Schwab and Goldman Boost Crypto Holdings Amid Debasement Trade Bets

Charles Schwab's director of global equity research, Adam Lynch, discussed the firm's crypto allocation strategy, categorizing five digital assets into distinct roles in a portfolio. These include Bitcoin as the 'classic' debasement hedge and Ethereum, which carries more functional utility while still fitting into that broader narrative.

Other assets grouped by Lynch are Solana, XRP, and Hyperliquid, characterized as higher-volatility, higher-risk allocations suitable for pairing with a core position in larger assets. Goldman Sachs is the largest disclosed holder of spot Solana ETFs, with $88 million in exposure according to disclosure filings.

Schwab is adding Solana, Avalanche, and Chainlink to its crypto trading platform, expanding beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum access. Grayscale Research suggests that Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Zcash are the most likely to benefit from what it calls the 'debasement trade,' tied to U.S. national debt surpassing $40 trillion and continued fiscal deficits.

Separately, Solana validators passed a proposal to double the network's disinflation rate to 30%, reducing planned SOL issuance by close to 20 million tokens worth an estimated $1.4 billion over six years.