Alternative Investing Report - September 17, 2025

*as of 9/16; Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, CL50

Housing values have been flat over the past year, according to Zillow’s Home Value Index, marking the second-lowest annual growth since 2018. Total inventory fell 1.3% monthly, and new listings fell 7.3%, reaching a new low for August since recordkeeping began. Pending sales are also down by 2.6%, as the market continues its stalemate. The South has shifted to a buyer’s market, with values falling significantly in a number of Texas and Florida markets, while the Northeast and San Francisco Bay Area remain seller’s markets.

➨ TAKEAWAY: Much of the country has been trending towards a buyer’s market as inventory grew and prices fell or stayed flat, but now sellers are starting to think twice about listing their homes. There is hope that the recent decline in mortgage rates and more potential rate cuts throughout the rest of the year could thaw the freeze and encourage more buyers and sellers to come off the sidelines.

Vincent’s Slava Rubin, Grayscale’s Zach Pandl and Fundstrat’s Sean Farrell discussed the future of digital assets beyond Bitcoin, looking at the rise of digital asset treasuries (DATs), the implications of tokenization, and the growing importance of stablecoins in the financial ecosystem. They showcased emerging products and strategies including Grayscale’s growing product set, for investors seeking more broad-based exposure. They also provided insights into how to access crypto investments, challenges of pricing and valuation, and made predictions on the future of the crypto market.

Through the first half of the year, fine art sales at auction declined in total value 8.8% year-over-year, and the number of lots sold at auction fell 2.4%. Ultra-contemporary art took the biggest hit, with a 31.3% decline, while the Old Masters category actually saw a 24.4% gain. The number of artworks that sold for more than $10 million was the lowest in a decade, while the number that sold for between $1 million and $10 million increased by 6.7%.

➨ TAKEAWAY: The art market is in the midst of a correction, with wealthy buyers less willing to spend eight figures on artwork or to splurge on younger artists. Even sales for works under $100,000 and under $10,000 fell by around 10% year-over-year, indicating that the lower end of the market is also feeling squeezed.

📈 Alts in retirement accounts: As soon as the end of the year, Goldman Sachs and T. Rowe Price are planning to offer retail clients access to alternative assets to hold in retirement accounts. While some funds will have only a small portion invested in alts, there will be products for wealthier clients that will be made up of primarily asset classes such as private credit and private equity.

🤖 Robotics funding surging: With deal value rising 170% quarterly and 263% year-over-year, the robotics sector has become one of the hottest in venture capital, as it overlaps with the similarly surging AI and defense tech themes.

📊 Retail sales still growing: Despite economic uncertainty and declining consumer sentiment, U.S. retail sales rose 0.6% in August, matching July’s strong growth and defying expectations.

🏢 Fear & Greed index unchanged: The Q325 JBREC + CRE Daily Fear and Greed Index remained at 56, slightly above the midpoint, with the industrial sector registering the highest investor confidence and office sentiment improving.

🏡 Homebuilder sentiment steady: The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) was unchanged from its August reading, though future sales expectations rose as mortgage rates fell.

💵 Advent’s $20 billion fund: The private equity firm has raised $20 billion for its latest buyout fund, slightly below its last fund from 2022, but a strong showing given the relatively tepid fundraising environment.

We wrote about MYX - the native token of the decentralized exchange MYX Finance - last week, after it had risen in price dramatically from $1.30 to nearly $17. Not surprisingly, it gave back some of those gains, posting the biggest weekly loss of any coin in the top-100 by market cap. There had been concerns last week about market manipulation, and it is always suspicious whenever a token comes out of nowhere to post a 1000+% gain in a week. Don’t be surprised if the price of MYX keeps declining, potentially all the way back to where it was before the pump occurred.