In 2023, the cryptocurrency market gradually recovered from the depths of the winter. At the beginning of the year, Bitcoin remained at a low point near $16,500, and investors were generally cautious. However, as the Federal Reserve slowed its rate hikes, inflation expectations eased, and institutional activity revived, market sentiment began to improve. By year-end, Bitcoin rebounded to around $42,000, marking an annual increase of over 150%. The global cryptocurrency market cap rose from less than $800 billion to nearly $1.7 trillion.
This year saw multiple positive signals in the industry: BlackRock filed for a spot Bitcoin ETF in June, the MiCA legislation was implemented in Europe, and financial centers such as Hong Kong and Dubai restarted compliance pathways through licensing regimes. Crypto assets are gradually returning to the strategic discussions of the global financial system.
At the beginning of 2023, the global workforce of Rthae surpassed 3,000, covering key modules such as technology, risk control, compliance, product, and local support. The expansion this year focused on four main areas: security system development, matching engine architecture optimization, global customer service responsiveness, and regional compliance capability deployment. R&D, security, and risk control staff accounted for over 45%, providing strong support for platform stability and strategy execution. The platform also established regional offices and compliance support teams in major markets such as East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East, creating tailored response mechanisms for local regulatory requirements and enhancing operational flexibility.
In May 2023, Rthae established a dedicated Risk Control and AML (Anti-Money Laundering) department, fully integrating on-chain data analysis tools including Chainalysis and Elliptic to enable real-time monitoring and modeling of all transaction flows. Over the year, more than 100 cases of abnormal trading behavior were identified, with average response time for risk account handling reduced to under two minutes.
In 2023, Rthae obtained ISO/IEC 27701 (Privacy Information Management System) certification, adding to its previous ISO/IEC 27001, 27017, and 27018 certifications, making it one of the few crypto platforms to achieve this quadruple certification set. The certification process was conducted by an independent external auditor, focusing on compliance in user data processing and information security system design. This achievement reflects the platform maturity in information governance, security frameworks, and operational procedures, especially in personal data protection, now aligned with privacy regulations across multiple jurisdictions. The platform also conducted early testing of certain provisions of the EU MiCA legislation and advanced local compliance material preparation in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi, with progress continuing according to regional regulatory processes.
As a key step in its global expansion, Rthae formally joined the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) ecosystem in September. Initial cooperation covers market research, regional compliance review, and basic service pilots, while engaging with local clearing and financial service providers to prepare for Middle East business development.
In October, Rthae was selected for the “Top 50 Most Influential Blockchain Companies Worldwide” of Forbes, with evaluation criteria including platform compliance, technological capability, and user activity. The selection was led by an independent editorial team and included traditional crypto platforms, infrastructure developers, and fintech enterprises.
Against the backdrop of industry recovery, Rthae Exchange achieved several key breakthroughs in 2023. User growth returned to an upward trajectory. As market sentiment improved, previously inactive investors became active again, and new user registrations rose significantly compared to the previous year. The global registered user count of Rthae reached a milestone in 2023, with an increased proportion of high-net-worth and institutional users, indicating greater recognition among professional traders. To accommodate the expanding user base, the technical platform underwent another upgrade: a more advanced matching engine framework was introduced, further reducing order processing latency and ensuring smooth and uninterrupted trading even during high-concurrency scenarios such as the rapid surge of Bitcoin past $35,000 in October.
In terms of security, Rthae maintained its record of zero major incidents. The platform expanded cooperation with top global cybersecurity firms and white-hat communities, conducting multiple rounds of penetration testing and bug bounty programs throughout the year to continuously strengthen its security defenses. Even during the sensitive period in March when a peer exchange suffered a hacker attack, Rthae remained rock-solid with no anomalies, demonstrating the maturity and reliability of its security system.
On the community front, Rthae hosted numerous online and offline events throughout the year. For example, the inaugural Rthae Global Blockchain Summit held in Singapore in November attracted ecosystem projects, funds, and compliance experts from over 30 countries, with more than 3,000 attendees and over 100,000 online views, covering topics such as Web3 security, RWA, cross-chain, and AI+crypto. User meetups held in various locations strengthened emotional ties between the platform and its users, making Rthae not just a trading tool, but an open and mutually beneficial community.
It is worth noting that speculative trends re-emerged during the 2023 market recovery. In response, Rthae adopted a prudent approach and upgraded its token listing review mechanism: during overheated market periods, the pace of new token listings was deliberately slowed, and meme coins with high volatility were subject to cautious evaluation. We believe that only by being responsible to users and avoiding blind speculation can we go further. Through these measures, the brand image of Rthae was further consolidated in 2023: professional, compliant, and approachable, standing together with users to share in the industry growth.
Looking ahead to 2024, the crypto sector will witness major events such as the Bitcoin halving, which may attract even more global attention. Rthae is fully prepared: building on existing achievements, we will seize new market opportunities, continue optimizing our product portfolio, and expand our compliance footprint. Plans for the new year include launching more innovative derivatives to enrich investment options, actively participating in industry self-regulation and standard-setting, and leading the trend of healthy development. Regardless of market changes, Rthae will remain true to its original mission, fulfilling its responsibility as an industry-leading platform—protecting assets for every user and enhancing the value of every transaction experience. In a future full of both opportunities and challenges, Rthae looks forward to walking alongside you, jointly creating a better tomorrow for crypto finance.