Best FinTech On The Block Podcasts (2025)

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Coinbase and Robinhood Are Converging, but Who Wins the Onchain Fintech War? - Ep. 864 1:25:39

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10h ago1:25:39

1:25:39

The race to bring users onchain is heating up, but the competitors couldn’t be more different. Coinbase, a crypto-native giant with deep infrastructure and institutional partnerships, is going head-to-head with Robinhood, a retail-focused fintech now making aggressive moves into tokenized assets and blockchain rails. Their visions overlap (tokenize…

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Why Arbitrum Won Over Robinhood + A $59 Million Polymarket Controversy - Ep. 863 1:14:21

5d ago1:14:21

1:14:21

Today, we’ve got two very different stories in one episode. First, Steven Goldfeder, co-founder of Offchain Labs, joins Unchained to explain why Robinhood is rebuilding its product on the Arbitrum tech stack, what it says about crypto’s evolution, and how this could finally bridge Web2 and Web3. Then, Calvin Hamilton breaks down the bizarre $59 mil…

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The Chopping Block: Robinhood’s Tokenized-Stock Gambit, Solana’s ETF Splash & the Proof-of-Stake Reality Check - Ep. 862 1:12:07

5d ago1:12:07

1:12:07

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. This week, we’re joined by Jon Charbonneau and Ryan Watkins to unpack the bombshell news of Robinhood Chain—an Arbitrum-based network debuting tokenized U.S. stocks, 3× crypto perps, and that hea…

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Bits + Bips: Why Crypto's Next Step Is Perps, Tokenized Stocks and Altcoin ETFs - Ep. 861 1:16:28

7d ago1:16:28

1:16:28

Crypto is bleeding into traditional finance faster than anyone expected. In this episode of Bits + Bips, the hosts dig into Robinhood’s move into tokenized stocks and perps, what’s actually holding back tokenized equities, and why perps might “eat the world.” Plus, they talk crypto ETFs, altcoin summer, and whether staking in ETFs is the next big u…

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Inside Real Estate Tech Investing: Wins, Lessons & Opportunities, with Head of REACH Labs & Author of The Entrepreneur's Odyssey Andrew Ackerman 44:24

7d ago44:24

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Andrew Ackerman is the Head of REACH Labs at Second Century Ventures, the strategic venture arm of the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Backed by NAR, SCV invests in early-stage PropTech and construction tech companies, providing them with access to a vast network of real estate professionals and industry expertise. A former entrepreneur, a…

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Does Lido's Dual Governance Now Make It the Safest Place to Stake ETH? - Ep. 860 57:41

7d ago57:41

57:41

Fill out our short Unchained survey and earn a chance to win a FREE one-year subscription to Bits + Bips Premium 😏 ------------------------------------------------- Lido just rolled out one of the most ambitious governance overhauls in DeFi: a dual governance system designed to give power back to stakers—and make it harder for malicious proposals t…

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Stripe: The Stablecoin (R)Evolution - John Egan 1:05:36

7d ago1:05:36

1:05:36

Stripe has established itself as a leading payment solution for both enterprises as well as startups and individual sellers. By abstracting away all the complexities of traditional payment rails through simple plug-and-play APIs, Stripe created a facile route for cross-border payments, simplifying e-commerce. Similarly, Stripe’s recent integration …

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t1 Protocol: Unifying Ethereum's L2 Liquidity Through Real-Time Proving - Can Kisagun 1:01:41

11d ago1:01:41

1:01:41

While L2 rollups did help scale Ethereum, they also created siloed ecosystems, all fighting over the same liquidity, users and devs. t1 Protocol is building layer-2 infrastructure to achieve seamless cross-rollup interoperability through real-time proving, powered by TEEs. t1's low-latency with 1-second block times provides faster preconfirmations,…

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How Texas Got Bipartisan Support to Buy $10 Million Worth of Bitcoin - Ep. 859 55:39

12d ago55:39

55:39

Win a free one-year subscription to Bits + Bips Premium by completing our survey! The state of Texas just passed a law that creates a $10 million strategic Bitcoin reserve. Laura talks to Lee Bratcher, president of the Texas Blockchain Council, who helped drive this new law. He explains how bipartisan support made it possible, why this might be the…

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CLOB Battles, Disclosure Fights, and the Meme-ification of Circle – The Chopping Block - Ep. 858 51:48

12d ago51:48

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. This week, we’re joined by Vlad, the leverage legend behind Lighter, a zk-powered DEX taking aim at Hyperliquid in the rising CLOB wars. We unpack the new Token Transparency Framework from Blockw…

