The retail traders’ revenge on Wall Street hedge funds shows the power of decentralized finance.
In an interview on Bloomberg this week, Anthony Scaramucci, the founder of Skybridge Capital, spoke about the Gamestop (NYSE: GME) fracas and its implications for bitcoin (BTC), the leading cryptocurrency. Earlier this month, assets under management at the Skybridge Bitcoin Fund touched $310 million. Scaramucci has a highly bullish view on BTC – he predicts it will touch $100,000 this year. (Bitcoin.com)
Gamestop is validation for BTC
According to Scaramucci, the stock market action in Gamestop is a pointer to the ultimate success of the bitcoin experiment.
The GameStop stock lies at the heart of a bizarre battle between Wall Street hedge funds with short positions in the scrip and a bunch of retail traders, who are part of a Reddit group called ‘WallStreetBets’.
The traders mounted a huge short squeeze on the stock and inflicted massive financial losses on the short-sellers.
The battle royale is now known as “Wall Street vs. Main Street.”
The episode brings into dramatic focus the power when social media (Reddit) combines with fintech (Robinhood).
“It’s the age of the micro investor and you better take it seriously – otherwise you’ll get taken to the cleaners,” Scaramucci said in the interview.
“The activity in Gamestop is more proof of concept that Bitcoin is going to work,” he further said. “How are you going to beat that decentralized crowd? That to me is more affirmation about decentralized finance.”
The system strikes back
Several trading platforms, like Robinhood, TD Ameritrade, and Schwab, have restricted trading in Gamestop.
However, prominent bitcoiner Max Keiser and the founder of Digital Currency Group (Grayscale’s parent company) said funds could flow into decentralized markets that no one can shut down: bitcoin and other crypto assets.
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