| | Between now and the New Year, the CoinMarketRecap podcast is doing something a little different. Connor and Molly Jane are counting down the biggest crypto stories of the year in a new series called the CMC 50. You can find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts. And you can also change the rankings of the CMC 50 by voting through our interactive list! |
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| | Obviously, the bankruptcies of FTX, Celsius Network and Voyager Digital top the list of the worst crypto stories in 2022. Not to mention Terra's demise and the implosion of Bitcoin's price. But unfortunately, there were plenty of other gloomy developments that CoinMarketCap Alexandria covered this year — as we're about to find out. |  | 1. Virgil Griffith goes to jail. The former Ethereum developer had attended a crypto conference in North Korea — and now he's been sentenced to 63 months behind bars. It was claimed that he had given presentations that showed how digital assets could be used to avoid sanctions and launder money.
2. Tesla sells 75% of its Bitcoin. Confronted with concerns over the electric vehicle manufacturer's liquidity, Elon Musk got rid of the company's BTC at a pretty hefty loss. The billionaire stressed that the transaction shouldn't be regarded as a verdict on Bitcoin, but all of this didn't go down well on Crypto Twitter.
3. Huge job cuts and rescinded job offers. Coinbase had been bragging about plans to hire 2,000 new workers in 2022 — but just four months later, it cut 1,100 jobs and rescinded job offers to new hires. One man had turned down offers from Amazon and Oracle — and was now in danger of losing his right to remain in the U.S.
|  | 4. India imposes some brutal taxes on crypto. After spending years flirting with a ban, the government took a different approach: a 30% tax on all profits derived from trading cryptocurrencies. To make matters worse, every transaction would incur a 1% levy. Demand plummeted, and all of this comes as tests on a digital rupee continue.
5. Twitter descends into chaos with Elon Musk at the helm. There was a fiasco as Twitter Blue subscribers imitated major companies, previously banned accounts were reinstated, thousands of people were laid off, and controversial new rules were imposed. Now, most of Musk's followers have voted for him to step down as CEO.
6. El Salvador's Bitcoin bet falters. Ambitious plans for "volcano bonds" and a Bitcoin City have been shelved because of the bear market — and Nayib Bukele's investment is tens of millions of dollars in the red. The president is determined to keep on HODLing, but this year's events may make other countries think twice about adopting BTC.
7. Heartbreaking crimes. Pig butchering scams ran rampant online, with some people losing everything. Countless others were drawn into investment schemes offering returns that were simply too good to be true. One man who put $24,000 into a Bitcoin scam was then told that his balance had dwindled to just $23.16.
|  | 8. A poor taste NFT collection. Over in Britain, the Queen died at the age of 96 — plunging the country into a period of national mourning. That didn't stop opportunists in the crypto space from launching altcoins and poor-quality NFT collections in an attempt to capitalize on the news.
9. Crypto influencers face scrutiny. Leaked spreadsheets showed how much some YouTubers charge for promotions in their videos — potentially undermining the relationship they have with viewers. Others had difficult questions to answer after endorsing doomed businesses including FTX, Voyager and Celsius.
10. A very uncertain 2023. This year is ending on something of a cliffhanger — with many unanswered questions as the new year begins. Will Bitcoin fall lower? Is the crypto contagion going to spread? Will businesses currently teetering on the edge of bankruptcy recover? And what will all of this mean for their customers?
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