Unchained

Dragonfly raises a $650M Fund IV amid crypto's institutional vs retail sentiment gap, the industry exodus including Kyle Samani's departure from Multicoin, OpenClaw's OpenAI acquisition and crypto Twitter harassment, X402 payment standards for AI agents, Polymarket's controversial 5-minute Bitcoin betting markets, and the brewing federal vs state regulation battle over prediction markets. 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 episode kicks off with major news: Dragonfly just closed their $650 million Fund IV, making them one of the largest crypto VCs not through growth, but because others have downsized. The timing feels surreal — they keep raising right when markets dump, creating the biggest gap between institutional optimism and retail sentiment Haseeb has ever seen. But money flowing in contrasts sharply with talent flowing out. Kyle Samani left Multicoin, Arianna Simpson departed A16z Crypto, and several other crypto veterans are moving on. The crew unpacks what this "great resignation" means for an industry that feels like it's shifted from pioneer phase to settler phase. Then they dive into the OpenClaw saga — the viral AI coding assistant that got acquired by OpenAI, but not before its creator almost deleted it due to harassment from crypto Twitter demanding he launch a token. This leads to a deep discussion on X402 payment standards and why AI agents might prefer crypto over credit cards. Finally, they debate Polymarket's controversial 5-minute Bitcoin betting markets and the brewing legal battle between federal and state regulation of prediction markets. Let's get into it. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights

The crew tackles everything from the CFTC's controversial stance on prediction markets to the real-world impacts of rising crypto crime. Thank you to our sponsors!  Figure is giving away $25,000 in USDC. Deposit into Democratized Prime, earn ~9% APY hourly—and every $1 you keep in for 25 days is 1 entry. Enter here  Adaptive Security: As AI makes deception easier, security gets harder. Adaptive runs deepfake and phishing simulations so your team can train for real-world threats. Explore more The CFTC has announced an innovation council, Chair Mike Selig has asserted that prediction markets are under the agency's ambit, SBF wants another trial and Nancy Guthrie's kidnapping is casting crypto in a negative light. In this episode of DEX in the City, hosts Jessi Brooks, Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos and TuongVy Le discuss how the distribution of the CFTC's council highlights industry's need for better gender equity, why Selig's stance on prediction markets triggers “a huge constitutional debate,” why SBF's push for a new trial is so dangerous for crypto, and whether the crypto industry can do more to mitigate crime. Find out why SBF's search for a new trial has far reaching effects beyond his case. Plus, can crypto tackle crime without sacrificing its benefits? If you want your crypto taxes done carefully — not guessed — Crypto Tax Girl is offering $100 off one-on-one crypto tax services. Their team focuses solely on crypto and has been helping investors navigate tax season since 2017. Save $100 here Hosts: ⁠Jessi Brooks⁠, General Counsel at Ribbit Capital Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos, General Counsel at StarkWare ⁠TuongVy Le⁠, General Counsel at Veda Links: Unchained: SEC and CFTC Signal United Front on Crypto Trump Won't Consider Pardon for SBF: Report DEX in the City: How Crypto Exchanges May Be Holding Up the Market Structure Bill This week's good news: How Ripple is Helping Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity to Unlock Crypto Philanthropy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stani Kulechov unpacks Aave Labs' “Aave Will Win” proposal, explaining why the company wants the DAO to have power over its finances. Thank you to our sponsors! Adaptive Security Aave Labs has proposed a “Aave Will Win” framework that will direct all revenue to the DAO to bring the protocol under “a token-centric model.” In this episode, Aave founder Stani Kulechov explains why Aave Labs is putting its funding at the mercy of the DAO and how the framework could drive DeFi innovation. Plus wen Aave v4? And is Aave Labs' requested budget too much? Guest: Stani Kulechov, Founder of Aave Labs Previous appearances on Unchained: Why Aave's Founder Is 'More Bullish on Ethereum Than Anything Else' Why the Founders of Aave and Sky Are Still Bullish on Ethereum DeFi Satoshi, Shorter Blocks, & Secret Plot - The Chopping Block Stani Kulechov on Why Aave Is So Successful - Ep.212 Links: Unchained: Aave Revenue Overhaul Sparks Governance Clash Aave Labs Proposes Off-Protocol Revenue Sharing With Token Holders The Chopping Block: Aave Civil War + Flow Hack + Coinbase Super-App Aave's Rushed Governance Vote Draws Backlash How Aave Labs and the DAO Should Split Ownership of the Brand – Uneasy Money Uneasy Money: Why Token Holders Have No Rights & Why Every DAO ‘Has Failed' ‘Poison Pill' Proposal Calls for Aave DAO to Take Over Aave Labs AAVE Holders Question if DAO Quietly Redirected Revenue Away From Treasury Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Mag 7 have committed over $700 billion to AI infrastructure, but the companies building the models may never capture the value. Thank you to our sponsors: Adaptive Security Fuse: The Energy Network The BLS just quietly revised away 862,000 jobs, and real-time inflation trackers now peg price growth below 1%, less than half of what official figures report.  If the Fed is steering monetary policy with stale data, investors need to ask what else the models are getting wrong.  At the same time, the Mag 7 have committed more than $700 billion to AI infrastructure, with Anthropic alone projecting $1 trillion in revenue within five years. Is that conviction or the early stages of a debt cycle nobody is pricing?  