Matt and Nic are back for another week of news and deals. In this episode. We review Singapore and Token 2049 Singapore food reviews Is crypto pivoting to Asia? Singapore bans the 3ac boys from the Securities industry for 9 years The offshoring of dollar stablecoins Stablecoins are becoming interest bearing Fortress is hacked and acquired by Ripple SEC versus Stoner Cats Sentiment is turning against John Ray III We review Arthur Hayes' party in Singapore How involved was Joe Bankman in FTX? Gene...
Sep 15, 2023•30 min•Ep. 452
Peter Johnson , co-head of Venture at Brevan Howard Digital, returns to the show to talk about his latest theses on stablecoins. In this episode: The origins of Peter's interest in stables We review Peter's prior stablecoin predictions USDC versus USDT market share trends Peter's main takeaways from the Relentless Rise paper Stablecoin usage on BSC and TRON Peter's views on PYUSD The emergence of interest-bearing stablecoins How synthetic USD stablecoins might work Stablecoin comparisons to the ...
Sep 13, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 451
Martin Carrica , cofounder of Mountain Protocol , joins us to discuss their launch of their USDM, permissionless interest-bearing stablecoin. In this episode: Martin's story and origins of his desire to create a stablecoin Obtaining a registered digital assets company in Bermuda Martin's review of regulatory options worldwide and how they ended up in Bermuda How Bermuda has distinguished itself from other financial hubs in the Atlantic How reinsurance is like stablecoins What it takes to get lic...
Sep 11, 2023•50 min•Ep. 450
Matt and Nic are back with another week of news and deals. In this episode: Ryan Salame pleads guilty Our thoughts on the latest turn of the Bitcoin security budget debate What are the prospects for fees to develop on Bitcoin long term? Is blockcspace a race to the bottom? Visa adds merchant settlement tools for USDC on Solana The significance of Visa's move toward merchant settlement with stablecoins CBOE files for spot Ether ETFs We reflect on El Salvador's Bitcoin law The FASB moves to fair v...
Sep 08, 2023•45 min•Ep. 449
We sit down with Lee Bratcher , President and Founder of the Texas Blockchain Council . Lee is one of the primary architects of Texas' Proof of Reserve bill, now in effect. In this episode: The origin of the TBC Why Lee is moving their Summit to Ft Worth Notable legislative successes by the TBC in Texas The importance of getting the UCC to recognize digital assets The importance of Bitcoin mining The origins of HB1666 Why PoR legislation benefited from the industry spontaneously adopting the sta...
Sep 05, 2023•44 min•Ep. 448
Matt and Nic are back for another week of news and deals. In this episode: Tether is actually the most interventionist stablecoin when it comes to freezing Should we be bullish on PYUSD? Why stablecoin data shows meaningful utility for public blockchains Is the idea of a 'crypto generalist' dead? The meaning of the SEC's loss in court to Grayscale Why the SEC was 'arbitrary and capricious' The SEC's blunder over their approval of Futs ETFs The SEC's possible options Our guesses for how the SEC r...
Aug 31, 2023•33 min•Ep. 447
Matt and Nic are back for more news and deals. In this episode: The Bitcoin halving is coming up We review the Republican Presidential debate We review the state of New Jersey Coinbase takes a stake in Circle Hidden tensions between Coinbase and Circle BH Digital releases a stablecoin report USDC is challenged due to their inability to pay interest The DoJ charges the founders of Tornado Cash with AML and sanctions violations Did the Tornado Cash token hurt the founders' case? The problem with c...
Aug 25, 2023•32 min•Ep. 446
Darshan Vaidya, the founder of Credora joins the show. In this episode we discuss: The crypto credit markets, what went wrong in the last cycle and how the market functions today Thoughts on Real-World-Assets on chain Comparisons of risk management approaches in tradfi versus crypto markets How Credora is working with firms to protect customers from idiosyncratic risk The capital raising environment To learn more about Credora visit www.credora.io...
Aug 21, 2023•30 min•Ep. 445
Matt and Nic return for another week of news and deals. In this episode: Geographic distribution for USDC v USDT Blockchains have become dollarized What's the deal with Helium's phone plan? SBF heads to jail We inaugurate a new member of the bad boys Dubai regulators fines OPNX What's up with Argentina's Libertarian presidential candidate? We need a new theme song for the SEC The Prometheum saga rumbles on What's going on with Better Markets? Coinbase can now offer Bitcoin and ETH futures FTX an...
Aug 18, 2023•41 min•Ep. 444
Matt and Nic are back with more news and deals. In this episode: Matt's op-ed in Coindesk SAB121 is still bad SEC scope creep We investigate PayPal's stablecoin Why would PayPal want to issue a stablecoin? What does PYUSD mean for Operation Choke Point for 2.0? Why PYUSD is being launched on Ethereum Crypto as a flashpoint for state versus federal banking oversight The Fed's new crypto oversight program Banks still can't issue stablecoins in the US Ryan Salame reemerges What will become of Ryan ...
