Bitcoin’s back, baby.

The price of the largest cryptocurrency is flirting with all-time highs ahead of an election that may be a turning point for the future of digital assets. Former President Donald Trump said he would take crypto “to the moon” at a convention in July, and cement the US as a global leader. Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign also warmed up to the industry in recent weeks, saying her administration would foster industry innovation. In case you couldn’t guess, “Big Crypto” has reportedly become the largest lobbyist this election cycle. 

“Looking at the election, both campaigns have hinted at pro-crypto policies,” said Blake Morgan, managing partner at the investment firm Mineral Vault. Bitcoin rallied 13% in October alone. “A more crypto-friendly environment would likely have a positive impact.” 

Lunar Landings

All of that excitement has led investors to pour about $2.22 billion into exchange-traded funds that invest in underlying bitcoin last week. BlackRock took the lion’s share, with more than $2.15 billion landing in the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT). Even more impressive: $872 million came on Wednesday alone, shattering previous all-time highs for single-day inflows, according to Bloomberg. 

“$IBIT took in more cash than any other ETF in the world over the past week,” Bloomberg Intelligence senior analyst Eric Balchunas said in a post on X. It beat the more than 13,000 funds in the universe, including powerhouses like the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF and the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF, he added.

Keep in mind, IBIT is just 9 months old. “[It’s] a huge moment for the industry,” Morgan said.

What’s FOMO? It’s not all rainbows and rocket ships, however. Given crypto’s perceived risks, it’s been a hard sell for financial advisors that are much more comfortable playing it safe with client cash. Confidence has yet to fully recover from the 2022 crash, and investments into the sector are still playing catch-up with pre-“crypto winter” levels. VC funding into crypto firms continues to decline; this year has seen the smallest average investment sizes since 2017, according to a report by Galaxy.

“Bitcoin remains volatile, and the swings can be intense,” Morgan told The Daily Upside. Still, “bitcoin has shown unique growth potential that’s hard to match in traditional markets.”

Spread the word.

More women are discussing their finances and taking charge of money matters at home, according to a new Edward Jones survey. Financial advisors said that 72% of their female clients who found them through a referral specifically sought recommendations from other women. Two-thirds of women now consider themselves the “chief financial officer” of their family. That’s good news: It means more women are planning for retirement, which hasn’t always been possible, and it could open up new clients to financial planners. 

“Women speaking about money has always been hurdle No. 1 in financial services,” said Cameron Rogers, private wealth advisor at women-focused robo-advisor Ellevest. 

Early Birds

The next step is properly serving those clients. Advisors will need to have a certain empathy when working with women who may have missed years of retirement contributions because of responsibilities that took them out of the workforce, like child care, Rogers told The Daily Upside.

Another hurdle is getting more women involved in the advice industry, as they currently account for less than a fourth of Certified Financial Planners, according to the CFPB. However, Rogers said the field is becoming more welcoming to women, especially from a culture standpoint. 

“Entertainment used to mean drinks after work and big steak dinners,” she said. Now a handful of her wealth management clients agree that late-night soirées are off the table. “We might go do a fun workout dance class in the morning and grab breakfast while we look over their portfolio,” she said.

Man, I Feel Like a Woman. About 50% of millennial women and 65% of Gen Z women say they want to work with a female advisor, according to an Ellevest survey released in February. Oftentimes that’s because they want an advisor who understands the “why,” said Barbara Pierce, the founder of Women With Capital. 

If clients worry how climate change will affect their children and grandchildren’s lives, they want advisors who can help them invest in alternative forms of energy, Pierce said.

“It’s really about their personal goals rather than just outperforming the S&P 500,” she told The Daily Upside, “although that’s good too.”

“Stagflation” is one of those terms permabears just love bringing up. 

The portmanteau describes an economy hit with persistent inflation and stagnant consumer demand. It’s hard to deny the economy is slowing by many measures. Sure, it’s been remarkably resilient, but wealth disparity is growing rapidly, meaning there are fewer large pockets of wealth holding up the ship. 

While stagflation has been an empty threat more often than not, it’s hard to ignore the conditions are gradually falling into place.

Read more.