“We’ll look back at 2022 as a defining year for crypto,” Michael Wu, founder and CEO of Amber Group remarks. “It filtered out a lot of either bad actors or companies that lack governance and risk management.” Ultimately, he reckons, this gives the industry a chance to build back stronger, with better governance, greater transparency and more comprehensive investor protections.

And there are signs that this shift is already in the works. The UK Government, the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission have all recently made moves towards regulating cryptocurrencies.

When it comes to these upcoming regulations, what Mr Wu wants to see is consistency, but this will require industry-wide teamwork.

Against this backdrop, of rebuilding trust in the industry and an evolving rulebook, Amber too is looking ahead. “The Group’s strategy for 2023 is to focus on our core businesses, which are crypto liquidity solution services, and the digital asset wealth management, and to establish ourselves as the clear category leader in both,” Mr Wu comments.

Continuing its work with digital native and institutional investors is another focus. For these groups, Mr Wu explains, “we often design the best way for institutional investors to invest in digital assets with complete peace of mind while allowing them to diversify and allocate their crypto portfolios more effectively. At the same time, we provide assistance to crypto native projects not only by facilitating their token market, their token trading and treasury management activities, but also by offering deep insights into how the institutional or the larger investors perceive them.”

Given the events of the past year, there is a renewed focus on transparency and security. “We invest a lot into this because we think it’s at the core of everything we do.” And, for Amber, compliance is simply about doing the right thing.

The past year has provided a reckoning for many crypto companies, not least Amber Group, which is using this as an opportunity to become stronger. Or, as Mr Wu puts it, “a blessing in disguise”.

By pairing with industry innovators and continuing to launch products centring on transparency and security, Amber is demonstrating its commitment to investors. In turn, investors can access a new class of safer, more secure digital assets.