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I’ll confess: I’ve learned the hard way that watching a chart perform loop-de-loops is not the same as actually making money. Today I’m breaking down the only two flavors of profit-taking that separate seasoned stackers from perpetual round-trippers so you can finally keep the gains you brag about in the group chat. Stick around if you’d rather toast with champagne than screenshots.
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Today’s Report
The 2 Kinds of Profit-Taking (and How Degens Get It Wrong)
Everyone talks about profit-taking. Few actually do it. Fewer still do it well.
And that’s because there are two kinds of profit-taking. Most people treat them the same and end up donating their 5x to the next hype cycle.
Let’s fix that.
Short-Term vs. Long-Term: Know Which Game You’re Playing
1. Short-Term Profit Taking: De-risking, not exiting.
Say you’re up 5x on some random alt. It mooned. You're feeling smart. This is where short-term profit-taking comes in.
You convert a slice of your winnings into stables—not because you’re bearish, but because you’re rational. You still believe in the market, and you plan to redeploy. You're just playing defense.
This isn’t quitting. It’s rotating.
2. Long-Term Profit Taking: Life-upgrade mode.
This is where you take chips off the table for good. You're not planning to spin the wheel again.
Moving into stables is fine, but they’re still one MetaMask login away from FOMO. Better? Cold storage BTC. Or even—brace yourself—offramping into fiat.
This is how you turn magic internet money into something that changes your life. This is wealth, not dopamine.
Where Most People Blow It
They mix the two.
They take profits “short-term,” then never stop re-rotating back in. The market keeps climbing, the dopamine hits keep coming, and suddenly they’re fully deployed again.
They tell themselves: “I have to make it this cycle.”
That phrase should come with a health warning.
Because here’s how that story usually ends: cycle tops, prices dump, and those unrealized gains become a bedtime story about the one that got away.
A Simple Fix
Let’s say you’re up 4x. Here’s a model:
Pull out your initial capital → Drop it into BTC or fiat. Something boring. Something that doesn’t tempt you.
Take some profit on top → That’s your dry powder for re-entry, DCA, or degenerate activity.
Leave the rest → Ride or die, if you must. But know it’s house money.
It’s basic. It’s boring. It works.
The Psychology of Selling
I get it. Selling sucks. It feels like admitting defeat just before the 10x. But let me offer a few reminders:
• Defense wins championships.
• Nobody gets rich by holding forever—unless they’re BTC maxis or in denial.
• People make money when you hold. They lose when you sell. So expect sell-shaming. Ignore it.
Most people are obsessed with the peak value of their portfolio. But that’s just vanity.
What matters is what you walk away with.
Bottom Line
Short-term profits are for rotating, not forgetting.
Long-term profits are how you win the game.
Don't wait for euphoria to “take some off the top.” Euphoria doesn’t send calendar invites.
I don’t love taking profits. It feels like breaking up with potential. But then I remember: nobody regrets locking in life-changing money. They only regret chasing more until there's nothing left to chase.
And if you must take profits? Do it when you least feel like it. That’s usually the top.
Today’s Top News
Headlines
Meme tokens spiking after celebrity deaths — Crypto tokens named after Hulk Hogan and Ozzy Osbourne soared 122,000% and 16,800%, respectively, after reports of their deaths—and then sharply corrected. The frenzied trades highlight the speculative and volatile nature of meme coins tied to pop culture events.
Goldman & BNY tokenizing money‑market funds — Goldman Sachs and BNY Mellon announced plans to tokenize money-market funds, offering fractional, blockchain-based ownership and faster settlement. Supported by the new GENIUS Act, the initiative involves major asset managers and promises to reduce costs and boost liquidity. This reflects expanding institutional ambitions in tokenized finance.
Strategy ramps up preferred stock offering to $2.5B to acquire Bitcoin — Strategy accelerates its capital raise to over $2.5 billion to expand its Bitcoin holdings, one of the largest such corporate plays to date. Signals growing confidence among institutional players.
SharpLink nears 500K ETH holdings with $295M purchase — SharpLink Gaming boosts its Ethereum accumulation toward a 500,000 ETH milestone via a $295M buy. Solidifies narrative of companies holding ETH as strategic treasury asset
Market Trendline
Price Action
Crypto markets are treading cautiously today: Bitcoin is hovering around $118–119K—off its brief all-time high near $123K—but still holding up well. Ethereum is outpacing the pack, trading in the $3.8K–$3.9K range with strong upside momentum. Solana is also ticking slightly higher. Recent gains seem fueled by stabilized global sentiment and deepening regulatory clarity.
Notable Movers
Ethereum (ETH): Up roughly 3–3.5% today, driven by record ETF inflows, on-chain whale accumulation, and a so‑called golden cross vs. BTC signaling a bullish technical turn. ETH trade is flirting with the critical $4,000 resistance—staking its claim in a potential breakout to $4,500–5,000 if confirmed.
Bitcoin (BTC): Slight dip on the day (~0.2%), but still strong around $118K–$119K. It’s consolidating after earlier highs and reacting calmly to a new U.S.–EU trade deal that briefly sent markets risk-on.
Solana (SOL): Up ~2%—a beneficiary of broader altcoin appetite amid rising optimism on regulatory frameworks and safe‑asset
Macro View
The macro backdrop remains supportive: the recent U.S.–EU trade agreement eased some investor jitters, while regulatory milestones like the Genius Act and Clarity Act are greasing institutional entry. Ethereum is gaining traction as a corporate treasury asset, with firms like BitMine scooping up massive ETH holdings. The widening gap between BTC and ETH dominance hints at an unfolding shift in capital flows.
Bottom Line
Ethereum is clearly stealing today’s show—if ETH can break above $4K with conviction, it may unleash a fresh altcoin cycle. Bitcoin remains resilient but unspectacular, biding its time. For now, ETH’s momentum is the signal worth watching. Discipline is key—don’t get sucked into the next meme coin pump just because FOMO hits overdrive.
Today’s Top Meme
Memes are Life
Me too, Don, me too
i want 2% rates cut . send Bitcoin to 250K !
— #naiive (#@naiivememe)
3:10 AM • Jul 25, 2025
Today’s Top Tweet
Crypto Twitter Never Sleeps
Degen mode activated
We did it - perpetual futures are live in the US on Coinbase, fully regulated by the CFTC.
— #Brian Armstrong (#@brian_armstrong)
4:58 PM • Jul 21, 2025
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DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.