Toby Hicks

Maybe it's obvious. But just in case it's not, allow me to get your wheels turning. Chew on this... per @ThinkAdvisor: The Registered Investment Advisory industry (to be clear - this DOES NOT EVEN INCLUDE assets managed by massive broker-dealer firms, or a lionshares of the assets managed by hybrid BD/RIA firms across the country) grew by 2.1% in 2022, with 15,114 fiduciary investment advisors managing $114.1 trillion in assets for 61.9 million clients. Now imagine *even a fraction* of a percentage of those assets going into a spot crypto ETF: a product that fits within the confines of their current framework. Let me be clear: It won't happen all at once, and they won't "ape" all of their assets into it (nor should they... or anyone for that matter lol). But it will undeniably open the floodgates to a HUGE new opportunity set or assets and participants. Realistically as it stands today, whether you like / agree with it or not, most people in the world want a very modest allocation to crypto for the possible upside potential it has. They JUST want exposure to price action. It will make up a small piece of their overall pie and perceived as one of the riskiest and most volatile parts of their portfolio. Because relative to the rest of the investment landscape, it undoubtedly is. If you're working in or heavily involved in crypto it's probably warped your brain to an extent. I know I have. My perception of risk and "expected" returns have become disgustingly skewed vs the majority of the population. But let's think outside of our echochamber, where most of the population exists. Most of these people don't want self custody, they don't want to actively move funds at any time of day, they don't want to learn how to transact on chain or do anything fancy. They want to set it, forget it, and hope the value of their money goes up and to the right over time. Ideally this will change over time. I dream of a day when blockchain-based solutions are adopted by the masses simply because they make people's' lives easier. Undeniable better, faster, cheaper. A superior way of transacting and interacting. Some day... But let's focus on the now: While it probably seems boring to many of you, participants that crypto ETFs will bring in are MEANINGFUL. Not just because of the $ inflow. Mature, vibrant markets boast a diverse array of participants that engage in different ways. This is just the start. So welcome this with open arms. We should welcome traditional adoptions of what's being built, even if executed in a way we deem as suboptimal (trust me, I get it - spot ETFs are like putting training wheels on a Ferrari). Because it means that people are paying attention and getting skin in the game. And when you have skin in the game, you're far more incentivized to learn more. And to that i say.. let's fucking go.