Crypto Winter: Five High-Profile Implosions Wipe Out Billions in Value

  • High-Profile Cryptocurrency Implosions: During 2022’s Crypto Winter, several high-profile crypto projects imploded, wiping out billions of dollars in value and eroding trust. Six of these projects are highlighted below.
  • Crypto Market Downturn: History shows that there have been many failures in the cryptocurrency market economy over the years, and the 2022 crypto winter is no exception.
  • A Summary of Project Failures: This article provides a summary of five crypto assets that saw their value slashed and communities decimated during this period.

High-Profile Cryptocurrency Implosions Shatter Trust, Wipe Out Billions in Value During 2022’s Crypto Winter

2022 was a year of phenomenal cryptocurrency blowouts, as several projects collapsed and many more are on life support after the entire ecosystem was shattered. The fallout from these digital currency projects has not only removed billions of dollars in value from the crypto economy, but also eroded trust. The following is a look at six high-profile cryptocurrency project implosions that took place during 2022’s crypto winter.

A Look at 5 Crypto Assets That Fell From Glory Amid the Crypto Market Downturn

History shows that there have been many failures in the cryptocurrency market economy over the years, and a great example is how eight out of the top ten coins on May 5, 2013, have basically been forgotten despite the fact that some still hold value. Coins such as freicoin (FRC), terracoin (TRC), devcoin (DVC), and mincoin (MNC) are all distant memories now. During the 2022 crypto winter, several high-profile crypto projects imploded. Below is a summary of these project failures or cryptocurrency assets that have seen their value slashed and communities decimated.

Celsius (CEL)

On Jan. 1, 2022, the crypto asset celsius (CEL) was trading for $4.26 per coin, and it was the 93rd largest cryptocurrency in terms of market capitalization at the time. CEL was essentially an exchange token, and Celsius advertised it as „the backbone of the Celsius Network.“ However, on June 13th 2022 Celsius paused all operations and halted withdrawals before filing for bankruptcy protection 30 days later. Since June 13th CEL has been extremely volatile; it currently trades for $0.48 per unit – 88% lower than its initial value on January 1st 202022 . Ownership of CEL is extremely concentrated with more than 38% held by wallets belonging to defunct Celsius; 100 CEL wallets hold 98%+ percent of total supply – Novawulf Digital Management being revealed as sponsor behind reorganization plan .

Terra (LUNA)

421 days ago on Jan 1st 202022 , terra (LUNA) was 9th largest crytocurency with market cap worth 31 billion USD ($88 per LUNA). Today LUNA sits 55th ranked cryptocurency with LUNA tokens trading less than one US cent ($0.01). Stablecoin UST which used to be pegged against USD lost its peg due to failed rebranding effort .

Other Failed Projects

Other failed projects include Harmony(ONE), Fantom(FTM), Serum(SRM) & Reef Finance(REEF). All mentioned project had significant drop in price since start 2021 & none could recover completely yet .

Robert Kiyosaki: Gold, Silver & Bitcoin Best for Unstable Times

• Robert Kiyosaki, author of the best-selling book Rich Dad Poor Dad, has warned that investing in a portfolio of stocks, bonds, mutual funds and ETFs is “very risky”.
• He recommends investing in gold, silver and bitcoin as the best investments for “unstable times”.
• Many people disagreed with Kiyosaki on Twitter claiming that a well-diversified portfolio is less risky than investing in precious metals and cryptocurrency.

Robert Kiyosaki’s Investment Warning

Robert Kiyosaki, author of the best-selling book Rich Dad Poor Dad, has warned investors to be careful when it comes to diversifying their portfolios by investing in stocks, bonds, mutual funds and ETFs. According to him these investments are “very risky” during unstable times. Instead he recommends gold, silver and bitcoin as better investment options for such times.

Reasons Behind His Advice

Kiyosaki has been advising against stocks and mutual funds for quite some time now because he believes financial planners use these instruments to get richer at the expense of novice investors who lack proper knowledge about how these investments work. As for gold and silver coins he prefers them over paper or digital versions like ETFs because they are tangible assets with intrinsic value which makes them more reliable during economic downturns. Lastly his advice to invest in Bitcoin comes from the fact that its decentralized nature makes it immune to government manipulations which can affect other asset classes significantly like what happened with oil prices last year due to geopolitical tensions between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Twitter Disagrees With Kiyosaki

Kiyosaki’s advice was met with strong criticism on Twitter by many people who disagreed with him saying that a well-diversified portfolio is much safer than investing in precious metals or cryptocurrencies since these assets have inherently high volatility which may lead to significant losses during bear markets or market corrections. Some even accused him of pumping up Bitcoin prices for his own personal gain given his long history of recommending this asset class over others consistently since 2017 when BTC experienced its first bull run leading up till now when it is trading close to its all time highs near $60k per coin.

Previous Statements On The Matter

In previous statements Kiyosaki had said that bonds are “the riskiest investment” during global meltdowns while also remarking that rookie investors should not follow rookie advice blindly when it comes to allocating their capital across different asset classes like stocks or bonds as part of a balanced portfolio strategy instead they should buy gold silver and Bitcoin as an insurance policy against any future market crashes caused by poor decision making from world governments or central banks printing money excessively which could lead to hyperinflationary consequences down the line if left unchecked for too long forcing people into poverty due to devaluation of their savings held in fiat currencies like USD or EUR etc .

