BitDigest August 21 · Issue #726

• Bitcoin holds firm as the RE₿EL coins continue to show strong YTD performance
• European Commission finalizing crypto legislation
• Washington officials see growing acceptance of crypto and call for government officials to recognize the future

The Right Approach to Crypto Investing

I have been thinking about how to characterize crypto investing from a fundamental approach. To most people, I assume buying digital currencies is a growth story based on the expected appreciation of the different currencies and tokens, but to a few investors, the opportunity to use a value investment strategy is also achievable. Long gone are the days of $3,500 pricing discrepancies across global exchanges for bitcoin, but why are we still paying spot when you can actually buy bitcoin at a discounted rate. This is a discussion I had with my friend, Brian Estes who runs Off The Chain Capital, a fund investing in digital currencies by searching for undervalued investment opportunities. This just reverts back to hard work and fundamental bottoms-up analysis. It’s also a good reminder when I look at pricing every morning. I know I will still focus on the price of the leading digital assets and whether they will break from their recent resistance levels, but why am I worried about bitcoin at $11,800 when I can still buy it for significantly less today.

Weekend Reading (and Viewing)

• Law firm Davis Polk issued a client memorandum on the Fed and Central Bank Digital Currencies. The document highlights Lael Brainard’s recent speech and the efforts taken by the Fed to begin research into developing a digital currency. It also identifies 20 central banks around the world that have announced similar test cases.
• There has been a lot of recent discussion about competition between Binance and Coinbase so Brave New Coin published a comparison between the two exchanges
• A video has been released showing the use of China’s DCEP (digital currency electronic payment). In the video a woman takes 50 RMB from her bank card and converts it into digital yuan.
•  Singaporean multinational banking and financial services firm DBS has issued a report discussing the latest developments in the world of digital currencies on a public and private stage reviewing developments in payment and settlements.

The Headlines

Market Data

Exchange, Custody and Product News