This week's edition of Crypto Long & Short highlights how established indexes are transforming fragmented digital assets into a more mature market, enabling institutional investments with confidence, as noted by Kirsten Wegner. Additionally, Dave LaValle, President of CoinDesk Data & Indices, discusses the diminishing divide between traditional finance (TradFi) and crypto.
By Kirsten Wegner|Edited by Alexandra Levis Jun 17, 2026, 4:48 p.m. 6 min readMake preferred on ShareShare this articleCopy linkX (Twitter)LinkedInFacebookEmailMake preferred on (Ryoji Iwata/ Unsplash)SummaryShowYou're reading Crypto Long & Short, our weekly newsletter featuring insights, news and analysis for the professional investor. Sign up here to receive it every Wednesday.
Welcome to our institutional newsletter, Crypto Long & Short. This week:
- Established indexes are transforming fragmented digital assets into a mature market that institutions can invest in confidently, according to Kirsten Wegner, CEO of Index Industry Association.
- Dave LaValle, President of CoinDesk Data & Indices, remarks that the gap between traditional finance (TradFi) and crypto is diminishing.
- Key headlines for institutions by Helene Braun.
- “GEODNET: Revenue at Record Levels as Price Aligns” in Chart of the Week.
Expert Insights
Assessing Market Maturity
An essential aspect of the development of digital asset markets is the index. Essentially, indexes serve as a method for gauging market activity. They consolidate the diverse trading data from various securities—spanning equities, bonds, and digital assets—into comprehensible and comparable metrics that investors can utilize. The capability to depict the size and performance of various cryptocurrencies and tokens is becoming crucial for institutional investors such as asset managers, pension funds, and foundations.
As digital assets gain traction among institutional investors, they bring with them established expectations. They seek the same tools that facilitate decisions in public markets, including transparent pricing, standardized benchmarks, independent governance, and dependable performance and risk measurement. In essence, they want what indexes offer.
Historically, the introduction of reliable benchmarks has often indicated when a new market becomes viable for investment. Equities, fixed income, commodities, and currencies have each developed their own benchmarks as they matured. Though these benchmarks do not represent the market itself, they provide a perspective through which the market can be clearly viewed and consistently compared.
Digital assets are mirroring this trajectory. A decade ago, crypto pricing was fragmented across different platforms with varying standards, compelling investors to speculate on fair value. Today, structured methodologies from indexes compile data across exchanges, ensuring quality and identifying irregularities—resulting in reference points robust enough to support derivatives pricing and facilitate the spot bitcoin ETFs attracting institutional interest. This trust has not emerged from rising prices but rather from enhanced measurement practices.
It is crucial to clarify what an index is and what it is not. An index does not own assets or capital; it is a licensed statistical framework, a rules-based measure that can be linked to research or investment products such as exchange-traded funds. An asset manager creates the product and holds the capital, while the index supplies the metric. This distinction ensures that the measurement remains independent from the funds it evaluates.
Benchmark indexes are designed to illustrate and quantify markets. Ensuring transparent rules, documented governance, independent oversight, and clear protocols during challenging times necessitates thoroughness and discipline. Index providers voluntarily adopt these standards, drawing from decades of refinement in other asset classes.
A recent report from the Index Industry Association discusses how digital asset indexes are adapting to meet these demands and must continue to evolve with the introduction of stablecoins and tokenized assets. While transparency may not always be the most prominent aspect of a market, it is often the most enduring.
Principled Perspectives
One Market, Not Two: CoinDesk's Dave LaValle on the Convergence of Crypto and TradFi
In the past six months, the dialogue surrounding crypto in client portfolios has evolved, and advisors who cling to outdated frameworks may find themselves unprepared. In a recent interview with The Wealth Advisor, Dave LaValle, President of CoinDesk Data & Indices, elaborated on this shift.
The most evident sign originated from Wall Street. “The Morgan Stanley team launched their bitcoin ETF in early April, and within just over a month, they've surpassed $230 million in assets,” LaValle remarked. “To gather $230 million in essentially a month is remarkable.”
He characterized crypto as a transformative technology that requires two key elements to gain traction: the technology itself, which is already in place, and regulatory clarity. The GENIUS Act has established a framework for stablecoins backed by U.S. Treasuries, and the CLARITY Act, which addresses market structure, may be voted on “within the next month or two.”
