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Assets tied to the riskiest parts of the market and the economy are getting dumped in unison

If you’re looking for things to worry about, this combination of risk appetite souring on thematic, volatile stocks at the same time as companies that are in the business of giving money to less creditworthy companies should probably be near the top of the list.

Luke Kawa

11/17/25 12:06PM

Speculative assets and parts of the stock market linked to riskier pockets of the economy are tumbling in unison.

In recent weeks, both the quantum computing space and smaller AI-linked companies have seen significant selling pressure, as has bitcoin. Given that crypto is a place with limited fundamentals to draw on, it’s a very good gauge of the ebbs and flows in risk appetite.

“The pockets of momentum chasing which had surged in September and early October, first stumbled on the US-China trade escalation, then continued bleeding and have now been completely unwound, with the selloff one of the swiftest on record,” Deutsche Bank strategist Parag Thatte wrote.

Deutsche Bank stocks with high call volumes relative performance

This sell-off is occurring in tandem with a slump in business development corporations (BDCs) — that is, firms in the private credit business that lend to small or midsize US companies. This space has been rocked by high-profile busts at Tricolor and First Brands, sending the VanEck BDC Income ETF sharply lower.

On Monday, Blue Owl, one of the biggest holdings of that ETF, is coming under acute pressure as the Financial Times reports that it has blocked redemptions in one of its earliest private credit funds as it prepares to merge with another of its vehicles, and investors could be facing losses of about 20%. In the stock market, traders of Blue Owl are hooting first and asking questions later, pushing shares down to a fresh 52-week low on Monday.

The 21-day correlation between the daily percent change in the iShares Bitcoin Trust and VanEck BDC Income ETF has exploded higher, reaching levels not seen since the nosedive and subsequent rebound as onerous tariffs were imposed and then watered down in the second quarter of 2025.

If you’re looking for things to worry about, this combination of risk appetite souring on thematic, volatile stocks as well as crypto at the same time as companies that are in the business of giving money to less creditworthy companies should probably be near the top of the list.

(Probably nothing a good Nvidia earnings report couldn’t get us to forget about, though.)

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Strategy jumps as MSCI allows digital asset treasury companies to stay in global indexes

In a massive reprieve for Strategy, index provider MSCI is letting digital asset companies stay in its benchmarks, sending shares sharply higher in after-hours trading.

The index provider had floated a proposal in which firms where crypto holdings are more than 50% of assets would be excluded from its global indexes, but has decided not to proceed with this for now.

“MSCI has determined at this time not to implement the proposal to exclude digital asset treasury companies (‘DATCOs’) from the MSCI Global Investable Market Indexes (‘MSCI Indexes’) as part of the February 2026 Index Review,” per a statement.

Getting kicked out of key indexes would have caused funds to flow out of Strategy, the largest digital asset treasury company, and its peers.

“At this time,” of course, means the door is open to reconsidering this down the road, as MSCI plans on having a broader review and consultation on the treatment of DAT companies.

“Distinguishing between investment companies and other companies that hold non-operating assets, such as digital assets, as part of their core operations rather than for investment purposes requires further research and consultation with market participants,” according to MSCI.

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Rocket Lab surges to second straight record-high close

Retail favorite Rocket Lab closed at a new all-time high on Tuesday, continuing a remarkable run over the last month that has carried the launch services provider and aspiring Space X competitor up more than 70% over the last month (compared to its close of $49.06 on December 5).

Rocket Lab saw elevated options activity during its run-up today, with well over 3.5x the 90-day average in options volume changing hands over the course of the day.

Other space plays such as AST SpaceMobile and EchoStar surged today.

Despite being a money-losing company — it’s never turned an annual profit as a public company — Rocket Lab’s share price has soared nearly 1,500% over the last two years, generating tons of loyalty and enthusiasm among retail investors.

In fact, Goldman Sachs has made Rocket Lab the heaviest weighting in the latest iteration of its GS Memes basket of thematic stocks, just ahead of AST SpaceMobile, showing how enamored traders have become of such space stocks.

CHICAGO, IL - MARCH 05: Benny, the mascot for the Chicago Bulls entertains during a break between the Bulls and the Boston Celtics at the United Center on March 5, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois.

The S&P 500 closes at a record high

The Nasdaq 100 and Russell 2000 outperformed, rising 0.9% and 1.4%, respectively.

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JetBlue takes off on bullish options activity

Low-cost airline JetBlue is up more than 8% on Tuesday, on pace for its biggest daily gain since August. If the price momentum holds, Tuesday will mark JetBlue’s sixth-best trading day of the past 52 weeks.

The carrier is being propelled by bullish options activity, with more than 53,000 call options changing hands as of 12:14 p.m. ET, nearly 4x the 20-day average for a full session.

JetBlue closed up 4.6% on Monday, as traders appeared to price in medium-term oil supply relief due to the possibility of Venezuela’s reserves getting more developed amid tensions with the US.

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Moderna rallies after BofA raises its price target to $24 from $21

Moderna rose on Tuesday after Bank of America analysts raised their price target for the ailing biotech behind the COVID-19 vaccine, painting a rosy picture of the products in its pipeline.

BofA kept Moderna’s “underperform” rating but raised its price target to $24 from $21, which now accounts for “refreshed revenue builds for lead assets.” Analysts said the company’s cost-cutting measures, paired with potential new revenue from its investigatory oncology vaccines, could bring it back to profitability in the coming years.

Moderna is best known for being tapped by the US government to quickly develop a vaccine for COVID-19 in 2020, a product that remains its single source of revenue. The company has yet to bring new products to market and is now faced with a second Trump administration hostile to that product.