Anton Golub Newsletter - Digital Assets, Crypto & Regulation

I Asked AI to Evaluate Breakthroughs in My PhD Research

Anton Golub — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 11:29:21 GMT

A few days ago, this appeared in my feed.

GPT-5.2 Pro had solved ten major mathematical problems in three days.

The list included high-dimensional sphere packing, non-sofic groups, Connes’s rigidity conjecture, quantum parallel repetition and multicolor Ramsey numbers.

I stopped scrolling.

During my PhD, I spent years working on three mathematical results t…

Concentration. Leverage. Volatility.

Anton Golub — Fri, 31 Jul 2026 21:17:14 GMT

At the end of June, Situational Awareness was up approximately 439% after fees for the year. In July, it lost 67%. Fund sold most of its public-equity portfolio to Citadel, closed its short positions and removed all leverage and portfolio financing. Gains before July had been so large that it was still up approximately 80% for the year.

When I read Leopo…

Strategy’s Bitcoin Flywheel Has Entered Its Liability-Management Phase

Anton Golub — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 21:13:32 GMT

Strategy sold $544.5 million of MSTR last week.

It bought zero Bitcoin.

During the same week, it added $525 million to its USD reserve and spent $25 million repurchasing STRC at an average price of $86.52.

This is not another treasury update.

It is a capital-structure pivot.

Strategy’s Bitcoin flywheel has entered its liability-management phase.

For years, th…

Only 1 out of 4 Dubai residents owns property: how Tribe is building regulated access to real estate - podcast with Sebastian Agren (COO & Co-Founder of Tribe)

Anton Golub — Sun, 19 Jul 2026 15:35:19 GMT

Hi, it’s Anton.

Dubai has one of the most active real estate markets in the world.

Yet 75% of the city’s residents still do not own property in Dubai.

Price barrier remains high, and putting real estate “on-chain” does not automatically solve it.

We had Sebastian Agren, COO and Co-Founder of Tribe, on blockCAST to discuss what it actually takes to build a r…

I explain why Bitcoin dropped below $60,000 - 3 biggest liquidity channels disappeared at same time

Anton Golub — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 18:25:51 GMT

ETFs are redeeming.
Stablecoin supply is shrinking.
Strategy is managing liabilities.

Bitcoin is going down because marginal buy is disappearing.

3 liquidity channels are weakening at the same time.

1. Spot Bitcoin ETFs turned into a redemption channel.

US spot BTC ETFs had $1.78B of net outflows in one week- that's 30.7K BTC.

2.4% of the roughly 1.28M BTC hel…

$1.7 trillion traded on dYdX: Charles d’Haussy (CEO of dYdX Foundation) on decentralized markets, perps, and 24/7 finance

Anton Golub — Wed, 24 Jun 2026 14:03:58 GMT

Hi, Anton here.

I’m sharing a podcast episode that is definitely worth your time.

We had Charles d’Haussy, CEO of dYdX Foundation, on blockCAST - and this episode goes much deeper than a normal “DeFi conversation.”

Charles has seen the industry from several angles: entrepreneur, fintech builder in Hong Kong, early Ethereum ecosystem through ConsenSys, cent…

Dubai puts Real Estate ownership on-chain: PRYPCO General Manager Joseph El Am on tokenization in Dubai & UAE

Anton Golub — Sat, 11 Apr 2026 22:08:26 GMT

Hi, Anton here.

I’m sharing a podcast episode that’s definitely worth your time.

RWA tokenization stays theoretical until it touches four things: real estate ownership, regulation, liquidity, and real investors.

That’s why this episode matters.

We sat down with Joseph El Am, General Manager of PRYPCO, to break down what tokenized real estate looks like when…

$338.7 billion in MENA crypto activity: why Zand Bank is a key bank for serious crypto firms in UAE - podcast with Michael Chan (CEO of Zand Bank)

Anton Golub — Sun, 08 Feb 2026 10:34:32 GMT

Hi, it’s Anton.

I’m sharing a podcast episode that’s definitely worth your time.

We had Michael Chan, CEO of Zand Bank, on blockCAST - and it’s one of those conversations where you hear how UAE bank thinks when it decides to become a serious partner to digital asset firms.

Chainalysis estimates MENA received $338.7B in on-chain value (regional activity, no…

RWA Tokenization in UAE: What Asset Owners and Issuers Need to Know in 2026

Anton Golub — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 15:41:19 GMT

RWA tokenization stopped being an “innovation lab” conversation. In past 12–18 months, I’ve watched it become a board-level question: structure, governance, regulatory recognition, and investor-grade defensibility.

UAE is where this shift is most visible. Regulatory regimes, market infrastructure, and institutional capital converged in a way that makes a…

$266 billion in October: how Deribit runs world’s largest crypto options exchange - podcast with Luuk Strijers (CEO of Deribit)

Anton Golub — Sat, 17 Jan 2026 17:51:50 GMT

Hi, it’s Anton.

I’m trying something new with this newsletter: instead of a written essay, I’m dropping a full podcast episode that’s worth your time.

We just recorded with Luuk Strijers, CEO of Deribit - a trading-first, operator-level conversation about how crypto’s leading options venue is built, why Coinbase buying Deribit matters, and what changes wh…

You asked me to explain why Strategy’s common stock (MSTR) should trade at discount to its “BTC per share” intrinsic value.

