The cryptocurrency market in December experienced a sell-off of $910 billion, dubbed the "December Surrender." Bitcoin's price fell from the bull trap of $94,000 to around $88,000, while Ethereum declined by 7.8% amid liquidity shortages. According to professional trading teams tracked by Finestel, by reducing leverage to approximately 1.3x, increasing stablecoin allocation to over 23%, and trimming high-beta altcoins, they successfully reduced about 85% of potential drawdowns. Privacy tokens NIGHT and AI-related TAO performed well, while the "meme coin" Whitewhale became a source of exit liquidity for investors, as fund managers prepare for potential market volatility in Q1 2026.