Kalam Crypto #98: Countdown to the Bitcoin ETF
This week, all eyes are on bitcoin with the imminent approval of the spot bitcoin ETF. Trad-Fi institutions predicting $200,000 BTC by 2025, and the SEC is warning investors not to FOMO into Bitcoin. All that and more on this week’s Kalam Crypto.
"There is no second best” Michael Saylor
Ahlan wa sahlan, and welcome to the 98th edition of CoinMENA's weekly newsletter, Kalam Crypto. This week, all eyes are on bitcoin with the imminent approval of the spot bitcoin ETF. Trad-Fi institutions predicting $200,000 BTC by 2025, and the SEC is warning investors not to FOMO into Bitcoin. All that and more on this week’s Kalam Crypto.
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Global News 🌍
Bitcoin ETF Countdown: The much-anticipated spot bitcoin ETF is expected to be approved this Wednesday (tomorrow), and trading is to resume on Thursday or Friday. Multiple firms filed amended S-1 forms on Monday morning, notably reducing the management fees significantly. BlackRock reduced the management fee from 0.3% to 0.2% for the first 12 months, and ARK21 Shares slashed their management fee from 0.8% to 0.2%. ETF analysts say that the race to reduce fees is a sign that approval is imminent.
Three reasons why buying bitcoin is better than buying the bitcoin ETF: While the ETF will bring in institutional investors to Bitcoin, here are three reasons why buying bitcoin is better than buying the bitcoin ETF:
0️⃣ Zero Management Fees: Holding actual Bitcoin avoids the ongoing ETF management fees leading to higher returns over time.
⌚️ 24/7 Trading: ETFs only trade between 9:30 am and 4:30 pm on weekdays. Bitcoin trades 24/7, every day.
🔑 Full Control and Direct Ownership: Owning Bitcoin in self-custody means having complete control over the asset with no counterparty risk.
Trad-Fi Turning Bullish on Bitcoin: Several traditional financial institutions and media, who have historically either dismissed bitcoin or laughed it off are singing a different tune this week. The Financial Times, the leading European Financial News source had an article proclaiming their New Year resolution is to buy bitcoin. "There is no bigger investment story right now, I would be mad to miss out." In addition, Multinational bank Standard Chartered put out a report estimating $50b-$100b of inflows into spot bitcoin ETFs in 2024, potentially increasing the price of bitcoin to $200,000 by 2025.
Tweet Of The Week 🐥
Beware of Fear of Missing Out (FOMO). This tweet by the SEC is interesting:
Blog of The Week ✍️
Check out the latest blog from our CEO Talal Tabbaa titled: “You are not bullish enough on Bitcoin” where he explains why the current macroeconomic setup is poised to lift bitcoin to new all-time highs.
FacePalm of the Week 🤦♂️
Solana’s BONK drops 70%: As we warned a couple of weeks ago, BONK is a meme coin with a volatile price. After a meteoric 11,000% rise in 2023, Bonk crashed 70% from its December peak. In our newsletter, we cover trending news sometimes, but always aim to inform our users of the differences between serious projects like bitcoin, and meme coins. Trade safely, there are plenty of meme coins out there.
CoinMENA News 🗞️
🪂 SOL & XRP Giveaway
Place a trade before January 20th to qualify for a 500 XRP or 500 SOL prize! The more you trade, the more likely you are to win!
Quiz Corner ✅
Last week’s question: According to our latest CoinMENA University article Bitcoin: A system of rules without rulers, What distinguishes Bitcoin as a form of money from traditional financial systems? The correct answer is C) It is decentralized and free from manipulation by central authorities.
This week’s question: True or False, Bitcoin has been the best-performing asset class in the world in 10 of the last 13 years.
See the answer in next week’s newsletter. Or check out our new learning platform https://university.coinmena.com/