Bloomberg’s McGlone Warns Capital Exiting Crypto for SpaceX Likely Gone for Good
In an exclusive interview, Bloomberg Intelligence senior commodity strategist Mike McGlone delivered a sobering assessment for cryptocurrency markets: capital that has rotated out of digital assets and into ventures like SpaceX is unlikely to return. McGlone’s comments, made on February 14, 2025, underscore a broader shift in institutional risk appetite that may reshape the crypto arena for years.
“Money that went from crypto into SpaceX isn’t coming back,” McGlone said, pointing to the maturation of both markets. He argued that as alternative investments like private space exploration become more accessible and credible, they compete directly with cryptocurrencies for a finite pool of speculative capital. This competition, he noted, is intensifying as traditional finance offers more diverse high-risk, high-reward opportunities.
Also read: Gareth Soloway Predicts Bullish Run for Bitcoin and XRP: What’s Behind the Forecast
The Shift in Institutional Risk Appetite
McGlone’s warning comes amid a period of relative stabilization in crypto prices, but also a notable decline in trading volumes and venture capital inflows. According to data from CoinDesk, institutional crypto products saw net outflows of $120 million in the first week of February alone, reversing a trend of modest inflows earlier in the year. McGlone attributed this to a “flight to quality” within speculative assets, where investors are increasingly favoring ventures with tangible, near-term milestones—such as SpaceX’s Starlink and Starship programs—over the more abstract promises of some blockchain projects.
The Bloomberg analyst has long been a measured voice on crypto, often cautioning against exuberance. In his view, the current capital rotation reflects a natural evolution of markets. “Crypto had its moment as the new frontier,” he said. “Now, investors are asking harder questions about utility, revenue, and time horizons. SpaceX delivers on those metrics in a way that most crypto projects still can’t.”
Also read: Nikkei 225 Hits Record 69,500 as Market Shrugs Off Anticipated BOJ Rate Increase
Implications for Crypto Market Structure
The outflow of capital to non-crypto ventures like SpaceX carries several implications. First, it may suppress the kind of speculative mania that drove previous bull runs. Second, it could accelerate consolidation within the crypto industry, as only projects with strong fundamentals and clear use cases retain investor interest. Third, it challenges the narrative that crypto is a unique asset class immune to competition from other high-risk investments.
McGlone’s perspective aligns with recent data from Galaxy Research, which reported that crypto venture funding in Q4 2024 fell 18% quarter-over-quarter, while funding for private space companies rose 22% in the same period. This divergence suggests that capital is not merely rotating within the crypto ecosystem but leaving it entirely for adjacent sectors.
“This isn’t a temporary rotation,” McGlone emphasized. “It’s a structural change in how risk capital is allocated. The genie isn’t going back in the bottle.”
For retail investors and crypto advocates, the message is clear: the days of easy capital inflows from institutional players may be over. The market must now compete on fundamentals, not just hype.