Aug 11, 2023•51 min•Ep. 433
Matt and Nic are back for more deals and news. In this episode: Nic's early Do Kwon experience Reflecting back on Terra/Luna The SEC charges Richard Heart and HEX Is the SEC's case against Richard Heart flimsy? Does the SEC deserve praise for coming after HEX? Kyle Davies thinks he's immune from prosecution because he gave up his US citizenship Who's behind the BALD rugpull? Implications of the Curve hack We look at Tether's asset portfolio Kenya suspends Worldcoin operations in the country Is t...
Aug 04, 2023•42 min•Ep. 442
Matt and Nic are back with another week of news and deals. In this episode: Nic's issues editing the show Why Washington is attacking PoR Why Big 4 audit firms aren't working on PoR The Financial Innovation and Technology in the 21st Century bill (FIT) passes out of committee in the House Six Democrats defect and support the bill The Stablecoin bill reaches an impasse because the White House Why stablecoins being limited to the banks is a paradox The SEC settles with Quantstamp SBF gets a gag or...
Jul 28, 2023•37 min
In this episode, we hosted Richard Meissner, CTO of Safe, to illuminate the state of adoption of smart contract wallets following the roll out of ERC-4337 (an effort to standardize account abstraction on Ethereum). Our conversation covers: The limitations of smart contract wallets in a multi-chain universe Account recovery and hybrid custody using traditional institutions Combining account abstraction with intents and AI Worldcoin's use of Safes and adoption of smart contract accounts Find addit...
Jul 26, 2023•52 min•Ep. 440
Matt and Nic are back with more deals and news. In this episode: Was XRP discovered or created? The saga of Otter 841 Matt's wildlife trouble More SAB121 chaos Rep Ritchie Torres sends Gensler a tough letter What is the Torres Doctrine? Terraform labs has a new CEO Our theories for why Nasdaq pulled the plug on their crypto custody business The IRS is auditing the crypto rich in PR We bring back our triple threat segment Content mentioned Matt's thread on SAB121 Bloomberg's profile on Customers ...
Jul 21, 2023•49 min•Ep. 439
Matt and Nic are back with a huge week in the markets. In this episode: Ripple gets a key win in their summary judgment versus the SEC Implications for XRP holders Implications for exchanges and other tokens Prometheum's denials about their ties to the CCP don't hold water How Prometheum is a Potemkin platform Alex Machinsky has been arrested Arkham's tokensale and doxing snafu The Lummis Gillebrand bill gets a facelift and incorporates PoR The prospects for the Lummis Gillebrand bill Updates on...
Jul 14, 2023•39 min•Ep. 438
Amir Haleem , the founder of Nova Labs (formerly named Helium, Inc) joins the show. In this episode we discuss: The origin of Helium and the Helium network Amir's views on L1 blockchains and the path that the company took in evaluating building its own chain versus building on an existing L1. Decentralized Physical Infrastructure (DEPIN) and Decentralized Wireless (DEWI) as emerging categories demonstrating real-world applicability of public blockchains. The various tokens in the Helium ecosyste...
Jul 10, 2023•38 min•Ep. 437
Matt and Nic are back for more deals and news. In this episode: Matt's plover rivalry Matt's struggles against animals Taylor Swift actually did sign that partnership with FTX Are Eras tour tickets securities? Lightning in emerging markets Could we build the SR-71 today? How Ripple was 90% right about XRP being the bridge currency for remittances ETF applications hiccup More SAB121 issues Matt's cigar snafu Why ETF seeding will be a source of buy pressure Sponsor notes: Coin Metrics' State of th...
Jul 07, 2023•39 min•Ep. 436
Jose Lemus , CEO and cofounder at IBEX Mercado , joins the show to talk Lightning and its growing usage in emerging markets. In this episode: The origins of IBEX How IBEX clients are using LN in emerging markets How Lightning as a settlement layer for cross-border interbank payments Lightning as a bridge currency Why stablecoins make sense on Lightning Why EM firms have an affinity for Lightning IBEX's partnership with Grupo Salinas and how they are introducing Lightning to Mexican households Li...
Jul 03, 2023•46 min•Ep. 435
Matt and Nic return for another week of news and deals. In this episode: The problem with SEC SAB 121 Pickleball is driving up American healthcare costs Microstrategy buys some more Bitcoin Fidelity refiles their Wise Origin Bitcoin ETF Why the Prime Trust insolvency is so bad Will there be Prime Trust clawbacks? The SEC is slacking with their document retention policies How stablecoins are mirroring the development of eurodollars How Prometheum's listing strategy might pose a risk to certain cr...
Jun 30, 2023•41 min•Ep. 434
Matt and Nic are back for another week of news and deals. In this episode: Bitcoin hits 30k Wyoming's stable token developments The story behind FTX's mammoth $500m outflow to K5 global Why was SBF spending hundreds of millions cozying up to talent agents? Do Kwon will spend 4 months in jail in Montenegro The Bitgo Prime Trust acquisition falls apart Deutche Bank applies for a crypto license in Germany EDX officially launches Blackrock files for their ETF and others follow Our theory for why Bla...
