FTX was once the world's second-largest cryptocurrency exchange. In November 2022, a report revealed FTX's balance sheet was dominated by its own FTT token. A bank run ensued, revealing an $8 billion hole — customer funds had been secretly lent to SBF's trading firm Alameda Research.
Terra was an algorithmic stablecoin protocol that spectacularly collapsed in May 2022, wiping out approximately $40 billion in value within days. Its UST stablecoin lost its peg and LUNA became worthless, triggering contagion across the entire crypto market.
Celsius Network was a centralised crypto lending platform that offered high yields on deposited crypto — attracting over 1.7 million customers and $12 billion in assets. In June 2022, Celsius froze all withdrawals amid a liquidity crisis and filed for bankruptcy.