June 2, 2021 | Issue #171

MUST READS

PayPal Will Let Customers Withdraw Crypto

Last week at CoinDesk’s Consensus 2021 conference, Vice President of Global Business Development at PayPal, Jose Fernandez da Ponte, said that a withdrawal function is in the works...

At present, PayPal does not let users move cryptocurrency holdings off-platform, though it has let customers buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies since October 2020.

Circle's USDC Earns Record-Level Investment Round

USDC-creator Circle announced on Friday that it raised $440 million from a group of high-profile investors including Fidelity, Marshall Wace, and FTX. It is the largest crypto round in history exceeding Bitmain's $422 million 2018 Series B and BlockFi's recent $350 million Series D.

The funding round comes as USDC surges in popularity in the stablecoin sector. Administered in partnership with Coinbase and more recently FTX, the dollar-backed coin is seen as the safer cousin to the industry-leading Tether (USDT).

This year has been a good one so far for crypto companies raising funds. Of the 12 largest crypto investments in history, five have been in 2021.

Titan Crypto - The first actively managed crypto product available to all U.S. investors

Titan is excited to be launching Titan Crypto, the first actively managed crypto strategy available to all U.S. Investors (non accredited, accredited).

From Titan’s Chief Investment Officer -

“Despite the explosive returns to date, crypto is not an easy asset class to understand and invest in, which is why we believe Titan’s active management can add tremendous value.

Our Investment Team conducts deep fundamental and quantitative research to identify what we believe to be the highest quality cryptoassets, and actively manages a portfolio that we believe is positioned for outstanding long-term returns. This includes rebalancing and tactical trading during periods of excess volatility, aiming to enhance risk-adjusted returns."

Join the waitlist to gain access to Titan Crypto for no Titan fees when they launch ($0 commissions, 0% advisory fees) — only valid for those on the waitlist!

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DEEP DIVE

The NFT Market Bubble Has Popped; Here's Your Proof

On May 3, $102M worth of NFTs were sold in a single day — the market peak. By comparison, in the last week, only $19.4M worth of NFT sales were processed.

According to Protos, data suggests the NFT bubble lasted just four months and has now popped (see charts here).

Or... maybe not? If we had a satoshi for every time we've heard "XYZ crypto market has popped" we'd have a lot of satoshis.

What do you think? Reply to this email and let us know.

The State of Crypto M&A 2021

Crypto M&A activity points at an industry that is in a much better state than the 2017-18 cycle, according to a recent report from TokenData Research.

Here's what you need to know:

2020 saw a moderate (10%) increase in deal activity from 2019 and 2021 doesn't look to be slowing down
While deal activity in 2020 increased only 10% over 2019, total deal value doubled from $866M to $1.7B. This is largely due to Binance acquiring Coinmarketcap for $400M and FTX acquiring Blockfolio for $125M
2021 already is a landmark year for M&A due to the first real case of “Decentralized M&A”: the merger of NuCypher and Keep Network.

The Marketer's Argument For and Against Pricing Bitcoin in Sats

There’s quite a debate going on in the Bitcoin community about pricing bitcoin on exchanges in units called sats (Sats are to bitcoin are sorta what cents are to dollars; One Satoshi (sat) is equal to 0.00000001 BTC)

This debate has been going on for a while but has really taken off in this bull run, with smaller coins taking some of Bitcoin’s attention among newer investors.

Here are some reasons for and against considering sats as a viable pricing option...

The case for sats:

As if it were a single share of stock, many new investors (still!) don't realize they don't have to buy 1 whole bitcoin in order to gain exposure
It's hard to understand how much a fraction of a bitcoin really is (.057 BTC = ?)

The case against sats:

It will hurt bitcoin by "cheapening it" and destroying the 21 million scarcity theme
A typical transaction fee of $8 is 22,000 sats, which at first glance, looks like a massive cost

Does it really matter? Probably not and the market will decide. But it's probably worth being aware of nonetheless.

Market Dislocations in Crypto and How To Benefit From Them

This is a topic useful for active traders — market dislocations and what to look for when things get crazy.

When the Crash Comes, Will You Be Ready?

If the speculative frenzy we call the U.S. Stock Market these days is bothering you in any way... Or, if the fact that we’re in one of the most inflated bull markets in all of history scares you…

Then, there's a huge problem with your portfolio. It means you're not prepared to weather the looming market storm.

But at least someone has a plan of action. Here's a simple buy-and-hold strategy that will PROTECT your capital from financial destruction.

REGULATORY FRONT

Banning Bitcoin is a Bad Idea

There are numerous debates raging about whether Bitcoin is good, bad, or ugly. But the sweeping suggestion to outlaw Bitcoin raises three broader issues, regardless of one’s perspective on any given cryptocurrency.

Ransomware: Let's Blame Crypto?

After meat supplier JBS was hacked (following the Colonial pipeline hack), a White House spokesperson said that "expanding cryptocurrency analysis" to trace ransomware-tied transactions is part of a broader focus on such attacks.

Fingers crossed it's just an analysis for criminal behavior... but we won't get our hopes up.

The Humanitarian & Environmental Case For Bitcoin

In a way that has yet to be widely discussed, it seems possible that financing Bitcoin mining, as opposed to other forms of aid, could actually help lift communities and nations out of dependence on foreign powers and expand electrification.