Top Bitcoin Stories of 2022
Lots of news amidst price declines
Happy New Year 2023 to all of you loyal readers! Wishing you a happy, healthy and prosperous new year. May your year be one all-around bull market!
Top Five Bitcoin Stories of 2022
5. Central Bank Digital Currencies are Coming
The fear that I live with every day is that US government officials, including most members of Congress, will feel that a Central Bank digital coin (CBDC) is an acceptable substitute for Bitcoin. Really.
In 2021, Representatives Bill Foster (IL) and French Hill (AR) introduced the Central Bank Digital Study Act. This bipartisan bill directs the Federal reserve to conduct a study and to issue a report on CBDCs in cooperation with other federal agencies. So, it’s in the works.
Read my February 22 article on why CBDCs are a great tool for surveillance, as evidenced in China.
And why CBDs are NOT Bitcoin. Not even close.
Link to “Central Bank Digital Coins are Not Bitcoin”
4. Crypto Exchanges Start to Implode
Celsius, BlockFi, Voyager Digital. I wrote about this in July, some four months prior to the largest exchange failure so far, that of FTX and its infamous founder, Sam Bankman-Fried. There were over 600 exchanges out there, and you knew a shakeout was coming. Much like the dot-com bubble bursting twenty years ago.
At that time, on July 8, no one knew how big this story would get or what the ripple effect would be. It’s worth a look back six months.
Link to “Crypto Exchanges Imploding - What it All Means”
3. Terra Luna Meltdown - It’s Not Bitcoin
Seems to be the theme of 2022. Cryptocurrencies and crypto exchanges are going bust, due to leverage, risk, mismanagement, and fraud.
And none of it has anything to do with Bitcoin.
The meltdown of the so-called “algorithmically backed stablecoin” was a huge story. Terra and Luna declined in value by 99% and the founder, Do Kwon, is reportedly hiding out somewhere in Europe. Or Asia.
2. Sen. Warren's War on Self-Custody
Earlier this month, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) dropped a bombshell of a bill, entitled The “Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2022.”
The bill targets self-custody of Bitcoin and other digital assets. Self-custody is one of the main advantages to owning the assets. The bill also targets Bitcoin ATMs, crypto miners and crypto wallet providers, forcing them to reveal the personal information of their customers.
This is a war that’s just getting started. Stay tuned in 2023.
1. FTX and Alameda File Bankruptcy, Could be one big Ponzi
On December 9th of this year, we only knew bits and pieces of the FTX story, and were just beginning to know Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison.
There was speculation that this was not just another highly leveraged hedge fund gone bust. It was beginning to look like another Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme.
My article at the time focused on the potential tax nightmares for the investors in these Ponzi schemes, but of course we now know that the implications extend way farther than just tax headaches. Over a million investors may have lost the majority of their funds.
A lot more to come on this in 2023! Stay tuned. And thanks for reading in 2022.
Link to December 9, 2022 early FTX article
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Issue No. 89, December 30, 2022
Rick Mulvey is a CPA, crypto consultant, and frequent contributor to Bitcoin Magazine. He writes about all things Bitcoin, and yells at the Yankees and Giants. He also runs marathons and makes wine, neither professionally.