The Arena

You've just entered the cryptocurrency market with the hope, "Wow, I'm going to get rich suddenly" then you try buying a few tokens that you find interesting.

One week later, you see your portfolio has gone down and you don't know why. You need an edge to win.

What is an edge in crypto trading, and why do you need it?

Edge is information, skill, or positioning that lets you act earlier, smarter, or cheaper than the majority. Crypto markets ( or financial markets in general ) are zero sum game before trading fees.

In trading, a zero-sum game refers to the idea that when one person wins, there must be someone else who loses.

Crypto is tech money, to win in tech money you need TECH (and money).

Tech money

People without technical understanding often feel that “the market is manipulated” while those with a tech edge see rules, incentives, and code.

How do you build an edge in tech money if you don’t know how to write code? How do you automate data flow? You’ll just end up stuck drawing charts like a piece of shit (you actually need to do that, just don’t get addicted to it) trying to spot market weaknesses with orderblocks, oscialltors, orderflow, footprints and VWAPs.

There are five ways to gain an edge in crypto:

• Draw a fucking chart. Learn technical analysis and order book analysis. Once you have enough capital, you can build high-frequency information infrastructure to capture market events and create models to evaluate market conditions.
• An online group of optimists, an online group where you can share market insights, an online group where signals matter more than noise, an online group of narrative catchers (not chasers), and an online group who stay positive unless the market truly turns against them. An online group built on consistency, led by a strong leader. (I hate offline, so I made that obvious.)
• Pattern recognition. You start wondering how people actually win in crypto, until you see the pattern: most players just join communities and become idiots. They treat crypto like RNG games, with zero ambition to turn it into an absolute-win game for themselves.

I’ve seen friends turn less than $1k into $20k just by clicking buttons on x402scan, while others scream that crypto is a scam or “an insider game.” The truth is, there are no insiders, if you know how to snipe newly launched crypto tokens or NFTs before anyone else, and if you know how to track newly created X accounts for new crypto projects, like what I did in my community, you are ahead in the game.

In stocks (hybrid money), you don’t even need advanced tech to win, simply through early access by lobbying company owners, founders, or early stakeholders. Insider information and positioning beats everything. Tech money is different skin in the game.

• Enough margin. In trading, you need margin (cash deposited to open and maintain positions). If you don’t have enough margin, it’s very hard to survive in crypto market. Relying on airdrops is no longer realistic. Tech money means having strong technical skills and sufficient margin. Please find jobs first.
• Enough time, Lock in to have skin in the game. Whatever your focus, you need to reserve your time for that, if the only game you decide to master is in crypto but you spend more time dancing with girls in Bali, ngmi.