Nikolas Sargeant
TL;DR
-
RockawayX has acquired crypto hedge fund Relayer Capital to expand into long-short liquid investment strategies.
-
Relayer will be renamed the RockawayX Liquid Opportunities Fund and will target undervalued crypto tokens and related equities.
-
Relayer founder Austin Barack will become the new fund’s chief investment officer.
Cryptocurrency investment firm RockawayX has acquired Relayer Capital as it seeks to add long-short strategies to its investment platform and strengthen its presence in the United States.
RockawayX, which manages approximately $2 billion in assets, announced the acquisition on Tuesday. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Relayer Becomes RockawayX Liquid Opportunities Fund
Following the acquisition, Relayer will be rebranded as the RockawayX Liquid Opportunities Fund.
The new vehicle will focus on identifying undervalued liquid cryptocurrency tokens and publicly traded companies connected to the digital asset industry.
Relayer founder Austin Barack will join RockawayX as the fund’s chief investment officer and continue overseeing its investment strategy.
RockawayX is reportedly seeking to raise $150 million for the fund, according to sources familiar with the plans.
Relayer’s liquid investment strategy generated a net return of approximately 70% from the beginning of the year through August 21, RockawayX said.
The firm also claimed that the strategy outperformed an equally weighted basket of Bitcoin, Ether and Solana by 86% over the same period.
Relayer uses long and short positions—including pair trades—to express its fundamental views on individual cryptocurrencies. The approach is designed to capture asset-specific opportunities while reducing exposure to wider market movements when necessary.
RockawayX Sees Opportunities in Mispriced Crypto Assets
RockawayX CEO Viktor Fischer said current market conditions create a favorable environment for the strategy.
According to Fischer, the cryptocurrency industry now includes companies with substantial revenue and stronger fundamentals that can be analyzed using more conventional investment methods.
However, he argued that the market remains inefficient and frequently misprices these businesses and their associated tokens, creating opportunities for active fund managers.
The deal expands RockawayX beyond its existing investment activities and gives the firm an established long-short fund focused on liquid crypto markets.
It also supports the company’s expansion in the United States, where institutional interest in cryptocurrency funds and related equities has continued to grow.
Adding Relayer’s strategy allows RockawayX to pursue returns in both rising and declining markets instead of relying entirely on long-term price appreciation.
Bitcoin Rally Signals Renewed Market Momentum
The acquisition follows a sharp recovery across the cryptocurrency market. Bitcoin recorded its largest dollar-denominated weekly gain on record last week and briefly climbed to approximately $81,000.
The cryptocurrency subsequently declined 1.68% over 24 hours to around $79,064 as traders took profits.
Barack said he believes the crypto market has shown clear indications of reaching a bottom. He compared the current environment with the recoveries following previous bear markets in 2020 and 2023, which produced substantial positive repricing across digital assets.
