The week in one number
The Retail Money Index series began this week, providing a new measure of collective retail investor sentiment and positioning. The latest reading for the index settled at 53, indicating a Balanced stance among retail participants. This number reflects a combination of factors across both crypto and traditional stock markets.
The week's readings for the Retail Money Index showed significant fluctuations. The index opened on 2026-10-18 at 38, categorized as Cautious, before quickly shifting to 69 on 2026-10-19, indicating a Chasing posture. It remained in Chasing territory with readings of 64 on 2026-10-20 and 66 on 2026-10-21, demonstrating a period of heightened risk appetite.
However, the sentiment reversed sharply, with the index dropping to 35 on 2026-10-22, returning to a Cautious state. A rebound to 59 on 2026-10-23 again showed retail investors chasing opportunities, but caution returned on 2026-10-24 with a reading of 39. The week concluded with the index at 53 on 2026-10-25, establishing a Balanced position after substantial daily movements.
The average reading for the week was 53, with a high of 69 and a low of 35, underscoring the dynamic nature of retail sentiment. The change over the week, measured from the opening 38 to the closing 53, represented a 15-point increase, suggesting a net shift towards a more neutral, yet still somewhat engaged, market posture by the week's end.
Several key drivers contributed to the latest Retail Money Index reading of 53. Crypto breadth registered 63, indicating that 25 of 40 tracked crypto sectors were up on the day. This broad positive movement within the crypto market provided a significant upward push to the overall index, reflecting widespread engagement.
Conversely, crypto momentum measured 44, as the average sector move across tracked crypto assets was -0.9% in 24 hours. Despite the broad positive breadth, this negative average movement suggested underlying weakness or profit-taking in many areas, exerting a downward pressure on the index's crypto component.
Retail sentiment, derived from tracked social media posts, recorded a reading of 58, with mention-weighted sentiment at +6 across 51 monitored posts. This positive sentiment component indicates a generally optimistic outlook among retail participants, contributing to the higher index reading.
The risk-curve position stood at 68, with 61% of tracked conversation occurring outside of Bitcoin, Ether, and stablecoins. This elevated percentage signifies a strong preference among retail investors for higher-risk, alternative crypto assets, which often correlates with a more aggressive investment stance and pushes the index higher.
In contrast, stock risk appetite registered a low 33. This was driven by a -0.1 point underperformance of the retail-favorites basket compared to the S&P 500, alongside a volume that was only 0.78 times its 3-month average. The subdued performance and reduced trading activity in retail-favored stocks indicated a cautious approach in traditional markets, pulling the overall Retail Money Index lower.
The ultimate Balanced reading of 53 reflects the interplay of these diverse factors, with strong risk-taking tendencies in specific crypto areas counterbalanced by a more reserved stance in the stock market and some underlying momentum weakness in crypto. The week’s movements highlight a retail investor base actively seeking opportunities while also demonstrating sensitivity to market shifts. The index's fluctuations from Cautious to Chasing and back to Balanced underscore the rapid changes in sentiment that characterize retail trading behavior.
Where the money went
The traditional stock market saw a general decline this week, influencing the overall risk appetite of retail investors. The S&P 500 (SPY) experienced a -0.4% drop, indicating a broad market retraction. The Nasdaq 100 (QQQ), a benchmark for technology and growth stocks, fell by -0.8%, signaling greater caution in that sector.
The retail-favorites basket, comprising TSLA, NVDA, PLTR, COIN, MSTR, HOOD, GME, SOFI, AMD, and ARKK, saw an average decline of -0.2%. This performance, while slightly better than the Nasdaq 100, still lagged the S&P 500, reinforcing the notion of a subdued stock risk appetite among retail investors during the week. The underperformance suggests that retail-favored stocks did not provide the outsized gains that might typically attract aggressive capital.
In the crypto market, sector rotation revealed distinct patterns of retail interest and disinterest. Leading the gains this week was the Quantum-Resistant sector, which increased by +3.9%. This surge indicates retail interest in emerging technologies designed to address future cryptographic vulnerabilities.
The Zero Knowledge (ZK) sector also performed strongly, rising by +3.4%. This gain points to retail investor attention on privacy-enhancing cryptographic solutions. Privacy Coins, another sector focused on anonymity, also saw a significant increase of +3.4%, further underscoring a collective retail preference for privacy-centric digital assets.
