How TechCrunch+ Followed the Crypto Market on a Roller Coaster in 2022 • TechCrunch

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In 2022, the crypto community soared to new heights and then crashed. We noted this as early as June 2022, before the FTX fiasco (which we use as a catch-all term for the crash, alleged fraud, bankruptcy, congressional hearing, Sam Bankman-Fried arrest in the Bahamas, appeal for his extradition, etc.).

However, this is not meant to be an article chronicling the fall of FTX over the past year, it is a recap of our 2022 crypto coverage, which could also be seen as a Jacquelyn Melinek highlights reel with a feature by Alex Wilhelm.

Here are some of our top crypto coverage in 2022: Terra community adopts proposal to revive LUNA cryptocurrency after stablecoin-led implosion

In May, LUNA took a nose dive and the market followed suit. Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon shared a plan to relaunch the Terra ecosystem, including the formation of a new blockchain. Jacquelyn noted, “The launch of LUNA 2.0 will be a test of whether the community is as strong as they say they are. But many are reluctant to trust Kwon and the Terra team again after the fall of LUNA and UST.

Ethereum falls more than 17% after an overhyped merger

From early to mid-September, the whispers of the merger were everywhere we turned our ears. A quick refresher: The Merge was a highly anticipated event where Ethereum transitioned from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake. It may have been overhyped.

Blue-chip NFT owners explore other uses as sales dip

During the last crypto bull market, the NFT sub-sector also reached new highs. As NFT sales slowed, blue chip NFT holders began looking for new ways to profit. For the uninitiated: the term “blue chip NFTs” derives from “blue chip stocks,” which often refer to the most valuable companies in the market. In this case, these are the most desirable or high-value NFTs. What are they worth in the middle of crypto winter?

Terras UST crash will make life harder for crypto as regulation looms

In May 2022, Terra UST crashed, leading to a push for crypto regulation. UST is an algorithmic stablecoin primarily backed by its sister cryptocurrency, LUNA, but has also been backed by bitcoin. Founder Do Kwon previously told TechCrunch that plans are in place to support it with other cryptocurrencies over time. It’s unclear if that roadmap is still in place for UST as it attempts to recover from its downfall, Jacquelyn wrote. To regain the confidence of traders and holders, the next step would be regulation, right?

Making sense of OpenSea at a $13 billion valuation

In early 2022, OpenSea raised $300 million at a valuation of $13.3 billion. Alex did a deep dive to understand how OpenSea’s new valuation (as of January 2022) correlates to his earnings. You can track Alex’s collection of data and calculations to determine if the company is undervalued or overvalued.

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