News und Insights

The FTX’s collapse and its consequences continue to unravel. Venture capital company Digital Currency Group (DCG) could be the latest victim following the current mayhem. Based on a letter to investors, the company has disclosed a $2 billion debt, which mostly consists of intercompany loans between it and its subsidiary Genesis Global Capital.

Last week, the digital asset space got shaken to its core, when the world’s second biggest crypto exchange FTX collapsed overnight. After all, this collapse marks the largest meltdown in the crypto world. The exchange, which bailed out several companies in the wake of the Terra Luna and 3AC collapse earlier this year, has fallen apart so fast and hard, that experts expect the ripple effects to continue in the coming months.

So, what exactly happened?

Foundational technology is the most effective tool for impacting society at large and solving the challenges it is faced with. One such foundational institutional technology is the blockchain, which entered the picture through the discovery of Bitcoin in 2009 and has since proliferated and emerged in many different forms.

What does blockchain’s social impact look like?

Elon Musk’s actions have once again had repercussions for the wider crypto space. This time, Dogecoin rose by more than 70% in 24 hours, driven by the news that Musk had closed a $44 billion deal to take over Twitter. All in all, Musk’s favourite meme currency experienced a 150% surge from October 25-29.

Crypto projects are getting hacked almost every other week and losing millions of dollars. Sadly, users are bearing the brunt of these attacks. On October 12, Solana-based DeFi platform Mango Markets confirmed that the protocol had been attacked by a hacker, who stole funds through an oracle price manipulation. Mango’s price plummeted by more than 40% as a result.

Regulators have had a tough time keeping up with the rapidly growing crypto space that is dominated by a wide range of financial products. Nonetheless, recent developments show that they may be gaining ground signalling that crypto companies need to evaluate their compliance status now more than ever.

The long-awaited Ethereum Merge finally shipped on September 15, 2022, fully turning Ethereum into a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchain. It commenced at 6:43 a.m. UTC and attracted a live audience of over 41,000 people on YouTube that watched as the significant event unfolded. The mainnet and PoS Beacon Chain merged successfully without a hitch, but it was not a small task. “The metaphor that I use is this idea of switching out an engine from a running car,” Justin Drake, a researcher at the Ethereum Foundation, said describing the Ethereum Upgrade.

Ob in der Cyber­-Security, im Supply-Chain­-Management, bei neuen Asset-Klassen oder bei Versicherungslösungen: Die Blockchain-­Technologie kommt in immer mehr Bereichen der digitalen und der realen Wirtschaft zum Einsatz. Die Grenzen zwischen klassischer Bankenwelt und Blockchain-­Banking werden fliessender.