The Monero Moon (Issue 84)
The Monero Moon is a curated newsletter covering all the latest news within Monero (XMR). We are driven by a compelling need to champion both freedom and financial privacy!
Table of Contents:
Development, Releases, and Technology
General News
Events and Meetings
Exchanges and Merchants
Community Crowdfunding
Trading and Speculation
Network Metrics
Entertainment
Development, Releases, and Technology
Monero v0.18.4.4 Fluorine Fermi has been released, with new CLI and GUI binaries available on Getmonero and GitHub. This recommended update fixes a Ledger bug related to rejecting secret view key export, improves wallet scanning to identify spends in the pool, refines daemon sync height logic, and updates the GUI to P2Pool v4.12.
There’s an ongoing discussion about adding a temporary upper safety bound to Monero’s block size during the transition to FCMP++. The idea is to prevent rare edge cases that could break the network under current code, while still preserving Monero’s adaptive scaling model. Some community members feel any limit should be minimal, temporary, and removed once the underlying systems are improved, while others see it simply as a protective measure to ensure a smooth upgrade. You can follow updates regarding this in the relevant IRC channels (e.g MRL) or here on X.
Cyrix126 released Gupaxx v1.12.0, adding daemon mode, desktop notifications, a dark or light theme toggle, and several fixes plus dependency updates. The release ships with updated P2Pool 4.12 and Monerod 0.18.4.4, with downloads available on GitHub. Gupaxx is a Gupax fork that integrates the XMRvsBeast raffle, and the project is currently seeking development funding.
woodser released monero ts v0.11.7, monero cpp v0.8.17, and monero java v0.8.40, each updated to Monero v0.18.4.4. The ts update adds a proper shutdown method and improved error traces, the cpp update fixes a segfault and makes tests optional, and the java update refreshes spend detection tests and improves VSCode launch configs. Releases are available on monero ts, monero cpp, and monero java.
PiNodeXMR v6.25.11 was released by shermand100, bringing a long list of fixes and quality of life improvements across the Raspberry Pi based Monero node project. The update introduces better web UI security with basic password auth, new hardware features like PWM fan control and a device reset button, improved Tor and P2P connectivity, locally served assets, HTML and PHP fixes, and smoother online updates that no longer require manual PiNodeXMR updates before module changes.
hinto janai released Cuprate v0.0.8, the latest version of the Rust based Monero node, marking the removal of the long standing killswitch after eight months of stable operation. The update improves fast sync, tightens Unix file permissions, adds a dry-run option, and fixes network zone configuration. hinto janai is making major progress toward future milestones, including a significant reduction in disk usage, upcoming wallet sync support in the v0.1.0 beta, and ongoing preparations for the Carrot and FCMP++ hard fork.
d4ndox released Monero Named Pipes v0.1.7, a lightweight Unix shell wallet that monitors incoming payments by using named pipes inside a chosen working directory. Users are reminded to review the code themselves since MNP is a hobby project.
nahuhh released basicswap bash v0.15.1, a suite of scripts that helps users install and manage BasicSwapDEX, a cross chain noncustodial atomic swap platform that lets users trade coins directly without intermediaries. The update improves addcoin by allowing remote node selection and fixes several Mac related workflow issues while updating dependencies. Installation instructions are on GitHub, and users can support the project through the donation address listed in the README.
MAGIC Grants has released Skylight Wallet, a modern open source Monero light wallet for Android that keeps spending keys on device and requires users to connect their own light wallet server for scanning. The app supports automatic Tor protection, OpenAlias, address book and subaddresses. More information and download links can be found here.
Cake Labs released Cake Wallet v5.6.1, which also powers the XMR-only Monero com app, delivering faster performance, a rebuilt data system based on SQLite, smoother UX, and expanded airgapped security tools. The update tightens Monero specific reliability with better automatic node switching, improved AliasPay support for .xmr domains, and stronger privacy safeguards like a new duress PIN that wipes the wallet if entered under pressure. Litecoin MWEB support was also added to Cupcake, Cake’s offline signing companion app, while EVM wallets and AnyPay integration received quality of life upgrades. Full release notes are available on GitHub.
Specific-Sport-3460 posted an update on r/Monero highlighting that Monero’s official website getmonero.org redesign is now under active development, with a JavaScript free, Tor friendly beta already live at beta.monerodevs.org. The new design, created by Diego Salazar, adds automatic light and dark mode, modernizes the layout, and keeps privacy as the core principle.
The MAGIC Monero Fund has launched its second fuzzing project, aimed at strengthening some of the most under tested parts of the codebase, including the wallet, P2P layer, and FCMP++. Ada Logics, the security team that previously achieved full RPC fuzzing coverage and uncovered multiple vulnerabilities, will build new fuzzing harnesses and submit improvements directly to Monero’s repository. The goal is to raise code coverage, catch edge case bugs early, and harden the network ahead of major upgrades.
