The UK Treasury has amended the Financial Services and Markets Act (FSMA), which will come into effect on January 31, excluding cryptocurrency staking from the classification of collective investment schemes. Under this change, staking ETH and SOL will only be considered a blockchain verification process and will no longer be subject to regulatory requirements applicable to collective investment schemes. Previously, due to vague regulatory definitions, staking was at risk of being classified as traditional collective investment tools, which are subject to stricter FSMA regulations.

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin wrote on the X platform that if AI is used incorrectly, it will create a new type of independent self-replicating intelligent life. If AI is used correctly, it will be a mechanical armor built for human thinking. If we only achieve the former but not the latter, humans will face the risk of losing power forever. If we achieve the latter, we will usher in a prosperous super-intelligent human civilization.

Crypto game InfiniGods is currently preparing to launch its native token GOD. GOD tokens will be distributed among NFT holders in the ecosystem, with 4.25% allocated to InfiniPass holders, 3.25% to Elder Gods NFT, and 9.5% to God Vault NFT holders. TGE has not yet set a date, however, InfiniGods Chief Marketing Officer Bry DiSanto hinted that the airdrop is coming, posting on X that "January, the time is almost here."

Team members from Coinbase, Google, ai16z, and other major players have joined forces to launch Aiccelerate, a new decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) designed to accelerate the convergence of cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence (AI). The Jan. 9 announcement revealed that the DAO will focus on promoting decentralized, open-source AI development and supporting high-potential projects in different ecosystems. In addition, Aiccelerate positions itself as a DAO that focuses on both investment and development. Its main mission is to promote innovation in the field of what it calls "agent AI." The DAO aims to build a collaborative community of top developers in multiple frameworks. These experts will contribute to a range of agents and tools designed to advance the organization's goals.

Matthew Sigel, head of digital asset research at VanEck, wrote on the X platform that fintech company Block is expected to become the first company in the S&P 500 to hold Bitcoin. For a stock to be included in the index, it must meet six major criteria, including: 1) market value of more than $18 billion; 2) public shareholding of more than 10%; 3) earnings in the most recent quarter should be positive, and the sum of GAAP earnings in the previous four quarters should also be positive; 4) high liquidity; 5) listed for at least 12 months; 6) the company is headquartered in the United States.

The U.S. Senate Banking Committee plans to appoint crypto-friendly Senator Cynthia Lummis to lead its newly formed digital assets subcommittee, fulfilling a promise made by its new chairman.

Federal Reserve Governor Bowman said Thursday she supported last month's rate cut as the "final step" in the central bank's monetary policy adjustments, and that caution must be exercised going forward as inflation risks rise. "We should also avoid prejudging the future policies of the new administration," Bowman said in remarks prepared for delivery to the California Bankers Association. "Rather, we should wait for greater clarity and then seek to understand the implications for economic activity, the labor market, and inflation." Bowman made the comments for the first time since she became a leading candidate to be the Fed's next top bank regulator. Barr announced this week that he will step down as the Fed's vice chairman for supervision by the end of next month. "This year will see a transition in leadership at the banking institutions, and I expect that will translate into shifts in priorities and approaches," Bowman said, reiterating her consistent calls for more targeted regulation and a more "pragmatic" approach to policy making.

With less than two weeks until Trump's inauguration, crypto industry executives are vying for access to the president himself and seats on a planned cryptocurrency advisory committee that is expected to be formed soon after he takes office. Industry insiders intend to use the committee, which could be made up of about two dozen CEOs and founders, to influence the new administration's digital asset policy, according to people familiar with the matter.

Coinbase International Station announced on the X platform that Coinbase International Station and Coinbase Advanced will add support for Aerodrome Finance, Beam and Drift perpetual futures contracts. The AERO-PERP, BEAM-PERP and DRIFT-PERP markets are expected to be opened on or after 17:30 on January 16, 2025, Beijing time.

Standard Chartered Bank announced that its newly established Luxembourg entity will serve as a regulatory entry point into the EU market, providing cryptocurrency and digital asset custody services to EU clients. Previously, Standard Chartered has launched digital asset custody services in the UAE.

Users can transfer BIO tokens between the Ethereum mainnet and Solana through the official bridge service (bridge.bio.xyz).

The official iOS version of Grok, an artificial intelligence model APP developed by Musk's xAI company, is now available on the App Store in at least the United States and the Philippines.

At the "Boao Forum for Asia New Year Outlook 2025" event, Zhou Xiaochuan, former governor of the People's Bank of China, pointed out that the impact of digital crypto assets on global financial stability and financial security needs to be vigilant. The IMF predicts that the scale of global public debt will exceed US$100 trillion (93% of global GDP) by the end of 2024.