For advisors, the key selling point is yield. “Products such as Ethereum or Solana ... will incorporate staking,” LaValle noted, referencing ether yields around 3% and solana exceeding 5%.
What unifies these elements is convergence. “It's not the crypto market or the TradFi market. It's the market,” he asserted. A global equity market valued at $200 trillion is on the verge of tokenization, which, in his view, is “happening, I assure you.”
Read the full interview at The Wealth Advisor.
Headlines of the Week
- By Helene Braun
Recent developments in the crypto space have highlighted several key institutional trends, as SpaceX's anticipated IPO has reignited discussions about corporate bitcoin treasuries, BlackRock has introduced a bitcoin income fund targeting clients interested in cash flow rather than solely price appreciation, and Ethereum proponents argue that Wall Street is advancing towards large-scale adoption of blockchain technology. Collectively, these events indicate a shift towards a phase where investors are increasingly considering how digital assets integrate into portfolios, balance sheets, and financial markets rather than merely focusing on price movements.
- What SpaceX's IPO Means for Its $1.3 Billion Bitcoin Reserve: The largest public company now holds bitcoin as a treasury reserve rather than a business model. Its initial earnings cycles will determine which corporate crypto model endures in a bear market.
- BlackRock's New Bitcoin Income Fund Provides Cash Flow with BTC Exposure: Following the $49 billion success of IBIT, BlackRock indicates that clients are increasingly seeking avenues to generate income from long-term bitcoin holdings.
- Wall Street is Advancing Beyond Crypto Pilots into Ethereum, According to Etherealize Founder: In a conversation with CoinDesk, Etherealize co-founder Vivek Raman stated that Ethereum is currently transitioning, with infrastructure largely established but adoption not yet fully reflected in ETH's value.
Chart of the Week
GEODNET: Record Revenue as Price Aligns
GEODNET's weekly revenue has approximately tripled since mid-2025, reaching around $200k (with a peak of ~$222k in early May 2026), yet GEOD's price fell from ~$0.24 to lows of ~$0.12 during the same period, despite 80% of those fees supporting buyback-and-burn. Only in recent weeks has the price started to recover to roughly ~$0.22, beginning to address the significant gap between fundamentals and price.
Listen. Read. Watch. Engage.
- Listen: Are Crypto Perpetuals Futures or Swaps? Kalshi vs. John Lothian. CoinDesk's The Policy Protocol features Rebecca Rettig and Renato Mariotti discussing the CFTC's proposed rule-making on prediction markets and event contracts, debating whether crypto perpetuals should be classified as futures or swaps.
- Read: In “Crypto for Advisors”, Joshua de Vos from CoinDesk evaluates May’s crypto ETF outflows to interpret current market signals. Furthermore, Bryan Courchesne from DAiM discusses strategies for investors navigating the current market landscape.
- Watch: SpaceX's $75B IPO Includes $1.2B in Bitcoin, featuring CoinDesk's Sam Ewen. SpaceX raised $75 billion in the largest IPO ever. The company possesses 18,712 bitcoin valued at approximately $1.2 billion, offering SPCX investors indirect BTC exposure.
- Engage: Are you aware of the speakers at The CoinDesk: Policy & Regulation event in D.C. on September 24? Confirmed speakers include Congressman Warren Davidson (R-OH), Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN), Chairman French Hill (R-AR), Chief Counsel of the Crypto Task Force Taylor Lindman, Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY), and others!
For more updates, stay tuned for the latest crypto news from coindesk.com and market insights from coindesk.com/institutions.
Note: The opinions expressed in this column reflect those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of CoinDesk, Inc., CoinDesk Indices, or its owners and affiliates.
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CEX Volumes Decline to Lowest Since September 2024 as RWA Perpetuals Reach All-Time High
CEX Volumes Decline to Lowest Since September 2024 as RWA Perpetuals Reach All-Time High
In May, total exchange volumes decreased by 3.45% to $4.41T, marking the lowest level since September 2024. Conversely, RWA perpetual futures volumes surged by 10.4%, achieving a new record high.
By CoinDesk ResearchJun 15, 2026In May, total exchange volumes decreased by 3.45% to $4.41T, marking the lowest level since September 2024. Conversely, RWA perpetual futures volumes surged by 10.4%, achieving a new record high.
Why it matters:
In May, total exchange volumes decreased by 3.45% to $4.41T, marking the lowest level since September 2024. Conversely, RWA perpetual futures volumes surged by 10.4%, achieving a new record high.
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