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Bits + Bips: Bitcoin Brushes Off Another War & Will Powell Relent on Rates? - Ep. 857 1:05:15

14d ago1:05:15

1:05:15

As tensions flare between Iran and Israel, investors are watching oil, gold, and, of course, crypto. In this episode of Bits + Bips, the panel digs into the market response to war risk, the chances the Fed will actually cut rates, and how Circle’s IPO is being treated more like a meme stock than a fintech play. Plus: Why Scaramucci says we’re all l…

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Crypto and Fintech Are Colliding. Who Wins, and How? - Ep. 856 1:18:58

14d ago1:18:58

1:18:58

Take the Unchained 2025 survey! unchainedcrypto.com/survey ------- Cross-border payments. Mobile money. Stablecoins. Crypto. Elizabeth Rossiello has lived through every cycle, not from a trading desk, but the front lines of African markets. Now, the founder of AZA Finance is selling her company to global fintech giant dLocal, a signal that the line…

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Why JPMorgan and Shopify Are Rolling Out New Products on Ethereum Layer 2 Base - Ep. 855 44:44

18d ago44:44

44:44

On Tuesday, JPMorgan announced that its blockchain unit is launching JPMD, a USD deposit token for institutional clients, on Base. That’s right: the world’s biggest bank by assets and the 12th largest company by market cap is putting real dollars onchain. JPMD isn’t quite a stablecoin, but it’s close. It represents actual dollar deposits at JPMorga…

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DappCon 25: The Ticker Is $ETH - Jerome de Tychey, Joshua Dávila & Nixorokish 1:12:32

18d ago1:12:32

1:12:32

As the summer tour of European crypto conferences landed in Berlin, one of crypto’s cradles, we couldn’t miss DappCon 25, where we got to sit with Jerome de Tychey, Nixorokish & Joshua Dávila to discuss Ethereum’s restructure and whether its culture is still relevant to the wider crypto community. Join us for a fascinating discussion on the impact …

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Toxic Flow, Cancel Wars, and the Unstoppable Rise of Onchain Perps – The Chopping Block - Ep. 854 1:08:05

19d ago1:08:05

1:08:05

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. This week, we’re joined by Hyperliquid founder Jeff Yan, the quiet powerhouse behind DeFi’s fastest-growing exchange. With 75% of onchain perp volume, no VC money, and a $1B airdrop, Hyperliquid …

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Bits + Bips: Why Tron’s IPO Matters & How Crypto Exchanges Will Win - Ep. 853 1:08:41

21d ago1:08:41

1:08:41

In this week’s episode of Bits + Bips, the panel digs into why Tron’s rumored IPO is more than a headline, what Wall Street’s quiet shift into stablecoins signals, and how exchanges are racing to control token flow, even as regulation hangs in the balance. They also explore: What the Israel–Iran conflict means for global markets, oil prices, and cr…

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Arthur Hayes and Hanson Birringer on Hyperliquid’s Success (And What Could Stop It) - Ep. 852 1:20:38

21d ago1:20:38

1:20:38

Hyperliquid is one of the most talked-about platforms in crypto right now. It’s an onchain perpetuals exchange that sidestepped VCs, built a deeply loyal user base, and launched with transparency most rivals avoid. But it’s also staring down some massive challenges—from incoming competitors like Coinbase and Robinhood, to the technical hurdles of d…

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Lombard: Unlocking Bitcoin DeFi Through Liquid, Yield-Bearing LBTC - Jacob Phillips 1:11:09

23d ago1:11:09

1:11:09

Bitcoin remains an untapped source of net-new liquidity that could be injected into DeFi. This would completely reshape Bitcoin’s utilization from a mere store of value to a liquid asset that can be ported cross-chain and traded like a liquid staking derivative. Lombard’s LBTC builds upon Babylon’s Bitcoin staking primitive and aims to unlock new y…

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A Soon-to-Be $2 Trillion Stablecoin Market? Stripe, Shopify and Banks Want In - Ep. 851 48:16

26d ago48:16

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Stablecoins are having a moment. From Stripe’s acquisition of crypto wallet startup Privy, to Shopify integrating USDC, to Plasma raising $500 million for its stablecoin-optimized sidechain, stablecoins are having a moment. And at the center of it all is Circle, which had one of the most successful IPOs in decades. But what’s really happening under…

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The Rise of Public Crypto, ICOs Make a Comeback, and Coinbase Wins Again – The Chopping Block - Ep. 850 55:59

26d ago55:59

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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. This week, we’re joined by a special guest: Laura Shin, host of Unchained! The crew unpacks Circle’s explosive IPO, Tether’s threat to exit the U.S., and the meme-stock logic powering the rise of…