The Made in China sector registered a modest gain of +0.1%, suggesting limited but still positive retail engagement with projects originating from that region. The Centralized Exchange (CEX) Token sector experienced a slight decline of -0.1%, indicating a relatively neutral or slightly cautious stance towards tokens associated with traditional crypto exchanges.
Conversely, several crypto sectors saw substantial declines, signaling a withdrawal of retail capital. Yield Farming experienced the largest drop, plummeting by -11.3%. This significant outflow suggests a reduced appetite for the high-yield, often more complex, strategies that characterize this sector.
Privacy Infrastructure also saw a notable decline of -7.4%, despite the gains in Privacy Coins. This divergence implies that while retail investors may be interested in privacy-focused assets, the underlying infrastructure projects supporting them faced selling pressure.
The Chain Abstraction sector fell by -7.2%, indicating a diminished interest in technologies designed to simplify cross-chain interactions. Layer 2 (L2) solutions, which aim to scale blockchain networks, also suffered a significant decline of -6.9%, suggesting a shift away from these established scaling technologies.
Governance tokens, representing participation in decentralized autonomous organizations, decreased by -6.5%. This decline could reflect a broader disengagement from governance-focused projects or a rotation into other areas of the market. The breadth of the crypto market showed 25 sectors up and 15 sectors down, aligning with the overall positive crypto breadth observed in the Retail Money Index.
The pattern of sector rotation, with gains in niche, forward-looking technologies like Quantum-Resistant and ZK, alongside declines in more established areas like Yield Farming and L2s, provides insight into retail risk appetite. It suggests a selective, speculative risk-on approach within crypto, where investors are favoring high-potential, specialized narratives. This contrasts with the cautious stance observed in the stock market, indicating that retail money is not broadly seeking risk, but rather concentrating it in specific, perceived high-growth crypto niches.
What retail was talking about
The share of tracked conversation this week revealed the primary focal points for retail investors in the crypto space. Bitcoin dominated discussions, accounting for 29.4% of the 51 tracked posts. This consistent attention underscores Bitcoin's role as a foundational asset and a key barometer for overall crypto sentiment among retail participants.
Solana captured a significant 17.6% of the conversation, indicating strong retail interest in this particular blockchain ecosystem. XRP followed closely with 15.7% of the discussion, reflecting its persistent presence in retail discourse, often driven by ongoing developments or community engagement.
Ethereum, despite its market capitalization, accounted for 9.8% of the tracked conversation, placing it behind Bitcoin, Solana, and XRP. NEAR protocol generated 7.8% of the discussion, signaling a notable level of engagement for this specific altcoin among retail participants.
A substantial 60.8% of the tracked conversation occurred outside of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins. This figure aligns with the Retail Money Index's risk-curve position driver of 68, which also indicated a strong preference for assets beyond the major cryptocurrencies. This concentration of discussion on altcoins demonstrates a collective retail inclination towards higher-risk, higher-reward opportunities.
Sentiment extremes within the tracked conversations highlighted divergent views across different assets. PEPE, XRP, and NEAR were identified as the most bullish topics, indicating a strong positive sentiment surrounding these specific tokens. This optimism could drive speculative interest and capital flows from retail investors.
Conversely, Solana, Bitcoin, and Ethereum were observed to be the most bearish topics. Despite their significant share of conversation, the negative sentiment surrounding these major assets suggests underlying concerns or a critical perspective from a segment of retail participants. This mixed sentiment across key assets reflects a nuanced and often polarized retail market.
The most-engaged voices this week included prominent figures on social media platforms. WIZZ ( beware scammers ) (@CryptoWizardd), with 812k followers, generated significant engagement. Ash Crypto (@AshCrypto), commanding 2155k followers, was another highly influential voice. Crypto Rover (@cryptorover), with 1619k followers, also contributed substantially to the week's retail discourse.
The concentration of engagement around these individuals, who collectively command millions of followers, signifies their substantial influence over retail sentiment and potential positioning. Their posts and opinions can rapidly disseminate information and shape collective action among a large segment of retail investors, potentially leading to coordinated movements or shifts in focus across the market. The nature of their engagement can amplify specific narratives, contributing to the observed sentiment extremes and overall market dynamics.
