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#Investment
50 Trillion won Evaporated in a Week!
Luna Coin plunges 99% from its high point
Updated: 2022.05.30
6 min read · Advanced
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50 Trillion won Evaporated in a Week!

Ringle is not a financial advisor and the below article does not constitute financial advice.

A historic crypto collapse

A 50 trillion won crypto collapse has catapulted [1] terra and luna into the limelight. Invented by South Korean engineer Do-Hyung Kwon, terraUSD stablecoin (also called UST) and luna cryptocurrency were once heralded as a hit—before crashing and being criticized as newfangled nonsense. In December 2021, terra's market capitalization was stated to be 23 trillion won, while luna's reached 39 trillion won.

However, a downward pressure on these coins caused an extreme sell-off, resulting in their market prices plummeting; in May 2022, terra plunged 57%, and luna plunged 99% from their highest points, respectively, wiping out a total value of 50 trillion won, which amounts to the market capitalization of Naver, a South Korean IT behemoth.

What is terra and luna?

Terra is a “stablecoin,” advertised to have limited volatility. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies pegged to traditional fiat currency [2], and in this case, terra is pegged to USD; this is where luna comes in. Terra’s value is pegged to USD by way of luna, a sort of sister token, creating an intricate see-saw mechanism.

*Peg means to drive a stake into the ground and to fix it firmly. In crypto, it means to fix (stabilize) the volatility of a cryptocurrency, in this case, by guaranteeing its exchange ratio against the (US) dollar.

Much hype was formed around terra as it was advertised that investors could secure up to 20 percent of its invested amount as interest. According to the scheme, the interest would be paid in luna, not in dollars. With this algorithm promising a stable price and a hefty return, terra once ranked as one of the world’s top 3 stablecoins.

Why terra and luna collapsed

Algorithmic collapse

Despite the claim that the coin will be pegged to the US dollar through a see-saw algorithm, the value of terra has ended up trending to less than a dollar. Because the stablecoin failed to live up to the name, people’s confidence on terra and luna gradually started to wane.

Terra bank run

The concept of a bank run is key to understanding terra’s collapse. When a large number of people lose confidence in a bank, believing that it may cease to function due to extreme political or economic instability, they rush to withdraw their deposits. This is what is called a bank run. If the total amount of cash that people want to withdraw exceeds the bank’s reserve fund for deposit, the bank becomes insolvent [3] and goes bankrupt.

As luna and terra began to plummet in value, anxiety ‌ spread quickly among investors. They were afraid that they could no longer get the promised interest or exchange their coins for dollars. This led to the crypto equivalent of the bank run, and the value of a luna coin plummeted to around $0.00002 within a few days. Bloomberg reported this dramatic crash saying that the coin was: “heading towards a death spiral."

What will happen to terra and luna?

The terra luna incident shocked the market; several coin exchanges around the world are in the process of unlisting both terra and luna coins. The entire cryptocurrency market contracted significantly, with Bitcoin prices plunging and new investment inflow drying out. Some media likened the incident to the Lehman Brothers crisis in 2008, predicting that the virtual currency bubble might burst in the wake of this crash. The incident also triggered financial supervisory institutions to use their magnifying glasses on other cryptocurrencies with equally high promised interest rates.

In a traditional bank with fiat currency, deposits are secured by the government and the central bank. In an American bank account, money is secured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or FDIC, which guarantees funding should a bank be unable to properly pay its customers. A major challenge for crypto and in particular stablecoins moving forward will be ensuring that deposits on volatile exchange markets can be truly backed by important assets similarly to other currencies.

Conventional wisdom says to buy low and sell high—and as long as the market exists, investors will act on this mantra. However, seeing another terra luna crash is not out of the realm of possibility, and the age-old wisdom might be perpetuating [4] the cycle of bubbles and crashes. That said, how the terra and luna crash will shape the future coin market still remains to be seen.

1주일만에 사라진 50조 원

링글은 재정 자문가가 아니며 아래 글은 재무 관련 조언을 포함하지 않고 있습니다.

