The BlockTower Investment Analyst CONTEST submission period has concluded.
For career opportunities with the firm, you may continue to send applications and examples of your work via our Careers page.
We are pleased to announce the launch of the BlockTower Investment Analyst Competition to recruit top talent with a major prize pool rewarding the best investment analysis in the industry.
Crypto represents a new global asset class, and with it, a new way of thinking and investing. The skill-sets and types of people who will excel and lead the way into this frontier will come from well-trodden, as well as less common paths. The BlockTower Investment Analyst Competition is a chance for current and aspiring cryptocurrency analysts to hone their research abilities and potentially be rewarded handsomely for their efforts with both prizes and a chance to interview for an investment analyst position at BlockTower. The top 3 eligible submissions will be selected as the competition winners and will be awarded 2 Bitcoin (first place prize), 1 Bitcoin (second place prize), and 0.5 Bitcoin (third place prize), or the cash equivalent on the day of competition launch. The winners will have the choice of accepting prize payout in either BTC or USD, unless restricted by applicable laws, regulations or the competition rules. Winners will be judged and selected based on their work in accordance with the competition rules. The winners will be provided an opportunity to present their theses to BlockTower’s investment team and may be invited to apply for a position at the firm. In addition to the winners, other exceptional submissions may also be considered as applicants for career opportunities at BlockTower.
The Contest is open to natural persons who are legal residents of the 50 United States and District of Columbia (“USA”), who are at least eighteen (18) years of age at the time of entry. Void outside the USA, in Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, other United States territories and possessions. Residents of the states of Arizona, Colorado, Tennessee and Vermont are not eligible to enter. Only one entry per person is permitted. Duplicate entries or more than one entry submitted by the same person or email address will be subject to disqualification.
Good luck!
Submissions are no longer being accepted.
looking for career opportunities? Apply below.
INVESTMENT THESIS GUIDELINES
The below is a summary of the content that should be included in participant’s investment thesis, however, Participant is responsible for ensuring the investment thesis conforms to the full content submission requirements set forth in the official rules.
FAILURE TO CONFORM TO ALL CONTENT SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH IN THE OFFICIAL RULES MAY RESULT IN INELIGIBILITY.
Overview: Participants must prepare and submit as part of their entry, an original investment thesis on a liquid cryptocurrency that has a current network value of USD twenty million ($20,000,000) or greater (as of the date of entry). The thesis may recommend taking either a long or short position but should be meaningful over a 2+ month timeframe (e.g., no short-term trade recommendations).
Substantive Requirements: Investment thesis must include the six (6) mandatory sections set forth below, in accordance with the target lengths. Suggested content has been provided for each section, but participants should exercise independent judgment in determining the appropriate content to be included in each section.
1. Investment Thesis Summary. Target Length: ¼ of a page to 1 page
Suggested Content: Summary of why this is an attractive investment and the form the investment should take (e.g. entry and target exit, expected timeframe, where to buy or short-sell the asset, etc.)
2. People. Target Length: 1 page to 2 pages
Suggested Content: Key stakeholders in the ecosystem (founders, project leaders, developers, influential miners or stakers, etc.)
3. Market Information. Target Length: ½ of a page to 2 pages
Suggested Content: Liquidity, largest holders, price action and technical analysis, lock-up schedule for early investors, current and projected circulating supply
4. Regulatory. Target Length: ¼ of a page to 1 page
Suggested Content: What, in your opinion, is the asset most likely to be classified as from a regulatory perspective (based on US law). Any concerns or restrictions for a US investor? Risk of regulatory action against the project or people associated with it?
5. Confirming and Disconfirming Evidence. Target Length: ¼ of a page to 1 page
Suggested Content: What should an investor be watching for to update their opinion? What could happen to encourage or discourage this investment?
6. Downside Scenarios. Target Length: ¼ of a page to 1 page
Suggested Content: If this investment does badly, what are the most likely causes?
OPTIONAL: Additional information may be provided in appendices, such as timeline of key milestones and events (past and future) for the asset or other relevant information. Optional content will not be graded and any review or consideration of these materials will be discretionary.
Formatting Requirements: Eligibility requires that the investment thesis comply with each of the following specifications:
- must be written or translated into English
- must be the original work of the participant
- must be submitted as an attachment in pdf format
- must be at least 5 pages in length but no longer than 10 pages in length
- must be submitted using times new roman font, size 12
NOTICE: In the event of any inconsistency between the content on this page and the official rules, the official rules will govern.
CONTEST JUDGING AND CRITERIA
Each investment thesis will be evaluated based on three (3) weighted criterion and will be assigned a score for each category. The three investment theses that receive the highest cumulative scores will be selected as the winners.
Criteria 1: weighted 60%: Depth and Breadth of Research – How detailed and comprehensive is the analysis of the opportunity?
Criteria 2: weighted 20%: Creativity – How original is the thesis presented?
Criteria 3: weighted 20%: Quality of Communication? – How clearly does the author communicate their findings?
PRIZES
Winners will be entitled to receive the prizes set forth below, in accordance with the Contest Rules:
First Place Prize (highest cumulative score): 2 Bitcoin (BTC) or cash equivalent
Second Place Prize (second highest cumulative score): 1 Bitcoin (BTC) or cash equivalent
Third Place Prize (third highest cumulative score): 0.5 Bitcoin (BTC) or cash equivalent
Winners will be selected and notified via email to the email address that was provided as part of their Contest entry.
The three Contest winners will also have the opportunity to present their investment thesis to BlockTower’s founders, Matthew Goetz and Ari Paul. Additionally, at BlockTower’s sole discretion, the winners, as well as any participant who submits an exceptional submission, may be invited to apply for a position with the firm.
The cash equivalent of each prize will be determined by BlockTower at its discretion and calculated based on the fair market value as of the first day of the Contest. Actual/appraised value may differ at time of prize award.
Please see full Contest Rules for additional information and eligibility requirements.