LONDON: Nassim Nicholas Taleb, an academic and expert on the derivatives market, has tweeted a warning about using future contracts to hedge the rising price of bitcoin.
In a Tweet dated Dec. 9, he said: “… there is NO way to properly short the bitcoin ‘bubble’.”
His tweet went out just before the virtual currency began trading on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) on Sunday night, a move which will allow investors to bet on the direction of bitcoin prices.
“Any strategy that doesn’t entail options is nonergodic (subjected to blowup). Just as one couldn’t rule out 5K, then 10K, one can’t rule out 100K,” Taleb said within the same tweet. The bitcoin securities will track the price of virtual currency as quoted on Gemini, a large bitcoin exchange.
Taleb has around 228,000 followers, and is known for predicting Black Swan events, including forecasting the 2008 crisis and the outcome of the 2016 US presidential election.
In a later tweet, he wrote: “Note that bitcoin has a limited number of natural sellers. The entire concept is very concave supply (it costs more and more to extract). The number of producers shrinks with time.”
Following the launch on the CBOE, bitcoin is expected to be listed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange by the end of the month.
The listing of bitcoin on exchanges is seen by some as an attempt to legitimize the cryptocurrency, as well as make it easier for people active in conventional investment banking to buy the asset.
In the run-up to the launch, bitcoin’s value rose to more than $17,000 before dipping.
The opening price for the bitcoin futures was $15,000, according the CBOE statement. Over the past five years, the total value of all outstanding bitcoin has grown from less than $1 billion to more than $262 billion as of Dec. 8, according to the statement.
The total value of all cryptocurrency tokens stands at approximately $423.7 billion, the statement said.
Bitcoin has gained in popularity in recent years as a currency that is not tied to a bank or government, enabling people to spend money anonymously.
‘No way to properly’ short bitcoin bubble, expert warns
‘No way to properly’ short bitcoin bubble, expert warns
Qatar lists first green sukuk as Al Rayan raises $137m
RIYADH: Qatar Stock Exchange listed its first green sukuk after Al Rayan Bank raised 500 million Qatari riyals ($137 million), expanding the range of sustainable Islamic finance instruments in the market.
The three-year sukuk carries an annual profit rate of 4.25 percent and is listed on QSE’s debt market, according to Qatar News Agency. The issuance is the first green sukuk in Qatar’s financial market and the first by an entity registered with the Qatar Financial Centre to be locally listed, cleared and settled.
The listing reflects efforts to deepen Qatar’s debt market and broaden access to Shariah-compliant instruments aligned with environmental, social and governance standards as investor demand for sustainable assets grows globally.
Abdullah Mohammed Al-Ansari, CEO of QSE, said: “The listing of the first green sukuk in QSE’s history represents a significant milestone in the development of Qatar’s capital market. It reflects our commitment to expanding the range of sustainable, Shariah-compliant financing instruments and enhancing the depth and diversity of the debt market in line with global best practices.”
He added: “This achievement also underscores QSE’s role as an integrated platform capable of supporting innovative financing solutions that align with national development priorities and long-term sustainability goals.”
Al Rayan Bank CEO Fahad Abdullah Al-Khalifa said the issuance underscores the lender’s ambition to lead in ESG-linked Islamic finance while strengthening the domestic capital markets infrastructure.
“By offering the first green sukuk to be listed, cleared, and settled in Qatar, we are not only reinforcing our role as a forward-looking institution but also contributing to the development of the local capital markets infrastructure,” he added.
Al Rayan Bank said the issuance reflects its ambition to play a leading role in advancing Qatar’s sustainable finance ecosystem by aligning Islamic banking principles with financing structures designed to deliver long-term value.
The listing comes amid continued development of QSE’s debt market, which has recently introduced inaugural corporate bonds, Islamic sukuk and sustainable bonds.
The green sukuk provides investors with a tradable Shariah-compliant asset that combines financial returns with environmental objectives, supporting portfolio diversification while reinforcing sustainability standards in the local market.