역사에 남을 암호화폐 가격폭락 사건

50조 원에 달하는 암호화폐 가격폭락 사건이 발생하면서 ‘테라’와 ‘루나’가 대중의 관심을 한 몸에 받았습니다. 한국인 엔지니어 권도형 씨가 개발한 암호화폐인 테라 코인(UST)과 루나 코인은 한때 대히트작이 될 것이라 여겨졌습니다. 그 가격이 폭락하며 신종 사기라는 말을 듣기 전까지 말입니다. 2021년 12월, 테라의 시가총액은 23조 원, 루나의 시가총액은 39조 원에 다다랐습니다.

하지만 가격 하락세가 보이자 너도나도 보유하고 있던 코인을 팔아버리는 극단적인 투매(dumping) 현상이 벌어지며 시세가 급락했습니다. 2022년 5월, 테라와 루나는 최고점 대비 각각 57%와 99%까지 폭락하면서 한국 거대 IT기업인 네이버의 시가 총액과 맞먹는 50조 원이 증발하는 사태가 발생했습니다.

테라와 루나에 대한 간단한 설명

테라는 ‘스테이블 코인'으로, 변동성이 낮은 코인으로 알려져 있습니다. 스테이블 코인이란 전통적인 명목 화폐(번역가 주: 발행한 정부가 그 가치를 보장하는 화폐)에 ‘페깅'된 암호화폐로, 테라의 경우 달러에 연동되어 있습니다. 이 부분에서 루나가 등장합니다. 루나는 테라의 자매 코인 같은 것으로, 복잡한 시소 알고리즘을 통해 테라의 가치가 달러의 가치와 같아질 수 있도록 합니다.

*페깅(Pegging): Peg란 말뚝을 땅에 박아 단단히 고정하는 것을 의미합니다. 암호 화폐의 세계에서는 변동성을 고정(안정화)시키는 것을 의미하는데, 이 경우에는 미국 달러와의 교환 비율을 보장하는 것입니다.

테라 코인을 매수하면 투자 금액의 최대 20%를 이자로 담보 받을 수 있다는 소식에 테라를 둘러싼 투자열풍이 형성되기 시작했습니다. 이자는 달러가 아닌 루나로 지급되는 방식이었습니다. 안정적인 가격을 약속하는 알고리즘과 막대한 수익 보장으로 테라는 한때 세계 3위 스테이블 코인으로 선정되기도 했습니다.

테라와 루나의 가격이 폭락한 이유

알고리즘의 붕괴

시소 같은 알고리즘이 코인의 가치를 달러와 동일하게 유지할 것이라는 주장과 달리, 테라의 가치는 1달러 이하로 떨어지는 추세를 보였습니다. 이렇게 (변동성이 낮아야 하는) 스테이블 코인이 제 역할을 하지 못하다 보니, 사람들은 테라와 루나에 대한 신뢰를 잃어갔습니다.

테라 뱅크런 사태

‘뱅크런'은 테라 코인 가격폭락을 이해하는 데 매우 중요한 개념입니다. 많은 사람들이 극단적인 정치, 경제적인 불안정성 등을 이유로 시장에 대한 신뢰를 잃고 은행 기능이 멈춰버릴 것이라 믿게 되면, 그들은 너도나도 달려가 예금을 인출하려 합니다. 이를 뱅크런이라고 부릅니다. 만약 출금하려는 현금의 양이 은행의 지급준비금을 초과하면, 은행은 지급불능 상태가 되어 부도를 맞게 됩니다.

루나와 테라의 가치가 하락하기 시작하자, 투자자들 사이에서는 불안감이 퍼졌습니다. 많은 투자자들이 더 이상 약속된 이자를 받을 수 없거나, 그들의 코인을 달러로 바꿀 수 없다는 생각을 하게 된 것입니다. 이 지점이 암호화폐 계의 뱅크런으로 이어졌고, 루나 코인의 가치는 불과 며칠 만에 0.00002달러 근처까지 곤두박질쳤습니다. 블룸버그는 이 극적인 추락 사태를 ‘죽음의 소용돌이(death spiral)로 향하고 있다’는 극적인 표현을 쓰며 보도했습니다.

