Nithin Eapen, chief investment officer at Arcadia Crypto Ventures in New York, takes a long-term view of the digital currencies market, telling ThirtyK that technology is here to stay, and the market will only improve. “Investors who came in from December to February are shattered, but I’m not bothered,” he said. Arcadia is currently increasing its position, he said.
“Right now bitcoin is still on top,” Eapen said. “It’s changing the way we’re doing things. On the whole, the space will grow. Our thesis is the market is going to do well in the long run.”
Eapen, for one, says the market should not rely on ETFs, adding that an ETF will only make it possible for large institutions to enter the market. “We really don’t need it,” he said. “Institutions are trying to fit crypto into the mold of things they already know.”
Leaving the Sidelines
Tam says 2017 was the year of price arbitrage, while 2018 will be known as the year marked by the advent of better data and systems to help investors make better decisions.
“This is particularly true for professional investors who, until now, may have been waiting on the sidelines,” he said. With prices down significantly, professional investors may start accepting the counterparty risk of unregulated exchanges, he added. “To do this, they’ll want data, data, and more data before making their move.”
Tam notes that funds have been moving away from investing in ICOs as the capital–raising markets dry up. Instead, they’re looking to invest capital into existing high-quality token projects that have taken a 90 percent to 95 percent drop in price in the current bear market.
“This presents a huge buying opportunity,” Tam said. “Pros will come in and snatch up majority positions and use that to leverage the changes they want made in that company.”
