It was a controversial year for the crypto industry. Let's take a closer look at the major cryptocurrency-related events that will also take place in 2023.
The year 2023 has been a rollercoaster for the cryptocurrency ecosystem, defined by major events that have impacted the direction of the industry. From stablecoin issues to regulatory disputes, institutional acceptance, and the arrival of meme coins, the cryptocurrency sector has seen a wide range of stories.
Here are the top 10 cryptocurrency headlines that have defined the year.
USDC stablecoin falters amid Silicon Valley bank collapse
March began with a seismic event when Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) collapsed, sending shockwaves through the cryptocurrency market. The USDC stablecoin, closely linked to Circle, one of SVB's largest depositors, lost its peg to the dollar, falling to a record low of 87 cents.
Analysts consider the collapse of the SVB to be the largest US banking failure since the 2008 financial crisis, underscoring the vulnerability of stablecoins linked to traditional financial institutions. SVB clients had then received a whopping $42 billion in deposits, triggering a bank run.
Notably, when the bank announced its closure, it had a negative cash balance of $958 million.
Rise of Meme Coins
May saw the rise of meme coins, with market value reaching new heights thanks to these new asset classes. The rise of meme coins on the bitcoin blockchain is mainly due to the growing popularity of Ordinals.
The Ordinals code, published earlier this year, has a good impact on the profits of miners in digital assets. Since the introduction of Ordinals, around 25,000 meme tokens have been registered on the bitcoin blockchain.
BlackRock Triggers Wave of bitcoin ETF Filings
In June, BlackRock Inc (NYSE: BLK), along with other traditional financial institutions, filed to offer spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
BlackRock's presentation marked a turning point in institutional adoption, causing a reversal in the trajectory of bitcoin's price. The presentation encouraged other companies such as Bitwise, Invesco and WisdomTree to follow suit, indicating a growing acceptance of cryptocurrencies within mainstream finance.
According to the facts, BlackRock filed an application with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) through Nasdaq, citing Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN) as the exchange to oversee the proposed ETF. For the first time in about 10 years, expectations are high that this product will finally get the green light.
Wave against the SEC
In July, US District Judge Analisa Torres rejected the SEC's allegations against Ripple Labs Inc., partially declaring that XRP is not a security. The SEC accused Ripple of violating securities laws, while the court ruled that XRP sales on crypto exchanges were not securities.
However, the judge handed a victory to the SEC, noting that Ripple Labs violated securities laws when it sold XRP to institutional investors. The conciliation hearing for this aspect of the case is scheduled for the first half of 2024.
The markets regulator dropped other pending cases surrounding the role of Brad Garlinghouse and Chris Larsen in the case.
The SEC charges Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken for operating unregistered exchanges.
In June, the SEC filed charges against Binance, Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN) and, much later, Kraken, accusing them of operating unregistered exchanges. The charges ranged from misrepresenting trading controls to selling unregistered securities. The legal actions highlight the increasing regulatory scrutiny facing major crypto exchanges.
As part of this lawsuit, the SEC identified SOL, ADA, MATIC, FIL, SAND, AXS, CHZ, FLOW, ICP, NEAR, VGX, DASH and NEXO as securities.
3AC co-founder Su Zhu arrested and Do Kwon's extradition approved
In September, Singapore police arrested Three Arrows Capital (3AC) co-founder Su Zhu, and Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon was approved for extradition. Zhu was detained at Singapore's Changi Airport for failing to cooperate with a liquidation investigation. Three Arrows Capital filed for bankruptcy amid the 2022 crypto market turmoil, owing creditors more than $3.5 billion.
Additionally, the High Court of Montenegro approved the extradition of Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon to South Korea or the United States, with the Minister of Justice making the final decision on the fate.
ai and bitcoin Integration
The integration of artificial intelligence into the crypto space gained momentum this year, with OpenAI's ChatGPT being a notable development. The combination of ai and cryptography was considered a perfect match, with crypto-stories-of-2023″ target=”_blank” rel=”noopener”>predictions of a bull market driven by advances in cryptocurrencies and artificial intelligence.
One of the main advantages of integrating ai with bitcoin is the ability to strengthen security measures. Traditional cryptographic techniques employed by the bitcoin network can be complemented by artificial intelligence algorithms to detect and prevent fraudulent activities, hacking attempts, and other malicious activities. Machine learning algorithms can analyze transaction patterns, identify anomalies, and provide real-time alerts, creating an additional layer of security for users.
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Found Guilty
In November, after a five-week trial, Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of FTX Derivatives Exchange, was found guilty of seven counts, including wire fraud, conspiracy to commit commodities fraud, securities fraud and conspiracy to launder money
The verdict marked a notable step forward in holding cryptocurrency executives accountable for their actions. Sam Bankman-Fried's sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 28, 2024, and many projections put the likely prison sentence at 20 years.
Binance agreement with the Department of Justice for $4.3 billion
Shortly after, Binance CEO Changpeng 'CZ' Zhao pleaded guilty to charges of violating the Bank Secrecy Act, leading to a $4.3 billion settlement between the trading platform and the Department of Justice. of the United States (DoJ), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Department of the Treasury.
The charges accused Binance of allowing US customers to trade on its platform without proper KYC and AML checks, highlighting regulatory scrutiny in the crypto industry.
bitcoin bull run
In December, bitcoin surpassed $42,000 and grew to $44,000, signaling the potential for a new crypto supercycle. The bullish momentum was attributed to expectations of approval of a bitcoin ETF in early 2024. Despite the optimism, some noted a lack of fervor compared to previous bull cycles.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong even suggests that bitcoin could be critical to the advancement of Western civilization. According bitcoin-hype-machine-kicks-into-overdrive-while-cryptocurrency-surges-past-42-000-1.2007059″ target=”_blank” rel=”nofollow noopener”>BloombergPredictions for the future of bitcoin range from $50,000 to over $530,000 in the coming years.
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