Market Trends & Investment Opportunities - S&P 500 launched a new crypto index consisting of 15 cryptocurrencies and 35 crypto-related stocks, opening up new pools of capital [1] - Bitcoin is becoming the hurdle rate for investors [3] - Banks are increasingly building stable coin capabilities on Solana [10] - Plasma is partnering with Trust Wallet to get Plasma's stable coin rails into the hands of everyone [16] Cryptocurrency Performance & Adoption - S&P is up 100% since 2020, but priced in Bitcoin is down 90% [4] - S&P Digital Markets 50 index includes 15 cryptocurrencies with a market cap of at least $300 million and 35 publicly traded companies in the sector with a market cap of at least $100 million [5] - Solana has 80 million monthly wallets and 3 million monthly active Circle users [11] - SUI has a clean setup and is expected to reach new all-time highs [17] Concerns & Counterarguments - European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde believes there is no underlying value to Bitcoin [8] - The Euro has lost over 40% of its purchasing power in the last 20 years and is down 85% since 1999 until 2020 [8]

Cryptocurrency Assessment - European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde states Bitcoin has "no underlying value" [1] Euro Purchasing Power - The Euro has lost over 40% of its purchasing power in the last twenty years [1]

Volatility for yen interest rates has climbed above that of euro ones for the first time in seven years https://t.co/ifrQ63MwmO ...

RT The Rollup (@therollupco)The lads go over @CryptoHayes's Bastille Day piece."Germany and France are pulling in opposite directions.""French savers are pulling their money out of French banks.""The ECB can't just let France die. They're gonna have to print money to bail out France.""Bitcoin don't care. It will continue its inexorable rise versus the piece of trash that is the euro." ...

🔥 LATEST: Nine major European banks, including UniCredit and ING, are developing a euro-based stablecoin set to launch in 2026 as an alternative to dollar-backed tokens. https://t.co/riQCB8cUX1 ...

Group 1 - The dollar index (DXY00) increased by +0.57% due to positive comments from Fed Chair Powell regarding inflation and interest rates [1] - US weekly initial unemployment claims fell by -33,000 to 231,000, indicating a stronger labor market than the expected 240,000 [3] - The September Philadelphia Fed business outlook survey rose by +23.5 to an 8-month high of 23.2, surpassing expectations of 1.7 [3] Group 2 - Concerns over Fed independence may lead foreign investors to sell dollar assets, particularly in light of President Trump's actions against Fed Governor Cook [2] - The euro (EUR/USD) decreased by -0.30% due to a stronger dollar and fiscal concerns from the German government planning to borrow about 20% more than originally intended in Q4 [4] - Germany's finance agency plans to raise 90.5 billion euros ($107 billion) in Q4, which is 15 billion euros more than previously projected [5]

France's Economic Situation - France's deficit to GDP ratio stands at 58%, exceeding the EU's 3% ceiling [1] - France's debt to GDP ratio increased from 98% in 2019 to 114% currently [2] Eurozone and Global Implications - Theoretically, rising borrowing costs in France should pressure the euro, but the euro has rallied nearly 14% against the dollar since January [3] - French 10-year yields are at 35%, matching their 2023 highs, comparable to Greece and Italy [3] - US debt to GDP ratio at 122% makes France's situation look relatively stable [4] - Global markets suggest the situation isn't yet cause for serious alarm, but a change in stance could lead to rising French yields and a declining euro [4] Factors Contributing to Deficit - France has long been known for big social safety nets, which can drive deficits [1] - Russia reduced energy supplies to France in 2022, leading to heavy government subsidies to support affected industries [2]

Economic Policy - Denmark should consider joining the Eurozone for a bigger role in the European Union [1] Leadership Perspective - Central bank chief Christian Kettel Thomsen suggests Denmark should join the Eurozone [1]

Montenegro is lobbying all leaders in the EU to allow the Balkan nation to join the world’s largest trading bloc and officially adopt the euro at the same time by 2028 https://t.co/MxjGwn6XzQ ...

What we're seeing is a market that's surprisingly strong with all the geopolitical noise, whether it's in Europe, in the US, tariffs and so on. Absolute levels are almost at historical heights. You know, we see spread levels both in Europe and the U.S. really, you know, can't get much better.But what would what what we are seeing is that investors are becoming ever so slightly more selective. You know, all the deals that we did and there was 10 billion of supply yesterday went well, but we saw a really sign ...