Hi Everybody,

If you could buy a wristwatch that is the same quality as a Rolex or a Cartier for $350, would you wear it?

A company called Filippo Loreti aims to deliver just that. The level of support that the young company is receiving from alternative investors is truly inspiring.

Thanks to the power of the Internet this watchmaker has already raised $6 million in two rounds of funding making it one of the most successful crowdfunding projects in history.

One thing is clear. In the future people will have less tolerance for BS. Why pay a ridiculous price for something if you can get something that’s just as good if not better for a fraction of the cost.

@MatiGreenspan
eToro, Senior Market Analyst

Today’s Highlights

  • Stocks On Fire
  • Ripple Making Waves
  • Litecoin Now Available for trading!!!

Please note: All data, figures & graphs are valid as of August 23rd. All trading carries risk. Only risk capital you can afford to lose.

Market Overview

Stocks are on fire as a new found confidence in the White House has given investors a renewed hope that the Trump administration may just get their act together after all.

The issues with North Korea are far from resolved but the situation has found some semblance of containment for the time being. Though the problems have a possibility of resurfacing at any point, for now, the egotistical leaders of DPRK and the US of A are concentrating on other things.

Stocks in the US and Europe are up about 1% in the past 24 hours. The Dow Jones surged 196 points in total logging the biggest single day gains since April.

Typical of such a great day in the market, the volatility is at its lowest point in a week.

The US Dollar has not rejoiced like the markets have but at least for now the price is holding and after the massive declines since the beginning of the year that’s actually better news than it sounds like.

In fact, most of the currencies have been suspiciously quiet lately. Perhaps waiting for the upcoming Jackson Hole Symposium.

Ripple Making Waves

The magic of crypto is currently working hard on Ripple. The XRP tokens have nearly doubled since Monday.

The move comes after several weeks of very little movement. Check out the chart below where we can see a very clear hockey stick pattern has formed.

This surge is due to a brand new platform called The World Exchange, which allows developers to introduce new cryptocurrencies on the Ripple network very similar to Ethereum’s ERC20 tokens.

Critics of Ripple have always maintained that the network is flawed due to the fact that it’s run by a company and not completely decentralized like other cryptos. However, this new development has added an entirely new way to use the network that is potentially so useful that all the politics and ideals are simply not relevant.

Now tell me… why would developers choose to use smart contracts on Ethereum when they can just as easily issue a new token on Ripple?

Of course, the usual disclaimers apply. This is not investment advice and cryptocurrencies are much much riskier than any other asset. However, the idea that The World Exchange is presenting has been enough to shake the zealous alternative investing community.

Public Service Announcement!

eToro is very proud to announce that Litecoin is now available for trading on the world’s number one social investment network.

Feel free to go ahead and try it out now at: etoro.tw/LTC

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