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Bits + Bips: Elon vs. Trump, Bitcoin Supply Shock Brewing, Circle’s Wild Valuation - Ep. 849 1:08:12

28d ago1:08:12

1:08:12

This week on Bits + Bips, the panel tackles the biggest themes driving crypto: Circle’s triumphant IPO, ETH’s institutional tailwinds, and the fast-shrinking Bitcoin supply on exchanges. Plus, what Gemini’s IPO ambitions tell us about the state of exchanges, and whether Ram’s call for a BTC breakout is about to hit. Also on the docket: Is Circle re…

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Jeff Park on Why Owning 1 Bitcoin Is Young People's American Dream - Ep. 848 1:10:16

28d ago1:10:16

1:10:16

In part 2 of Jeff Park’s interview with Unchained, he describes ways that both everyday investors and the U.S. government can use various crypto assets to come out on top as old models and strategies become outdated. He reveals the three personal stories that led him to develop his radical portfolio theory, puts himself in the shoes of Treasury Sec…

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AI Assistant for Real Estate Agents, with HouseWhisper CEO & Co-founder Luis Poggi 32:02

29d ago32:02

32:02

Luis Poggi is the CEO and Co-Founder of HouseWhisper, a startup at the intersection of real estate and generative AI, building tools that transform how homes are marketed and sold. A seasoned tech executive with deep experience in product, marketing, and sales, Luis previously held leadership roles at Zillow and Expedia, where he helped scale indus…

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Staking Rewards: Is Crypto Staking Killing Decentralisation? - Mirko Schmiedl & Tobias Jung 54:55

1M ago54:55

54:55

Apart from incentivising market participants to secure the network through inflationary rewards, many consider staking as an equivalent of stock dividend yield. As a result, although Bitcoin is regarded as digital gold, protocols are looking for ways to increase its utilisation in DeFi and, ultimately, generate yield. Nowadays, while newer networks…

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Pump.fun’s $1 Billion ICO Has Caused Controversy. Can It Succeed? - Ep. 847 57:20

1M ago57:20

57:20

On Tuesday, a pseudonymous X account claimed that Pump.fun, Solana’s breakout memecoin launchpad, would raise $1 billion via an ICO at a $4 billion valuation. The potential deal? Multiple CEX listings, a 10% community airdrop, and maybe even a launch by the end of the month. The community reaction? Not great. In this episode, Syncracy Capital’s Rya…

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James Wynn’s Fall, Ethereum’s Rise, and the Death of the Foundation Era – The Chopping Block - Ep. 846 1:02:59

1M ago1:02:59

1:02:59

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. In this episode, the crew tackles a triple-header of crypto’s growing pains: the bizarre saga of James Wynn—a memecoin gambler whose billion-dollar positions on Hyperliquid ended in public ruin; …

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Bits + Bips: How Bitcoin Treasuries Are and Aren't Like the SPAC Bubble - Ep. 845 1:20:40

1M ago1:20:40

1:20:40

The Bitcoin Conference in Vegas is getting more political. Crypto treasury companies are exploding across the globe. And macro markets are flashing mixed signals, with geopolitics entering the chat. In this episode of Bits + Bips, the panel dives into: Key takeaways from Bitcoin 2025 The possible bubble forming around Bitcoin treasuries How the SEC…

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Jeff Park Says the 60/40 Portfolio May Be Dead. Here’s His Radical Fix - Ep. 844 1:24:24

1M ago1:24:24

1:24:24

Jeff Park thinks the most popular investing strategy of the last decades — the 60/40 portfolio — is dead. Jeff has spent his early career inside the traditional system. But now, after two years in finance, he’s calling for a full rethink of the modern portfolio: from what counts as “safe” to how inflation actually works to why Bitcoin may be the re…

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ETHPrague: ETH Renaissance - Austin Griffith, Brenda Loya, Joseph Schweitzer, Marek Olszewski 1:00:25

1M ago1:00:25

1:00:25

After a decade of existence, Ethereum has gone a long way from its initial whitepaper, yet many efforts in scaling and finding product-market-fit have been severely criticized for falling short of their promise. However, despite numerous other ‘Ethereum killers’ being launched over the years, none has managed to attract so many developers and liqui…

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Bitcoin Treasury Companies Are Taking Off. Could They Eventually Crash? - Ep. 843 42:09

