2023 Year In Review
Company Updates, Performance, Looking Ahead to 2024
In January 2023, just when we were in the early stages of our application for exemptive relief, a thought that constantly crossed my and
‘s minds:Is crypto dead? Is this it for the industry?
It is not an exaggeration to say that sentiment was pretty close to an all time low. The news headlines were not helping:
FTX, once the second-largest crypto exchange, declared bankruptcy just a month and half prior, in November 2022, after an incredible run on exchange. This is a major blow to the confidence of the industry.
Genesis, one of the largest market makers and lenders in crypto, declared bankruptcy in January 2023.
In March 2023, two of the crypto-friendly banks, Signature and Silvergate, both failed, dealing a blow to the crypto-to-fiat currency infrastructure. Many said that this would cut off the fiat supply to crypto for years to come.
…And so on. There were no shortage of negative headlines month after month. We simply became unsensitized to the noise and continued to build.
Ironically1, January 2023 also marked a bottom2 for crypto prices:
Despite the onslaught of negativity, the industry chugged along for the rest of 2023 - leaving the bad actors behind and learning from its mistakes.
2023 - Our Investment Performance
We start tracking performance since launch on September 25, 2023, and marked-to-market as of December 21, 2023
+7.5% average net investment return (ROI) across all client book
Across the client book,
The highest ROI is +17.46%
The lowest ROI is -1.015%
All of the returns are achieved while keeping principal 93% hedged at all times
For detailed performance calculation methods, please feel free to contact us.
Company Progress
Back in 2022, we had an idea: to use financial derivatives as lego pieces. The lego pieces can be assembled together into new and better financial products for investors. We call this “composable options”.
Here is our progress in 2023 to turn the idea into reality:
Dec 2022
Began engaging with Alberta Securities Commission on Fig Investments’ platform.
Jan 2023
Fig’s beta platform was developed. Opened platform for beta testing on technical features.
Introduced Thesis Builder to help investors better understand how the investments are created and what is possible with options and derivatives.
Feb 2023
Backtesting of option based investment strategy performance. Benchmarking returns vs buy and hold.
Onboarding option market maker and liquidity providers.
Various feature improvements
April 2023
Changed our name from Fig Finance to Fig Investments to better reflect the company’s business
June 2023
Integrated options data for select equities, such as Tesla, Nvidia, Apple, and Coinbase, to test our structuring engine’s robustness.
Further testing of principal hedged notes specification.
Testing of settlement procedures of notes
Test trading against our counterparties
July 2023
Internal testing of trading and settlement of options with counterparties
Additional custody, banking, and infrastructure setup for flow of funds.
Sept 2023
Received regulatory approval via exemptive relief from ASC and BCSC
Soft launch of Fig Investments’ platform
Successfully graduated from Alberta Innovates' Digital Traction program and grant
Oct 2023
Mr. David Schaffer joins Fig Investments as strategic advisor
Received inbound institutional interest from asset managers, advisors, and investment firms in Canada, Switzerland, and US for Fig Investments’ software platform as a service
Dec 2023
Achieved over $2 million in total derivative volume
On track to reach over $2 million in AUM by Q2 2024.
Began work on version 2 of Fig Investments’ platform3
Themes We are Watching In 2024
Bitcoin’s halvening event is expected in April 2024. Historically Bitcoin’s price has increased just prior to and shortly after the halvening event.
Are rate cuts coming or are we “higher for longer”? The FOMC median forecast implies 3 rate cuts next year. We think the markets may have been too eager to price in cuts.
Is Trump going to be the president again? What would a Trump second term look like?
Where and when is the Bitcoin ETF? Although Canada already has a spot ETF live and trading, we have yet to see a Bitcoin ETF in the US. Will we see a US based Bitcoin ETF approval in 2024? We think so.
To Our Earliest Customers
We would like to thank all of our earliest customers for your support. All early customers will receive exclusive updates from Fig Investments on our product and company updates. Stay tuned.
Cheers to a prosperous 2024!
Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog post is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as financial advice. The content is not meant to provide, and should not be relied upon for investment, accounting, legal, or tax advice. You should consult your own financial, legal, tax, or other professional advisors before engaging in any transaction. The views expressed on this blog are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of any financial institutions or other entities. Investing in financial markets involves risks, and there is always the potential of losing money when you invest in securities. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
After spending 15 years in the market, it still amazes me to see how forward looking the market can be - it is during times of extreme negativity when the prices would typically bottom. Take March 2009 in the S&P 500 as example.
Whether this is a local bottom or not is yet to be determined.
We will have a separate announcement on the new features and product pipeline in a separate post. Stay tuned!