50T Investor Newsletter (Feb 9th)
Feb 9, 2026
Hi Investors,
Busy week in our portfolio. Kraken reported $2.2Bn in 2025 revenue, while Polymarket announced its transition to native USDC in partnership with Circle. Beyond the portfolio, Tether invested $100MM into Anchorage Digital at a $4.2Bn valuation to deepen their USAT stablecoin partnership, CME confirmed it's building a tokenized cash product for 2026, and China expanded its crypto ban to RWAs and yuan stablecoins. Meanwhile, in a White House brokered meeting, crypto firms failed to reach agreement on stablecoin yields blocking the CLARITY Act. Institutional infrastructure, prediction markets, and stablecoin competition all accelerated.
Below are the key developments:
 | What's going on? Read Dan Tapiero's perspective on the DAE and fractured capital markets → Link |
Market Moves
Hyperliquid introduced HIP-4, enabling fully collateralized “outcome markets” that expand beyond perpetual futures into bounded-risk derivatives
→ Link
China expanded its crypto ban by imposing strict restrictions on RWA tokenization and offshore yuan stablecoins
→ Link
CME Group confirmed it is developing a tokenized cash product launching in 2026 and is exploring its own token
→ Link
Vitalik Buterin called for a reset of Ethereum’s rollup-centric roadmap, urging L2s to differentiate beyond scaling
→ Link
Tether invested $100MM into Anchorage Digital at a $4.2Bn valuation, deepening their partnership around USAT
→ Link
The White House hosted crypto firms and banks to resolve stablecoin yield disputes blocking the CLARITY Act, with no agreement reached
→ Link
Crypto.com launched its standalone prediction market, OG
→ Link
Fidelity's stablecoin FIDD goes live for retail and institutional investors
→ Link
Tether scales back $20Bn funding push after investor resistance to valuation
→ Link
Nevada moved to bar Coinbase’s prediction markets without a state gaming license
→ Link
Portfolio Headlines
 | Hong Kong will begin issuing stablecoin licenses in March, positioning the Animoca / Standard Chartered JV HKD stablecoin as a potential beneficiary → Link |
 | Polymarket partnered with Circle to transition from bridged USDC.e to native USDC on Polygon |
 | Polymarket partnered with Circle to transition from bridged USDC.e to native USDC on Polygon |
 | Gemini announced it will exit the UK, EU, and Australia while cutting 25% of staff to refocus on the U.S. and prediction markets |
 | Kraken reported $2.2Bn in 2025 revenue and $531MM in EBITDA, with 53% of revenue now asset-based |
 | TRM Labs reported that the U.S. Treasury is probing crypto exchanges over Iran sanctions evasion |
 | Zenrock Launches Hush Protocol to Bring Yield-Bearing Privacy to Solana DeFi → Link |
Charts of the Week
Sky (formerly MakerDAO) generated approximately $340MM in revenue in 2025, positioning the DAO among the highest-earning protocols in crypto
The historical correlation between Bitcoin price and crypto VC investment has weakened, with Bitcoin rallying since early 2023 while venture funding remains structurally subdued
Polymarket ranked as the second most visited trading platform in January, trailing only Robinhood and ahead of Coinbase
Industry News Flash
Notable Raises
BLUFF - Betting Platform
$21MM strategic investment led by 1kx with Makers Fund, Maximum Frequency Ventures, Delphi Ventures Founders, and Tristan Thompson
→ Link
Opinion - Prediction Market
$20MM pre-Series A led by Hack VC with Jump Crypto, Primitive Ventures, and Decasonic
→ Link
TRM Labs - Blockchain Intelligence:
$70MM Series C led by Blockchain Capital with CMT Digital, Goldman Sachs, Bessemer, DRW VC, Y Combinator, Thoma Bravo, and Galaxy Ventures
→ Link
Industry News
Brazil moves to ban algorithmic stablecoins like Ethena's USDe
→ Link
Russia's largest bank Sberbank prepares to issue crypto-backed loans
→ Link
Bitwise files SEC registration for Uniswap ETF
→ Link
Justin Sun looking to buy $100M in BTC for Tron treasury
→ Link
Zama launches token after $121M shielded on Ethereum
→ Link
MultiversX integrates Google AI commerce standard and x402 payments
→ Link
Incognito Market founder sentenced to 30 years in darknet marketplace case
→ Link
Media & Insights
📄 Research Piece of the Week: Multicoin
📌 Post of the Week: Aditya Dave