Hello 2022! 2021 was action-packed and went by in the blink of an eye. As we start the new year, predictions are aplenty for what is in store for us all. At Etherscan our focus remains on listening and building, whether it be the year of the bull, the bear, the ape or the shiba.

We ended 2021 with support for Natspec and a handy Chart button that helps users quickly find DEX trading pairs for any token.

It was a busy year - we kick off our first Highlight article of 2022 with a recap of 21 features released in 2021. Our first quiz of 2022 revisits the basics - covering the role of block explorers. Answer it and stand to win $10 in ETH.

21 Etherscan Features in 2021

A recap of our top features released in 2021. Team Etherscan had a productive year, releasing updates and features across the board including:

• More block explorers
• Support of network standards
• Newer and better features
• A more accessible UI

FEATURE

Natspec Support

Read & Write Contract tabs now display descriptions included by the contract creator.

FEATURE

Chart Button in ERC-20 Token Page

Quick access to a token's USD price chart, latest on-chain trades and more.

Announcing the Kintsugi Merge Testnet

The Merge's public testnet is now live. Head to kintsugi.themerge.dev if you'd like to stress-test it. It's already had its first breaking issue!

blog.ethereum.org

First Impressions of Web3

The founder of messaging app Signal shared his criticism of Web3. While his arguments have merit, the reader should consider Vitalik's response.

moxie.org

Rari Capital & Fei Protocol Multi-Billion Dollar Merger

The merger of two DAOs with a combined $2 billion in TVL marked a historic moment, right after another massive merger in Gnosis & xDAI.

coindesk.com

OpenDAO's SOS Token Airdrop for OpenSea Users

An airdrop to OpenSea users by an unaffiliated DAO garnered 200,000 claimers and a $200 million market cap within days, inspiring similar plans.

decrypt.co

Announcing... Devconnect!

Devcon 6 has finally been confirmed for Q4 2022 in Bogota. In April, a week-long gathering called Devconnect will be held in Amsterdam.

blog.ethereum.org

w3bs3c.com: Searchable Repo of Web3 Security Resources

A searchable, curated repository of Web3 security resources aggregated from a variety of sources to facilitate smart contract auditing.

mirror.xyz

ZKDocs: Documentation on ZK-Proof Systems

ZKDocs provides comprehensive, detailed, and interactive documentation on zero-knowledge proof systems and related primitives.

zkdocs.com

Stakely.io's Multicoin Faucet

An even better faucet than the one shared last month. Supporting 19 mainnet chains, it funds you enough for 2 swaps on each respective chain.

stakely.io/faucet

Bridgooooooors: A Spreadsheet of Best Bridging Routes

Community member @XLBao_ compiled a sheet of the bridging routes with lowest fees or slippage (without requiring exchanges) between networks.

twitter.com/xlbao_

Transaction: 1 ETH Bet on 2 Flippenings

A public bet that ETH would flippen BTC (exceed in market cap) by the end of 2021 failed, leading to a payout. Should there be a repeat bet for 2022?

Address: ECDSA Monster

An MEV monster revealed itself when a Flashbots researcher deliberately made an obscure cryptographic mistake while creating a transaction.

Questions received last month:

What exactly does a block explorer do?
A cross between a blockchain search engine and a read-only bank account, but definitely not an entity that manages your wallet or exchange accounts! We expand more in a Twitter thread here.

A token is being bulk sent by well-known addresses. Is it safe to ape?
A common scam tactic is to make a token appear to be mass distributed from a well-known address. To check, look at the From address in the transaction details. If it is not the well-known address, it is likely a mislead.

Confused with some terms in this newsletter?
Remember to check the Etherscan glossary!

Looking for a job in crypto? Check out these roles below:

Web3 Engineer (EVM) at HJAELP | Remote

Marketing Lead at Torus | Remote

Product Manager at Spacemesh | Remote

Founding CEO for NFT & DeFi Startup at PL Management | Remote

Frontend / Backend Engineer at NFT.com | Remote

POLL

Block Explorers

Back to basics on block explorers! Take the quiz to stand a chance to win $10 in ETH.