June 2025

The cryptocurrency market continued its recovery, rising 1.47% to reach a total market capitalisation of US$3.44 trillion. Strength was concentrated in Bitcoin, which remained resilient following a mid-month retraction. In contrast, many altcoins failed to recover, highlighting the sector’s growing bifurcation between high-conviction assets and more speculative tokens.

Our Digital Fund, which follows a long-only strategy diversified across Bitcoin and a curated basket of altcoins, recorded a 1.61% decline for the month. While Bitcoin delivered a 2.77% return, relative weakness across the altcoin space weighed on overall performance combined with a 2.15% strengthening of the AUD. The market pullback mid-month coincided with renewed geopolitical tensions between Israel and Iran, including reported strikes on Iranian nuclear infrastructure. During this period, we observed a temporary decline in Bitcoin’s hashrate. While the timing may be coincidental, the episode triggered broad selling across crypto assets, with Bitcoin rebounding more quickly than most.

In this context, Alpha Prime Trust delivered a net return of -0.21%. Although our market-neutral and DeFi strategies continued to perform within expectations, external pressures and portfolio-level adjustments contributed to a modest decline. Funding rates across many altcoins remained unfavourable, limiting the depth of short opportunities and compressing spreads. Despite the result, our strategies remained directionally cautious and yield-focused, consistent with our objective of providing risk-managed exposure through varied conditions.

We remain focused on long-term fundamentals. Institutional infrastructure continues to build, regulatory clarity is advancing in key jurisdictions, and innovation across base layers and decentralised finance is progressing steadily. While volatility and macro uncertainty persist, we see these as part of the asset class’s evolution toward greater resilience, utility, and investor trust.

Alpha Prime Trust

Alpha Prime Trust posted a net return of -0.21% in May. While our core strategies demonstrated stability throughout most of the period, mixed funding rates across altcoins and portfolio-level adjustments weighed modestly on overall performance.

Our market-neutral and DeFi strategies continued to operate as intended, focusing on capital preservation and yield generation through non-directional positioning and protocol-based opportunities. However, the inconsistent funding environment, particularly across mid-cap assets, made it more challenging to sustain high-conviction positions throughout the month.

With many altcoins experiencing double-digit declines, the portfolio remained resilient relative to broader market weakness due to geopolitical uncertainties. We continue to focus on strategies designed to perform in a range of market conditions by targeting structural inefficiencies and minimising exposure to short-term volatility. In line with this, a new strategy is being implemented in July to complement our existing approaches.

We are also pleased to report the successful testing of another low-risk, yield-generating strategy. We are currently conducting further monitoring before considering its inclusion in the Fund. Subject to continued strong performance during this phase, we expect the strategy to be available for implementation in the coming months, offering additional diversification and helping manage risk in challenging market conditions.

Digital Fund

Digital Fund recorded a negative return of –1.61% in June. While Bitcoin gained 2.77%, strength remained highly concentrated, and broader market sentiment toward altcoins remained cautious. As a long-only strategy with diversified exposure, the Fund was affected by capital rotation, an uneven appetite for risk across the sector, and a strengthening AUD (2.15%).

Ethereum declined 2.51%, underscoring ongoing market questions around scalability and network differentiation. Within our portfolio, results diverged meaningfully. Maker (+23.60%) and Uniswap (+18.06%) performed strongly,

reflecting renewed investor interest in decentralised financial infrastructure with real-world traction and sustainable token design. At the same time, positions such as Cardano (-16.67%) and SUI (-14.42%) detracted, as investors shifted toward larger-cap assets perceived as more resilient in uncertain conditions.

At the macro level, a complex mix of interest rate expectations, labour data, and policy uncertainty continues to shape investor behaviour. Bitcoin remains a beneficiary of its emerging role as a hedge against systemic risk, while altcoins remain more sensitive to liquidity and sentiment shifts. In this environment, we maintain our focus on protocol quality, utility, and long-term alignment with real economic activity.