The Top 10 Crypto Moments That Made 2023
BitMEX, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency derivatives exchanges, recently released a report titled “The Top 10 Crypto Moments of 2023.” The report highlights that 2023 was a year for building and preparing for a bull market, and it looks back at significant events that shaped the industry. These events include the crisis in traditional banking that brought hope to the crypto industry, numerous traditional financial giants applying for Bitcoin spot ETFs, the continued popularity of Bitcoin Ordinals, the back-and-forth between the SEC and multiple exchanges, the final judgment on SBF, CZ’s resignation, and the rise of meme coins like Solana.
Additionally, BitMEX also provides insights into the cryptocurrency industry in 2024, noting that traditional finance and emerging finance are accelerating their integration and 2024 is expected to be a key year for industry evolution. The translated version by BlockBeats is as follows:
“This year, the cryptocurrency market experienced a unique year. As 2023 comes to a close, we look back at the top ten events that occurred in 2023 and how they shaped our industry.
TL;DR:
The market entered a bearish phase at the beginning of 2023, while dealing with the aftermath of FTX and challenging macroeconomic conditions.
The banking crisis in March, with the collapses of Signature Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, Silvergate, and Credit Suisse, brought a glimmer of hope to the crypto industry during the winter.
Bitcoin price accelerated its recovery with the applications for Bitcoin spot ETFs by major traditional financial giants like Blackrock and Fidelity.
The market returned to Bitcoin, and Ordinals reached an all-time high, driving on-chain transactions of Bitcoin to new heights.
The US SEC faced increased pressure to clarify cryptocurrency regulations after disputes with Kraken, Coinbase, and Ripple, followed by over 40 countries announcing their regulatory frameworks.
Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) was convicted of seven charges and faced a maximum of 115 years in prison.
Binance pleaded guilty and paid a $4.3 billion fine to the US Department of Justice, and Zhao Changpeng resigned as CEO.
Solana’s ecosystem surpassed Ethereum in value with the launch of new projects and improvements, leading to a 500% growth in SOL.
Meme coins like PEPE, SHIB, DOGE, and BONK made a comeback.
Pre-IEO futures gained popularity, with BitMEX at the forefront.
Table of Contents
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The Tragedy of Traditional Finance
The Aftermath of 2022
The Banking Crisis
Building Bitcoin
The Emergence of Bitcoin Spot ETFs
The Rise of Bitcoin Ordinals
Cryptocurrencies in the Courtroom
The Battle of Kraken, Coinbase, and Ripple
SBF’s Trial – Live on X
“Big Dog” Binance
The Resurgence of Meme Coins
Solana’s Momentum
The Craze for Meme Coins Returns
Pre-IEO Futures Gain Popularity
Outlook for 2024
This year, macroeconomics and inflation undoubtedly dominated all conversations – with the Federal Reserve raising interest rates to the highest levels in decades and central banks implementing further monetary tightening as the economy grapples with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In terms of the background, the Federal Reserve implemented the fastest rate hikes in history – conducting seven rate hikes in 2022 alone and four in 2023.
The challenging macroeconomic environment meant that clients had a lower risk appetite, and government bonds became the preferred investment class. Banks faced pressure to repay long-term debt interest at much higher capital costs due to inflation – and it didn’t take long for the first high-risk bank to collapse.
Clients started to panic and withdraw, leading to bank runs across various institutions. Several banking institutions, including Silvergate, Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, and Credit Suisse, collapsed.
As a result, the government planned to print money through bank deposit rescue programs. The total money supply continued to grow, and the demand for non-inflationary assets like gold and Bitcoin became apparent. The failure of long-standing centralized entities meant increased confidence in decentralized monetary systems – people began to see cryptocurrencies as an alternative.
The rate hikes continued until June, with J. Powell playing the role of a disguised strongman. It wasn’t until August that inflation began to stabilize, and the latest December Federal Reserve meeting confirmed that rates would remain stable or decrease next year – which should be positive for the cryptocurrency market in 2024.
At the beginning of 2023, Bitcoin prices were hovering around $16,000 and were likely affected by some negative impact from FTX. However, this narrative quickly changed over time. The main catalyst was the banking crisis – followed by news of Bitcoin spot ETFs and the development of use cases on the network.
In the second half of this year, traditional financial giants like Blackrock began showing confidence in digital assets, which became increasingly evident. This was evident when Blackrock applied for a Bitcoin spot ETF in June, followed by companies like Fidelity and Grayscale.
All of these demonstrated that institutions were making a comeback, naturally boosting retail investors’ confidence.
Another boost to the Bitcoin ecosystem came from the rise of Ordinals, which provided users with a way to create digital assets like NFTs on the Bitcoin blockchain. Within just a year, the total number of Ordinals skyrocketed to 48 million, driving daily transactions of Bitcoin to new highs. This also meant that everyone recognized Bitcoin’s ability to grow well beyond its long-term static state.
Today, Bitcoin has reached its highest point in 12 months, growing a staggering 180% since the beginning of the year.
Throughout the turbulent journey of Bitcoin, BitMEX has remained committed to its core business of providing trading opportunities for professional traders to fully capitalize on the market. One example is BitMEX being the second-largest most liquid platform for trading Bitcoin-denominated derivative contracts, with over 100 contracts available for trading.
A year brings about significant changes – especially when it comes to cryptocurrency regulation. Just this time last year, headlines were filled with news of attacks on FTX, the SEC, and companies in the crypto industry – a stark contrast to today’s situation.
