Key points:
Binance releases its 2022 year-end report, summarizing key facts, statistics, and developments about our ecosystem.
In 2022, we will make significant progress in regulatory compliance while continuing to build the best Web3 user experience.
At a time when major negative events occurred one after another in the industry and industry confidence was hit hard, Binance showed strong resilience and quickly invested in rebuilding industry confidence, aiming to unleash the huge potential of blockchain technology to improve people's lives.
Looking ahead, Binance will continue to drive innovation, listen to users, and lead the industry by example, relying on its solid foundation and good financial condition.
The new year has arrived. As we bid farewell to the old and usher in the new, we take a moment to review and reflect on the main achievements and statistics of 2022.
There is no doubt that 2022 will be a very challenging year for the entire blockchain and crypto asset industry, including Binance. In the face of major challenges, we insist on putting user experience first, creating products with real value, and most importantly, exploring a healthy and sustainable development path for the entire industry. The following are the highlights of the year-end report released by Binance today.
Download the entire year-end report
Security, Regulation and Compliance
At Binance, we believe that the right regulatory framework and an ecosystem that protects user security are fundamental to the mass adoption of crypto assets and blockchain.
But as many in the industry know, it is one thing to articulate core values and another to implement them. It is safe to say that Binance has lived up to our core values with concrete actions last year. First, as of the end of 2022, we have obtained operating licenses, registrations or regulatory approvals in 14 countries and regions. We use our rich experience to continuously assist regulators and policymakers in developing a practical regulatory framework for digital assets. We have also recruited many of the industry's top talents, increasing the size of our security and compliance team by 500%.
We have invested a lot of time and effort in organizing more than 70 law enforcement training workshops on crypto assets, blockchain, and combating digital financial crime. The team has successfully responded to more than 47,000 law enforcement requests from law enforcement agencies, with an average response time of only three days. This year, Binance also became the first member of the blockchain and crypto asset industry to join the National Cyber Forensics and Training Alliance (NCFTA).
Within the Binance ecosystem, we have made significant upgrades to our identity verification (KYC) process, including adding real-time photo quality review capabilities in multiple regions, further accelerating identity verification, and expanding the range of supported identification documents.
establish trust
The crypto space has experienced a series of major bankruptcies, compounded by an already difficult macroeconomic environment. We are working hard to rebuild trust, not only for Binance, but for the entire crypto ecosystem.
Our founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) released a six-principle framework for centralized exchanges to rebuild user and regulatory trust (click here to read it).
As a leader in transparency, we launched a Proof of Reserve (PoR) system, where reserves are provided 1:1 by Binance and can be verified by anyone. In addition, we also released proof of stake for Binance Bridge wrapped tokens. In order to ensure the safety of funds of 128 million users in case of emergency, we have maintained the total market value of the Investor Protection Fund (SAFU) at $1 billion through capital injection.
Supporting and building the industry
In 2022, many promising projects became victims of negative events. As always, we support our peers who hope to bring positive and far-reaching impact to the crypto asset field and create value for users.
In November 2022, Binance invested $1 billion to launch an industry recovery plan and promised to increase the investment to $2 billion if necessary. We invested more than $500 million through Binance Labs to support Web3 and blockchain innovation, launched the fifth season of the incubation program, and made decisions on 14 strategic M&A projects and 61 token investment projects.
At a time when all walks of life were laying off employees in large numbers, Binance bucked the trend and recruited people from around the world. The team size now exceeds 7,500 people, with members from more than 100 different countries.
We also promote philanthropy and humanitarian causes through the Binance Charity Fund (BCF), for example, we donated 10 million BUSD to help resolve the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and launched the world’s first crypto refugee card.
Activities and Products
2022 was a year of Web3 events. We held Binance’s fifth anniversary celebration in Paris, attracting more than 3,000 in-person attendees and 1.5 million online viewers. We organized and participated in the largest tech events, including Binance Blockchain Week in Dubai and Paris, and the annual Web Summit in Lisbon. In addition to these large-scale events, we also strengthened our connection with millions of Binancians through hundreds of online and offline community events.
By focusing on building more tools, products, and functionality over the long term, we have grown from a simple, fast, and secure crypto asset trading platform to a massive Web3 ecosystem. Behind every new product on the Binance platform are strong security protocols and an excellent user-centric product team.
In 2022, the nascent crypto asset industry has undergone fundamental tests, forcing Web3 companies to strive for excellence. Binance is ready to unite and help the entire industry rebuild trust and build a secure foundation for the next billion-user milestone.
In the process of rapid development, we have not forgotten our original intention - to provide a safe and user-friendly crypto asset experience. The road is long and arduous, but we believe that as long as we keep our users in mind, 2023 will usher in more growth, popularity and innovation. Binance will continue to put users first, innovate, set an example for the industry, and deliver on its promises with practical actions.
Download the entire year-end report
For more articles about 2022, please read:
(Blog) "A letter from the CEO: 2022, resilience is king"
(Blog) "2022 Binance Event Review: Party with Binance Users"
(Blog) 2022 - The Year of Compliance and Transparency
(Blog) "2022, crypto assets turn around"
(Blog) "Year of Construction: New Products and Features for 2022"