Conclusion

Ultimately it is up to each individual investor whether they want to follow Robert Kiyosakis advice on gold silver and bitcoin being better alternative investments compared against traditional ones like stocks bonds mutual funds & ETFs but regardless every investor should evaluate their own risk tolerance before taking any positions so they can make sure they don’t get caught off guard when markets start turning volatile unexpectedly putting their capital at risk unnecessarily without any upside potential attached .

Ordinal Inscriptions: 50,000 Added to Bitcoin Blockchain in 2023

• The Bitcoin blockchain has seen the addition of more than 50,000 Ordinal inscriptions in 2023.
• These inscriptions are fetching high prices through over-the-counter trades.
• Emblem Vault has created vaults for Ordinal inscriptions, allowing them to be added to the Opensea NFT marketplace and sold for ethereum (ETH).

Ordinal Inscriptions Take the NFT World by Storm

The Bitcoin blockchain has seen a surge in popularity as more than 50,000 Ordinal inscriptions have been added in 2023. People are using the blockchain to store text, images, videos, audio and software applications. Popular NFT collections such as Cryptopunks have been cloned with similar values being fetched via over-the-counter (OTC) trades.

High Prices on Over-the-Counter Trades

As of 12:20 p.m ET on Feb 11th 2023 there were 57,179 Ordinal Inscriptions hosted on the Bitcoin Blockchain. Several of these had sold for substantial amounts in recent weeks including a clone of Cryptopunks called Ordinal Punks with Punk #41 selling for 11.5 BTC or $249052. Additionally, OTC transactions allow people to buy and sell these NFTs using rudimentary pricing spreadsheets.

Emblem Vault Provides Infrastructure

In order to provide infrastructure for these new NFTs based on Bitcoin, Emblem Vault has created vaults for Ordinal Inscriptions allowing them to be added to the Opensea NFT Marketplace and sold for Ethereum (ETH). To prevent scams Emblem Vault suggests that users verify any asset before purchasing it from a vaulted source.

Community Tool Verifies Crypto Assets

In order to prevent scams from occurring Emblem Vault suggests that people use a community tool which can verify crypto assets before purchase is completed. This allows users peace of mind when purchasing rare digital assets online as they know that their money is going towards something legitimate and not just a scammer’s wallet address!

Conclusion

It appears that Ordinal Inscriptions are here to stay with their popularity continuing to increase daily! With infrastructure now available via Emblem Vaults it looks like this trend will continue well into 2024 and beyond!

Crypto Hackers Steal Record $3.8B in 2022, Chainalysis Reports

• Chainalysis blockchain analytics firm says that 2022 was the biggest year ever for crypto hacking, with $3.8 billion stolen from cryptocurrency businesses.
• Of this amount, 82.1% of all cryptocurrency stolen by hackers came from decentralized finance (defi) protocol hacks.
• North Korea-linked hackers have been the most prolific cryptocurrency hackers over the last few years and they stole an estimated $1.7 billion worth of cryptocurrency across several hacks in 2022.

Crypto Hacking Hit Record High in 2022

Chainalysis blockchain analytics firm published a section of its upcoming 2023 Crypto Crime Report on Wednesday, stating: 2022 was the biggest year ever for crypto hacking, with $3.8 billion stolen from cryptocurrency businesses. The firm explained that crypto hacking activity significantly increased in March and peaked in October — the month which „became the biggest single month ever for cryptocurrency hacking, as $775.7 million was stolen in 32 separate attacks,“ Chainalysis described.

Defi Protocols Most Affected by Crypto Hacking

Chainalysis added that „82.1% of all cryptocurrency stolen by hackers — a total of $3.1 billion“ came from decentralized finance (defi) hacks. Noting that this percentage was up from 73.3% in 2021, the firm pointed out that $3.1 billion of 64% came from cross-chain bridge protocols specifically.

North Korea-Linked Hackers Highly Prolific

Chainalysis also detailed that „North Korea-linked hackers … have been by far the most prolific cryptocurrency hackers over the last few years,“ elaborating: In 2022, they shattered their own records for theft, stealing an estimated $1.7 billion worth of cryptocurrency across several hacks we’ve attributed to them.. Moreover, North Korea-linked hackers stole $1.1 billion of that amount from defi protocols, making North Korea „one of the driving forces behind the defi hacking trend that intensified in 2022.“ Besides defi protocols, Chainalysis noted that „North Korea-linked hackers also tend to send large sums to mixers, which have typically been the cornerstone of their money laundering process.“ The firm further detailed that „For much of 2021 and 2022, North Korea-linked hackers almost exclusively used Tornado Cash to launder cryptocurrency stolen in hacks.“ Ethereum mixer Tornado Cash was sanctioned by the U.S government in August last year..

Cryptocurrency Businesses Need More Security Measures

Chainalysis’s report indicates a need for more security measures and better protection when it comes to dealing with cryptocurrencies and other digital assets on exchanges or wallets as these are prime targets for malicious actors looking to steal funds or data illegally on those platforms .The increasing number of cyberattacks targeting crypto firms has highlighted how vulnerable these platforms can be if proper security measures are not taken into consideration when handling digital currencies or assets online .

Conclusion

Hackers have become increasingly sophisticated when it comes to stealing funds through various means such as exploiting weak security systems or methods used by organizations while dealing with digital currencies or assets online . It is therefore important for companies offering services related to cryptocurrencies need to take extra precautions when it comes to securing their systems against potential threats posed by malicious actors online .