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Block 1: Key news
Goldman Sachs: Millions in bitcoins
Financial results for Q2 2024 show that US giant Goldman Sachs invested $420 million in Bitcoin Spot ETFs.
Here are the details of its holdings:
- 11,773 units of the WisdomTree Bitcoin Fund (BTCW), worth $750,000 ;
- 6,991,248 units in BlackRock's Ishares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), worth $240 million;
- 940,443 units of the Invesco Galaxy Bitcoin ETF (BTCO), valued at $56 million;
- 660,183 units of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), valued at $35 million;
- 1,516,302 units of the Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC), valued at $79.5 million;
- 253,961 units of the Bitwise Bitcoin ETF (BITB), valued at over $8 million;
- 5,000 units of the ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB), valued at $300,000.
MicroStrategy and Bitcoin
MicroStrategy has made a profit of $5.38 billion thanks to its bitcoin accumulation strategy, including the acquisition of nearly 226,500 BTC since 2020. The value of its shares, which is highly correlated with fluctuations in the BTC price, increased tenfold between 2020 and 2024, positioning the company as one of the best performers in the S&P 500. Despite these gains, MicroStrategy continues to accumulate bitcoins, with a recent purchase of 169 BTC for $11.4 million.
Partnership between Strike and Bitstamp
Strike has announced a partnership with exchange platform Bitstamp to facilitate the purchase of cryptocurrencies in Europe. In particular, this partnership enables Strike to integrate Bitstamp's services, offering smoother transactions between cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies, while expanding Bitstamp's customer base among banks and fintechs. Bitstamp, which has a fairly good reputation for regulatory compliance, offers Strike an advantage in Europe, where MiCA regulation is developing. This partnership also strengthens Robinhood's position in Europe, following its announcement of the acquisition of Bitstamp for $200 million.
Bitcoin Made in USA
Marathon Digital has decided to mark all the Bitcoin blocks it mines with the phrase "Made in USA", in response to Donald Trump's wish that all mined Bitcoins be produced in the USA. Marathon CEO Fred Thiel sees this move as a patriotic gesture, pointing out that his company is the only major one to affix this type of marking. This nod to Trump underscores his recent support for Bitcoin, although it is technically impossible to mine all remaining BTC in the U.S. due to the decentralized nature of the cryptocurrency and the fact that the U.S. accounts for "only" 37% of the world's hashrate (computing power).
Block 2: Crypto Analysis of the week
Crypto traders are engaging in speculation ahead of the upcoming US elections, in particular seeking to anticipate the event's potential impact on the digital asset industry. How? By locking up millions of dollars in bitcoin options (BTC) specifically linked to this event. These so-called "election expiration" options, which will settle four days after the November 4 elections, began trading on the Deribit platform a month ago. To date, the total amount of active options contracts stands at $345.83 million, according to data provider Amberdata.
Call options, which offer unlimited potential gains against limited losses, account for 67% of total open interest. The remainder - put options, designed to protect against price declines - correspond to a put-call ratio of less than 0.50. In other words, there are twice as many call options as put options open, reflecting optimism about the fallout from the election.
"These dedicated election contracts allow investors to bet on the potential impact of the elections on crypto markets in a targeted way. The current put-call ratio of 0.50 shows bullish sentiment, with twice as many calls traded as puts," explained algorithmic trading firm Wintermute.
The call option with a strike price of $80,000 is the most popular, with open interest of over $39 million. Overall, open interest is concentrated mainly on calls with strike prices ranging from $70,000 to $140,000. This shows that traders are betting on new record highs around the election.
A further $39 million is locked into the $45,000 put option.
More generally, at the moment, the concentration of open interest in call options around the 80K and 100K shows that market participants are preparing for a possible rise in bitcoin, while the presence of puts at $45,000 shows some hedging against downside risks.
It will be interesting to observe new trends in these products in September.
Block 3: Gainers & Losers
Crypto chart (Click to enlarge)
Block 4: This week's readings
Cash-rich Tether has had Microsoft, Google and Amazon in its sights (Wired)
How hackers extracted the "keys to the kingdom" to clone HID keycards (Wired)
Bitcoin's decline (Bitcoin Magazine)