And then there is the institutional side of crypto: BlackRock's BUIDL fund just landed on Uniswap with $2.4 billion in assets, Apollo acquired $90 million in Morpho tokens, and AI agents are already settling micropayments in stablecoins.  Austin Campbell, Ram Ahluwalia, and Christopher Perkins sit down with Truflation's CEO Stefan Rust to ask whether the numbers we trust are telling us the truth. Hosts: ⁠Ram Ahluwalia⁠, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida ⁠Austin Campbell⁠, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting ⁠Christopher Perkins⁠, Managing Partner and President of CoinFund Guest: Stefan Rust, Founder and CEO of Truflation Links: Unchained:  BlackRock Just Chose Uniswap. The Market Didn't Care. Here's Why. Apollo Moves Into DeFi Lending With Morpho Token Deal UNI Spikes on BlackRock DeFi Move, Then Gives It All Back Macro: NBC: U.S. had almost no job growth in 2025 PBS: Inflation measure falls to nearly five-year low as gas prices fall and housing costs cool Crowdfund Insider: Secretary Of The Treasury Scott Bessent Calls Out Truflation's Inflation Numbers At Senate Banking Hearing AI CapEx: Amazon, Google And Others Are Pouring $700 Billion Into AI CapEx, Top Analyst Explains Why This Makes It 'Hard' To Bet Against Nvidia CIO: Data center capex to hit $1.7 trillion by 2030 due to AI boom Reuters: OpenClaw founder Steinberger joins OpenAI, open-source bot becomes foundation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As miners approach historical stress zones, Bitcoin's correlation with tech stocks is hitting at the worst possible moment. Enter AI. Thank you to our sponsor Crypto Tax Girl! Public mining companies are once again approaching breakeven territory, a zone that in prior cycles preceded forced selling and capitulation. But unlike past downturns, balance sheets today are cleaner, leverage is lower, and many operators are pivoting toward AI data center hosting as a structural offramp. At the same time, Bitcoin has been trading alongside frontier technology stocks. That correlation is resurfacing at precisely the wrong moment, as growth equities face renewed pressure. If growth portfolios were the marginal buyers during the rally, they may now be the marginal sellers. In this episode, Steven Ehrlich speaks first with John Todaro about miner economics, hash rate dynamics, and whether another round of selling could emerge if Bitcoin remains near breakeven levels. Then Zach Pandl joins to examine Bitcoin's correlation with tech stocks, the mechanics behind recent gold volatility, and why the next phase for crypto may be driven by differentiation rather than broad beta. Hosts: Steven Ehrlich, Host of Bits + Bips: The Interview Guests: Zach Pandl, Head of Research at Grayscale John Todaro, Managing Director, Crypto & HPC/AI Equity Research at Needham & Company Links: Bitcoin Miner Danger Zone Major Bitcoin Miners Face Shutdown Risk If BTC Falls Below $70,000 Miner Pivot to AI America's Biggest Bitcoin Miners Are Pivoting to AI The Tech Selloff Wall Street's Anything-But-Tech Trade Shakes Up US Stock Market Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The crew unpacks BlackRock buying UNI, ARK, Citadel, DTCC, the Intercontinental Exchange and other TradFi players backing Zero, , Vitalik's thoughts on AI, and more.  Thank you to our sponsors! Fuse: The Energy Network MultiChain Advisors Crypto Tax Girl AI safety chiefs are leaving, BlackRock's launching on Uniswap and buying UNI, LayerZero launches “the last blockchain” with institutional backing, Kaito is launching attention markets, Base is abandoning social and Vitalik has some thoughts on AI. Hosts Kain Warwick, Luca Netz and Taylor Monahan unpack these and more in yet another packed episode of Uneasy Money. Find out why Kain thinks the Uniswap and LayerZero news point to a new meta reminiscent of DeFi Summer. Plus, is Coinbase's Base playing it too safe? And is Vitalik fighting a losing battle? Hosts: Luca Netz, CEO of Pudgy Penguins Kain Warwick, Founder of Infinex and Synthetix Taylor Monahan, Security at MetaMask Links: Unchained: ⁠LayerZero Launches ‘Zero' Layer 1 as Citadel, ARK Buy ZRO⁠ ⁠How Zero Blockchain Cracked 2 Million TPS and Is Still Decentralized⁠ ⁠Vitalik Buterin Pushes Back on the ‘Race to AGI,' Outlines Ethereum-Led AI Path⁠ ⁠When AI Agents Take Over, What Does a Post-Human Economy Look Like?⁠ ⁠Uneasy Money: How the Increasingly Better AI Agents Are Being Used Onchain⁠ ⁠Uneasy Money: Why Crypto Still Can't Overcome Its ICO Struggles Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The market structure bill introduces a "control" test for DeFi protocols. The problem: nobody agrees on what control means. Figure is giving away $25,000 in USDC. Deposit into Democratized Prime, earn ~9% APY hourly—and every $1 you keep in for 25 days is 1 entry. Enter here Peter Van Valkenburgh of Coin Center sits down with Jessi Brooks and Vy Le to confront a question that will determine which DeFi projects can operate in the United States and which ones can't.  The Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act creates a carve-out for non-custodial developers, codifying the principle that if you never hold customer funds, you shouldn't need a money transmitter license. Simple enough on paper.  But Vy presses on the hard cases: what about an admin key, an upgradeable vault, or a pause function built for security? Where exactly does "non-custodial" end and "control" begin?  Meanwhile, Jessi raises the tension the industry rarely wants to discuss. The DOJ just charged cartel brokers moving money through crypto, yet simultaneously dismantled its own enforcement teams.  