Institutional investors aren’t giving up on crypto
Institutional investors are making a comeback in the crypto world: BlackRock, the world’s biggest asset manager, has in recent days partnered with crypto exchange Coinbase to give its clients easy access to crypto and announced plans to launch its first BTC investment product. European fund manager Brevan Howard has raised more than USD 1 bn to set up a crypto fund, UK asset managers Abrdn and Schroders have both bought stakes in crypto firms, and US broker Charles Schwab last week launched a crypto ETF.
Crypto goes legit? In response to the spate of institutional involvement in the crypto space, Bloomberg and the Financial Times were both out with pieces yesterday suggesting that BTC and its ilk are becoming accepted by mainstream investors as legitimate assets. “Large asset managers are starting to consider this a real investment,” said one research analyst at investment banking firm DA Davidson. “I think it’s a major data point in terms of traditional asset management companies embracing what really for years has been almost ridiculed.”
The recent moves come as crypto prices recover from the car-crash 1H, thanks to cooler-than-expected US inflation data and optimism over a major upgrade from Ether. The rally may also be being driven by the revival of institutional attention in the market, BlockFi analysts wrote in a note.
Meanwhile, the SPAC kill list keeps growing: One pandemic-era bubble market that hasn’t seen a revival in fortunes as of late is the SPAC industry. At least four planned SPAC mergers looking to go public have pulled out since last week, bringing the year’s tally of failed acquisitions to 42, Bloomberg data shows. A raft of concerns has weighed on the SPAC market over the past year including market volatility, a crowded field of sponsors chasing mergers, increasing regulatory scrutiny and weak performances of the SPACs that did go through.
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EGX30 |
9,915 |
-0.7% (YTD: -17.0%) |
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USD (CBE) |
Buy 19.09 |
Sell 19.20 |
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USD at CIB |
Buy 19.12 |
Sell 19.18 |
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Interest rates CBE |
11.25% deposit |
12.25% lending |
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Tadawul |
12,544 |
+0.2% (YTD: +11.2%) |
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ADX |
10,200 |
-0.5% (YTD: +20.2%) |
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DFM |
3,397 |
+0.1% (YTD: +6.3%) |
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S&P 500 |
4,297 |
+0.4% (YTD: -9.8%) |
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FTSE 100 |
7,509 |
+0.1% (YTD: +1.7%) |
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Euro Stoxx 50 |
3,790 |
+0.3% (YTD: -11.8%) |
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Brent crude |
USD 93.60 |
-4.6% |
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Natural gas (Nymex) |
USD 8.73 |
-0.5% |
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Gold |
USD 1,798.10 |
-1.0% |
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BTC |
USD 23,996 |
-1.0% (YTD: -47.9%) |
THE CLOSING BELL-
The EGX30 fell 0.7% at yesterday’s close on turnover of EGP 1.52 bn (47.7% above the 90-day average). Local investors were net buyers. The index is down 17.0% YTD.
In the green: Egyptian Kuwaiti Holding-EGP (+1.0%), GB Auto (+0.9%) and Ibnsina Pharma (+0.9%).
In the red: Housing and Development Bank (-3.1%), Ezz Steel (-3.0%) and Rameda (-3.0%).
Asian markets are mainly in the green this morning. Shares in Europe look likely to follow suit later today. Shares in the US don’t.