A research proposal from Emanuele Scala has been merged, aiming to explore a next generation proving system that could significantly speed up verification in Monero’s future FCMP++ era. The work investigates applying “folding” techniques to Bulletproofs based proofs, with the goal of reducing verification costs from linear to roughly logarithmic when many proofs are combined. If successful, this could enable cheaper multi input transactions, more uniform transaction sizes for better privacy, and even long term ideas like batch proving or rollup style systems. The proposal covers six months of research and carries some uncertainty, but even partial results are expected to advance Monero’s proof design and inform future upgrades. Check it out here.
A new analysis of Qubic’s recent selfish mining campaign shows that despite aggressive tactics and several coordinated withholding intervals, Qubic never came close to sustaining the hashrate needed to threaten Monero’s consensus. Their share briefly spiked into the 23 to 34 percent range, but both classical and modified selfish mining models show they earned less than they would have through honest mining, while Monero’s chain remained stable throughout. The study reinforces how Monero’s network incentives and tie breaking behavior blunt real world selfish mining attempts, even when publicly advertised by the attacker. You can find the paper here.
It is highly recommended you run a node to help secure the Monero network. You can also solo mine via the official Monero GUI wallet which can be found here or partake in the decentralized and permission-less P2Pool. The official Monero website GetMonero.org or SethForPrivacy.com are fantastic places to find help to get started running a node or mining. You can also check out the YouTube videos below.
General News
Monero Observer announced they are taking a break after more than four years of near daily reporting, with creator escapethe3RA stepping back to recover from long term exhaustion after roughly 780 days of work. The post explains the plan for a full disconnect with no reporting or communication and hints at future changes like moving away from Jekyll, redesigning the site, and expanding the project’s journalistic goals. Readers can subscribe to the RSS feed to be notified when the outlet returns.
MAGIC opened voter and candidate applications for the 2026 MAGIC Monero Fund election, with one committee seat available for a new two year term. MAGIC is a US based nonprofit that supports open source privacy tech and funds Monero development through community directed grants. Nominations run until December 31, voting opens on January 6, and results are expected around January 23 before the new member joins on January 31. Anyone interested in applying as a voter or committee member can do so through the official election page, and tax deductible donations to support the fund can be made here.
A WIRED article recently covered Phreeli, a new US mobile carrier created by longtime privacy advocate Nicholas Merrill, which lets users sign up with nothing more than a ZIP code and even pay anonymously with Monero or Zcash. The service functions as a privacy shield on top of T Mobile’s towers and stores almost no identifying data, aiming to break the long standing link between phone activity and real world identity. Phreeli uses a zero knowledge cryptographic system called Double Blind Armadillo to verify payments without tying them to accounts. Check it out here.
Monero Talk sat down with Paul Puey from Edge Wallet to break down why privacy is emerging as crypto’s next major narrative, with Monero sitting at the center of it. Puey chats about Edge’s early 2018 Monero integration, critiques Bitcoin’s broken privacy model, and contrasts Monero’s mandatory privacy with Zcash’s optional approach while highlighting incoming upgrades like FCMP and improved light-wallet server privacy. Check it out here.
Monerotopia’s latest episode features MoneroTopia26 speaker Aaron Day, including Bawdy’s price report update, weekly news, and community discussions on topics like the proposed Monero block size cap and recent developer proposals. Catch the full episode here.
In the latest episode of Anti Moonboy News, Xenu digs into the state of FCMP++ development, highlighting the need for more senior contributors, ongoing technical debt, and the broader block size debate unfolding in Monero Research Lab discussions. Check it out here.
In case you missed it, CypherGoat recently launched a new Monero news publication called This Week in Monero, covering the latest activity across the Monero ecosystem. The updates recap recent development progress, community news, infrastructure changes, and upcoming events. You can check out the latest issue here.
Events and Meetings
The next Monero Research Lab meeting will take place on Wednesday, December 10, 2025, at 17:00 UTC in the #monero-research-lab channel on Libera IRC and Matrix. The agenda includes updates from contributors, new work on Bulletproofs*, discussions on spy nodes, and two recent academic papers covering Qubic related selfish mining and a new graph based framework for analysing illicit activity in Monero. The meeting will also revisit FCMP++ scaling parameters, review a proposal to cap blocks at 32 MB, and check progress on the FCMP alpha stressnet. Comments or agenda additions can be submitted on GitHub, and logs will be published there after the session.
The next Cuprate Meeting will be held on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, at 18:00 UTC in the #cuprate channels on Libera IRC and Matrix. Cuprate is an ongoing effort to build an alternative Monero node implementation, and this meeting will cover contributor updates, the current project roadmap, and any new proposals from the community. Agenda items can be suggested on GitHub, and logs will be posted there after the meeting.
