Today’s edition is brought to you by Walrus - the solution to crypto’s data problem.
GM. This is Milk Road, your crypto-obsessed friend that keeps you cool under pressure.
Here’s what we got for you today:
- ✍️ Inflation came in hot
- ✍️ There’s a new CFTC chair in town
- 🎙️ The Milk Road Show: Crypto Investors Are Getting Wrecked: Fix Your Portfolio Now w/ Kyle Reidhead
- 🍪 Hong Kong’s visa program now accepts $BTC and $ETH as proof of wealth
Prices as of 2:00 PM ET. Click here for our Fear & Greed Index.
INFLATION CAME IN HOT – HERE’S WHAT IT MEANS FOR YOUR PORTFOLIO 🥵
You know that “how can you be so calm in a moment like this??” feeling you get when your pilot comes over the intercom during insane turbulence to tell you not to worry?
(I’m white knuckling my Gin & Tonic, texting my goodbyes to my family – and you’re telling me we’re experiencing some “light bumps” in a smooth monotone??)
Well, lemme put my pilot’s cap on and infuriate you in a similar fashion – ’cause you might be freaking out right now…
1/ Inflation just came in hotter than expected
The Federal Reserve’s target headline inflation rate is 2% (we’re currently plateauing at 3%).
The longer it takes us to get there, the longer they’ll keep interest rates high (keeping loan/credit repayments high, and giving people/businesses less disposable income to spend/invest).
2/ 2025 rate cut expectations just went from two, to one…
As it stands now, the market expects one rate cut in October, then a pause until December 2026 (!).
3/ This sticky inflation initially spooked investors…
Thankfully, prices rebounded relatively quickly – and as of this writing, $BTC’s price is hovering around $97k (which is roughly where it was yesterday morning).
Now, here’s the part where we tell you that this is only “light turbulence” and to “please refrain from pulling the life jackets out from under your seat.”
(“Sir – SIR! Please sit down, the oxygen masks are not to be manually deployed”).
See, everyone is expecting the Federal Reserve to boost the economy by slashing rates and initiating Quantitative Easing (aka: QE, aka: printing cash and pumping it into the system), because that’s the method that has typically been used in recent history.
…but it’s not the only option the Fed has at its disposal.
These kinds of methods are often adopted when an economy is in bad shape. But right now, the US economy is doing pretty darn well. 👇
Long story longer: in a healthy economy, minor inflation (like what we’re seeing now) isn’t anything to hit the panic button over. In fact, it’s to be expected!
And if you look at the data from Truflation (which is a platform that aims to provide a more accurate picture of inflation than government metrics), we’re damn-near on target.
Now here’s the kicker…
The crypto space will still enjoy the benefits of increased global liquidity, regardless of what the US does or doesn’t do.
‘Cause pretty soon, other countries (think: Canada, China, Australia) are probably going to have to do exactly that. Unfortunately, most countries aren’t chugging along like the US is, in fact, most are the opposite!
And remember: crypto is a global asset!
Which means as these other countries start making loans more affordable and printing money – some of that fresh cash (global liquidity) is going to find its way into crypto.
So order another G&T, queue up a movie, and nibble on that loose valium that has been floating around your travel bag since 2012…
‘Cause once you dig into things, you’ll see that this feels way worse than it actually is. 🧘
NEXT-GEN DATA STORAGE IS HERE
We generate tons of data every day—scrolling Instagram, bingeing Netflix, shopping on Amazon, you name it.
And so far, web2 has been handling it.
But what happens when Web3 takes over? Enter Walrus.
Built on Sui, Walrus is an on-chain data storage solution that’s:
- Cheap
- Fast
- Secure
They’ve also got something called “Red Stuff.”
We could get into the weeds of this two-dimensional encoding algorithm—but you’d probably get bored reading it (and us writing it).
So here’s all you need to know: Red Stuff = always-available data at low costs.
Ready to give it a try?
P.S. Rumor has it Mainnet is coming Q1 and there will be ways for early adopters, builders, and users to get a stake 👀
THERE’S A NEW CFTC CHAIR IN TOWN (AND HE’S A CRYPTO BULL) 🐂
Donald Trump has just nominated Brian Quintenz as the new CFTC chair.
So, who is this guy, and what does this have to do with crypto?
1/ The cliff notes on Brian
Notably, Brian is also an ex-CFTC commissioner.
CFTC Chair = Chief Executive of the CFTC.
CFTC Commissioners = the CFTC’s ‘board members.’
Decisions are made by a majority vote among the five commissioners, including the Chair – so while Brian will be steering the ship, he won’t necessarily have final say over everything.
Either way you slice it – Brian is moving up in the world!
Additionally, he’s an $ETH bull! 👇
2/ How the CFTC affects crypto
All eyes have been on the changes happening within the SEC of late, ‘cause they regulate securities (think: shares in companies) which many cryptocurrencies have previously been classified as fitting.
…but under this new administration, there’s an expectation that a lot of tokens/coins will be reclassified as commodities (think: unchanging ‘things’ like oil, gold, copper, etc.).
And guess who oversees commodities….the CFTC baaaby!
Which means having a crypto bull in the lead role could hold even more weight in the near future!
The takeaway here is simple:
This is very — checks notes — sorry, extremely bullish for crypto.
BITE-SIZED COOKIES FOR THE ROAD 🍪
Franklin Templeton’s tokenized money market fund is now live on Solana. RWA making moooooves.
Sui’s stablecoin market cap hits $500M. More stablecoins = more liquidity = more activity on the chain.
Hong Kong’s visa program now accepts $BTC and $ETH as proof of wealth. We got a team-member based in HK and he couldn’t stop talking about this.
We’ve got 3 open positions up for grabs! If you want to be part of one of the fastest-growing media companies, now’s your chance.
We reviewed the best exchanges for crypto leverage trading. Spoiler alert: We think Bybit is the best.
MILKY MEMES 🤣
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DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.
