BITCOIN page 4

The year 2022 was rich in major shocks and bankruptcies of cryptocurrency projects - after each such event, all assets fall in price simultaneously. The current crisis was no exception: the transformation of FTX, the fourth-largest cryptocurrency exchange by turnover, into a full-fledged bankruptcy in a few days was a shock to investors.

Almost six months ago, in the world of cryptocurrencies, there was a high-profile scandal associated with the collapse of the stablecoin market - digital currencies pegged to the rates of the real ones. Now the crypto-financial market is shaking again: the first cryptocurrency - bitcoin - was rapidly falling, losing a quarter of its price. On November 10, its rate dipped below $16,000. Bitcoin's fall dragged alternative cryptocurrencies as well. Some analysts have already dubbed what is happening the "beginning of the end" of the cryptocurrency world - again.

Many people associate blockchain with cryptocurrencies, thinking that these concepts are synonymous. But in fact, blockchain is more than just the technology behind bitcoin and other digital currencies. Among other things, it has much broader potential than many people are used to thinking.

It is well-known that any crisis urges people to invest in reliable assets, to look for a safe haven for capital preservation and multiplication. The modern world offers a huge number of financial instruments with different levels of returns and risks. Being afraid of big losses because of the economic crisis, the majority of international investors prefer safe-haven assets and conservative strategies.