There can be no doubt it’s been a huge year for cryptocurrency and its underlying blockchain technology as an increasing number of banks consider how to get involved — and whether it’s wise to do so.

But decentralized finance (DeFi) and its underlying technology can’t be ignored. Following the money, Bank Automation News notes that funding for crypto and blockchain startups this year was more than five times that in 2020, and market intelligence firm CB Insights even dubbed 2021 “the year of crypto.”

The BAN team charted the key bank and crypto developments in 2021. Here are our most-read stories on the subject:

No. 5. DeFi ‘blowing up,’ Coinbase chief compliance officer says

Melissa Strait, chief compliance officer at Coinbase, the U.S.’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, said DeFi has been “blowing up” this year. DeFi involves conducting transactions such as lending without a central intermediary like a bank or other financial institution.

While it may be a hot trend, there are additional risks for banks in dealing with DeFi entities, warned Chris DePow, senior advisor for financial institution regulation and compliance at blockchain analytics and monitoring firm Elliptic.

No. 4. Bank of America: Risks, huge potential in cryptocurrency

With so many developments this year in cryptocurrency, including a huge wave of consumer investment, the $3.09 trillion Bank of America launched its own dedicated study group to assess opportunities in the space for banks and others in the industry.

In a first round of findings from the group, Bank of America said it believes major change will come in applications built on distributed ledger and blockchain technology.

No. 3. Crypto conglomerate raises $600M credit facility

Digital Currency Group last month turned some heads when it raised a $600 million credit facility that the company said would strengthen its ability to “respond dynamically to opportunities in the market.”

The venture capital firm owns several key players in cryptocurrency, including digital asset management company Grayscale Investments; Foundry, a financing and advisory company focused on digital asset mining and staking; and digital asset exchange and wallet solutions provider Luno. Note that Grayscale has filed to turn its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust into an exchange-traded fund (ETF) to trade on a stock exchange.

No. 2. Crypto unlikely to survive as investment if unregulated, SEC chairman says

As the debate continues over whether and how to regulate cryptocurrency, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Gary Gensler said crypto is clearly an investment asset class and should be regulated under securities laws. Crypto probably won’t survive if it remains outside the public policy framework, he added.

Gensler discussed the present “Wild West” situation surrounding cryptocurrency governance and said he believes some players in the space wish to avoid the authorities. Investors could be harmed in the meantime through the actions of good or bad players, he noted.

No. 1. Vast Bank to offer ‘crypto banking as a service’

In BAN‘s most-read cryptocurrency article of the year, Tulsa, Okla.-based Vast Bank shared how it built a crypto trading and custody service — crypto-banking-as-a-service — and offered it to other banks.

The $767 million Vast Bank claims to have made crypto “normal” with its own service, which pairs a checking account with a cryptocurrency account, and currently allows users to buy, sell and hold 12 different cryptocurrencies. Vast’s crypto banking service offers real-time trades with a fixed 1% fee. The bank also plans to offer a “crypto concierge” service for those looking to invest $100,000 and up.

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