Vitalik discusses five major achievements of Ethereum in 2022

Original Title: “Vitalik's Top 5 Crypto Wins of 2022”

Author: Bankless

Translation: Golden Finance

Bankless recently interviewed Ethereum founder Vitalik. Vitalik stated that many people are focused on remembering all the terrible things that happened this year (Terra, FTX, etc.)… but I think it's also important to remember all the various positive factors we've seen in the crypto industry. Vitalik believes there are five major achievements for Ethereum in 2022:

1. Ethereum Merge

"The Ethereum Merge is amazing."

Vitalik praised the successful transition of Ethereum to PoS after a long delay, considering it the biggest victory for the Ethereum network in 2022.

Vitalik emphasized not only the impact of this achievement on Ethereum's energy footprint but also how it enhances protocol security and network availability.

Vitalik stated, "My personal experience using Ethereum has greatly improved," adding, "These days when I send a transaction, I click send, wait a few seconds, and I see that transaction included in a block and it already has a confirmation… it's already competitive with credit card POS systems."

2. Innovation of ZK-EVM

Vitalik is very optimistic about the power of ZK-EVM, which made significant leaps in innovation in 2022. He mentioned that these projects have transformed from "nonexistent daydreams" into "the long-term—if not medium-term—future of scaling Ethereum."

ZK-EVM projects utilize a virtual machine that generates zero-knowledge proofs to verify the correctness of various smart contract operations. These are huge leaps forward for Ethereum. Some teams building these include Matter Labs, Scroll, and Polygon.

Vitalik has always been a fan of ZK-EVM, but he said the current progress has even surprised him. "We have multiple ZK EVM implementations, all promising to launch some kind of mainnet next year—it's fantastic."

3. Ethereum Login

The third major victory Vitalik saw for the Ethereum ecosystem in 2022 is the adoption of Ethereum login, which allows users to easily and securely log into web services using their Ethereum wallets.

No more need to remember password combinations, no longer relying on centralized internet providers like Facebook and Google to handle personal information and online identities. In an era where social media providers seem to own nearly every aspect of users' online lives, using Ethereum login allows users to own their authentication on the internet.

Vitalik stated, "Using Ethereum login has made significant progress in adoption; Ethereum has been able to leverage people's desire to explore various alternatives to Twitter and alternative social media platforms," specifically highlighting platforms like Lens and Farcaster.

4. Cryptocurrency Working for Ukraine

Using cryptocurrency to help Ukraine during the Russian invasion is another highlight for Ethereum in 2022. Vitalik pointed out that after Russia launched attacks on Ukraine, cryptocurrency payments and permissionless networks became more important than ever.

Vitalik said, "When other methods fail, cryptocurrency payments are actually useful for Ukraine." "Cryptocurrency is truly a lifeline for the nation and for many civilians."

In addition to payment infrastructure, Vitalik also emphasized how the system was used to raise funds for the Ukrainian military through grassroots donations to public wallet addresses and tools like NFT sales within the crypto community.

5. Crypto Charity

Finally, Vitalik highlighted that cryptocurrency donations and charitable efforts in 2022 were one of the biggest victories for the Ethereum ecosystem, showcasing the effectiveness of permissionless payment infrastructure in transferring funds to foreign organizations and emphasizing the overall generosity of the industry, even in very difficult circumstances.

He said, "Cryptocurrency as an international payment tool for charity is significant," particularly noting the ongoing efforts of the Covid relief fund last year to help people in countries like India.