Crypto Research

RECAP OF PRICE PERFORMANCE First, let’s quickly recap what we observed the past week for BTC and ETH. Some observations: 1. Below (Exhibit 1) is the 7-day chart featuring the price action of BTC and ETH. Bitcoin surpassed the $48,000 - level, Ethereum traded above $3,300, and the total crypto market cap reached $2.0 trillion for the first time since the industry drawdown in May. 2. Last week we highlighted...

CRYPTO LOSES BATTLE IN DC BUT IS WELL-POSITIONED FOR THE WAR Last week, we covered the infrastructure bill under deliberation in the Senate due to a crypto provision that was snuck into the bill at the eleventh hour. To recap: the bill had cited a $28.0 billion "pay-for" sourced from tax revenue paid by crypto brokers. This was not a novel concept for the crypto industry, as reputable centralized brokers...

CRYPTO TAKES ON CAPITOL HILL Last week, news outlets began reporting on a curious provision tucked away in the 2,700-page, $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill compiled by the Senate. The bill, which is now subject to the Senate amendment process, featured a last-minute, crypto-specific addition that detailed $28 billion of incremental tax revenue resulting from enhanced crypto tax reporting rules. The focal point of the controversial provision was its definition...

As a personal note, this will be my last crypto weekly with Fundstrat. It’s been great working with Tom and team, and I’ve learned a lot from Fundstrat over the past nearly two years while here. For those wondering, I’m transitioning to Grayscale where I’ll join the team as the Head of Research. For readers that would like to stay connected, feel free to follow me on Twitter (@David_Grid) or...

BITCOIN RALLIES OFF ~$30K SUPPORT AGAIN BUT CRYPTO REMAINS IN A CHOPPY MARKET Crypto is still in a doldrums of summer as many investors have taken a sell in May and go away approach. We think these combined factors below are partially why crypto remains in a choppy market environment for now: -Institutional investors taking money off table early in year locking in performance fees -Many institutional investors who were...

This report recaps the most impactful headlines from the first half of 2021. We then review year-to-date digital asset performance and analyze on-chain data to get a sense of where we are in the crypto market cycle. BATTLE OF THE HEADLINES _Bitcoin’s Environmental Impact_ In the first half of 2021 crypto reentered the mainstream, frequently intersecting with the zeitgeist’s most controversial characters like Elon Musk as well as new ones...

In our first crypto weekly of 2H 2021, we dive into the following:* Crypto Had Strong 1H vs. Global Assets Despite VolatilityBitcoin Still Consolidating After Sell In May & Go Away CorrectionBitcoin Trading Volume Down As Market Enters Summer DoldrumsEthereum Resuming Outperformance vs. Bitcoin After Recent PauseSmaller Cap Crypto Assets Underperforming vs. Bitcoin But Starting To TurnCrypto Mining Stocks Peaked vs. Bitcoin During Feb & Bottomed Mid-MayInvestors Selling At A...

In this Crypto Weekly, instead of discussing our usual views on the market, we’re going to talk about something a little different – our thought on stablecoins, borrowing & lending platforms, earing yield, leverage, risks, and regulation. We think it’s worth discussing these areas to expand on our notes from last Friday and Monday on leverage in the crypto lending space and given the House Financial Services Committee holds a...

After bottoming on bad news a week ago, Bitcoin and crypto had been rallying heading into yesterday’s Fed meeting, but crypto markets fell slightly alongside other major asset classes following the Fed policy statement, and have remained roughly flat this morning. Source: Fundstrat, Bloomberg The Federal Reserve spooked some market participants with its commentary around inflation expectations, tapering and rising interest rates. Source: Fundstrat, CNBC, New York Times Inflation has...

Bitcoin and crypto markets have been hit with a wave of bad news headlines over the past couple months and prices have taken a sharp hit in response. China’s regulatory crypto crackdowns have been some of the largest contributors to the market action. This morning, news of further crackdowns started circulating after the major Chinese internet service providers Baidu and Weibo started censoring searches for the three largest Asian crypto...

Crypto markets have remained relatively quiet (although Elon Musk hasn’t) and stable this week. Last week, we wrote several notes about why we thought the market may have found a bottom due to the massive deleveraging, that a falling BTC VIX is indicating peak fear fading, and how news getting “less bad” is good for the market. We didn’t expect the weekend sell-off that many were fearful of, and once...