For cryptocurrencies and digital assets, 2022 has been marked by turmoil, a description that applies to crypto as an asset class as well as the technology stack for developing new financial use cases. The term “crypto winter” entered the conversation at conferences, in the press, and on social media to sum up the chill felt by investors, developers, and speculators alike. 

That is not to say, however, that all was doom and gloom. The turmoil in the crypto and digital assets space came at a time when legacy financial institutions had begun a nearly inexorable push into the space, adopting cryptocurrencies as an asset to be managed and expanding services offered across multiple lines of business. From Blackrock’s partnering with Coinbase on an expanded service for wealth management clients to the entry of the nation’s oldest bank, BNY Mellon, into the custody market, financial institutions, brokers, asset managers, and their technology partners clearly believe the trend of investor demand is increasing.