Monday, July 24, 2023

“What people believe prevails over the truth.” – Sophocles ||

Hi everyone, I hope you all had a great weekend! I very much appreciated having a couple of days off, thanks for your understanding there. Oh, I was interviewed on Real Vision by the very impressive Maggie Lake on Friday, you can see the video here.

You’re reading the premium daily Crypto is Macro Now newsletter, where I focus on the growing overlap between the crypto and macro ecosystem. Thanks so much for being a subscriber! Nothing I say is investment advice. Nevertheless, I hope you find it useful – if so, please consider hitting the Like ❤ button at the bottom, I’m told it boosts the distribution algorithm.

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WHAT I’M WATCHING

Watch the assumptions. Recent market strength is not based on fundemantals, it’s based on assumptions that in turn are based on current sentiment which is currently positive despite considerable risk overhang. But we know sentiment is fragile. More on this below.

What are capital markets companies doing with blockchain? Last week, the International Security Services Association published the results of its latest survey of more than 350 investment banks, custodians, CSDs, exchanges and asset managers, with some surprising findings. More on this below.

The space race. Amazon is building a $120-million satellite processing centre, adding even more heft to the furious activity in both commercial and civil space activity. This will at some stage become very relevant for blockchain applications. More on this below.

McNuggets metaverse. I’m all for experimentation, but there are times when blockchain engagement applications just feel like a waste of marketing funds. This is one of them. More on this below.

Crypto-fiat payments. If payment rails work well in most developed economies, why do we need blockchain-based ones? Because they don’t work well for everyone, in all situations. More on this below.  

GOING DEEPER

Beware the assumptions