Consider Solana (SOL) due to its relative market strength and heavy speculation of a major Wall Street-related announcement this week. For those bullish on privacy coins, one analyst is dollar-cost averaging into Zcash (ZEC) with buy orders set around the $225, $200, and $175 levels. With its recent airdrop sell-off likely concluded, ASTER may see upward momentum supported by the project's ongoing token buyback program. Despite recent price volatility in Bitcoin (BTC), institutional demand remains strong as indicated by consistent inflows into BlackRock's IBIT ETF. Be cautious with Real World Asset (RWA) protocols, as large financial firms may opt to build their own competing tokenization platforms rather than use existing ones.

Bitcoin (BTC)

• The price was down 4% to $111,150 at the time of the podcast, having briefly dropped to $109,800. The hosts noted it was bouncing back above $112,000 during the show.
• Despite a market-wide crash, BlackRock's IBIT Bitcoin ETF saw $60 million in net inflows on Friday, the day of the crash. Overall Bitcoin ETFs saw $326 million in net outflows on Monday.
• A trader referred to as the "Trump insider whale" reportedly reopened a $340 million Bitcoin short position, which could be a bearish signal.
• The hosts discussed the conflict between Bitcoin's "digital gold" narrative and its recent performance. While Gold is hitting all-time highs, Bitcoin has been selling off on negative headlines.
• Despite the volatility and a $681 million liquidation event in the last 24 hours (mostly longs), the sentiment from the hosts is that this could be "healthy consolidation" and that the long-term bias is still bullish.

Takeaways

• Monitor ETF Flows: The continued inflows into BlackRock's IBIT ETF, even on major down days, are a strong bullish counter-signal to negative price action. This suggests institutional demand remains strong.
• Watch for Volatility: The large short position and massive liquidations indicate the market is highly leveraged and prone to sudden, sharp moves. The current price action is described as a "new range," and traders should be cautious of getting chopped up.
• The "Digital Gold" Narrative is Being Tested: Bitcoin is currently not acting as a safe-haven asset like Gold. Investors should question if the rotation from Gold into Bitcoin will occur as it has in the past, or if the current macro environment (e.g., China's trade war) is changing that dynamic.

Solana (SOL)

• SOL was showing significant strength, up 1% while most other major cryptocurrencies were down.
• There is heavy speculation around a major announcement this week, potentially a Solana ETF.
• The Solana Foundation fueled this speculation with tweets like "minds will be blown this week" and "what if we put Solana on Wall Street?".
• Sol Strategies, a treasury company, announced the purchase of 80,000 SOL from the Solana Foundation at a 15% discount.
• One of the hosts bought SOL in anticipation of this news.

Takeaways

• Potential Catalyst Ahead: The strong price action and social media chatter point to a significant, potentially price-moving announcement related to Wall Street integration or an ETF this week.
• Relative Strength: SOL's ability to stay green while the rest of the market is red is a strong indicator of buying interest and a powerful narrative driving its price.
• Trade the Rumor: The hosts suggest this is an opportunity to "get in here on the trade before it happens," implying the news is not yet fully priced in.

Gold

• Gold hit another all-time high of $4,180, and is up 55% on the year.
• The hosts identify a clear "flight to gold" as a safe-haven asset, driven by escalating trade war rhetoric between the US and China.
• There is an open question on whether the historical pattern of money rotating from Gold into Bitcoin will repeat itself. One host stated he would have to "reevaluate some of my core foundational belief in bitcoin if gold just grinds up all q4 and bitcoin goes down."

Takeaways

• Safe-Haven Asset: Gold is performing its traditional role as a store of value during times of geopolitical uncertainty, outperforming "digital gold" (Bitcoin) in the current environment.
• Leading Indicator?: Historically, a run-up in Gold has preceded a run-up in Bitcoin. Investors should watch to see if this correlation holds or if this time is different due to factors like China and India flocking to gold to move away from the US dollar.

Tokenization & Real World Assets (RWA)

• Larry Fink of BlackRock stated that tokenization is in its "early innings" and that he expects assets like real estate to be tokenized.
• However, the hosts interpret this as potentially bearish for existing RWA protocols like Ondo (ONDO) and even Ethereum (ETH).
• The theory is that large financial institutions like BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, and JP Morgan will build their own in-house tokenization solutions rather than paying to use existing crypto protocols.
• One host noted, "Why BlackRock would need to pay anyone to tokenize anything is slightly ridiculous... They'll just do it themselves."

Takeaways

• Bullish on the Theme, Bearish on Specific Protocols: The overall concept of tokenizing real-world assets is gaining massive institutional validation. However, this may not benefit the crypto-native RWA projects that investors currently favor.
• Watch for In-House Solutions: Investors in the RWA space should be aware of the risk that large TradFi players may become competitors rather than customers to existing protocols, potentially capturing most of the value themselves.

Aster (ASTER)

• ASTER had a volatile day due to a surprise airdrop. The team accidentally opened the claim early, causing a price drop from $160 to the $120s, before officially launching it later that day.
• The hosts view the sell-off from accidental claimants as a bullish sign, as those sellers are now out of the market.
• The team recently completed a $100 million token buyback and is expected to continue buybacks with protocol fees.
• One host used his trading fee rebate (part of the airdrop rewards) to buy more spot ASTER. The hosts remain bullish and are holding their positions.

Takeaways

• Airdrop Pressure May Be Over: With the airdrop now distributed, a major source of potential sell pressure is likely finished. The hosts see "clear skies" ahead for the token.
• Continued Buybacks: The protocol's commitment to using fees for token buybacks provides a consistent source of buying pressure that can support the price.

Zcash (ZEC)

• One of the hosts is actively buying ZEC on dips, viewing the current volatility as a buying opportunity.
• He shared his specific dollar-cost averaging (DCA) strategy, with buy orders set at different price levels.
• Buy Levels Mentioned: He bought at $225 and has further orders at $200 and $175. He previously had levels at $250 as well.

Takeaways

• DCA Strategy: For investors bullish on ZEC, the host provides a clear example of a "chasing it down" strategy, setting buy orders at pre-determined lower price points rather than buying into strength. This can be a way to manage risk and improve your average entry price during a downturn.

Other Mentions

• Ethereum (ETH): Down 5% to $3,950. The hosts see Larry Fink's comments about BlackRock building its own chain for tokenization as "bearish for ETH," as it was long assumed Ethereum would be the primary settlement layer for such activities.
• BNB: Down 9% to $1,180. Noted as being the "weakest" of the major Layer 1s recently, having hit an all-time high and then dipping significantly.
• Monad (MONAD): The airdrop claim portal is live to check eligibility, but no tokens are being distributed yet. The airdrop will be widespread (225,000 traders) but the hosts do not expect it to be a "generational wealth" event for most participants. The token is not expected to launch until at least November.
• JLP (Jupiter LP Token): Praised for its stability during the market crash, only dipping from $5.5 to $5.2. Described as a great asset to hold for those looking to reduce volatility while staying in the market.
• MetaPlan (MNAP): A large Bitcoin-related project that "dropped below one for the first time," which is seen as a negative sign for the "debt trade" narrative in crypto.