Crypto Research

WEATHERING THE STORM Heading into Q1, the key risks identified were: (1) A potential QRA supply shock, as long-term interest rates could surge due to a possible shift in bond issuance towards longer-duration securities, (2) the repricing of interest rate cuts, as the Federal Reserve downplayed expectations regarding the timing and frequency of such cuts, and (3) concerns regarding the dynamics between the expiration of the Reverse Repurchase Agreement (RRP)...

QRA IN LINE WITH MARKET EXPECTATIONS _THE RESULTS_ The Treasury’s quarterly refunding announcement (QRA) was the first of two major macro events to transpire on Wednesday. Leading up to this, on Monday, there was an indication that the net borrowing for the current quarter would be $760 billion, which is $55 billion lower than the initial $815 billion estimate, and the total funding needs for Q2 would be just over...

THE GBTC PROBLEM We have been watching spot BTC ETF flows closely since their launch two weeks ago, and while overall net flows remain decidedly positive, the market seems hung up on GBTC outflows. As a reminder, the outflows we care the most about are those from entities that are not rotating into other spot BTC ETFs. This is comprised of some speculative capital that played the run-up into ETF...

OUTLOOK OVERVIEW Thank you to everyone who joined our annual outlook call this week. We were fortunate to have a lot of success last year in helping our clients and subscribers navigate the crypto market and we look forward to leveling up again this year. For those who missed the outlook, the replay is now available, along with the deck, but a quick summary of our outlook is below.Big Takeaway:...

INITIAL THOUGHTS ON ETF LAUNCHES The past week has marked a pivotal moment in the evolution of the crypto industry, a testament to the remarkable journey of an asset class that emerged from a distrubuted community of open source software developers just 15 years ago. This was evidenced by the successful launch of all 11 eligible Bitcoin ETFs on Thursday morning. Assessing the success of an ETF launch is a...

QUICK RECAP First and foremost, we would like to extend a Happy New Year to all our clients and subscribers. The past year was indeed eventful, marked by banking crises, significant court victories, and BlackRock's foray into the sector – truly a remarkable journey. Our Core Strategy, though it lagged behind the King, performed well. This was particularly supported by the strong performance of our altcoin basket in Q4. We...

LET IT FLOW As we approach the holiday weekend and the final week of the year, which is typically marked by lower liquidity due to many stepping away from their desks, one might expect to see a dialing back of risk and a slowdown in trading volumes. However, contrary to these expectations, most data suggest animal spirits seem poised for a rally through the New Year. CME futures data, the...

OI RINSE TO START THE WEEK This week the crypto market started off with a bang, marked by a liquidations-driven downturn on Sunday evening. The perpetual futures market witnessed a low liquidity liquidation cascade that wiped out approximately $2.7 billion in open interest across all cryptoassets, according to data from CoinGlass. At the time, we perceived this event as a normal cleansing of overleveraged weekend positions and viewed any immediate...

CHALLENGING THE ACCUSATIONS OF FROTH Amidst the recent sharp rally in the crypto market, investors who weathered the prolonged bear market are understandably cautious, keeping a close watch for any signs of excess. Despite the violence in the most recent rally, we believe it's too early to declare the market as overbought. Our assessment is based on several factors:Perpetual futures data indicates a relatively modest level of long speculation, especially...

RATES DUE FOR A BOUNCE (MAYBE) As the crypto market continues to exhibit strength, and despite eradicating one of the market’s biggest unknowns in Binance just last week, it remains essential to be aware of near-term risks. Recently, the bond market has experienced a significant rally, and there's been a notable decline in the DXY. Combined with nominal stimulus in Asia, these factors have contributed to a substantial increase in...

BINANCE RISK MITIGATED One of the most significant idiosyncratic risks in the crypto market has been the uncertainty surrounding Binance and potential action from the Justice Department against the world's leading exchange. Earlier this year, we anticipated that any disciplinary actions would likely involve criminal charges against Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and a fine against the exchange. From our September note: _Source: Fundstrat_ Today, these views were realized. CZ appeared in...