1M ago42:09

42:09

Public crypto treasury companies are in the news right now. Just this week, Sharplink Gaming announced a $425 million raise to create an Ethereum treasury vehicle, backed by Consensys. Meanwhile, Trump Media said it will buy $2.5 billion worth of bitcoin. And in a headline grab, GameStop revealed a $500 million Bitcoin purchase. There’s even a newl…

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Decentralization Used to Mean Something. Now It’s Just a Vibe. – The Chopping Block - Ep. 842 53:20

1M ago53:20

53:20

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. In this episode, the gang reunites to confront a troubling pattern: we’re making the same mistakes all over again. From the $223 million Sui hack and validator-led censorship to Coinbase’s inside…

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Does High REV Signal a Blockchain's Strength or Its User Exploitation? - Ep. 841 1:22:00

1M ago1:22:00

1:22:00

A debate has been heating up on crypto Twitter about Real Economic Value (REV) — a metric meant to measure the value blockchains accrue from user activity. REV includes transaction fees and MEV tips, but excludes issuance — the inflationary rewards paid to validators. Some say it’s the clearest window into genuine usage. Others argue it’s a flawed …

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The Multi-Chain Avalanche - Emin Gün Sirer 31:52

1M ago31:52

31:52

We couldn’t miss the Avalanche Summit where we sat down with Emin Gün Sirer, co-founder & CEO of Ava Labs, to discuss the evolution of Avalanche’s ecosystem and how HyperSDK ushers in a scalable, interoperable, multi-chain future. Join us for a fascinating discussion on Avalanche’s approach to decentralisation, scalability & interoperability, and l…

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Why a U.S. Ban on Yield-Bearing Stablecoins Would Help 'Too Big to Fail' Banks - Ep. 840 45:46

2M ago45:46

45:46

Yield-bearing stablecoins have had decent growth, now topping $6 billion in supply and paying out nearly $600 million to users, according to data from Stablewatch. But just as these products go mainstream, the U.S. Senate is moving forward with a stablecoin bill that could ban them outright in America. In this episode, NYU professor and Zero Knowle…

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Bits + Bips: Why Rate Cuts Are Less Likely This Year, but Crypto's Outlook Is Positive - Ep. 839 1:22:23

2M ago1:22:23

1:22:23

U.S. credit got downgraded. Fed policy expectations are flipping. And Coinbase hit the S&P 500 (while also being extorted). But what does all of this mean for crypto? On this week’s Bits + Bips, James Seyffart, Alex Kruger, Ram Ahluwalia, and Noelle Acheson break down: Why the Moody’s downgrade doesn’t mean much for markets Whether Fed rate cuts ar…

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Linda Xie on How Mini-Apps Are Helping Farcaster Take on Web2 Social Media - Ep. 838 1:00:28

2M ago1:00:28

1:00:28

Legacy social media platforms lock you in, control your audience, and exploit your data. Farcaster aims to fix those problems. But how can it attract developers and users in an already saturated media environment? Developer Ecosystem Lead Linda Xie joined the show to explain: How Farcaster addresses social media’s structural flaws How Farcaster’s m…

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Initia: Incentively Aligned Appchains - Ezaan Mangalji, Anil Lulla & Jose Maria Macedo 1:02:08

2M ago1:02:08

1:02:08

Blockchain architecture is constantly being forced to adapt to new technologies, as well as to meet new demands from users and builders. While the idea of apps building their own chains was first explored by Cosmos, it lacked the support and tooling to see it succeed. Later on, rollups also took the centerstage of Ethereum’s scaling roadmap, but du…

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How the Attack on Coinbase Shows the Dangers of Centralized Exchanges - Ep. 837 47:01

2M ago47:01

47:01

Coinbase revealed on Thursday that cybercriminals bribed overseas customer support contractors to steal sensitive customer data as part of a $20 million extortion scheme. While no funds or private keys were compromised, customer names, addresses, and ID documents were exposed for nearly 1% of the company’s 8+ million “monthly transacting users,” ac…

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The Chopping Block: Rugs, Incentives & Float Lies, Mosi Breaks It All Down - Ep. 836 57:25

2M ago57:25

57:25

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Robert Leshner, and Tarun Chitra break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week, we’re joined by one of the most iconic anons on Crypto Twitter: Mosi, aka @vanacharma. Known for calling out sketchy tokenomics and vaporware valuations, Mosi joins the crew for a r…

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Bits + Bips: Are the U.S. and China About to Reshape the Global Economy? - Ep. 835 1:12:48

2M ago1:12:48

1:12:48

After the U.S. and China announced a 90-day pause on tariffs, signaling a massive de-escalation of the trade wars, markets rallied. In this week’s Bits + Bips, the panel covers the biggest macro and crypto forces in motion right now: Will US-China tariff reset reshape the global economy, or just kick the can down the road? America’s ballooning defi…

