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The downfall of crypto exchange FTX is just the latest in a series of problems contributing to 2022's crypto winter. Inflation, rising interest rates and economic uncertainty have driven investors to sell risk assets throughout the year, including stocks and cryptos.
Bitcoin and ethereum are down more than 50% from their all-time highs in late 2021. While there have been small surges in recent weeks, the crypto market as a whole is largely stalled. While no one knows for sure, some experts say crypto prices could fall even further before any sustained recovery.
Bitcoin hit multiple new all-time high prices in 2021 — followed by big drops — and more institutional buy-in from major companies. Ethereum, the second-biggest cryptocurrency, notched its own new all-time high late last year as well, and then crashed below $900 in June, its lowest level since the start of 2021. U.S. government officials and the Biden administration have increasingly expressed interest in new regulations for cryptocurrency.
All the while, people's interest in crypto remains high: it's a hot topic not only among investors but in popular culture too, thanks to everyone from long-standing investors like Elon Musk to that kid from your high school on Facebook.