Tom Lee Says Retail Investors May Be Cashing Out Ahead Of Anthropic’s Nasdaq Debut

Lee said that crypto continues to be the "future of finance" and is headed for a "supercycle."

• Tom Lee said Anthropic's IPO could act as a "supply shock for equities."
• Lee also pointed to Anthropic's roadshow talk about AI "breaking" cyber defense for every company.
• Lee also said that crypto has been under selling pressure the last few weeks, despite fundamentals being positive.

Tom Lee said on Saturday that retail investors may be selling crypto to fund purchases of Anthropic (ANT) shares ahead of its Nasdaq debut, pointing to the IPO as one possible reason behind crypto's recent slump.

In a post on X, Lee said there are several things that may be behind the weakness in crypto. He first pointed to the selloff in AI and chip stocks, led by Nvidia (NVDA). That drop triggered margin calls, mostly among “retail traders in Asia," he said.

Source: @fundstrat/x

Supply Shock For Equities

Lee also expects the upcoming Anthropic IPO to suck money out of the market. He said investors are selling other holdings to raise cash for the deal in advance. 

Much of the offering is expected to be sold to retail customers on Robinhood (HOOD), with investors "selling crypto to fund" their purchases, he said. According to Lee, the listing could also act as "a supply shock for equities," as investors sell other holdings to raise cash for the new shares.

Lee also pointed to talk during Anthropic's roadshow about AI "breaking" everything, from cyber defense to every company, which he said had created "existential fears of anything technology or digital." He described these factors as "potentially" behind the weakness.

The Headwinds Shall Pass

Lee, however, stayed bullish on crypto's future. He said it "remains the future of finance" and was headed for a "supercycle" that was "bigger than past cycles." He added, "The headwinds shall pass," and said, "$ETH is the future of finance." Lee also serves as the chairman of Bitmine Immersion (BMNR), the largest corporate holder of Ethereum. Currently, BMNR holds  around 6.1 million ETH. 

He noted that crypto has been "under intense selling pressure the last few weeks," even though fundamentals have been "mostly positive," with many banks announcing they will use crypto and blockchains. 

On Stocktwits, Ethereum was one of the top trending tickers among cryptocurrencies at the time of writing. Ethereum's price was down more than 10% in the past 24 hours. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around ETH remained in the 'bearish' zone, while chatter around it stayed at 'high' levels over the past day.

Nvidia: ‘Buy The Dip’ Opportunity

Lee's comments came ahead of Anthropic's expected Nasdaq debut on Thursday. The company recently updated its IPO filing as investors pushed for a lower valuation.

Lee has also been backing the AI trade. On Thursday, he urged investors to “buy the dip in $NVDA” after Jensen Huang’s exit, saying that at 10 times forward earnings, Nvidia offered “the best risk/reward in AI at the moment.”

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