16th August 2021 > > Institutional adoption.

tl;dr

It seems unfair that retail investors in the UK are denied the opportunity of a 15% discount on the price of BTC.

Market Snap

Market Wrap

The rapid fall of Kabul, precipitating a dramatic increase in the risk of terrorist attacks in the West, and reflecting very badly on the leadership credibility of all Western governments, has zero impact on financial markets.

Occasional Series – I am genuinely curious …

… as to why the many photos this week in the newspapers of Prince Charles in a kilt have yet to be described as cultural appropriation by Nicola Sturgeon, or indeed any of the other woke-masters found in the upper echelons of the SNP.

Ian Blackford, Member for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, has never kept his gob shut for this long before.

Curious Cryptos’ Commentary – Institutional ownership

On the 5th August 2021 the CCC indulged in some wild, and frankly rather hopeful, speculation that the large off-exchange transfers of BTC seen recently may be indicative of institutional involvement on a greater scale than seen before. I commented that the price impact this activity would have is obvious, but we would have to wait until Q3 results were reported before gaining further clarity.

We are currently in Q2 reporting season. Rather pleasingly we learn that four wealth management companies have been actively buying Grayscale’s BTC Trust during the last quarter. Two of these are newcomers to the crypto world, and two are adding to previous holdings.

The trust remains closed to new investments with the discount to spot currently around 5%. This is down from the 15% discount when BTC was trading in the low 30s. The secondary market remains alive and kicking, but off-limits to us mugs who live in the UK. Our regulator sees fit to deny us a liquid, secure and rapid entry to, and exit from, the crypto market.

These four wealth management companies have bought GBTC Trust at a low price for BTC with a potential 15%+ kicker from the discount. Nice work if you can get it.

Further BTC price rallies will almost certainly lead to the discount flipping to a premium, adding yet more oomph to the upward price trajectory.

Curious Cryptos’ Commentary – Advance warning

For personal reasons, there will be no CCC tomorrow. Please do not hold it against me, really, I am not being lax.