Bitcoin plunged 28%. Institutional investors bought the dip
The crypto markets appear calm heading into the weekend after a volatile week that tested how institutional investors new to the crypto trade would react to the mammoth swings that are old hat for more seasoned digital currency investors.
The sell-off in bitcoin and ether began earlier this week and wiped out $367 billion in value just as markets in Japan were nosediving. But it turns out, these newbie crypto traders were down to buy the dip.
Spot ether exchange-traded funds collectively saw net inflows of around $120 million this week, with most traders buying in on Monday and Tuesday when the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency was down 42% from its March price high of more than $4,000.
Though net flows for the spot bitcoin ETFs are negative since Monday, data from crypto analytics firm CoinGlass shows demand began to reaccelerate midweek, with the batch of spot funds adding more than $245 million on Wednesday and Thursday.
Bitcoin and Ether, 1 month
Hundreds of millions of dollars began flowing into the spot bitcoin ETFs on the same day Morgan Stanley gave the green light to its 15,000 financial advisors to start pitching clients with a net worth north of $1.5 million on the funds issued by BlackRock and Fidelity.
The bank, which is one of the world’s largest wealth management firms, is the first among the big players on Wall Street to take this step. Up to this point, wealth management businesses have only facilitated trades if customers specifically requested exposure to these new spot crypto funds.
Of Morgan Stanley’s $1.5 trillion in assets under management, the bank disclosed in a May 13F filing that it held around $270 million in spot bitcoin ETFs. The next filing deadline on Wednesday will offer the latest read on how much exposure banks and hedge funds now have to these spot crypto products.
The expectation is that other wirehouses and asset managers, who have been on the sidelines performing in-house due diligence on spot crypto ETFs, might feel the pressure to soon follow Morgan Stanley’s lead.
The spot ether ETFs, which launched less than three weeks ago, have seen relatively tepid flows compared to the blockbuster launch of spot bitcoin ETFs in January. The bitcoin funds collectively hold $54.30 billion in assets under management, versus $7.25 billion across the spot ether funds.
Moving in lockstep with U.S. stocks
The crypto market traded in lockstep with U.S. equities most of the week.
The market cap of all tokens has gained back hundreds of billions of dollars since Monday and is now above $2.1 trillion.
Bitcoin hit an intraday high of nearly $63,000 on Friday, and ether was trading above $2,700 earlier.
More than $100 million in short bets on bitcoin was liquidated in the past 24 hours, helping to support bitcoin’s gains.
Though bitcoin and ether are considerably higher than the intraday lows of Monday, both assets are still down over the past seven days, with ether on pace for its worst week in nearly two years.
It is a similar story with some of the crypto-aligned stocks. Coinbase, MicroStrategy and bitcoin miner Riot Platforms shares posted third straight weekly losses.
Crypto price moves this week have laid bare just how much digital assets continue to track U.S. stocks and how they tend to respond to the same macro triggers.
Earlier this week, the unwinding of the yen carry trade contributed to the turmoil that wracked global markets, and then on Thursday, fresh data on jobless claims came in lower than expected, helping to allay recession fears. The S&P 500 notched its best day in almost two years on Thursday, and the crypto market came roaring back.
It also helps that regulatory winds appear to be shifting.
Yet, another U.S. judge has sided with the crypto industry in a legal battle against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
District Judge Analisa Torres ordered Ripple to pay $125 million in civil penalties, which was substantially less than the $2 billion the SEC was after. Ripple’s XRP token surged 22% on Thursday on the news.
Leading electric vehicle analyst, author, and industry thought leaders Loren McDonald and Bill Ferro stop by Quick Charge to discuss EV Adoption’s acquisition by Paren, the “crisis” of EV charging reliability, and the real state of the EV market.
Depending on who you listen, EVs are either driving brands to record growth and are about cross that critical 10% of the overall market nationwide, or the future is bleak, the market is down, and EVs just aren’t selling. What’s really going on? Loren and Bill (probably) have some answers.
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Read more: All my favorite EVs, racecars, and robots from Electrify Expo Austin.
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Chevy EV owners in Texas who have Reliant as their electric utility can now charge for free at night with renewable energy.
Over 150 Chevrolet dealerships across Texas are now offering the Reliant Free Charge Nights plan to new EV buyers. With Free Charge Nights, customers can offset their charging costs by receiving credits for electricity used between 11 pm and 6 am. The plan is powered entirely by renewable energy, thanks to the purchase of renewable energy certificates (RECs).
Rasesh Patel, president of NRG Consumer, says the plan is about making power personal: “We’re excited to help Chevrolet EV drivers offset the cost of charging their vehicle all while having access to a renewable electricity plan.”
This collaboration aims to make EV adoption more appealing by making charging cheaper and greener. GM Energy’s chief revenue officer, Aseem Kapur, emphasized that partnerships like this help build the ecosystem needed to support an all-electric future: “The Reliant Free Charge Nights plan is a great example of how an automaker and an energy company can work together to make EV adoption an easy decision.”
Existing Reliant customers can also sign up for the Free Charge Nights plan. To get started, Chevrolet EV owners need to designate their vehicle on the GM Energy Smart Charging Portal before enrolling in the plan.
Reliant Energy, a subsidiary of NRG Energy, serves over 1.5 million customers in Texas, making it one of the largest electricity providers in the state.
Read more: Texas to get 1 GW AI-powered virtual power plant, enough to power 200,000 homes
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Texas is about to get a major power boost – a new AI-powered virtual power plant (VPP) delivering capacity equivalent to 200,000 homes during peak demand.
NRG Energy is teaming up with Renew Home to bring nearly 1 gigawatt (GW) of capacity to the Texas grid by 2035, aiming to make it more resilient while helping residents save on energy costs.
The new VPP will rely on hundreds of thousands of smart thermostats and other connected home devices, making use of AI technology provided by Google Cloud. These devices, like Vivint and Nest smart thermostats, will be offered to eligible customers at no cost. By automating HVAC adjustments, they help shift energy use to when electricity is cheaper, cleaner, and less strained.
NRG and Renew Home have big plans for the VPP. Starting in spring 2025, the companies plan to roll out the program across Texas, installing these smart thermostats in homes served by NRG’s retail electricity providers. Eventually, they plan to add home battery storage and EVs to expand the power plant’s capabilities.
Texas has faced record-breaking energy demands, with peak usage hitting 85 GW in 2023. As the state’s population grows and extreme weather becomes more frequent, VPPs like this one could play a key role in stabilizing the grid. VPPs aggregate a lot of small-scale energy resources, from smart thermostats to home batteries, and use them to help balance supply and demand during times of high stress on the grid.
This nearly 1 GW VPP will be one of the largest of its kind in Texas. NRG’s president of consumer operations, Rasesh Patel, calls it a “pivotal step” for improving customer experience while making Texas’ energy infrastructure more sustainable and resilient.
In addition to Renew Home, NRG is working with Google Cloud to maximize the power plant’s effectiveness. Google Cloud’s AI and analytics tools will help predict weather conditions, forecast renewable generation, and optimize energy usage, all of which will help make energy management smoother for both customers and the grid.
Ben Brown, CEO of Renew Home, said:
NRG’s commitment to creating a more resilient and sustainable energy future while also making electricity bills more affordable makes them an ideal partner for co-developing this unique VPP program.
This initiative raises the bar for future-proofing our electricity infrastructure and delivering cost savings to customers.
Read: Chinese solar giant Trina sells its Texas factory a week after it opens
To limit power outages and make your home more resilient, consider going solar with a battery storage system. In order to find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and you share your phone number with them.
Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
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