Following the FTX collapse, many wondered, “What’s next?” or more accurately, “Who’s next?” The first to emerge was Kraken, which paid a $30 million fine for providing staking services in the form of unregistered securities. The scrutiny of “unregistered securities” is still ongoing, with Coinbase being the next target.
Coinbase became the first cryptocurrency exchange to sue the SEC – attempting to encourage regulation and provide a precise interpretation of how TradFi securities laws apply to cryptocurrencies. The SEC retaliated, claiming that Coinbase is an unregistered securities exchange. The company’s fight with the SEC is ongoing, and it is expected to continue for some time.
However, not all news was bad news.
In a significant regulatory announcement, the SEC dropped charges against Ripple. The case was established when the SEC claimed Ripple’s native token XRP was a security, but this claim was dismissed in July, and the case was thrown out.
What was the outcome? These cases prompted the SEC to provide more clarity on its stance towards cryptocurrencies. In addition to the United States, over 40 countries announced their official regulatory frameworks for digital assets in 2023.
As a college graduate, SBF had previously founded the once-dominant cryptocurrency exchange FTX and became a household name. SBF turned into a convicted felon within a year, being found guilty of seven charges, including money laundering and securities fraud, and facing a maximum of 115 years in prison.
Was there a brighter side to this news? SBF’s trial was a moment of deep introspection for the crypto industry. This action restored confidence in the consequences of misconduct, and most importantly, it emphasized the industry’s urgent need for transparency and accountability.
Like others, BitMEX closely followed the entire trial. In addition, our team found an opportunity for our users – driving us to launch prediction markets, a unique crypto derivative that allows our traders to take a stance on “interesting” event outcomes related to current events.
As the final blow to the crypto industry this year (not surprisingly), Binance and its former CEO Zhao Changpeng (CZ) became the next targets in court. On November 21st, the US Department of Justice announced a settlement regarding Binance US and CZ’s alleged money laundering and unauthorized fund transfers.
Binance was fined $4.3 billion, and CZ was forced to step down as CEO, with his fate still pending. Compared to the FTX turmoil, this was not a devastating blow to cryptocurrency prices but generally seen as a positive sign of growing adoption and the final check before ETF approval.
With Bitcoin’s recovery in the past quarter, the altcoin market also surged, with tokens like Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Ripple (XRP), and Cosmos (ATOM) experiencing their shining moments this year.
The standout altcoin that garnered attention this year was Solana’s altcoin. Solana had previously been hit hard due to the FTX turmoil but began a significant recovery in Q3.
SOL, Solana’s native token, hit rock bottom in Q1 but, like many other tokens, that didn’t stop them from building. Their efforts eventually paid off, and despite various unfavorable factors, SOL reached a peak of $94 in December, growing over 500% since the beginning of the year.
This can be attributed to the improvements and launches of projects within Solana’s ecosystem, such as Jito Network, which sparked a DeFi summer frenzy through the reintroduction of airdrops, mining, and NFT minting.
This year was marked by the craze for meme tokens, proving that the hype around DOGE in 2021 may not have been an anomaly. In the second half of this year, meme coins once again caused a sensation, closely tied to the recovery of Bitcoin prices.
Some notable meme coins include PEPE, SHIB, and BONE, with BONK, Solana’s first dog coin, being the most noteworthy, reaching a market cap of $2 billion within six weeks from airdrops to members of the Solana ecosystem.
Innovation in the crypto space is unparalleled, as is the launch of its products. One concept that emerged this year in major exchanges is the introduction of Pre-IEO futures. Pre-IEO is more advanced than IEO, allowing traders to participate in price discovery of tokens and profit from it. These products gained popularity as they allow traders to gain exposure to tokens before they are listed, without needing to participate in airdrops or be early investors in projects.
The introduction of Pre-IEO futures at BitMEX was groundbreaking. We launched Pre-IEO futures contracts at the beginning of the year, benefiting from our product team’s continuous efforts to develop ways for traders to fully capitalize on the market. Just this year, we listed over seven Pre-IEO futures contracts:
SEIUSDTQ23 – Sei Network
CYBERUSDTQ23 – Cyber Network
TIAUSDTZ23 – Celestia
MEMEUSDTX23 – Memecoin
PYTHUSDTZ23 – Pyth Network
BLASTUSDTZ24 – Blast Network
ACEUSDTZ23 – Fusionist
The bullish trend in the cryptocurrency market is just beginning. Looking back at the previous market cycles in 2015 and 2019, it seems that 2024 may bring about another upward wave (see below).
More importantly, the interest shown by traditional financial giants in Bitcoin spot ETFs, real-world assets (RWA), and blockchain technology indicates the convergence of traditional finance and emerging finance. The recent price surge of Bitcoin paints an upward path for cryptocurrencies, and 2024 is expected to be a key year for industry evolution.
At BitMEX, we see 2023 as a time for building and preparing for the next bull market. This means launching more contracts, platform features, and upgrades to provide our users with the best trading experience.
Here’s a recap of some statistics for BitMEX in 2023:
Welcomed thousands of new traders and increased platform liquidity in preparation for the bull market in 2024.
Launched over 70 derivative contracts, including Prediction Markets and pre-IEO contracts.
Introduced five or more professional trading platform features, including chart trading, sub-accounts, multiple charts, dynamic messaging, and realized PNL.
Achieved a 95% reduction in order book latency through trading engine updates.
Introduced the Guilds – our take on competitive trading – distributing over $100,000 in rewards to date.
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This article is authorized to be reprinted from BlockBeats.
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