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Crypto Pump & Dumps Have Become the Ugly Norm. Can They Be Stopped? - Ep. 834 1:17:20

2M ago1:17:20

1:17:20

The Movement Labs scandal exposed more than just one bad deal – it pulled back the curtain on a widespread problem in crypto: how some market makers, founders, and VCs play games to make money — whether the project succeeds or not. In this episode, Laura speaks with José Macedo of Delphi Labs, Omar Shakeeb of SecondLane, and Taran Sabharwal of STIX…

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Ethereum Foundation: Humanity’s Shared World Computer - Hsiao-Wei Wang & Tomasz Stańczak 1:10:21

2M ago1:10:21

1:10:21

As society evolves, so do its values and principles, but is that desirable for technology that seeks to build the most reliable, trustless and censorship resistant global settlement layer? Ever since the rise in popularity of Solana with its inflow of retail capital in a memecoin gold rush, Ethereum became even more criticized for sticking true to …

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The Chopping Block: Can Crypto Clean Itself Up? Market Structure, Trust, and Regulation - Ep. 833 1:04:47

2M ago1:04:47

1:04:47

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Robert Leshner, and special guest Evgeny Gaevoy of Wintermute break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week: the $38M Move token dump exposes the shady side of market making, with shocking incentives that blurred the line between liquidity support and pure exit…

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Why the Senate Stablecoin Bill Stalled & What It Means for Crypto - Ep.832 28:23

2M ago28:23

28:23

The crypto industry is fixated on the U.S. Senate. On Thursday, lawmakers failed to advance the GENIUS Act, the most significant federal stablecoin bill to date. But the story isn’t over. Behind the process is a drama about potential presidential conflicts, shifting political alliances, and unresolved policy questions. In this episode, Kristin Smit…

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Coinbase Acquired Deribit for $2.9 Billion. Here’s Why It Matters - Ep. 831 42:41

2M ago42:41

42:41

On Thursday, Coinbase announced its acquisition of Deribit in a $2.9 billion deal, the largest merger in the crypto industry to date. In this episode, Owen Lau, executive director and senior analyst at Oppenheimer, delves into why Deribit was such a coveted prize, what this deal means for the global derivatives landscape, and how Coinbase is using …

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Bitcoin becoming global reserve asset 'sooner' than most think - David Bailey 36:40

2M ago36:40

36:40

David Bailey is the CEO of Bitcoin Inc. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined live by David Bailey to discuss the growing adoption of Bitcoin by nation-states and institutions, with Bitcoin heading towards becoming a reserve asset and political force. They also discuss Michael Saylor's Microstrategy, and Bitcoin's separation from the broader…

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Taiko: Scaling Ethereum in a Decentralised Manner - Joaquin Mendes 1:08:05

2M ago1:08:05

1:08:05

Taiko is a decentralized, Ethereum-equivalent (type I) rollup scaling solution which uses ZK technology. Taiko's goal is to scale Ethereum efficiently while maintaining security and decentralization. Being a type I zkEVM, Taiko retains full Ethereum equivalence, which creates a seamless DevEx, although this comes at the expense of UX as slower proo…

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Bits + Bips: Why Warren Buffett's Strategy Would Lose Big Time in Crypto - Ep. 830 1:08:07

2M ago1:08:07

1:08:07

Crypto doesn’t reward fundamentals. It rewards attention. So what does that say about how investors, like Warren Buffett, would fare today? In this week’s Bits + Bips, the crew dissects what’s really behind this rally, why Ethereum’s sentiment problem may run deeper than roadmap delays, and how the stablecoin bill turned into a political tug of war…

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Reimagining Property Management Teams Communication with the Slack of Real Estate, with Synco Co-founder & CEO Jason Griffith 49:39

2M ago49:39

49:39

Jason Griffith is the Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Synco, a centralized messaging platform designed to streamline communication for property management teams like LeFrak and Kaled Management. Synco addresses the challenges of fragmented communication channels by providing a real-time, collaborative environment that enhances operational efficiency acros…

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Ethereum Gave Away Too Much for Too Long. Will Its Pivot Be Enough? - Ep. 829 1:28:27

2M ago1:28:27

1:28:27

After years of underperformance, Ethereum is trying to change course, from scaling the layer 1 to potentially dumping the EVM. In this episode, Tarun Chitra and Max Resnick break down each of these new changes, analyzing the good, the bad, and the ugly. Is this a reset that can save Ethereum’s market position and price? Or has the protocol given aw…