The crypto industry is closing out the year with a record $8.6 billion in mergers and acquisitions, according to the FT, up sharply from $2.17 billion the year prior.

The deal surge comes amid a major policy shift in Washington, where the Trump administration has backed the sector with a string of regulatory developments that include the GENIUS Act, which created a federal framework for stablecoins and paved the way for institutions to settle tokenized assets.

The White House support helped drive 267 deals, an 18% jump from 2024, the story continued.

The largest deal of the year was Coinbase’s $2.9 billion acquisition of crypto derivatives platform Deribit, marking the biggest M&A move in the sector’s history.

Kraken’s $1.5 billion purchase of NinjaTrader and Ripple’s $1.25 billion buyout of Hidden Road followed closely.

It's not all about the White House though. At least some of the buying, legal experts say, has been driven by a rush for licenses.

As new compliance rules take hold globally, including those around stablecoins and the EU’s MiCA framework, financial institutions are acquiring firms with approved licenses to speed their entry into crypto markets.