If Congress clears developers, who pursues the actual criminals? The answer matters for every builder, investor, and victim watching this play out. Hosts: Jessi Brooks, General Counsel at Ribbit Capital TuongVy Le, General Counsel at Veda Guest: ⁠Peter Van Valkenburgh, Executive Director of Coin Center Links: ⁠​​Crypto Market Structure Bill Clears Senate Committee — But the Hard Part Is Still Ahead⁠ ⁠Senators Move to Curb Passive Stablecoin Yields in Market Structure Push⁠ ⁠Mastercard in Talks to Buy Zerohash for $2 Billion: Report⁠ ⁠How the GENIUS Act Creates a Built-In Advantage for Banks and Deposit Tokens⁠ ⁠How Nansen's New Trading Agent Makes It Easier to Follow the Smart Money Onchain⁠ ⁠How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other⁠ ⁠Reading is Fundamental⁠ ⁠Stablecoin for Babies Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Namik Muduroglu and Amir Almaimani walk through MegaETH's launch strategy and why they are delaying the TGE. Thank you to our sponsors! ⁠Figure⁠ ⁠Crypto Tax Girl Months after its oversubscribed initial coin offering, MegaETH's mainnet is live. But the project is not launching its token just yet.  In this Unchained podcast episode, MegaETH strategy chief Namik Muduroglu and Head of Ecosystem Amir Almaimani break down the Ethereum Layer 2 chain's launch strategy, including its decision to delay TGE. They also explain how the MegaETH is navigating the current market slump and how it is positioning USDM as its long term moat. Plus, why they believe credible neutrality is a “losing strategy.” Guests: Namik Muduroglu, CSO & Founding Team at MegaETH Amir Almaimani, Head of Ecosystem of MegaETH Previous appearances on Unchained: MegaETH Just Had Its Public Sale. Can It Succeed in Building a Web2-Like Experience? Links: Unchained: Ethereum Lets Go of the Rollup Story. Here Are the 6 Tokens That Benefit MegaETH Plans Return of All Pre-Deposit Funds MegaETH Just Had Its Public Sale. Can It Succeed in Building a Web2-Like Experience? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors! Figure Crypto Tax Girl Are bitcoiners underestimating the quantum threat to Bitcoin? That's the question Castle Island Ventures Partner Nic Carter has posed with some recent posts gauging the views of several leading Bitcoin developers on quantum computing. To help answer the question, Unchained reached out to Ethereum Foundation Researcher Justin Drake and Michigan University Professor Chris Peikert. In this episode, Justin and Chris, who is one of the foremost experts on lattice cryptography, break down the quantum computing threat to crypto and the potential timelines. Justin theorizes that Bitcoin developers may not be incentivized to talk about the quantum computing risk while still saying that a number of smart people are already taking it seriously and that may be enough. Conversely, Chris highlights the constraints that come with uncertainty around risks and timelines. Listen to find out what they conclude. Plus, could AI do crypto in before quantum computers? Guests: Justin Drake, Researcher at the Ethereum Foundation Chris Peikert, Professor, Computer Science and Engineering, University of Michigan Links: Ethereum and Optimism Lay the Groundwork for a Post-Quantum Future Q-Day Is Imminent. Can Bitcoin Survive the Quantum Threat? Solana Deploys Post-Quantum Signatures on Testnet Cracking Bitcoin Encryption Is Getting Much Easier, Google Says Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors! Figure Crypto Tax Girl What happened to Bitcoin on Feb. 5? And why does the apex crypto continue to underperform? DeFi Development Corp investment chief Parker White has some theories. In this Unchained podcast episode, Parker walks Laura Shin through them as they gain traction on X. At the center of it all is non-crypto Hong Kong fund and another fund that may be executing a ‘Big Short'-style trade using derivatives. Listen to find out why Parker is so convinced. Guest: Parker White, COO/Chief Investment Officer at DeFi Development Corp Links: Bitcoin Mining Gets a Rare Reset as Weaker Players Drop Out Why Bitcoin Is Down, Plus the Rare Bright Spot in Crypto: Hyperliquid Crypto Sentiment Is Down Bad. The Reality Is Far Different, Says Ryan Watkins Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Figure is giving away $25,000 in USDC. Deposit into Democratized Prime, earn ~9% APY hourly—and every $1 you keep in for 25 days is 1 entry. Enter here --- Bitcoin slid toward $60,000 on Feb. 5 in a brutal, cross-asset selloff that hit gold, equities, and crypto alike. With leverage unwinding and basis trades breaking, long-time bitcoin holders are distributing to institutional buyers who, by 13F data, are mostly underwater. The mood across digital assets is bleak. Against that backdrop, Nic Carter of Castle Island Ventures argues that key Bitcoin narratives have quietly failed—and warns that developers' inaction on quantum risk could open the door to institutional control. If devs don't act, Carter says ETF giants like BlackRock will. The panel then widens the lens: declaring the token-centric VC model dead, debating whether AI now rivals the industrial revolution, and stress-testing it all across topics ranging from Solana vs. Hyperliquid to Japan's political shift and MrBeast's fintech play. --- If you want your crypto taxes done carefully — not guessed — Crypto Tax Girl is offering $100 off one-on-one crypto tax services. Their team focuses solely on crypto and has been helping investors navigate tax season since 2017. Save $100 here Hosts: Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Austin Campbell, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting Christopher Perkins, Managing Partner and President of CoinFund Guest: Nic Carter, Founding Partner at Castle Island Ventures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors! Figure Crypto Tax Girl LayerZero Labs is making bold promises with its coming Zero Blockchain. 