How BlackRock Helped Bitcoin Get Its Mojo Back

Larry Fink's comments fueled the crypto rally this week. However, this is not the only big news to hit the industry.

A version of this story appeared in Us The Roundup Newsletter on 11 October. Sign up Here.

Howdy! Here is Ed.

As a simple reference to the good old days of Wall Street, when crypto investors were less important, it seemed like an insignificant memory.

Hardly.

As BlackRock CEO Larry Fink compares bitcoin's evolution to the mortgage-backed securities market of the 1980s, and similarly electrified crypto — crypto mavens are offering fresh takes on why cryptocurrency “goes so fast.”

The mortgage bond market is $11 trillion big, and it's not on anyone's bingo card that one of the guys who helped build that pillar of the US economy would mention digital assets in the same breath.

As Liam Kelly reported this week, Fink's comments will shake up the market, especially when he considers where cryptocurrencies are headed.

BlackRock, the world's leading investment firm, operates the largest bitcoin exchange-traded fund, which sports more than $25 billion in net assets.

Join the community to get our latest articles and updates

What's particularly interesting about Fink's comments, Liam writes, is how unimportant regulation is to Bitcoin's trajectory.

Over the past three years, crypto has been obsessed with the machinations of Gary Gensler and the US Securities and Exchange Commission, and with good reason.

The agency's crackdown will force a fundamental change in how the industry operates.

Indeed, Joanna Wright reported this week how crypto players are “forum shopping” in the US court system to gain an advantage in their battle with the SEC.

But Fink, in Blackrock Earnings call On October 11, Bitcoin highlighted other forces driving growth: “Analytics and data.” Decades ago mortgage bonds were encouraged, and the same is true of crypto, Fink said.

“I really believe that the market for these digital assets can be broadened,” Fink said.

Bitcoin investors don't really need another reason to buy, but they've got one anyway. The world's top cryptocurrency has gained another 11% in the past seven days to close to $70,000.

The last time Bitcoin hit that threshold was in June, and the cryptocurrency is up 61% this year after a volatile summer.

The market is getting so frothy that even the most exotic breed of memecoins is posting eye-watering numbers.

Alex Gilbert recounts the mad tale of GOAT, a coin based on a pornographic meme that first went viral in the early 00s. It went from zero $350 million Over the course of this week.

Mojo is growing.

BlackRock's Larry Fink on What's Really Driving Bitcoin: 'I Don't Really Believe It's a Function of Regulation'

For that to happen, it doesn't matter whether Donald Trump or Kamala Harris wins on November 5, the BlackRock CEO said.

EigenLayer Moves Beyond Drama With $11bn Deposits and Key Role in Ethereum – What's Next Sriram Kannan

In an exclusive interview, Sriram Kannan explained how the hot start of the restaging protocol was difficult to manage.

Who Won't Get Rich After Trump Crypto Project's $450m Token Sale Bombs

The Trump family's crypto project launched this week, but Tim Craig reports that they may not get any money from it.

Post of the week

Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen is walking away from memecoin, the GOAT that took Solana by storm this week.

To clarify, I sent a personal $50K no-strings-attached unconditional research grant @truth_terminal and its creator @Andy Airy This summer. The grant is intended to support independent AI research, and the results have been amazing. However, I have nothing to do with it…

— Marc Andreessen 🇺🇸 (@pmarca) October 16, 2024

Ed Robinson is the News story editor. Got a tip? Email [email protected].