1: ethereum transitioned from a proof-of-work mining mechanism to a proof-of-stake mechanism that uses 99% less electricity in september, the europe parliament passed a crypto legislative package in march, and senators lummis and gillibrand have reached across the aisle to partner on a bill that would put the cftc in charge of crypto rather than the sec. president biden’s crypto executive order back in march is a call to multiple agencies to get on the same page about regulating crypto. andreessen horowitz (a16z) raised $4.5 billion for a crypto-centric fund and haun ventures, pantera, fireblocks, consensys, secret network, near, chainalysis, keyrock, and ramp all received investments.
2: crypto had a tumultuous year in 2022, with coins tanking at the start of q2 and terra collapsing in may. this led to the bankruptcies of celsius, voyager, and three arrows capital, as well as the feds sanctioning tornado cash in august, and ftx collapsing in november, resulting in bankruptcies of blockfi and warning signs from genesis and digital currency group. nfts are tokens that can function as anything that needs instant provable ownership, from a party pass to a sports ticket to club membership to a real estate deed. big brands such as tiffany, adidas, starbucks, bud light, instagram, and reddit have all made moves to embrace nfts despite a drop in nft trading volume. ftx raised $800 million at a $32 billion valuation in the same year.
3: crypto media has experienced a boom time due to the increased interest in crypto. the ftx collapse has sparked a mainstream fascination in crypto beyond anything that has ever happened before. joe lubin, founder of consensys, has been a major proponent of the technology and has been working to help the industry become more inclusive and accessible. the transition to proof-of-stake, the crypto legislative package, the cftc bill, and the executive order have all helped to create a more stable environment for the industry to grow and innovate. the investments and nfts have also been major catalysts for the industry’s growth, as well as the mainstream attention that has been generated by the ftx collapse.
https://decrypt.co/118198/2022-not-all-bad-for-crypto-ftx-terra-ethereum-merge
