Don't Do Too Much!

Most people get into cryptocurrency because they are chasing some kind of financial return or profit; let’s be real. Out of this cohort, relatively few achieve the generational wealth they seek. Why? I’d say they’re doing too much.

Two quarters have passed this year and there’s generally been positive returns YTD for most major digital assets. I’m talking about the boring ones that have been here for years, have functional features and offerings, and are generating revenue. The projects people are actually using, but may be taking for granted while on the hunt for the altcoin-of-the-day.

Let’s quickly take a look at some of these boring projects and see how big-name asset DCAooooors might have faired if they’ve been taking advantage of accumulating these assets during the bear.

Bitcoin $BTC (+84%)

Investing in, to some, the most boring dinosaur asset in this space would have returned you up to 84% this year. Are you beating that, anon? I bet you’d buy Bitcoin at $17k - $18k today if you had the opportunity, while it trades at $30k.

I think it’s an increasingly interesting time to be a part of Bitcoin, which says a lot given it’s time in the market. BRC-20s and Ordinals have given the crypto community something to talk about that isn’t related to serious topics like money principles, peer-to-peer transactions, and non-sovereign wealth.

We can change the world while having fun too.

Ethereum $ETH (+60%)

While lagging behind Bitcoin, Ether has returned investors with up to 60% gains since the start of this year. Not to mention any staking returns you may be receiving depending on how you play it.

There have been questions and pondering about what will happen to $ETH as L2 adoption increases and why anyone would continue to utilize Ethereum when fees are lower elsewhere. Because everything needs to settle up to Ethereum in the end, I think L2s only solidify $ETH’s staying power.

Ether is lindy, the network is growing, Metcalfe's Law is lawing.

Chainlink $LINK (+13%)

Chainlink has continued to be an underperforming major digital asset, as price action has largely chopped between about $8.00 - $6.00 this year. The YTD chart reflects you’d have a 13% gain if you bought $LINK at the beginning of the year, but that you’d likely be at a loss if you’ve been steadily accumulating only over this time period (just being honest).

I remain bullish on Chainlink over the long term and think we’ll look back at this time of accumulation as one where we wished we would have bought more. I stake $LINK and will continue to do so long into the future as I believe in the growth of this space and Chainlink’s direct impact to its overall success.

Willing to be proven wrong and betting I’m not.

Binance Coin $BNB (+0%)

I’ve never owned Binance Coin but wanted to include $BNB as part of this post because of its market cap and Binance’s recent regulatory scrutiny. Binance’s YTD chart reflects it’s struggle amongst US and other foreign pressures.

After FTX’s implosion, I’m fading all centralized exchange plays except for Coinbase $COIN because of my feeling that if any CEX will have success in the US it will be Coinbase. It’s hard for me to feel comfortable investing in an entity like Binance that’s at the center of so much negative attention.

Easy fade for me.

Solana $SOL (+85%)

FTX- and VC-backed Solana has seen an 85% increase in asset price YTD. Who would have thought to invest in something like $SOL during the hysteria of the FTX-implosion? Be greedy while others are fearful, I guess.

Well, if you did, you were rewarded. As Devs and Artists continue to build on Solana, $SOL may continue to see an outperforming comeback that makes up for its destruction during the bear.

Plus they have shoes and a phone, so, there’s also that.

Avalanche $AVAX (+19%)

Avalanche has seen a modest 19% gain YTD yet being another big name, dare I say, boring L1 competitor. Avalanche’s slight skew towards gaming makes it differentiable in my opinion, and I’m excited to see more projects launch on $AVAX subnets and gain adoption moving forward.

$AVAX and $SOL are also in the regulatory limelight as being considered securities by the SEC and thus the YTD price chart reflects the assets having performed better before the SEC news. Could be a good time to accumulate before SEC adds any more clarity that might ease investor’s sentiment and return capital to the assets.

Aave $AAVE (+30%)

Aave investors saw up to a 30% return YTD. The lending protocol continues to offer collateralized loans on-chain and has been upgraded to be cross-chain as of V3.

Aave continues to generate revenue, which is extremely positive for the industry at large because it shows that financial services are sought after in this space. Aave’s fees and revenue currently sit at top 10 and top 20 respectively.

Aave holders can participate in the lending protocol by staking their $AAVE and receiving rewards from the fees generated from loans.

MakerDAO $MKR (+65%)

MakerDAO has returned about 65% YTD yet you don’t hear too many people talking about it on the timeline. $MKR enables the generation of Dai, a decentralized stablecoin and is one of the pioneers in decentralized finance.

Maker was created in 2014 and went live in 2015. It’s been around for 8+ years and has consistently been one of the top revenue generating protocols in the space. Why is nobody talking about this?!?!

Curve Finance $CRV (+46%)

Curve is a DeFi protocol and decentralized exchange launched during DeFi-Summer of 2020. YTD, $CRV has returned 45% gains for investors.

Curve Finance has consistently generated revenue since inception and allows users to participate in their liquidity pools, which might be over many users heads but can basically be thought of as providing Curve with assets that can be used to allow users to make the swaps they want to make. For LPing, you receive a portion of the fees that are generated. This is a key aspect of decentralized finance - protocol governed liquidity pools.

Instead of hunting for ThE nExT 10x-1000x AlTcOiN gEm, consider accumulating some of the boring stuff over time. If this space is going to survive, it’s likely going to be the big name coins that are actually generating revenue and offering features and services that users are using that will succeed. Why not gain exposure to those kinds of projects?

Investing isn’t rocket science. It’s an imperfect game riddled with data, opinions, and opportunity. It’s easy to get distracted by the coin-of-the-day that’s being shilled by some influencer online, believe me, I’ve been there.

What I’ve learned from participating in these kinds of ponzi-like assets is that you end up either:

• Hitting a little multiple (rarely, but this is the goal of this kind of trading)

• Buy an asset that slowly trends to zero

• Buy an asset that is a rug or scam that instantly deletes your invested capital

• Buy and end up holding an underperforming asset compared to $BTC or $ETH for the culture

Ask yourself: Are you actually building long-term wealth by participating in crypto markets? Are you gaining exposure to projects that people actually know about, talk about, and use? Or are you playing shitcoin lotteries?

Closing Thoughts

My approach to investing tends to be long-term and portfolio-minded.

I like to accumulate assets over time and dollar-cost-average into positions.

And I especially like productive assets that generate dividends or rewards.

It’s easy to get distracted and lose sight of the most obvious opportunities,

By chasing generational wealth and promises of riches.

But I really think that keeping it simple is the best way to go,

And often the best performing assets are the ones right in front of us.

Take your swings on the moonshots if you will,

But maintain a strict focus on building sustainable wealth for your future.

If you've taken the time to read this, I appreciate you. Chances are we have much to learn from each other. I'm a believer that the people we meet unlock true value in our lives, so let's get connected. Feel free to DM me on Twitter if you'd like to chat.

Cheers for subscribing :)