Alternative Investing Report - July 8, 2026

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*as of 7/7; Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, GOLD

Dallas-based real estate firm S2 Capital dissolved its $400 million multifamily fund at a total loss, returning zero to its investors. Its 9,000-unit REIT created in 2024 has suffered a similar fate, despite a recent $70 million cash infusion, though the total of the loss is unclear as of now. The collapse of the fund’s assets is due to buying low-cap rate properties in the Sun Belt at the peak of the market with floating rate debt that went up as interest rates rose. With expenses growing and rents falling, many of the properties were underwater in value, with the firm losing three properties to foreclosure just over a month ago. As a result, investors in the fund and REIT have been completely wiped out.

➨ TAKEAWAY: While social media has been awash in posts pointing to S2 founder Scott Everett’s lavish lifestyle and influencer wife as red flags for investors, there were plenty of financial warning signs as well. Leveraging properties with floating rate debt in a low interest rate environment is not a viable long-term plan, nor is underwriting properties assuming rents will continue to grow and expenses will not. S2’s properties went wrong in every way - per-unit expenses grew 16%, rents fell 24% and interest expenses grew a whopping 50%. This combination is how the value of a fund goes to zero. This was S2’s first multifamily fund - its second raised $373 million and one would imagine investors in that fund are feeling very nervous right about now.

In the newest episode of Smart Humans, Slava Rubin talks with Sacra’s Jan-Erik Asplund about the autonomous driving market, looking at market leader Waymo and emerging startups, as well as existing big tech companies such as Tesla, Amazon, Uber, and Lyft. They cover market history, current dynamics, future predictions, and investment opportunities across the sector.

💵 Global M&A surges: There has been more than $2.5 trillion of M&A activity globally so far in 2026, on pace for an all-time high and representing a 30% gain year-over-year - and this excludes the massive SpaceX-xAI deal. A record-setting 38 deals were valued at $10 billion or more, across a number of different sectors and industries.

🪙 Strategy sells more BTC: The Bitcoin treasury company Strategy liquidated 3,588 Bitcoin for $216 million in the biggest sale of its history. Though it represents just a small percentage of the approximately $63 billion worth of Bitcoin it holds, the symbolic weight is significant given CEO Michael Saylor’s “never sell” philosophy.

🏡 Housing foreclosures rising: While still quite low overall and well below the rates seen after the 2008 financial crisis, U.S. home foreclosures are ticking upwards to pre-pandemic levels. Chicago, Philadelphia, and Houston currently have the most foreclosure listings, which can turn into deals for investors willing to do the legwork.

🚀 Biotech VC funding: Of the more than $9 billion of VC funding that went to biotech startups in the first half of the year, 40% went to those focusing on cancer therapies and immunology. Likewise, six of the thirteen VC-backed biotech companies to go public so far in 2026 produce drugs related to cancer or immune disorders.

⚽ Soccer’s best cards: As World Cup fever reaches its crescendo, top cards from soccer legends past and present, such as Pelé, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Kylian Mbappé, are attracting more demand from collectors.

🐓 KFC auctions: The former corporate headquarters of KFC and the longtime estate of Colonel Harland Sanders are both coming up for auction on July 28, alongside some of the Colonel’s personal memorabilia.

MemeCore is a Layer-1 blockchain that markets itself as being built for the "Meme 2.0" movement — which aims to somehow legitimize memecoins. Its native token M debuted a year ago and shot up from $0.05 all the way up to a high above $4.50 in April, but concentrated holdings by insiders cast doubt on the legitimacy of that rise. The token dropped more than 70% two weeks ago, and while it has bounced back a bit and nearly doubled in the past week, it is still trading at less than half its value from before the collapse. That recovery was buoyed by a $10 million token buyback announcement, and there is no specific reason the token should retain its value after this spike. Expect further volatility that mimics how other memecoins behave.