“I am not sure America has the appetite for what I would really like to do”

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In Today's Note

• US equities rallied after Trump cancelled planned Iran strikes, sending oil down more than 4%, the S&P 500 up 1.75%, and the Nasdaq-100 up 3.29%, while BTC held around $63K and ETH struggled near $1,700.
• BlackRock filed a Form 8-A for its proposed iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, Citigroup is launching a blockchain-based platform for tokenized private-company shares, and Avalanche Treasury began trading on Nasdaq under AVAT.

Market Snapshot: Overnight Moves

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Macro & Markets

• After two straight sessions of losses earlier in the week, US equities rallied while oil prices fell, following a TACO-esque reversal from President Trump. 
• Prior to the US equities open yesterday, President Trump wrote on Truth Social that the US “will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT” in a bid to crank up the pressure against Tehran and force it into a peace deal. 
• In the same post, Trump indicated that the US would “be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control” of Iran’s oil and gas markets — likening it to the US’s current arrangement with Venezuela. 
• Kharg Island is the loading point for around 90% of Iran’s crude shipments and taking the island would potentially require US ground troops in Iran. 
• Trump acknowledged that this could be an unpopular move domestically, telling Fox News minutes after his post “I am not sure America has the appetite for what I would really like to do”. 

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• The potential lack of domestic support for such moves may have driven the reversal in his decision only five hours later. 
• In another post, Trump “cancelled the scheduled strikes and bombings against Iran this evening”, citing an approval in “Discussions and final points” with the “highest level of Iranian leadership”. 
• That post ended with the US President claiming that a “time and place of the signing” would “be announced shortly”. 

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• As such, oil prices fell more than 4% with Brent trading below $86 a barrel, the S&P 500 finished up 1.75% and the tech-heavier Nasdaq-100 closed 3.29% higher. 
• The closely watched chips gauge, the PHLX Semiconductor Sector index surged by almost 8%. 
• The increased appetite for risk fell short in crypto markets however. 
• BTC continued to consolidate above $60K, currently trading at $63K, while ETH continued to struggle breaking past the $1,700 mark. 
• Both assets have also continued to see an outflow streak from their respective spot ETFs. Over the past week, more than $400M of Bitcoin has left the spot Bitcoin funds. 

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• The drop in oil prices eased fears of upward pressure on US inflation, resulting in a sharp drop in treasury yields across the curve. 
• The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped ~10bps from 4.55% to 4.45%, while the 2-year yield fell around 8 basis points to 4.06%. 

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DeFi / Web3 / Altcoins / Crypto3

• BlackRock has filed a Form 8-A for its proposed iShares Bitcoin Premium Income ETF (BITA), a key regulatory step that typically signals a fund is nearing launch.
• The filing follows BlackRock's recent fourth amendment to the ETF registration, which "typically means launch in one week" according to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas.
• The form set a 0.65% sponsor fee and outlined a strategy of generating yield by selling call options primarily against IBIT, the firm's spot bitcoin ETF.
• Balchunas added that if he had to bet, "next Thursday BITA goes live,".

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• Citigroup is launching a blockchain-based platform for wealthy and institutional clients to trade tokenized shares of private companies, with the rollout initially limited to foreign investors, according to The Wall Street Journal.
• The platform is aimed at giving clients exposure to large private companies, as investor demand builds around names such as SpaceX, Anthropic and other late-stage private firms.

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• Avalanche Treasury Co., an AVAX-focused treasury company, began trading on Nasdaq under the ticker AVAT on June 11, following the completion of its $675M SPAC merger that was first announced in October 2025. Shares closed down 40% on their first day of trading.
• The company plans to deploy capital across the Avalanche ecosystem and has previously outlined ambitions to acquire more than $1B worth of AVAX, while investing in areas including Avalanche validator infrastructure, protocol development and enterprise partnerships.

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• LG Electronics, the South Korean consumer electronics giant revealed plans on June 11 to launch a blockchain-based advertising network built with Arbitrum.
• The platform is designed to place and track digital advertisements onchain through a shared database of ad inventory and user interactions, allowing advertisers and publishers to buy, sell and monitor ad placements using the same transparent record of campaign performance and user engagement.
• LG is evaluating a commercial rollout later this year to determine whether blockchain technology can reduce friction and improve efficiency across the advertising ecosystem.

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