claim for Zama OG NFTs will open in a few days, further reinforcing its significance as a milestone in privacy infrastructure.

Community reactions have been highly positive. Many voices described it as "the realization of cryptographic ideals," considering it an important breakthrough for on-chain privacy. The discussion focused on low costs, usability, and the potential changes to the DeFi experience—where asset transfers are closer to "cash-like privacy" rather than a completely transparent ledger. A small amount of discussion involved fee structures or comparisons with other privacy protocols, but the overall tone leans towards long-term optimism, with some users already viewing it as an important starting point for the privacy narrative in 2026.

II. Mainstream Ecological Dynamics

1. Ethereum

Consensys released the "2025 Ethereum Year in Review," reflecting on key milestones for itself and the Ethereum ecosystem over the past year. Key highlights include: Ethereum's uninterrupted operation for ten consecutive years, its evolution from early experiments to a global-level infrastructure; the simultaneous influx of institutional and individual users; the gradual mainstreaming of self-custody; and substantial advancements in Layer 2 scalability in terms of usability and cost. The report positions 2025 as "a year to solidify the foundation," emphasizing a methodology centered on patience, public goods investment, and the builder community, laying the groundwork for further expansion in 2026.

Community responses have shown divergence. On one hand, supporters emphasize Ethereum's "ten years without downtime" record and its positioning as "global digital public infrastructure," viewing 2025 as more of a "year of consolidation"; on the other hand, negative feedback has concentrated on issues related to Linea, with some voices criticizing its unclear communication regarding tokens and ecosystem, raising questions about market performance.

Almost concurrently, Vitalik Buterin published a new article titled "Balance of Power," discussing from a macro perspective how to maintain diversity and power balance in the context of ongoing economies of scale. The article distinguishes between "power over" and "power to," arguing that true balance is not simply about wealth redistribution but about limiting power concentration through mandatory decentralized control structures. Ethereum is seen as a "deliberately non-imperial infrastructure design," with its open protocols, adversarial interoperability, and pluralism viewed as long-term survival mechanisms against the risks of a scaled world.

In contrast, Vitalik's article has sparked deeper discussions. Most responses agree with his analysis of power structures and decentralized control, viewing it as "the core logic of Ethereum's existence" and a key issue in the 21st century facing the risks of scale and monopoly. A small amount of discussion has used the article's content for project or token promotional extensions, mixed with some meme-like expressions, but the overall sentiment still leans towards recognition of Ethereum's long-term sustainability.

2. Perp DEX

Lighter's Revenue Decline Disproportionate to Trading Volume Decline

Community data shows that its annualized revenue has dropped from a peak of approximately $377 million in November to about $66.5 million, a decline of about 82.5%, while trading volume during the same period has only decreased by about 60%. This decline is roughly consistent with the pullback of platforms like Hyperliquid and Aster. Some analyses suggest that the difference may stem from previous "farming behavior" (such as paid accounts participating in airdrops) and reduced arbitrage opportunities, causing nominal revenue to decline faster than trading activity.

Regarding Lighter's revenue decline, community sentiment is generally neutral to cautious. Some opinions argue that previous metrics were amplified by airdrop incentives, and now that real paid demand has receded, it may put pressure on the valuation stability of $LIT; others defend that short-term revenue fluctuations do not directly equate to token value and that a longer period is needed for validation. Overall discussions focus on the payment structure and long-term sustainability.

Lighter's Registered U.S. Company Directly Issues Tokens, Not Using Traditional Foundation Model

Another unique aspect of Lighter is its organizational structure: the project issues $LIT directly as a U.S. C-Corp, rather than operating through a traditional foundation model, making it one of the few cases of token issuance under U.S. legal frameworks, similar to Ripple/XRP. Currently, its market capitalization is approximately $700 million, corresponding to an annualized revenue of about $105 million.

The narrative of "U.S. companies issuing tokens" has been interpreted by some as a bullish signal, emphasizing regulatory alignment and clarity of legal responsibilities, and has sparked comparisons with XRP's market capitalization potential; at the same time, there are skeptical voices pointing out that mere compliance status is not enough to support high valuations.

Extended Roadmap Indicates Platform Will Collaborate with One of the World's Largest Trading Platforms for Extensive Stock Issuance

Meanwhile, the Extended platform released its 2026 roadmap, reviewing the process from closed Beta to a 100-300 times growth in TVL, user numbers, trading volume, and fees in 2025, and planning:

Q1: Launch cross-asset collateral and stock perpetual contracts (in collaboration with a major trading platform);

Q2: Introduce spot markets and mobile app;

Q3–Q4: Expand to non-crypto native users and introduce a decentralized operator model.

In contrast, Extended's roadmap has received significantly more positive feedback. The community has expressed expectations for its execution pace, product expansion, and cross-asset attempts, with some users viewing it as a candidate with "top Perp DEX" potential, and overall sentiment is optimistic, focusing on the further growth space in 2026.

3. Crypto × AI: Old Narrative Returns or New Round of Validation?

Multiple signals indicate that the intersection narrative of Crypto and AI may see a new wave of activity in Q1 2026. Catalysts mentioned by the community include: the return of elizaOS and shawmakesmagic; a revival of discussions around open-source autonomous agents; historical highs in usage data for the x402 protocol; the mainnet launch of ERC-8004; market performance post-Bittensor halving; and ongoing advancements of the Virtuals protocol in ACP and robotics.

These elements collectively evoke the collective memory of the "AI agent season" in 2024, viewed by some as a prelude to a new round of innovation cycles.

Overall community sentiment is excited, with supporters describing this round of changes as "an elevation in probability levels," believing that infrastructures like x402 are beginning to show real traction and are optimistic about the potential for AI to combine with prediction markets and automated trading. At the same time, there are sharper critical voices suggesting that this may just be a "repackaging of narratives" as early developers return to the market after depleting funds, warning of insufficient technological realization. The counterargument is that AI has not exited but has been continuously building in the background, with the next phase's key being whether it can form a real, sustainable revenue model (such as financial agents).

Overall, discussions are progressing between expectation and caution. Although mixed with promotional and emotional judgments, the mainstream consensus leans more towards the view that the market will focus more on actual implementation and commercial validation rather than merely replicating narratives.

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