2 million transactions per second per node. A thousandth of a penny per transaction. No compromises to decentralization. The big question is how?! In this Unchained podcast episode, LayerZero Labs CEO Bryan Pellegrino explains how the team was able to crack scalability by fixing blockchain storage and rethinking the crypto industry's approach to zero knowledge technology. With the blockchain already boasting partners such as Citadel Securities, DTCC and ICE, will Zero be the blockchain institutions decide to build on? Guest: Bryan Pellegrino, Co-founder & CEO of LayerZero Labs Links: LayerZero Foundation Buys Back 5% of ZRO Token Supply From Early Investors PayPal's PYUSD Integrates LayerZero to Expand Across Blockchains The LayerZero/Wormhole Bidding War Shows How to Value a Crypto Business LayerZero Fought the Sybils and Airdropped Its Token. Did the Team Win? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The ERC-8004 standard for trustless AI agent interactions is finally live on mainnet! In this Unchained episode, Ethereum Foundation AI Lead Davide Crapis joins to explain what the standard is, how it works, how it's protected against manipulation, and what's next. Listen to find out his most interesting experience building the project and tips for builders looking to start businesses around AI agents. Guest: Davide Crapis, AI Lead at Ethereum Foundation Links: How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Uneasy Money: How Ethereum May Have One-Upped Bitcoin in One Big Way Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors! Fuse: The Energy Network MultiChain Advisors Vitalik Buterin just dropped a bombshell: the L2 vision no longer makes sense. Meanwhile, AI coding agents are going parabolic. In this monster episode of Uneasy Money, Ethereum Foundation Head of Developer Growth Austin Griffith and Optimism co-founder Karl Floersch join hosts Kain Warwick and Taylor Monahan to unpack the reasoning behind Vitalik's remarks and debate whether Ethereum needs L2s to pull institutions. They also take a deep dive into the OpenClaw and Moltbook craze and Austin shares how he has different agents running on different machines, including one that texts his wife good morning everyday. Is “AI the new UI?” Hosts: Kain Warwick, Founder of Infinex and Synthetix Taylor Monahan, Security Expert, Metamask Guests: Austin Griffith, AI Lead at Ethereum Foundation Karl Floersh, CTO of OP Labs Links: Vitalik Rethinks Ethereum's L2 Playbook, Calls for Shift Toward Native Rollups How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors! Fuse In one week, OpenClaw agents have gotten their own social networking platform, launched cryptocurrency tokens and built a site to rent humans. In this episode of Unchained, DAIS Global Chair Michael Casey and The Exponentialist co-founder David Mattin explore what Moltbook reveals about the direction of the AI trend, how AI could impact jobs and what a post-human economy looks like. Will Bitcoin be the currency of the future? Don't miss Michael's sovereign AI thesis and how Mattin believes we can navigate the transition to a post-human society. Hint: “lean into your weirdness.” Guests: Michael Casey, Chairman of DAIS Global David Mattin, Co-founder of The Exponentialist Links: How Nansen's New Trading Agent Makes It Easier to Follow the Smart Money Onchain How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Check out David's newsletter New World Same Humans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you're looking for help with crypto taxes, Crypto Tax Girl is offering $100 off for Unchained listeners. They provide personalized crypto tax reports and tax returns, and availability before April 15 is limited. Go to http://cryptotaxgirl.com/unchained to save $100! The White House is intervening in the fight over stablecoin yield. And AI agents are… organizing? In this special episode of DEX in the City, Zerohash CEO Edward Woodford joins hosts Jessi Brooks and Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos to unpack the White House meeting to resolve disputes over the CLARITY Act and the Moltbook craze. Listen to find out why Edward thinks CLARITY should have a narrower focus and what he thinks is more important than the yield debate. Plus why Jessi thinks the crypto industry is pinning too much hope on the bill. Don't also miss Edward's rationale behind rejecting $2B from Mastercard and KK's awkward interaction with a teacher after offering to teach crypto at her son's school. Meanwhile, as AI agents proliferate, where does accountability lie? Hosts: Jessi Brooks, General Counsel at Ribbit Capital Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos, General Counsel at StarkWare Guest: Edward Woodford, Founder and CEO of Zerohash Links: ​​Crypto Market Structure Bill Clears Senate Committee — But the Hard Part Is Still Ahead Senators Move to Curb Passive Stablecoin Yields in Market Structure Push Mastercard in Talks to Buy Zerohash for $2 Billion: Report How the GENIUS Act Creates a Built-In Advantage for Banks and Deposit Tokens How Nansen's New Trading Agent Makes It Easier to Follow the Smart Money Onchain How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Reading is Fundamental Stablecoin for Babies Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor! Fuse Bitcoin's collapse is accelerating. Continuing a descent that began last week, the asset this week has all the price progress made under the Trump administration. The price action begs the question why amid greater adoption and support. In this episode of Unchained, FalconX Head of Markets Joshua Lim highlights two main reasons for Bitcoin's regression and offers his outlook for the year. Is it 2022 all over? Plus, how gold's run resembles GameStop in 2021 and why Hyperliquid is a bright spot amid market weakness. Guest: Joshua Lim, Head of Markets, FalconX Links: Bitcoin Sinks as Markets Price In a More Hawkish Fed Has Bitcoin Failed to Live Up to the Digital Gold Narrative? Why HYPE Is Up While Every Other Crypto, Including Bitcoin, Is