What they said
David Gokhshtein, on October 25, 2026, stated, "Polymarket US has Ashley Hinson at 58% odds to win Iowa’s Senate race, with Josh Turek at 42%. I like Hinson’s chances, but nobody should treat this seat as locked up. Want to keep it red? Show up and vote." This statement, while political in nature, matters to retail positioning by highlighting the perceived certainty and potential volatility around political outcomes. For some retail investors, political stability or the perceived alignment of political leadership with certain market interests, such as favorable crypto regulation, can influence their broader market outlook and, consequently, their investment decisions or risk appetite.
Cynthia Lummis, on October 25, 2026, reported, "Democrats asked to cut the annual Regulation Crypto fundraising cap from $75 million to $50 million and add a $200 million lifetime limit. We agreed to both and included them in the Clarity Act. Democrats voted against the rules they wrote to protect retail investors." This statement is directly relevant to retail positioning as it pertains to the regulatory environment for crypto. Discussions around fundraising caps and lifetime limits, especially within legislation like the "Clarity Act," directly impact how retail investors perceive the safety and future growth potential of the crypto market. Such legislative developments can influence confidence, leading retail investors to either increase or decrease their exposure to digital assets based on perceived regulatory support or hindrance.
Anthony Pompliano, on October 25, 2026, shared his investment views, stating, "My current views on investing: - Government will never stop printing money, so bitcoin / gold / land will all do well for 2 decades - AI is drastically underestimated and the best AI companies are significantly undervalued - Shorting individual stocks is very difficult, so I wouldn’t try it but the biggest indicator of whether a company survives or not is the internal speed of iteration now - Bonds shouldn’t be in th" Pompliano's outlook provides a macro framework that can directly influence retail asset allocation. His long-term bullish stance on "bitcoin / gold / land" in response to monetary policy could encourage retail investors to consider these assets as inflation hedges. The assertion that "AI is drastically underestimated" could drive retail interest and capital into AI-related stocks or crypto projects, while his caution against "Shorting individual stocks" offers direct advice that might steer retail away from complex, high-risk strategies.
The Kobeissi Letter, on October 25, 2026, published, "BREAKING: The Memory ETF, $DRAM, has posted -$2.0 billion in outflows so far in October, putting the fund on track for its largest monthly withdrawal since launching on April 2nd. This would also mark its 3rd consecutive monthly outflow, following -$1.6 billion in September and -$400 million in August. Last week alone, $DRAM saw -$105 million in outflows, its 9th consecutive weekly withdrawal. As a result, the fund i" This detailed report on significant outflows from a specific ETF provides concrete market data that can impact retail sentiment. The "BREAKING" designation emphasizes the urgency of the information. Consecutive and large withdrawals from "The Memory ETF" signal institutional or significant selling pressure in a specific technology sector, potentially leading retail investors to re-evaluate their positions in related semiconductor or tech stocks, or to exercise caution in the broader market.
Carl Quintanilla, on October 25, 2026, quoted BTIG, saying, "'. small-caps, mid-caps, transports, semiconductors, as well as many sectors have tested their 200 DMAs. We suspect SPX is next which would bring it towards 7300. an overshoot of the 200 DMA would also not be surprising like we saw in March.'" This technical analysis by BTIG, disseminated by Quintanilla, provides key market indicators that many retail investors follow. The mention of various sectors testing their "200 DMAs" (Daily Moving Averages) and the potential for the "SPX" to test "7300" offers a technical outlook on market support levels and potential price targets. Such analyses can influence retail decisions on entry or exit points, or their overall assessment of market health and potential for further downside or rebound.
Michaël van de Poppe, on October 25, 2026, stated, "Herzlich gutentag friends. Enjoyed ADE for the past few days after being back from Bali. Time to put the grind back on. #Bitcoin’s correction is soon to be over." This direct statement on Bitcoin's price action holds significant weight for retail investors. Van de Poppe's assertion that "Bitcoin’s correction is soon to be over" offers a bullish short-term prediction. Such sentiments from influential crypto voices can encourage retail investors to "buy the dip," increase their Bitcoin exposure, or shift capital from other assets into Bitcoin in anticipation of a price rebound, directly affecting their immediate portfolio positioning.
What the newsroom saw
The Gokhshtein Media newsroom published a total of 667 stories this week, reflecting a broad range of topics relevant to financial markets and retail investors. The volume of coverage indicates a busy news cycle, providing a constant stream of information for retail to process.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) was the most-covered topic, with 103 stories. This significant focus highlights the prevailing interest in AI technologies and their potential market implications, attracting both institutional and retail attention. The consistent coverage of AI likely fueled retail investor curiosity and engagement in related stocks and crypto projects, aligning with the observed interest in innovative technologies.
Bitcoin was the second most-covered topic, with 72 stories published. This extensive coverage reinforces Bitcoin's central role in the crypto ecosystem and its continued relevance to retail investors. The news flow around Bitcoin can significantly influence retail sentiment and investment decisions, as it often acts as a bellwether for the broader crypto market.
Earnings reports garnered 38 stories, indicating the newsroom's focus on corporate performance. Earnings are critical drivers of stock prices and market sentiment, and their coverage provides retail investors with fundamental data to inform their stock-picking decisions and overall market outlook. The analysis of these reports can directly shape retail positioning in individual equities and sectors.
Ethereum was featured in 34 stories, underscoring its importance as a major blockchain platform. The news coverage around Ethereum, including its technological developments and ecosystem growth, helps retail investors understand its value proposition and potential, influencing their allocation to this significant altcoin.
Donald Trump was the subject of 31 stories, reflecting the ongoing intersection of politics and financial markets. Political figures and events can introduce uncertainty or potential policy shifts that impact various sectors, and news coverage helps retail investors gauge these external factors and their possible influence on market conditions.
The through-line connecting these most-covered topics is the interplay between technological innovation, market fundamentals, and external macro-political influences on investment landscapes. The newsroom's emphasis on Artificial Intelligence and core cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum demonstrates a recognition of the transformative technologies that are driving new investment narratives and attracting substantial retail interest. This focus is further contextualized by the regular reporting on corporate Earnings, which provide the bedrock of traditional market valuation, and the influence of political figures such as Donald Trump, whose actions and statements can create significant market ripples. This comprehensive coverage reflects the complex web of factors that inform and shape retail investor sentiment and positioning across both crypto and traditional asset classes.
The week ahead
The upcoming week features a significant macroeconomic event that could substantially influence retail investor sentiment and market positioning. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decision for October is scheduled for Wednesday, October 28, at 2:00 PM ET. This announcement is a pivotal moment for financial markets.
The FOMC decision typically includes statements on interest rates, quantitative easing or tightening, and the overall economic outlook. Retail investors closely monitor these announcements for signals regarding monetary policy, which can affect everything from borrowing costs to corporate earnings and asset valuations across both stocks and crypto.
A hawkish stance from the FOMC, suggesting tighter monetary policy, could lead to increased caution among retail investors, potentially driving down risk appetite readings. Conversely, a dovish stance, indicating looser monetary policy, might encourage greater risk-taking and lead to a more aggressive market posture.
The Retail Money Index's various drivers would likely react to the FOMC's pronouncements. Crypto breadth and momentum could shift dramatically, while retail sentiment and risk-curve positioning might swing based on the perceived implications for inflation and asset prices. Stock risk appetite, which was already low this week, could see a significant change depending on the FOMC's outlook for economic growth and corporate profitability.
Any unexpected hawkish or dovish shifts in the FOMC's statements, or changes in their forward guidance, would likely alter the Retail Money Index and the patterns of sector rotation. Retail investors would be seeking clarity on the trajectory of interest rates and the broader economic environment, which could lead to rapid adjustments in their portfolios and a new read on collective market sentiment.
How to read this report
This report provides an analytical overview of retail investor activity and sentiment, based on proprietary data collected by Gokhshtein Media. The Retail Money Index, a key metric, ranges from 0 to 100 and offers a daily snapshot of collective retail sentiment and positioning across crypto and stock markets. Its components, including crypto breadth, crypto momentum, retail sentiment, risk-curve position, and stock risk appetite, are built from the newsroom's own tracking engines and social media monitoring tools.
This analysis is intended solely for informational purposes and should not be construed as financial advice, investment recommendations, or predictions of future market performance. It aims to describe where retail money moved and what drove those movements, without promoting any specific token, product, or investment strategy. The numbers and data presented within this report are verifiable and may be cited with clear attribution to Gokhshtein Media.
