Happy December! It’s cold out there…especially for crypto. After climbing above $125k in October, Bitcoin dipped to as low as $84k this week. So what’s going on here? Was last month’s downward spiral a normal pricing cycle or is now the time to bundle up for another crypto winter? To find out, we brought in a few bonafide experts. Lee Schneider – General Counsel for Ava Labs – and Justin Slaughter – VP of Regulatory Affairs at Paradigm – joined us for the latest episode of Let’s Talk Markets Live.Justin says the latest dip “is just a day ending in “y” in crypto space.”This may be business as usual for the crypto space, but Lee echoes the concern of the everyday investor. “I'm a buy and hold guy,” says Lee, “but holding gets awfully rough when you see a 20, 30, 40, 50% decline in the value of your portfolio.” “But,” says Lee, “the word volatility also ends in “y”? So maybe volatility is just another day for crypto.”Not only is volatility just another day for crypto, but it’s also not a threat to our rapid pace of adoption in the blockchain space.“The inherent technology usage is there, whether or not the price is up 10% in the day or down 10%,” says Justin. “But the volatility does something to our charismatic Great Ape minds that makes it harder for us to grok how that works.”To wit, herd mentality is often a cause and effect of both crypto bubbles and crashes. Regardless of its ups and downs, Justin argues that “the system holds up well with those price swings.”Indeed, compare crypto to the traditional markets. “Famously 2008 was the worst year ever for the S&P because it lost something like 38%,” says Justin. “That required bailouts from DC to New York – lit on I-95 like Roman torches.” Justin contrasts that with the crypto space, where “we drop 30% and it's like, ‘Oh, that sure was a day.’” Lee agrees, pointing out that “DeFi markets hold up very well with huge price volatility. People get bought in and sold out, and their positions go all over the place, and for whatever reason, you don't hear people jumping up and down screaming for bailouts.”One reason crypto markets are so resilient is their inherent transparency. Most financial crises can be traced to underlying, unseen, or undisclosed information. By contrast, says Justin, there is nowhere to hide on the blockchain. In spite of this inherent transparency, there are still a lot of regulatory questions that remain unanswered. Current SEC Chair Paul Atkins is thought to be supportive of crypto innovation especially compared to the previous regime. And Lee praises the Commission’s Crypto Task Force for asking and attempting to answer tough questions on the topic.But when push comes to shove, the regulatory environment hasn't necessarily changed that much just yet. Lee says “the only thing that's a little bit more certain about regulation right now than it was18 months ago is that we're not going to get sued,” says Lee. So if you’re in the crypto space, that’s good news, right? “I think you could say the overall environment is better,” Lee observes “but the level of clarity is not better.” “It comes down to solving one really hard thing,” adds Justin, “which is ‘Where does the line between security and commodity or a third thing fall?’”Lee and Justin ultimately agree that an act of Congress would help a lot. But what exactly are the odds of that? Justin puts it at about 50-50. Of course, if we see another government shutdown in January…. This really places the onus on those within the space to take initiative. Lee urges advocates of blockchain to “come together on proposals that might actually lead to good legislation and regulation. That's why we're working closely with the trade associations and others to put forward ideas that we think are doable without congressional action.”Justin agrees, and points out that “When government or Congress falters, that's an opportunity for the industry and ordinary users to step up.”

The Big 3Monday, December 1, 2025 A quick look at the top stories we’re following this week.Markets stumble into the holiday shopping season.Stocks, bonds and Bitcoin all slump to kick off the first trading week of December.November marks another tough month for U.S. factories.The Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index reveals a 9th straight month of contraction in the manufacturing sector.Another day, another deal.Nvidia announces its new $2bn stake in electronic design automation company Synopsis. This week’s Company Earnings Announcements at a glanceCredo Technology Group Holding Ltd (CRDO)--Monday, 12/1CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. (CRWD)--Tuesday, 12/2Royal Bank of Canada (RY)--Wednesday, 12/3Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (HPE)--Thursday, 12/4Victoria's Secret & Co. (VSCO)--Thursday, 12/5

Markets may be volatile, but there is one commodity that’s super hot right now. That’s right. It seems like everybody’s investing in turkeys these days. Will this market trend continue through the new year? Only time will tell. Just kidding. We usually spend this column talking about the F-word…by which we mean Finance, of course. But today, there are a bunch of other F-words on our minds – Family, Friends, Food and Football. Thanksgiving really does have it all. So instead of blathering about the markets today, allow us to blather about our favorite holiday. Here are a few tips to help you make the most of this occasion. 1. Leave the stress outside of the kitchen. Cook with joy. 2. If you’re not the head chef, do your best to be helpful. 3. Never show up to somebody else’s house empty-handed.4. Amid all the gorging, squabbling, and napping, try to remember what this holiday is really about.Well yes, but also…it’s all about being thankful for what you’ve got. And in that spirit…We appreciate you. Now go have an amazing Thanksgiving holiday.