It shouldn’t surprise you that I’m a big fan of the show Billions on Showtime. If you are, too, you might remember a scene from the first episode of Season 3 in which there’s a meeting in a private dining room of a New York City high-end restaurant called Del Posto. The gathering was an “idea meeting” with some of the biggest players in the hedge fund world. In the screenshot below, you can see Taylor (one of the smart people in the series) standing up to pitch their next big idea. Here at InvestorPlace, we have similar meetings between analysts, editors, and research teams on a fairly regular basis. Pre-COVID they were in person… typically in a conference room in the office.

It’s hard to believe that just five months ago stocks fell into a bear market faster than any other time in history. But just this week, tech stocks rallied to all-time highs, led by some of the biggest names in the industry. Companies ranging from Apple (AAPL) to Facebook (FB) hit record levels while the Nasdaq pushed above 11,000 for the first time in history. I dive into all the details in today’s new episode of MoneyLine. While the market gave back some of its gains today, stocks remain the best game in town. Or maybe I should say “one of the best” games in town. Did you catch my debate with legendary growth investor Louis Navellier on Wednesday? Both of us are extremely bullish on stocks right now.

I’m sending MoneyWire to you early today because I want to make sure you have one last chance to join Louis Navellier and me for our special event this afternoon. About 25,000 people have registered for the free webinar where we will debate Dow vs. Bitcoin: The Race to 40K. It all happens today at 4 p.m. ET.  Our Race to 40K debate is all about which asset class is the best game in town… and where you can make money. It’s certainly not commodities, which go on a rollercoaster ride with every bad headline. Or bonds, which are like stuffing your cash under a mattress at this point. But among stocks and cryptocurrencies, Dow 40K and Bitcoin 40K are a very strong probability.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. So if I show you three charts, are they worth 3,000 words? I don’t know about that part, but I definitely believe they can be worth a lot of money. I'm talking about charts that are part of the case I’ll make tomorrow in my debate with my InvestorPlace colleague and friend, Louis Navellier. We have a friendly bet as to whether the Dow will gain 50% to hit 40,000 before bitcoin gains more than 250% to get to $40K. We’re going to hash it out tomorrow at 4 p.m. ET with lots of folks watching, and you’re invited to join us. Today in MoneyWire, I want to give you a sneak preview as to why I’m confident I’ll win the bet… and how you as an investor could make a lot of money.

We’re getting closer. It’s almost time for my debate with Louis Navellier.  If you haven’t heard, Louis and I have a friendly bet about the future of the market. Will the Dow get to 40,000 first? Or will it be bitcoin? I say the latter, while Louis says the former. So we’re getting together on Wednesday at 4 p.m. ET to “battle it out” – so to speak. We’re calling it The Race to 40K. In the days leading up to the event, Louis and I have been sharing our analyses. Yesterday I told you about some of the catalysts set to push bitcoin higher in the coming months. I also explained the “halvening” and why it spells great things ahead for the entire cryptocurrency market. And tomorrow I’ll be in touch to highlight a big move bitcoin just made – and another big move that suggests higher prices are ahead. For now though, I’m giving Louis another chance.

There’s a lot riding on this. If you don’t yet know, I have a bet with my InvestorPlace colleague, the legendary growth investor Louis Navellier, about whether bitcoin or the Dow Jones Industrial Average will hit 40K first. It’s a fun bet for charity, but the ideas behind it are quite serious. We’ll both make our cases next Wednesday, August 5, at 4 p.m. ET, in a 1-on-1 debate titled The Race to 40K. If you’ve read our recent articles, you know I’m also very bullish on stocks and agree with Louis that Dow 40,000 could happen in the near future. But my best is that bitcoin will get there faster. Let me give you a sneak preview of a few reasons I’m convinced that will happen… For starters, bitcoin is already hot and bullish sentiment is soaring. It broke through $11,000 on Monday on strong volume, climbing 13% for its biggest single-day gain in nearly three months.

Maybe I’m in a bit of a betting mood with sports ramping up again. Or maybe I just like talking about making money. If you haven’t heard, my friend Louis Navellier and I have a friendly wager related to investing. Will the Dow get to 40,000 before bitcoin? Or will bitcoin win The Race to 40K? Louis says the Dow, and I say bitcoin. We’re sitting down 1-on-1 to present our cases next Wednesday at 4 p.m. ET. I can’t wait, and I hope you’ll join us. As we get ready, we’re also sharing some of our analysis with you ahead of time. Today, I’d like to turn MoneyWire back over to Louis for more on why he thinks stocks will be the winner. I’ll be back tomorrow with a look at a couple of big catalysts set to drive bitcoin higher.

Yesterday, I turned the reigns over to Louis Navellier, a friend and InvestorPlace colleague. He’s also a legendary growth investor with an impressive track record. He’s made money for a lot of people, and he’s worth listening to. He explained to you why he is confident the Dow will hit 40,000 before bitcoin. Louis made the case that stocks are the “best game in town”… better than commodities, bonds, and even cryptocurrencies. (I’ll say my piece on that in a moment.) He said that every time the Fed has pushed rates lower, it’s provided more “juice” for the market.

Yesterday I told you about a bet I have with legendary growth investor Louis Navellier. Louis and I got together recently, and he told me that he expects the Dow will hit 40,000 within the next 12 months. I don’t disagree with him. If you’re a regular MoneyWire reader, you know how bullish I am on stocks. Believe it or not, I’m even more bullish on bitcoin. So I took Louis’ statement and raised him. I think bitcoin will get to $40,000 in the next 12 months… and I’m calling for it to get there BEFORE the Dow gets to 40,000. In the coming days, I’ll show you exactly why I expect bitcoin will beat the Dow to 40K. But for today, I’m going to let Louis take the reigns and share his argument first.

I enjoy a friendly wager as much as the next guy. I’m not talking about serious gambling, though when we invest we do make a “bet” on stocks that we expect will be worth more in the future. But when we invest, research, analysis, and experience tip the odds much more in our favor than betting on who will win the Super Bowl. I’m talking about a friendly bet on a game or at the golf course. I’m a huge sports fan. I have been as long as I can remember, from my days growing up in Philadelphia through my time as a college athlete right up to the present. Longtime readers know how thrilled I was last fall to realize my dream of becoming a Philadelphia 76ers season ticket holder – and then how disappointed I was when the pandemic brought the season to a screeching halt in March.

The Nasdaq finished today in the red, marking the first time the tech-heavy index has experienced consecutive down sessions in more than 50 days. But guess what? That’s okay! We’ll take a closer look at the recent market action in today’s new episode of MoneyLine, including why I believe a pullback of up to 7% is possible. I’ll also tell you why I do not plan to sell anything in the potential weakness… and instead am working on my watchlist of stocks to buy. Then, I dive into the chart of the week. You may be surprised to learn what sector is breaking out to a new all-time high. I’ll give you a hint: It has to do with the flight to the ‘burbs. Speaking of breakouts, the action we’ve seen in bitcoin this week could be the start of what I believe is crypto’s next huge leg higher.

If you’re a member of one of my investing services or a regular MoneyWire reader, you know that I go after big profits over the long term. I dig deep for the best companies driving and benefiting from unstoppable hypergrowth trends taking us into the future, and then I stay with them unless the reason we invested to begin with changes. (I just talked about this strategy in more detail a few days ago.) Investing for the long term has made a lot of people a lot of money – my own subscribers included. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t a place in the investment world for short-term traders. My friend Stefanie Kammerman is the perfect example of this. She’s built her fortune on trading what are called the “Dark Pools."