Today's edition is brought to you by Polymarket - the largest prediction market, providing real-time election forecasts as events unfold. 

See latest forecast!

GM. This is Milk Road, your friend in crypto.

(Like, real friend – the kind that will pick you up from the airport, help you move, and quietly tell you when you’ve got something stuck in your teeth).

Here’s what we got for you today:

THE TOP 5 BETA PLAYS ON SOLANA 🥇

Bullish on Solana?

Here’s how to get exposure to everything happening within its ecosystem:

Buy $SOL (seriously, it’s that simple).

That said…

If you’re the type of person that likes to get a little deeper into the weeds when it comes to investing – we got you.

Here’re the top 5 Solana tokens we’re keeping our eye on, and why:

1/ Jito ($JTO)

Sure, Jito has a killer team that has proven its ability to execute, and owns roughly 90% of the liquid staking market on Solana (a market which still has tons of room to grow)... 

But if you want a clear cut indicator of Jito’s edge – look no further than its ability to generate revenue:

Around this time last year, JITO was pulling in ~$700-$1400 per week…

Now, they’re pulling in up to $1.44M each week!

Nuff. Said.

2/ Jupiter ($JUP)

If you’ve used a decentralized exchange (DEX) to trade on Solana, you’ve probably accessed it through Jupiter (the DEX aggregator).

Swapping tokens? Jupiter. Taking out leverage? Jupiter. Trading memecoins? Jupiter.

As a result, Jupiter’s users and revenues continue to grow.

3/ Raydium ($RAY) 

You know which DEX Jupiter uses to complete a butt-load of its swaps? Raydium. In fact, over 60% of all DEX trading volume right now is happening on Raydium.

And with those trades, comes fees. Fees that correlate closely with Raydium’s token price.

Bullish on the memecoin narrative this cycle, but don’t have the stomach for that kind of risk? 

You can buy $RAY to get exposure to a good chunk of the memecoin trading volume taking place on Solana.

4/ Hivemapper ($HONEY)

Hivemapper pays people to map areas → sells that map data to mapping companies (think: Google Maps, Apple Maps, etc.).

The more customers Hivemapper gets → the more $HONEY tokens are burnt.

(Increased demand + lowered supply = number go up)

…that’s the theory at least. Right now, $HONEY’s price is in the toilet. 👇

So why’re we bullish? Here’s our left curve thesis…

$HONEY has solid fundamentals, but its price has only really gone down – while everything else within the Solana ecosystem seems to be pumping.

As the list of “fundamentally sound tokens that still have solid upside” starts to dwindle, we wouldn’t be surprised if investors eventually turn to $HONEY and pump its price.

5/ Memecoins (?)

Love ‘em or hate ‘em – memecoins are a major narrative of this bullrun.

If you want to reduce the guesswork, and are at peace with the fact that you’re not going to 100x your money by buying them – look to the established memecoins that have been able to sustain momentum and cultural relevance for a year or so.

$WIF is a great example. It has not only sustained its relevance, but has kind of turned into a leveraged bet on Solana.

E.g. $SOL is up 3.2% over the past day, while $WIF is up 15.7% (translation: when $SOL runs, $WIF sprints).

But remember, this is true in both directions. So please, for the love of god – have an exit plan!

Alright, that’s everything. That’s the list.

…you’re still here?

What – you want a deeper dive on the Solana ecosystem and the tokens driving its growth?

Fine.

Click below to get more insights from Kyle Reidhead, head of research at Milk Road, on today’s episode of The Milk Road Show. 👇

YouTube | Spotify | Apple Podcasts

WE’VE BEEN CALCULATING ALL-TIME HIGHS INCORRECTLY 📉

You know how boomers hate admitting having any advantages?

For example:

If you were to tell your dad he had an easier time buying a house when he was your age, he’d probably do some mental gymnastics and hit you with:

“Well, once you take into account the difference in interest rates (~18% in the 80’s vs. ~6% today) – the price evens out once you account for the cost of the home, plus its repayments.”

Yeah, well, what we’re about to say is going to have the same kind of energy…

Let’s say you bought Bitcoin’s top in 2021, at ~$69k.

(That sucks!).

But it’s ok – ‘cause you sold the 2024 top at ~$73k, making a small, but respectable 5.79% return…

(Nice!).

Puts boomer hat on 

Hold that thought, champ. Turns out we’ve all been calculating all-time highs incorrectly… 

Here’s what that means 👆

Once you take inflation into account, Bitcoin won’t regain its 2021-equivalent all-time high until it hits $80,288.48 in today’s dollars.

The takeaway: your dad has a point, and inflation’s a b*tch.

MILK ROAD PRO PORTFOLIO UPDATES 📊

It’s the most wonderful time of the year!

No, not Christmas. Not Halloween.

Q4 — the time of year when you can look at your portfolio and be met (mostly) with a sea of green.

(It’s beautiful 🥲).

Like clock-work, every Tuesday, we’re here to share our updated list of investments from the Milk Road PRO Portfolio. 

Disclosure: We are not a day trading portfolio so don’t expect a high volume of trades. Read our “how to build a crypto portfolio in 2024” report to learn more about our portfolio strategy.

Portfolio performance 📈 

The Milk Road PRO Portfolio saw a modest increase over the past 7 days. Our portfolio value is at $98.1K, up 3.28% since last week.

The U.S. election is just around the corner, and the odds of a more crypto-friendly candidate—Trump—are at an all-time high. Markets seem to be responding, with Bitcoin already climbing past $70k and approaching its all-time highs. 

If this momentum continues, it’s likely that the rest of the crypto market will follow suit.

Portfolio changes 👀

BITE-SIZED COOKIES FOR THE ROAD 🍪

Unlock Prime offers exclusive perks like $ETH rewards, premium event management tools for side events, and more. It's designed to enhance onchain creative projects with advanced features and partner discounts, all built on Unlock Protocol by the team at Unlock Labs.*

Truth Terminal’s founder had their Twitter (X) account hacked, which was then used to promote a scam memecoin. The hackers profited over $600,000 from the exploit.

U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $479 million in net inflows, marking the highest inflows in the past two weeks. Wowza, these ETF inflows keep on coming.

The Bhutan government may introduce selling pressure on Bitcoin by moving $66 million worth to Binance. Despite this, they retain another $886 million of Bitcoin, primarily accumulated through extensive mining operations.

The Gemini Credit Card instantly rewards you in crypto with each purchase, creating a hands-off DCA strategy. When compared with regular cashback rewards, simulated Gemini users earned 84% more with $BTC rewards, since they had immediate exposure to bitcoin’s long-term potential appreciation.*

*this is sponsored content

MILKY MEMES 🤣

RATE TODAY’S EDITION

ROADIE REVIEW OF THE DAY 🥛

VITALIK PIC OF THE DAY

DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.