The next Monero Tech Meeting is likely to take place on December 15, 2025, at 18:00 UTC in the #no-wallet-left-behind channels on IRC Libera and Matrix. Logs from the previous meeting can be found here.
MoneroTopia 2026 will be held from February 12–15, 2026, at Huerto Roma Verde in Mexico City, promising four days of talks, workshops, and community events centered on financial privacy and Monero adoption. Hosted by Sunita and Douglas from Monero Talk, the conference features speakers such as Rucknium, Diego Salazar, Paul Puey, and Amir Taaki. Tickets are available on monerotopia.com, including discounted and free local options.
Exchanges and Merchants
RetoSwap reported a record breaking month, hitting 122,606 XMR in October volume and surpassing 15,000 total trades on its permissionless, no KYC, peer to peer exchange. The update highlights growing demand for decentralized off ramps and the rising usage of P2P Monero trades.
monerobull highlighted an ongoing phishing and misinformation campaign on r/Monero that is targeting RetoSwap. A viral post falsely claimed a user lost 120 XMR through a Revolut swap, even though RetoSwap’s Revolut limits make the story impossible, revealing it as part of the broader Porkswap phishing effort that has been pushing fake swap sites and bot amplified FUD for months. Users were warned to avoid impersonation subreddits and scam domains tied to the campaign and to rely only on verified decentralized tools rather than manipulated posts or phishing links.
ShopinBit launched a new lightweight privacy focused web app at app.shopinbit.com that lets users buy cars, travel, electronics and more with Monero natively, with no email, no customer account, and no extra verification. The app provides a six word restore key instead of identity data, accepts XMR directly through BTCPay Server, and includes an Ultra Privacy Mode that wipes all local storage for maximum anonymity. It is designed to work smoothly on privacy hardened phones like GrapheneOS. More information here.
Monero was again the most used currency on ShopInBit in October, making up almost half of all transactions.
NanoGPT’s November payments statistics show Monero strengthened its dominance, climbing to 52 percent of all payments and extending its clear lead as the preferred private settlement rail.
XMR perps have quietly appeared on Hyperliquid through a permissionless deployment by Felix Protocol, using the chain’s HIP 3 market factory that lets independent creators spin up their own perp markets without an official exchange listing. The XMR USDH market now appears on the Hyperliquid interface, but with no ability to trade it yet.
CypherGoat reported and shut down a phishing clone within 24 hours after spotting traffic from a typo squat domain mimicking their site. CypherGoat is a privacy focused instant exchange that lets users swap Monero with no accounts, no tracking, and no custody risk. The fake domain hosted a pixel perfect copy but had no backend and simply forwarded requests, allowing the team to block it instantly by detecting its host and returning an access denied message. Cloudflare and Nicenic removed the domain shortly after, and CypherGoat urged users to bookmark the website and stay alert to phishing attempts.
MAGIC Grants has launched an official Monero Fund merch store, offering shirts, hoodies, stickers, and more to help support ongoing Monero development and community funding. Crypto payments aren’t integrated yet, but supporters can request store credit via a Monero invoice by emailing the fund. It’s a small but growing storefront that doubles as both fundraising and Monero promotion.
CR1337 will soon be launching monero.jobs, a new job board focused on roles that pay directly in XMR. The platform will let companies and projects post free basic listings, with optional paid featured spots, aiming to make it easier for employers and job seekers to connect inside Monero’s growing ecosystem.
Community Crowdfunding
Several crowdfunding proposals are awaiting community feedback before they can start accepting funds through the Community Crowdfunding System (CCS). For now, they are just proposals, but if they receive some positive feedback from the community they will be moved to a “Funding Required” stage so that they can accept Monero donations through the CCS.
Trading and Speculation
Monero just had its highest monthly close on record at ~$435.
Monero has also outperformed Bitcoin and Gold year-to-date. XMR 105%, Gold 58%, Bitcoin -2%.
Monero’s ride in the top ranks of CoinMarketCap has been a wild one over its 11+ years. It’s surged to as high as #5 and slipped down to lows of #40+. XMR has now climbed back up to #16.
Network Metrics
Total Monero in Circulation : 18,684,570 XMR
Monero Total Marketcap: $7,452,310,761
Coinmarketcap Ranking: #16
XMR ‘street price’ from RetoSwap: $420 (+6%)
XMR/USD Price: $398
XMR/BTC Price: 0.004299 BTC
Monero Network Hashrate: 6.36 Ghash/s
Monero Mining Pools Hashrate Distribution:
Entertainment
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Have we missed something?
If we’ve missed something important, let us know! As this is our first issue after a few months, we might have overlooked some news. Feel free to DM if there’s anything you’d like included in a future issue.
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