앞으로의 테라와 루나에는 무슨 일이?

테라와 루나 사건은 시장 전체에 충격을 주었습니다. 전 세계 여러 코인 거래소에서는 테라 코인과 루나 코인을 상장 폐지하는 과정을 진행 중입니다. 비트 코인 가격이 폭락하고 신규 투자 유입이 말라버리면서, 전체 암호 화폐 시장이 크게 위축된 상황입니다. 몇몇 언론에서는 이번 사건을 가상화폐 계의 2008년 리먼브라더스 위기에 빗댔고, 가상화폐 거품이 이 사건을 계기로 꺼질 수도 있다고 전망하기도 합니다. 또한 이 사건은 금융 감독 기관들이 높은 이율을 보장하는 다른 암호화폐들을 주목하게 하는 계기가 되었습니다.

명목 화폐를 사용하는 전통적인 은행에서, 예금은 정부와 중앙은행의 보호를 받습니다. 미국 은행 계좌의 예치금은 미연방예금보험공사(FDIC)가 보호하고 있어서, 은행이 고객에게 돈을 지급할 능력을 상실했을 때 대신 돈을 돌려줍니다. 스테이블 코인을 비롯한 암호화폐가 더 나아가기 위해서는, 다른 화폐들과 마찬가지로 변동성이 큰 시장에서 투자금이 제대로 보호받을 수 있게끔 하는 것이 주요 과제일 것입니다.

‘저렴할 때 사서 비쌀 때 파는 것'이 일반적인 지혜죠. 시장이 존재하는 한 투자자들은 이 만트라에 따라 행동할 것입니다. 하지만 또 다른 ‘테라 루나 사건’이 일어나지 않을 가능성은 없고, 그렇게 되면 이 오래된 지혜는 끝없이 거품과 몰락의 주기를 이어지게 할 수 있습니다. 이번 테라 루나 사건이 코인 시장에 어떤 영향을 줄지 앞으로 계속 지켜보아야 합니다.

Discussion Questions
Q1
In your own words, please briefly summarize the article.
In your own words, please briefly summarize the article.
Q2
Why did you choose this material for today’s lesson?
여러분은 왜 이 교재를 토론하기로 선택하셨나요?
Q3
Have you ever invested in virtual currency? Why or why not?
가상 화폐에 투자한 적이 있나요? 왜 그런가요 혹은 왜 그렇지 않나요?
Q4
What do you think caused the fall of Terra and Luna?
테라와 루나가 몰락한 원인은 무엇이라고 생각하시나요?
Q5
Do you think Terra and Luna can recover?
테라와 루나가 회복할 수 있다고 생각하시나요?
Q6
How might this event affect the entire cryptocurrency market?
이번 사건이 암호화폐 시장 전체에 어떤 영향을 미칠까요?
Q7
Do you believe we need legislation to regulate virtual currency? Why or why not?
가상화폐를 규제하기 위한 법안이 필요하다고 생각하시나요? 필요한 이유와 그렇지 않은 이유는 무엇인가요?
Q8
Would you consider investing in cryptocurrency at this time?
지금 가상화폐에 투자하는 것을 고려하실 건가요?
Q9
If you have a question or questions that you'd like to discuss during your class, please write them down.
궁금한 점이 있거나 수업 중에 얘기해 보고 싶은 질문이 있으면 적어주세요.
Expressions
catapult
to launch something using a tool, to achieve success in a short period of time
例句
1

The movie catapulted the young actress into the spotlight.

例句
2

The army used a catapult to launch a siege against their enemies.

fiat currency
a government issued security without a physical backing
例句
1

The country decided to leave a gold standard and instead embrace fiat.

例句
2

Many cryptocurrency enthusiasts believe that fiat currency is inherently unstable.

insolvent
to have run out of money, to no longer be able to operate
例句
1

The bank became insolvent after losing its major customers.

例句
2

The firm was once insolvent but has managed to work its way back to profitability.

perpetuate
to reinforce or encourage an existing effect
例句
1

The rude comment perpetuated a toxic office culture.

