New York, Dec 25 (IANS): Crypto’s 14th year in existence was one marred by scandal, bankruptcy, fraud and regulatory squabbling. It still may have been the industry’s best year ever, CNN reported.

Despite all the bad press, the young industry notched some notable wins.

Bitcoin, the crypto’s bellwether asset, is up 160 per cent for the year. Two high-profile court cases came down in the industry’s favour. And a long-awaited approval for a mainstream investment product is expected in January, potentially flooding the scene with new investors, CNN reported.

Like the rest of the financial world, digital assets got a boost from an improving macroeconomic picture in cooling inflation, a growing economy, and a long-awaited end in sight for the Fed’s interest rate hikes.

“2023 was a bad year for grifters and a good year for builders,” says Faryar Shirzad, the chief policy officer for Coinbase. “We’re going into 2024 with many of the worst of the grifters out of the market, and that’s a good thing.”

The main event for crypto in 2024 could come as soon as next month, when US regulators are expected to greenlight applications for the very first spot bitcoin ETF, or exchange traded fund, in the American market.

Put simply, a spot bitcoin ETF allows investors to track the price of bitcoin without actually owning the digital currency. That’s appealing for mainstream investors for a few reasons. First, it gives everyday investors who are wary of crypto a relatively safe way to dip their toe in the notoriously volatile market, CNN reported.

ETFs also trade on traditional stock exchanges, which means investors can access them through their tried-and-true brokerage rather than creating a new account in the crypto-verse. And, of course, the prospect of regulatory oversight adds another layer of protection and transparency.