Down Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crypto markets are under severe pressure, with Bitcoin sliding into one of the most oversold conditions in its history and Ethereum following closely behind. In this episode of Bits + Bips, Steve Ehrlich sits down with Fairlead Strategies founder Katie Stockton to walk through what the charts are actually signaling amid the selloff. They discuss why oversold does not automatically mean a bottom, how technicians look for downside exhaustion, and what needs to change before confidence returns for Bitcoin and ETH. Hosts: Steven Ehrlich, Host, Bits + Bips Guests: Katie Stockton, Founder and Managing Partner, Fairlead Strategies Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The hosts dive into Bitcoin's volatility below $75K, dissect the explosive CZ vs Star Twitter battle over who caused the 10/10 liquidation cascade, debate the ethics of founder secondary sales with passionate disagreement, and explore the surprising crypto connections in the newly released Epstein files including Tarun's unexpected cameo. 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, the crew tackles a volatile market with Bitcoin struggling below $75K and explores what's driving the uncertainty. They dive deep into the explosive Twitter battle between Binance founder CZ and OKX's Star over who really caused the catastrophic 10/10 liquidation event that broke crypto's correlation with traditional markets. The conversation gets heated as the hosts debate the ethics of founder secondary sales — with Haseeb taking a surprisingly libertarian stance against his co-hosts. Finally, they explore the unexpected crypto connections in the newly released Epstein files, including Tarun's own amusing cameo and connections to Coinbase, Bitcoin Core developers, and other industry figures. From market analysis to Twitter drama to moral philosophy, this episode covers the full spectrum of crypto discourse. Let's get into it. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. --- If you want expert help with crypto taxes — without guessing or DIY spreadsheets — Crypto Tax Girl is offering $100 off their crypto tax services for Unchained listeners. They provide personalized support for everything from complex transactions to full tax returns. Get $100 off --- In this episode of Bits + Bips, Austin Campbell and Chris Perkins sit down with Cosmo Jiang to unpack what gold's volatility shock revealed about market structure, why onchain venues like Hyperliquid are increasingly where price discovery happens, and how digital asset treasuries are being blamed for stress they did not create. The conversation also turns to Kevin Warsh's nomination as Fed chair and why it represents a deeper shift in institutional power, not just personnel. Hosts: Austin Campbell, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting Christopher Perkins, Managing Partner and President of CoinFund Guest: Cosmo Jiang, General Partner at Pantera Capital Links: Crypto at a Crossroads: Winter Fatigue Meets the Risk of Lower Lows Weekend Drama Rekindles Debate Over What Really Caused the October 10 Crash Crypto's Weekend Washout Tests Conviction After a Brutal Week Bitcoin Sinks as Markets Price In a More Hawkish Fed Why HYPE Is Up While Every Other Crypto, Including Bitcoin, Is Down Hyperliquid Prepares Prediction-Style Markets With HIP-4 Upgrade Hyperliquid Sees Record Trading as Commodities Drive New Interest ​​Crypto Market Structure Bill Clears Senate Committee — But the Hard Part Is Still Ahead Silver and gold extend losses after last week's historic plunge Gold Volatility Tops Bitcoin in Wildest Price Swings Since 2008 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crypto has stalled, but markets haven't. As volatility migrates and narratives shift, retail traders are moving fast into exciting, but risky frontiers. We break down where attention is going next, how professionals are adapting, and why this cycle feels different from the last. Host: Steven Ehrlich, Host: Bits + Bips: The Interview Guest: Evgeny Gaevoy, Founder and CEO, Wintermute Links: Adams' NYC Memecoin Crashes After Debut, Sparking Outcry Memecoins Were Hot a Year Ago. Many Have Crashed Over 90% Crypto Traders Flee to Prediction Bets After Crash Prediction Markets to Get New Federal Rules, CFTC Chair Says Three Reasons for the Record Rise in Gold Prices, and One Why They Are Falling Gold Falls as Investors Take Profits After Record High Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors, Fuse: The Energy Network and MultiChain Advisors! What is the Moltbot buzz about? In this episode of Uneasy Money, hosts Kain Warwick, Luca Netz and Taylor Monahan delve into why Moltbot, the new AI agent hogging the internet spotlight, is so exciting as well as the memecoin drama that has followed. They also discuss how the son of a U.S. government contractor was allegedly caught flexing stolen Bitcoin in an online contest, analyzing how scammers can be so dumb. Plus, why Ethereum's quantum computing initiative is so bullish in contrast to Bitcoin's nonchalance. Also, are memecoins back? Don't miss out on what Kain says is the real AI agent opportunity and Luca's tales of flipping Instagram handles for millions of dollars. Hosts: Kain Warwick, Founder of Infinex and Synthetix Luca Netz, CEO of Pudgy Penguins Taylor Monahan, Security at MetaMask Links: How Nansen's New Trading Agent Makes It Easier to Follow the Smart Money Onchain How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Ilya Lichtenstein Pleads Guilty to 2016 Bitfinex Hack of Billions in Bitcoin Ethereum and Optimism Lay the Groundwork for a Post-Quantum Future Q-Day Is Imminent. Can Bitcoin Survive the Quantum Threat? PUMP Drops Below ICO Price as Private Sale Investors Send $160 Million to Exchanges Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you're looking for help with crypto taxes, Crypto Tax Girl is offering $100 off for Unchained listeners. They provide personalized crypto tax reports and tax returns, and availability before April 15 is limited. Go to http://cryptotaxgirl.com/unchained to save $100! President Donald Trump is suing JPMorgan for $5 billion, a U.S. government contractor's son is linked to Bitcoin theft from the government, the SEC and CFTC appear to be collaborating on crypto and CZ's Davos interview goes viral. In yet another packed episode of DEX in the City, hosts Jessi Brooks, Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos and Vy Le dive into how Trump's case impacts the debanking debate, how a government contractor's son was bragging about controlling federally seized crypto, why the crypto regulatory turf war may be taking a different shape and CZ's interview, which got a bit too detailed about the horrors of prison. Does the government need a Bitcoin Fort Knox and is the U.S. moving towards a single financial regulator? Listen to find out! Hosts: Jessi Brooks, General Counsel at Ribbit Capital Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos, General Counsel at StarkWare TuongVy Le, General Counsel at Veda Links: Trump Signs Executive Order to Prevent Crypto Debanking Bessent Clarifies U.S. Bitcoin Reserve Plans Ilya Lichtenstein Pleads Guilty to 2016 Bitfinex Hack of Billions in Bitcoin SEC and CFTC Signal United Front on Crypto CZ Denies Ties to Trump and WLFI After Pardon Good news Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Adaptive Security! As AI makes deception easier, security gets harder. Adaptive runs deepfake and phishing simulations so your team can train for real-world threats. Explore more: http://adaptivesecurity.com Why is crypto sentiment so low despite the growing adoption narrative? In this episode of Unchained, Syncracy Capital co-founder Ryan Watkins unpacks why he thinks crypto is in a “twilight zone” and why the market could take investors by surprise. He also sheds light on why he thinks bitcoin is underperforming gold and what needs to change. Plus what he is excited about in the coming years and why crypto is not just fintech. Is a big move ahead? Listen to find out! Guests: Ryan Watkins, Co-Founder of Syncracy Capital Links: Why Gold Rose and Bitcoin Tumbled on Japan Bond Turmoil Has Bitcoin Failed to Live Up to the Digital Gold Narrative? Will Bitcoin's New Phase Change It Forever? And Is the 4-Year Cycle Dead? Why the Crypto Markets Seem Down Bad as Bitcoin Dips Below $100K Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Walrus! Walrus is where the world's data becomes reliable, valuable, and governable. --- In this exclusive Unchained interview, Griff Green, one of the original DAO curators and a member of the White Hat Group that helped recover funds after the 2016 DAO hack, reveals how tens of thousands of unclaimed ETH are being transformed into a long-term security fund for the Ethereum ecosystem. Nearly ten years after the most infamous exploit in crypto history, the community is repurposing its leftovers, not to rewrite history, but to prevent it from repeating itself. The new DAO Security Fund will deploy grants for Ethereum security research, infrastructure, incident response, and user protection, while also reviving DAO-based governance experiments that have fallen out of favor. Griff explains how the fund will work, why the Ethereum Foundation is involved, how staking will generate sustainable funding, and why, despite Ethereum's strength, crypto still isn't safe enough for everyday users. Guests: Griff Green, Co-Founder at Giveth, q/acc & Unicorn.eth Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The crew breaks down Superstate's massive $82M Series B for tokenization, the explosive rise of TradeXYZ's commodities trading hitting $1B+ volume, different tokenization models from "bootleg" to "back office," the ClawdBot AI phenomenon taking over coding, and how agent-based development is revolutionizing crypto software engineering. 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, Robert drops news about Superstate's massive $82 million Series B raise led by Bain Capital to bring Wall Street on-chain through tokenization. The crew dives deep into the explosive growth of Hip3 markets, particularly TradeXYZ's commodities trading that's hitting over $1 billion in daily volume as precious metals rip to all-time highs. They break down the different tokenization models emerging - from "bootleg" third-party approaches to "back office" settlement tools to issuer-led official tokenization. Then the conversation shifts to the ClawdBot phenomenon taking the internet by storm, exploring how AI agents are revolutionizing coding and what this means for the future of software engineering in crypto. From vibe coding to the complete transformation of how startups will be built, the hosts examine whether we're witnessing a fundamental shift in how technical work gets done. Show highlights

If you're looking for help with crypto taxes, Crypto Tax Girl is offering $100 off for Unchained listeners. They provide personalized crypto tax reports and tax returns, and availability before April 15 is limited. Go to http://cryptotaxgirl.com/unchained to save $100! --- Thank you to our sponsor, Adaptive Security! As AI makes deception easier, security gets harder. Adaptive runs deepfake and phishing simulations so your team can train for real-world threats. Explore more: http://adaptivesecurity.com --- Worried about your 2025 taxes? Don't fret, Unchained has you covered! In this episode, Crypto Tax Girl founder Laura Walter joins to unpack new crypto tax developments such as the 1099-DA, offering strategies to navigate what she calls a tricky year for crypto taxation. The key takeaway: “Don't freak out.” Whether you only use stablecoins, are a heavy DeFi user, are a miner or staker, or even just a prediction market trader, you don't want to miss this episode! Guest: Laura Walter, Founder and CPA of Crypto Tax Girl Links: White House Considers Bid to Tax Crypto Held in Foreign Accounts Roger Ver to Pay $48 Million in Tentative Settlement Deal With DOJ: Report Senator Lummis Pushes Making Small Crypto Transactions Tax-Free in ‘Big Beautiful Bill' Crypto's Black Friday Was Its Largest Liquidation Ever. What the Hell Happened? