Cryptocurrency

The Top 10 Crypto Moments of 2022: Why Cryptocurrency Is Here to Stick around

Cryptocurrency is undoubtedly still around in 2022, according to those who are constantly following it. With crypto war relief, multi-million dollar hacks, and sector-shaking explosions, the year in the market for digital assets was extremely tumultuous.

1.Canada freezes funds for the Freedom Convoy

In an effort to stop the convoy protesting COVID-19 limitations in Ottawa and at many border crossings, the Canadian province of Ontario has asked a court to revoke access to more than $24 million in cryptocurrency and fundraising websites. The dissemination of donations made through the “Freedom Convoy 2022” and “Adopt-a-Trucker” campaign sites on the website is prohibited by an order from the Superior Court of Justice obtained by the province.

2.Ukraine begins to accept cryptocurrency donations

The Ukrainian government has reached out to the cryptocurrency community on Twitter to solicit donations for its military and citizens during the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Ukraine started to accept bitcoin, ether, and tether donations in February.

3.Biden signs an executive order regulating cryptocurrency

President Biden signed an executive order mandating nearly all federal agencies to create comprehensive plans for U.S. crypto regulation and enforcement, 13 years and three administrations after Bitcoin’s genesis block was generated. Little more than a research directive, Biden’s order required each department to complete and submit a strategy to the White House.

4.Otherside Was Launched by Yuga Labs

Yuga’s status as the top NFT Company in the world was confirmed with the acquisition of the CryptoPunks and Meebits collections from Larva Labs. Yuga launched its Metaverse presence with an NFT sale for virtual land plots that let members of the community purchase a portion of the enchanted planet “Otherside.” The Otherside’s release was the most anticipated NFT release of the year, and Bored Apes were on the rise. The firm received almost $310 million on the sale, making it the largest NFT decline in history.

5.$500 million Was stolen from Ronin Network by hackers.

In 2022, there were a number of prominent crypto attacks, but the Ronin bridge breach at Axie Infinity in March was by far the biggest at nine figures. Five out of nine Ronin chain validators were compromised by a group of attackers using phishing emails that U.S. law enforcement finally identified as the Lazarus Group, which is supported by the North Korean government. Due to this, the criminal organization was able to steal USDC and Ethereum valued at $551,8 million from the bridge connecting the network to Ethereum’s mainnet.

6.Terra Spectacularly Collapsed

For participants such as Celsius, Three Arrows Capital, Genesis Trading, and Alameda Research, the fall of Terra sparked a major liquidity crisis. Legislators from throughout the world have also denounced the risks that stablecoins, especially algorithmic ones, represent. The consequences of Terra’s collapse are still being felt today, and in many ways, it was the biggest failure of decentralized finance.

7.Celsius and 3 AC Significant Cryptocurrency Crisis

Celsius informed its customers that withdrawals would be temporarily and permanently banned on the evening of June 12. When Terra’s initiative failed, Celsius’s investment fanned the flames started by CEO Alex Mashinsky’s unlawful trading on the business’s accounts, as was later revealed. After Celsius made its announcement, news of 3AC’s bankruptcy started to spread, but Su Zhu and Kyle Davies, the company’s co-founders, kept mute. They allegedly fled after going into default on a number of debts and owed more than $3.5 billion.

8.Upgrade to Ethereum’s Proof-of-Stake Completed

Since there have been discussions about the Proof-of-Stake upgrade for Ethereum for as long as there have been blockchains, the September launch was eagerly anticipated. ETH increased by almost 100% from its June low, raising hopes that Merge’s advantages—a 99.95% increase in energy efficiency and a 90% decrease in ETH emissions—could spur a positive turn in the cryptocurrency market. Finally, on September 15, the upgrade was successfully released.

9.United States Treasury Approved Tornado Cash

On August 8, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control announced that it has added the Tornado Cash protocol to its list of prohibited activities. The CIA claimed in a statement that Tornado Cash was used by online criminals to launder money.

10.Crypto Giant FTX Slid Into Insolvency

The world market was controlled by FTX a month ago. The crypto exchange in the Bahamas was well known for spending a lot of money on image promotion, and as a result, it has gained widespread recognition. Early in November, pressure on FTX was threatened by reports of illiquidity at Alameda Research, FTX’s unofficially-official sibling company founded by Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF). The platform had a bank run as a result, showing that the majority of the exchange’s assets had already been used up.