Jun 23, 2023•40 min•Ep. 433
Wyoming state senator and Minority Floor Leader in the Wyoming Senate , Chris Rothfuss joins the show. We cover Wyoming's crypto efforts to date to create a stable and secure digital asset ecosystem. In this episode: Senator's Rothfuss' pre-politics career and how he came to grapple with the crypto space Why Wyoming has an opportunity in digital asset policy The origins of Wyoming's blockchain select committee How the NY Bitlicense inspired Wyoming's efforts Why crypto policy isn't politically p...
Jun 19, 2023•54 min•Ep. 432
Matt and Nic are back for another week of news and deals. In this episode: Coin Metrics derives new estimates of Bitcoin's electricity consumption Nic reviews his Lasik experience Matt takes Prometheum to task Is Prometheum a patsy for the SEC? Why is vaporware being elevated by the SEC and major exchanges being stymied? We digest the Hinman emails and what they mean for ETH and XRP What do the Hinman emails mean for the SEC's The SEC attempts to make DeFi protocols register as exchanges Blackro...
Jun 16, 2023•36 min•Ep. 431
Matt and Nic return for another week of deals and news. In this episode: Token disclosure practices Matt tries pickleball Sequoia is breaking up into parts Will Chinese and American capital markets be severed? What's in the proposed House market structure bill? Coinbase sues Coinbase and Binance How does the SEC think BUSD is a security? The SEC approves Prometheum as a crypto broker dealer Prometheum's CCP ties Did Gensler solicit Binance to advice them before he ran the SEC? What's going on wi...
Jun 10, 2023•44 min•Ep. 430
In this episode, we sat down with Lili Infante, Founder and CEO of CAT Labs . Lili shared: Her experience spearheading the formation of the crypto taskforce at the DOJ How the crypto-enabled crime landscape has evolved and become more sophisticated Investigating cases where crypto is used and the unique challenges in establishing a chain of custody Products CAT Labs is building to more effectively recover digital assets and protect against situations where assets are compromised in the first pla...
Jun 05, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 429
Matt and Nic are back for another week of news and deals. In this episode: The debt ceiling debate is resolved What happened to Paxos' / Paypal's stablecoin? Offshore dollar stablecoins are growing while onshore stablecoins are shrinking Stablecoin policy in the US is backfiring USD stables issued out of Hong Kong Tether reaches a new all time high The bad boys are back SBF's defense will reportedly claim he got bad advice from Fenwick Farenheit wins the bid for the Celcius assets Why Celcius' m...
Jun 02, 2023•33 min•Ep. 428
Matt and Nic return for another week of news and deals. In this episode: Validators sign up to stake ETH post merge Will there be MEV on Bitcoin? What's the deal with Worldcoin? Is the wash sale tax loophole stalling the debt ceiling negotiations? Have ordinals changed Bitcoin culture? The Fed releases new data on crypto adoption in the U.S. Paradigm adds AI to their mandate Whip Tom Emmer and Rep Darren Soto introduce the Securities Clarity Act The NYT reports that prosecutors have a mountain o...
May 26, 2023•44 min•Ep. 427
Nic and Matt return for another week of news and deals. In this episode: Nic and Matt reminisce on the Bitcoin Miami conference Ripple wins a key victory over the SEC in the Hinman test Texas passes a proof of reserve bill The SEC alleges that Filecoin is a security What's the deal with Worldcoin? How biometrics and blockchain can help with AI Regulating AI Tether is buying Bitcoin John Ray is trying to claw back more funds Is Michael Lewis an innocent bystander in the FTX situation? Sponsor not...
May 19, 2023•44 min•Ep. 426
Chris Ellis, Head of Strategic Initiatives at FactSet and Tim Rice, founder of Coin Metrics join the show. In this episode we discuss: The partnership between FactSet and Coin Metrics how the companies are jointly going to market. How FactSet thinks about partnerships and how digital assets has evolved as an area of focus at the company. The features and functionality that FactSet users are asking for as it relates to crypto/digital asset data. The future of asset tokenization and the regulatory...
May 17, 2023•42 min•Ep. 425
Matt and Nic return for another week of news and deals. In this episode: BRC20 PEPE versus ERC20 PEPE Is PEPE an alt right coin? What's driving up fees on Bitcoin? The relationship between HEX, XEN, and VPMX Bitcoin's circular firing squad The upside of high fees in Bitcoin Why the White House's DAME mining tax is counterproductive What is the $18b tax loophole the Biden admin thinks crypto investors are taking advantage of? What's the deal with blue checks? The difficulty of bootstrapping new s...
May 12, 2023•44 min•Ep. 424
Steven Walbroehl, the co-founder and CTO of Halborn joins the show. In this episode we discuss: Steven's crypto origin story and how he began tinkering with public blockchains. How Halborn's work differs across traditional financial services customers versus decentralized organization customers. Basic recommendations for companies entering the public blockchain ecosystem. Halborn's recent discovery of a zero-day exploit impacting 280 public blockchains. Views on market manipulation and game theo...
May 08, 2023•40 min•Ep. 423