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crypto taxes stressing you out? You don't have to figure it out alone. We've partnered with Crypto Tax Girl, a crypto-focused tax firm that's been helping investors since 2017, to give readers $100 off personalized, one-on-one crypto tax help. Their team can handle everything from transaction calculations to full tax returns — but pre-April 15 spots are limited, so don't wait! Grab $100 off here In this episode of Bits + Bips, Austin Campbell, Ram Ahluwalia, Chris Perkins, and guest Charles Edwards debate what “realpolitik” means for markets, why gold is leading, and whether Bitcoin is lagging for a reason that is not just sentiment. They also argue over a counterintuitive claim gaining traction on desks: that rate cuts can be bad for risk assets in a high-debt world, and that the biggest adoption blocker for Bitcoin may be a known unknown, the quantum threat, whether it is imminent or simply believed enough to cap upside. Hosts: Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Austin Campbell, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting Christopher Perkins, Managing Partner and President of CoinFund Guests: Charles Edwards, Founder & CIO at Capriole Investments Links: Why Gold Rose and Bitcoin Tumbled on Japan Bond Turmoil Should You Buy Gold or Bitcoin? Here's How to Think About It Bitcoin Stumbles as Global Tensions Push Investors Toward Safe Havens Bitcoin Rebounds After Trump's Truth Social Post Eases Tariff Fears Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gold is hitting new highs. Bitcoin is struggling to keep up. And once again, the “digital gold” narrative is being put to the test.On today's episode of Bits + Bips: The Interview, host Steve Ehrlich sits down with Steve Sosnick, Chief Strategist at Interactive Brokers, to break down why bitcoin still trades like a risk asset, why gold keeps winning in moments of market stress, and what crypto must prove to close the credibility gap. From rising bond yields to geopolitics and Fed independence, this conversation cuts through the noise to explain what's really driving markets right now. Hosts: Steven Ehrlich, Executive Editor at Unchained Guests: Steve Sosnick, Chief Strategist at Interactive Brokers Links: Should You Buy Gold or Bitcoin? Here's How to Think About It Bitcoin Rebounds After Trump's Truth Social Post Eases Tariff Fears Crypto Slides on Tariff Fears as Gold Breaks Above $4,850 Why Gold Rose and Bitcoin Tumbled on Japan Bond Turmoil Supreme Court casts doubt on Trump's power to fire Fed official without proper review Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors! Fuse: The Energy Network MultiChain Advisors Trove Markets crashed at launch after a hyped ICO. X has pulled the plug on the InfoFi meta. Farcaster has been absorbed. In this packed Uneasy Money episode, hosts Luca Netz, Kain Warwick and Taylor Monahan delve into how Trove's crash suggests that crypto's ICO struggles persist. Kain suggests X's move to block out InfoFi applications is “bullish” for the platform and the crew explores what's next for decentralized social media along with the takeaways from Farcaster's run. They also discuss the pervasiveness of wallet poisoning scams, why Cosmos is struggling despite its good tech and why Paradex's rollback suggests that crypto's “code is law” ethos may be dying out. Don't miss out on how Luca nearly got wrapped up in the Trove drama and Tay's tips to spot suspicious projects. Plus, why Kain thinks two people building with AI could succeed where Farcaster failed. Hosts: Luca Netz, CEO of Pudgy Penguins Kain Warwick, Founder of Infinex and Synthetix Taylor Monahan, Security at MetaMask Links: Uneasy Money: ICOs Are Back and Why Airdrops Are Instantly Dumped X Bans Incentivized Posting Apps, Prompting Shakeup in Crypto Engagement Platforms Linda Xie on How Mini-Apps Are Helping Farcaster Take on Web2 Social Media Ethereum Sets New Activity Record as Network Upgrades Pay Off Paradex Rollback Raises Hard Questions After Pricing Glitch Triggers Liquidations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week the boys break down the Crypto Clarity Act's dramatic Senate markup with Coin Center's Peter Van Valkenburgh, covering developer liability concerns, tokenized securities language controversy, the banking industry's war against stablecoin yield. 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. Tarun's out this episode, but we're joined by Peter Van Valkenburgh, Principal of Policy at Coin Center and one of the sharpest legal minds in crypto. This week, we're diving deep into the Crypto Clarity Act drama that has DC in chaos mode. What started as crypto's best shot at comprehensive regulation just hit a major roadblock when Coinbase pulled their support hours before the Senate markup. We'll break down the developer liability questions around "control" definitions, the tokenized securities language that has Brian Armstrong fired up, and the stablecoin yield restrictions that have banks and crypto companies at each other's throats. Peter gives us the inside scoop on what's really in this 200-page bill, why Polymarket odds crashed from 80% to 40%, and whether this legislative train wreck can still get back on track. Let's get into it. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights

