$100B Bitcoin ETFs & $100K BTC Soon

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Good Morning.

As I’m writing this, BTC is inching closer to $100,000, but we’re not there yet. Solana, however, has already broken passed its all-time high, now in a price discovery mode. Meanwhile, memes are struggling a bit as attention gets fragmented to multiple different lower cap names.

In Today's Email:

• What Matters: Bitcoin ETFs Exceed $100B 📈 

• Founders Highlight: Tascha of INFINIT ♾️ 

• Deal Flow: Monkey Tilt’s $30M Series A 💰️ 

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WHAT MATTERS

US Spot Bitcoin ETFs Exceed $100B in Assets

State of play: The total NAV of 12 US spot Bitcoin ETFs reached $100B on Wednesday, marking a significant milestone as Bitcoin's price is nearing the $100K mark.

• The ETFs now account for 5.4% of Bitcoin's market capitalization.

• BlackRock’s IBIT leads with $45.4B in assets, followed by Grayscale’s GBTC at $20.6B.

• The ETFs saw $733M in inflows on Wednesday, after $837M the previous day, with IBIT alone receiving $626M.

• In contrast, US spot Ethereum ETFs recorded $30M in outflows on the same day with trading volumes shrinking to $338M.

• Despite this, the Bitcoin ETFs traded $5B on Wednesday, showcasing continued investor interest amid Bitcoin’s record-breaking rally.

Why it Matters: With $100B in assets, spot Bitcoin ETFs now represent 5.4% of Bitcoin’s market cap, highlighting growing adoption and the rising role of traditional financial products in crypto.

What’s next: As Bitcoin nears $100,000, ETF inflows are expected to grow, potentially driving market share higher. This trend could inspire similar products globally.

For builders and investors: Enjoy the ride. Bitcoin is the original asset that will propel the entire crypto industry forward, let’s all cheer for it.

BUILDER-INVESTOR HIGHLIGHT

Tascha Punyaneramitdee of INFINIT Labs

Intro: Tascha Punyaneramitdee is the Founder and CEO of INFINIT Labs, a DeFi Abstraction Layer that eliminates the immense friction involved in building and growing DeFi ecosystems.

• Tascha is also the Founder of Alpha Finance Labs and a Member of the BOD of the University of California, Berkeley (Thailand)

Previous background: Tascha has a diverse background in investment banking, venture capital, and product management. She gained early experience at Deloitte, EY, and Phatra Securities before transitioning to roles in private equity and venture capital.

• She served as an Investment Banking Analyst at Jefferies in San Francisco, London, and Bangkok, later moving into tech as a Product Manager at Tencent.

• Tascha studied Economics at the University of California, Berkeley, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree.

• Tascha briefly attended Harvard Business School's MBA program in 2019 but did not complete it.

The big idea: Tascha through INFINIT aims to streamline building and scaling DeFi ecosystems across blockchains, enabling rapid creation of applications like DEXs and money markets in minutes.

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INSIGHTS

A Kid Launches a $100M Meme Coin

State of play: A child launched a Solana-based memecoin via Pump.fun, selling all their tokens early during a livestream for a five-figure profit.

• The token later surged in value as the crypto community rallied behind it, driving its market cap past $100M.

• The creator’s initial holdings would now be worth over $2.5M, missing out on potential millions.

• The child subsequently launched two more memecoins, again selling for five figures.

• Meanwhile, another memecoin, CHILLGUY, quickly gained traction, reaching a $300M market cap.

• Despite renewed interest in memecoins following political events, retail enthusiasm remains low compared to previous cycles.

DEAL FLOWS

Monkey Tilt Raises $30M in Series A Led by Pantera Capital

Deal flows remain steady this week - we saw $150M+ in deals 💼 

Monkey Tilt, a crypto casino platform launched in March 2024, has raised $30M in a Series A funding round led by Pantera Capital, bringing its total capital raised to over $50M.

• Other investors include Polychain Capital, PokerGo, and Flutter.com co-founder Josh Hannah.

• The platform offers a blend of traditional casino experiences with social and lifestyle integrations, supporting payments in various cryptocurrencies.

• Monkey Tilt plans to launch a new crypto-gamified product in Q1 2025 to expand its offerings.

Deal flows in the past week:

• KOKODI, $1.1M Seed Round

• Barter, $3M Seed Round

• Shinami, $5.64M Seed Round

• Deblock, $16.77M Seed Round

• Rise, $6.3M Series A Round

• Noble, $15M Series A Round

• Monkey Tilt, $30M Series A

• Alluvial, $4.3M Strategic Round

• Truemarkets, $3.7M Token Pre-Sale

• Gabby World, $2M Unknown Round

• Exponent Finance, $2.1M Unknown Round

• LuluChain, $5M Unknown Round

• OpenLayer, $5M Unknown Round

• KGeN, $10M Unknown Round

• Bitfinity, $12M Unknown Round

• Canaan, $30M Unkwnon Round

QUICK BITES

• Solana hits its all-time high.

• XRP surges to hit a 3-year high.

• Bitwise joins the race for Solana ETF.

• Ethereum onchain volume hits $7.13B.

• SEC is 'engaging' Solana ETF applicants.

• FTX plans to start reimbursing users by March 2025.

• Charles Schwab seeks direct crypto investment offerings.

• Daily exchange trading volumes hit a 12-month high of $117B.

• Gary Gensler to step down as Trump signals pro-crypto agenda.

• MicroStrategy completes $3B debt offering to buy more bitcoin.

• Trump’s proposed crypto advisory council could establish a US BTC reserve.

NOTEWORTHY READS

• Celestia’s read on lazy bridging.

• Matti’s read on what’s happening in crypto.

• Rui’s read on 8 major stablecoin-related opportunities.

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Disclaimer: All the information presented in this publication and its affiliates is strictly for educational purposes only. It should not be construed or taken as financial, legal, investment, or any other form of advice.