Good morning contrarians! Stocks put in a major rally yesterday on news that First Republic Bank was receiving a cash infusion. Was that it for the 2023 banking crisis?

The First Republic cash infusion is nice, but are other banks in similar need? Over the past two days we’ve had two major institutions, one in Switzerland and the other in California, receive massive support of one form or another.

Markets seem to be behaving like we’re done. Look at cryptos especially, with bitcoin up another 7% this morning to move north of $26,000 again. Is this narrative right? It could be. Or this could be an opportune time to take out insurance just in case there is another shoe (or several) to drop. There are various ways one can do this, from buying put options or inverse ETFs or maybe even bonds, each with its own pitfalls. Do your own research, make your own decisions.

More in today’s briefing/podcast, available for premium subscribers here: