Tagged: research

December 25, 2025 @ 9:41 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Hong Kong (China SAR) payment card market is now considered to be fairly mature, however, despite this, the total card payment value is forecast to grow considerably by “4.5% in 2025 to reach HKD1.32 trillion ($168.4 billion),” supported by the ongoing efforts to promote… Read More

December 24, 2025 @ 2:01 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

GlobalData noted that as 2025 progressed, the world’s economy had largely moved beyond post-COVID distortions, however, growth still remained somewhat uneven and the path into 2026 looks a bit fragile. A comparatively strong first half of 2025, helped by firms advancing imports, quick supply-chain reconfiguration,… Read More

December 24, 2025 @ 1:27 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Chainalysis noted that the policy agenda for 2026 is full of deadlines and developments. In the United States, market structure legislation will remain on the policy agenda, even though it is somewhat uncertain at this time just how quickly Congress will be able to resume… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 10:46 am By Omar Faridi  |  

PitchBook noted that Q3 2025 cybersecurity investment reached a multiyear low amid shifting enterprise security priorities. The research report from PitchBook also mentioned that Q3 cybersecurity venture capital activity fell sharply, with deal value dropping to $2.6 billion across 158 transactions. This was the lowest… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 9:02 am By JD Alois  |  

It was reported last March that UK VC funding increased by 43.5% YoY to $1.2 billion in January 2025, in spite of fewer deals, but the quick start has apparently stalled over the following months as both deal volume and value have declined. A report… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:45 am By Omar Faridi  |  

China’s venture capital funding ecosystem has experienced a significant decline in deal value, despite showcasing “resilience in terms of volume.” The total number of VC deals announced in China increased by 8% during January-November 2025 compared to the same period in the previous year whereas… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:40 am By Omar Faridi  |  

CoinGecko noted that MYX Finance (MYX) is now by “far” the top crypto gainer this year, achieving the highest YTD price returns of 3,358.15% among the largest market cap crypto assets. The BNB Chain-native derivatives protocol launched its token at “around $0.097 on May 6… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 8:30 am By Omar Faridi  |  

NYDIG noted that DATs or digital asset treasuries are now making billion-dollar financing moves based on rather “inconsistent, loosely defined metrics, risking major strategic missteps.” NYDIG pointed out recently in a blog post that with several companies trading right around “1x mNAV,” small changes in… Read More

December 23, 2025 @ 6:42 am By Omar Faridi  |  

PitchBook noted that e-commerce enablement startups made a fairly strong comeback in Q3 2025, securing $3.8 billion, which represents a significant 35% quarter-over-quarter jump and the sector’s “strongest funding performance in over two years.” PitchBook also mentioned that while the overall deal volume dipped slightly,… Read More

December 22, 2025 @ 9:33 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The IMF noted that despite having a market cap of about 10 percent of Bitcoin, stablecoins are growing in popularity because of their interconnections with mainstream financial markets that stem from their structure and potential use cases. The IMF has also mentioned that their use… Read More

December 22, 2025 @ 2:39 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Central Bank of Ireland has released its fourth and final Quarterly Bulletin of 2025. Robert Kelly, Director of Economics and Statistics has said that despite the challenges the Irish economy has faced in 2025, it has seemingly shown resilience. Kelly added that the overall… Read More

December 21, 2025 @ 2:11 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

CB Insights noted that the ongoing race to build various foundation models has evolved into battles across different agent platforms, infrastructure layers, and vertical apps. CB Insights also mentioned that 2025 saw the emergence of 1,000+ agentic AI offerings promising the so-called next evolution of… Read More

December 21, 2025 @ 1:38 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Eurozone economy is expected to grow by 1.3% this year, followed by 1.1% in 2026, according to KPMG’s latest European Economic Outlook. Eurozone fiscal policy is anticipated to be broadly neutral in 2026 “as consolidation efforts in many countries offset increased public spending on… Read More

December 19, 2025 @ 8:02 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Dune and Keyrock teamed up to release a study of prediction markets. As explained in the detailed update shared by Dune, prediction markets may feel like somewhat of a modern invention or fairly recent development, but their roots stretch back for a long time actually…. Read More

December 19, 2025 @ 3:12 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Euroclear has noted in a recent update that the global financial industry is undergoing a transformation. As stated in the report, digital assets are no longer simply a theoretical concept – they are actually on their way to becoming a cornerstone of modern capital markets. … Read More

December 18, 2025 @ 9:05 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) noted that for several decades, the path to building wealth in America has looked basically the same: get a good job, acquire a home, invest in various stocks, and let time take care of the rest (hopefully). Coinbase‘s State of Crypto report suggests… Read More

December 18, 2025 @ 9:01 am By Omar Faridi  |  

An EBA-ECB report on payment fraud indicates that strong authentication remains effective but fraudsters are adapting. There are a wide range of fraudulent activities and tactics now being employed to take advantage of unsuspecting consumers, especially those who might not be as tech-savvy. Some key… Read More

December 18, 2025 @ 12:15 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Asia-Pacific deal ecosystem has reportedly experienced a slowdown in activity during January-November 2025, reflecting a “broader trend of cautious deal-making.” The total number of deals (comprising mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity and venture financing deals) announced in the APAC region “decreased by 5%… Read More

December 17, 2025 @ 7:11 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF), Cambridge Judge Business School, has shared insights from Wenbin Wu, Research Associate at the CCAF. Wu noted that the need to upgrade to a post-quantum environment is “more urgent for blockchains than for almost any other digital system.”… Read More

December 16, 2025 @ 6:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Betterment at Work, a provider of modern, scalable 401(k) plans for growing businesses, today launched the fifth installment of its annual Retirement Readiness Report. The report reveals that nearly half (48%) of U.S. workers believe they’ll need “at least $1 million to retire comfortably—up from… Read More