Anton Golub — Fri, 28 Nov 2025 21:11:28 GMT

I’ll make a logical argument that MSTR’s mNAV should be < 1.0.

Strategy promotes “BTC per share” metric that implies all Bitcoin (BTC) on balance sheet belongs to MSTR shareholders.

This sounds like each common share has a clean, pro-rata slice of full BTC stack, as if there were no other claims in capital structure.

That is wrong.

It ignores senior claims …

Ripple raises $500 million at insane $40 billion valuation - is IPO next step?

Anton Golub — Wed, 05 Nov 2025 20:42:21 GMT

Ripple doesn’t need money.

They just raised $500M anyway.

Valuation?

$40 billion.

Let that sink in!

- Galaxy
- Fortress
- Pantera
- Marshall Wace
- Brevan Howard
- Citadel Securities

All wrote checks.

But this isn’t about runway.

Ripple already has $1B+ in cash and $25B+ in digital assets.

Ripple has been buying - not begging for money.

📦 $1.25B → Hidden Road (prime …

UAE telco operator du launches Bitcoin cloud mining for all residents!

Anton Golub — Sun, 02 Nov 2025 20:29:28 GMT

Bitcoin mining. Regulated.

Live in UAE. Offered by your telecom.

No setup.
No ASICs.
No grey zones.
No offshore risk.

Just clean, compliant hashpower - as a subscription.

du Cloud Miner is now live.

🇦🇪 UAE just became first country on Earth where retail can mine Bitcoin legally, transparently, and locally.

You just need verified ID and UAE Pass.

Let that sink i…

Wall Street thinks Strategy’s shares will double - you need to be ultra delusional to believe that

Anton Golub — Sat, 01 Nov 2025 17:33:41 GMT

Bitcoin is +30% YTD.
Strategy (MSTR) is -10%.

You didn’t buy BTC.
You bought a volatility arbitrage shell.

Strategy was never a “Bitcoin treasury”.

It is a hedge fund vending machine.

I explain:

MSTR had 2 engines to raise capital:

- Mispriced convertibles sold to hedge funds
- ATM offerings dumped on retail when mNAV > 1

Those days are over:

Volatility collapsed …

Europe to launch CBDC for retail in 2029

Anton Golub — Fri, 31 Oct 2025 21:15:16 GMT

Digital Euro (i.e. CBDC) hiding it under words like “pilot” and “preparation phase.”

I’ll call it what it is:

surveillance coin.

ECB just accelerated the Digital Euro rollout:

- Pilot in 2027
- Full issue by 2029
- €1.3 billion budget
- No blockchain, no privacy, no redemption

It’s a control mechanism.

I lived 10+ years in Switzerland.

Built crypto exchanges, mar…

MetaPlanet is borrowing against their Bitcoin to fix price collapse they caused.

Anton Golub — Tue, 28 Oct 2025 19:46:00 GMT

Retail still thinks it’s “just buying more BTC.”

MetaPlanet announced $500 million credit facility to repurchase its own shares.

The goal?

Push mNAV back above 1.0 - and save face with shareholders.

But this isn’t a buyback.
It’s damage control.

I explain.

MetaPlanet copied Strategy’s blueprint:

- Raise cash via moving-strike options
- Issue at premium to EVO …

Why Does Retail Misunderstand Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs)?

Anton Golub — Sat, 25 Oct 2025 16:59:27 GMT

I’ll explain the illusion of “Bitcoin proxy with leverage”

Retail thinks DATs are leverage.

Professionals know DATs are a volatility product.

Digital-Asset Treasuries (DATs) are not “Bitcoin with a stock wrapper.”

But that’s what media headlines sell:

“Company X adds 10,000 BTC”
“Stock up 30% on crypto news”
“Public proxy for institutional exposure”

That’s not…

Hype around Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) is slowly coming to an end

Anton Golub — Mon, 20 Oct 2025 19:08:06 GMT

No more infinite money glitch.

Saylor’s game is almost over.

Strategy just raised $18.8M.

That’s nothing!

Rounding error compared to earlier issuances.

I explain:

- mNAV is collapsing. From sky-high premiums to barely above 1.
- Volatility has dried up. Hedge funds aren’t playing anymore.
- ATM issuance is now dilutive. Every sale hurts existing shareholders.
- …

Retail investors lost $17 billion buying Bitcoin Treasury companies

Anton Golub — Sat, 18 Oct 2025 16:33:12 GMT

Retail didn’t buy Bitcoin.

They bought volatility arbitrage shells.

And they lost $17 billion doing it.

Bitcoin is up +15% YTD

But retail who bought Strategy or Metaplanet are losing money.

Why?

They didn’t buy BTC.

They bought shares of Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) designed for convertible hedge funds.

Markus Thielen explained it

“Retail investors have los…

Dubai became the world’s largest regulated crypto market

Anton Golub — Thu, 16 Oct 2025 20:24:40 GMT

Not Singapore.
Not New York.
Not London.

Dubai.

Let that sink in:

- AED 2.5 trillion+ in regulated virtual-asset transactions (YTD 2025)
- 40+ licensed entities under VARA oversight
- $2B institutional investment from Abu Dhabi into Binance
- 19 firms fined under clear enforcement measures

All in just 3 years.

While other jurisdictions argued over definitions, UA…