Last year was an exciting year. 2017 was very big for Steemit, and for crypto in general.

It's crazy to think that another year has passed. We are in 2018 now, it's january, and time to reflect back on an incredible year 2017 - both on Steemit and in the crypto world in general.
As you guys know I am constantly traveling at the moment to work on @APPICS, which is why my New Year's post is a little late. But nonetheless, I would like to take this time to take a look back on last year, and step ahead into 2018!

2017 - Crypto Review

Let's remind ourselves: 1 year ago, in January, 2016, Bitcoin was trading around $1,000. One thousand!

Ethereum was at $8 , Liteoin at $4, Ripple at $0,006 and Bitcoin Cash wasn't even a thing yet.
It's crazy to imagine prices like these nowadays!
The general market cap of cryptocurrencies was valued at $16 billion - and now, 1 year ago, we are over $700 billion.

In August, the big Bitcoin split happened - resulting in Bitcoin Cash, a hardfork from the first Bitcoin Blockchain.

Now, we have even more splits like Bitcoin Gold and Bitcoin Diamond!

2017 was also heavily impacted by several asian countries joining (and dominating!) the crypto markets.

Especially Japan and South Korea who have accepted Bitcoin as legal payment method, have become big players in the crypto world - with millions of active users on the local exchanges.

2017 was also the year of the ICOs.

While ICOs have already been around in late 2016, the real hype started last year.
Countless billions of dollars were raised for different ICO projects - and today, I've even heard the news that ICOs have raised $1 Billion within 1 month for the first time. Crazy!

Although these statistics are very outdated (August 2017) they do show the incredible rise of cryptocurrencies within the last few years - and especially 2017!

2017 - Steemit Review

Steemit, which was only created in 2016, has had an even better 2017.
The platform has grown continuously, and user statistics have exploded since 2017 was such a big year for cryptocurrencies.
We've also seen many improvements and changes in the Steemit ecosystem, including the amazing platform DTube and a new Steemit Logo!

In Summer 2017, the concept of Smart Media Tokens was announced - obviously a huge step!

Smart Media Tokens give so many other interesting projects and ideas a platform to grow.
APPICS is part of the SMT revolution and I can't wait to see where things will go in 2018!

The Steemit year 2017 ended with SteemFest².

It was amazing to get together in Lisboa and meet Steemians from all over the world.
We had the best time getting to know each other, exploring Portugal, and simply having a great time.
For many Steemians, this was the 2nd time to get together - for me it was the first Steemfest, but definitely not the last.

See you guys in 2018 at Steemfest 3 ! Steem Steem Steem Steem... Steem!

I hope you all had a great New Year's Eve and a good start into 2018.

This year is going to be big - let's get it!

I'm excited for 2018, and to see what it will bring for Steemit and @APPICS.
I can't wait to see Smart Media Tokens come to life!
Our APPICS Pre Sale was successfully sold out in 26 minutes - and our main ICO is starting in a few weeks. I'm looking forward to seeing the app come to life!

I am also thrilled to see where cryptocurrencies will take us in 2018 - how prices will develop and which new technologies we are going to see.

I'm wishing all my followers and Steemit friends a happy, blessed & successful 2018!

STEEM ON!