Crypto recovery trade may favor equities over tokens

ARK Invest’s exchange-traded funds purchased about $5.4 million of four crypto-linked stocks on June 25. The firm allocated roughly $1.28 million to Coinbase, $637,455 to Circle, $199,895 to Bullish and $3.27 million to Robinhood. All four stocks traded lower on the day. The total crypto market capitalization is down more than 36% from a year earlier. The altcoin sector sits about 45% below its October 2025 peak, and Bitcoin is on track for its weakest annual start in over a decade.

Coinbase reported first-quarter figures showing an 8.6% share of crypto trading volume, derivatives trading volume up 169% year over year on a trailing-12-month basis, and custody of about 12% of global crypto assets. The company said more than a quarter of USDC in circulation was held in its products. Coinbase’s transaction revenue fell roughly 40% to $756 million in the quarter, and total revenue declined to $1.43 billion from $2.03 billion a year earlier. The company posted a second consecutive quarterly loss.

Circle focuses on USDC stablecoin circulation and reserve income. Circle reported $77 billion of USDC in circulation in the first quarter, a 28% increase year over year, and on-chain USDC transaction volume rose 263% to $21.5 trillion. First-quarter total revenue and reserve income were $694 million, up 20% from a year earlier. Live data on June 25 showed USDC in circulation at about $73.6 billion. A 100-basis-point change in gross reserve yields on $77 billion of reserves would alter annualized income by roughly $770 million before costs.

Robinhood’s crypto business generated $134 million in revenue in the first quarter, down 47% year over year. App crypto notional trading volume fell 48% in the quarter. Bitstamp’s volume added about $42 billion of notional trading, taking combined crypto notional to $66 billion for the period.

Bullish reported $51.8 billion of digital asset sales in the first quarter, adjusted EBITDA of $35.1 million, and about 14% open-interest market share in Bitcoin options in April. The company’s metrics reflect institutional flows and derivatives activity.

Some investors are considering ownership of exchanges, brokerages and stablecoin issuers as a way to gain exposure to crypto activity because those firms collect transaction fees, custody fees and reserve income. Tokens provide direct price exposure and involve risks such as token unlock schedules and concentrated memecoin rotations.