例句
2

In order to keep his property value high, the homeowner perpetuated rumors that there was buried gold on his lot.

본 교재는 당사 편집진이 제작하는 링글의 자산으로 저작권법에 의해 보호됩니다. 링글 플랫폼 외에서 자료를 활용하시는 경우 당사와 사전 협의가 필요합니다.

Ringle is not a financial advisor and the below article does not constitute financial advice.

A historic crypto collapse

A 50 trillion won crypto collapse has catapulted [1] terra and luna into the limelight. Invented by South Korean engineer Do-Hyung Kwon, terraUSD stablecoin (also called UST) and luna cryptocurrency were once heralded as a hit—before crashing and being criticized as newfangled nonsense. In December 2021, terra's market capitalization was stated to be 23 trillion won, while luna's reached 39 trillion won.

However, a downward pressure on these coins caused an extreme sell-off, resulting in their market prices plummeting; in May 2022, terra plunged 57%, and luna plunged 99% from their highest points, respectively, wiping out a total value of 50 trillion won, which amounts to the market capitalization of Naver, a South Korean IT behemoth.

What is terra and luna?

Terra is a “stablecoin,” advertised to have limited volatility. Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies pegged to traditional fiat currency [2], and in this case, terra is pegged to USD; this is where luna comes in. Terra’s value is pegged to USD by way of luna, a sort of sister token, creating an intricate see-saw mechanism.

*Peg means to drive a stake into the ground and to fix it firmly. In crypto, it means to fix (stabilize) the volatility of a cryptocurrency, in this case, by guaranteeing its exchange ratio against the (US) dollar.

Much hype was formed around terra as it was advertised that investors could secure up to 20 percent of its invested amount as interest. According to the scheme, the interest would be paid in luna, not in dollars. With this algorithm promising a stable price and a hefty return, terra once ranked as one of the world’s top 3 stablecoins.

Why terra and luna collapsed

Algorithmic collapse

Despite the claim that the coin will be pegged to the US dollar through a see-saw algorithm, the value of terra has ended up trending to less than a dollar. Because the stablecoin failed to live up to the name, people’s confidence on terra and luna gradually started to wane.

Terra bank run

The concept of a bank run is key to understanding terra’s collapse. When a large number of people lose confidence in a bank, believing that it may cease to function due to extreme political or economic instability, they rush to withdraw their deposits. This is what is called a bank run. If the total amount of cash that people want to withdraw exceeds the bank’s reserve fund for deposit, the bank becomes insolvent [3] and goes bankrupt.

As luna and terra began to plummet in value, anxiety ‌ spread quickly among investors. They were afraid that they could no longer get the promised interest or exchange their coins for dollars. This led to the crypto equivalent of the bank run, and the value of a luna coin plummeted to around $0.00002 within a few days. Bloomberg reported this dramatic crash saying that the coin was: “heading towards a death spiral."

What will happen to terra and luna?

The terra luna incident shocked the market; several coin exchanges around the world are in the process of unlisting both terra and luna coins. The entire cryptocurrency market contracted significantly, with Bitcoin prices plunging and new investment inflow drying out. Some media likened the incident to the Lehman Brothers crisis in 2008, predicting that the virtual currency bubble might burst in the wake of this crash. The incident also triggered financial supervisory institutions to use their magnifying glasses on other cryptocurrencies with equally high promised interest rates.

In a traditional bank with fiat currency, deposits are secured by the government and the central bank. In an American bank account, money is secured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or FDIC, which guarantees funding should a bank be unable to properly pay its customers. A major challenge for crypto and in particular stablecoins moving forward will be ensuring that deposits on volatile exchange markets can be truly backed by important assets similarly to other currencies.

Conventional wisdom says to buy low and sell high—and as long as the market exists, investors will act on this mantra. However, seeing another terra luna crash is not out of the realm of possibility, and the age-old wisdom might be perpetuating [4] the cycle of bubbles and crashes. That said, how the terra and luna crash will shape the future coin market still remains to be seen.

*本教材是专爲使用Ringle学习英文的学员设计。