Thanks to Mantle for supporting the pod—and launching the Global Hackathon 2025 with $150k in prizes, VC mentorship, and access to 7M+ Bybit users. Your next big idea could go live here The New York Stock Exchange just announced that it has developed a platform for the trading of tokenized equities with plans to unlock 24/7 trading for users. In this DEX in the City episode hosts Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos and Vy Le are joined by Superstate General Counsel Alex Zozos to unpack the implications of NYSE's move and how tokenization could reshape markets. Are traditional financial grants facing an Existential crisis? And will tokenization make most regulatory regimes redundant? Plus, Zozos explains why all tokenized equities are not the same. Hosts: Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos TuongVy Le Guests: Alex Zozos, General Counsel at Superstate Links: NYSE's Tokenized Trading Push Marks a Quiet Win for Crypto Inside Robinhood's Big Super App Plan: ‘There's Still a Lot of Work to Be Done' JPMorgan Launches Tokenized Money Market Fund on Ethereum Vy's paper on the evolution of capital markets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Walrus! Crypto intelligence platform Nansen has rolled out an AI trading agent, aiming to let users complete the full trading lifecycle—from discovery to execution—within a single platform. But the move also heralds a new horizon for trading and investment, one potentially filled with interesting possibilities. In this episode of Unchained Nansen CEO Alex Svanevik unpacks what the AI agent does, the end game, the opportunities and the hurdles. Can Nansen AI do for trading what Anthropic's Claude is doing for coding? And will humans soon be able to work without being glued to a screen? Listen to find out! Guests: Alex Svanevik, Co-founder and CEO at Nansen Links: How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other GOAT: How AI Agents Talking Turned Into a $268 Million Memecoin ‘Religion' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Uniswap! Are you a builder who needs to add on-chain trading to your product? The Uniswap Trading API from Uniswap Labs offers plug-and-play access to some of the deepest liquidity in crypto It's on-chain execution at an enterprise level. More liquidity. Less complexity. Visit hub.uniswap.org to learn more. Is Bitcoin losing its “digital gold” narrative just as geopolitics heat up? The Bits + Bips crew debates what markets still aren't pricing in. In this episode of Bits + Bips, hosts Austin Campbell, Ram Ahluwalia, and Chris Perkins are joined by David Duong, Global Head of Research at Coinbase, to unpack a volatile mix of crypto regulation, geopolitics, and shifting market structure. The group digs into why the latest market structure bill is starting to crack, why investors may be underpricing regulatory clarity, and what it means that Bitcoin is failing to behave like digital gold just as global risk rises. They also explore whether the U.S. and Europe are still true allies, why Wall Street's move toward 24/7 onchain markets matters more than most realize, and how internet capital markets could reshape who gets access to capital in the next decade. Hosts: Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Austin Campbell, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting Christopher Perkins, Managing Partner and President of CoinFund Guests: David Duong, Global Head of Research at Coinbase Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Walrus! Walrus is where the world's data becomes reliable, valuable, and governable. Geopolitical tensions are rising. Crypto legislation is stalled. And pressure on the Federal Reserve is intensifying. So why are Bitcoin and the broader crypto market holding strong? In this episode of Bits + Bips: The Interview, Steve Ehrlich sits down with Zach Pandl, Director of Research at Grayscale Investments, to unpack what's been driving markets since 2026 began, from Washington's regulatory battles to global instability and the Fed's fight to maintain independence. They break down where U.S. crypto policy stands, why Wall Street isn't waiting for Congress, and how macro forces like inflation, debt, and geopolitics are shaping crypto's next move. Hosts: Steven Ehrlich Guests: Zach Pandl, Head of Research at Grayscale Links: Robinhood CEO warns Congress delay is hurting Americans - TheStreet Crypto: Bitcoin and cryptocurrency news, advice, analysis and more Senate Banking Committee postpones vote on crypto market structure legislation amid industry pushback Crypto bill delay 'may ultimately be constructive' for final product, Benchmark says Trump attacks on Jerome Powell testing Fed's independence Why the Federal Reserve has historically been independent of the White House Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors! Walrus Post-quantum era focused blockchain builder Project Eleven has just raised $20 million from the industry's heavy hitters as concerns over Bitcoin's quantum readiness grow. In this Unchained podcast episode, Project Eleven CEO Alex Pruden delves into the urgency of the quantum threat to Bitcoin while highlighting which other blockchains are most at risk. He also shares what Project Eleven is focused on to help crypto prepare and the potential outcomes. Listen to learn why Pruden believes implementing post-quantum cryptography would be the most significant upgrade blockchains have ever undergone and why a Bitcoin chain split is likely. Guests: Alex Pruden, CEO and Co-Founder of Project Eleven Links: Solana Deploys Post-Quantum Signatures on Testnet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, MultiChain Advisors! Privacy is back on the radar as Monero gets compared to silver. Meanwhile, Vitalik wants Ethereum to ossify, former New York City Mayor Eric Adams' NYC token rugs and X's algorithm has crypto Twitter up in arms. In this episode of Uneasy Money, hosts Kain Warwick, Luca Netz and Taylor Monahan unpack: Monero's sudden surge, Vitalik's “walkaway test,” why blatant scams like Adams' NYC token continue to succeed and whether X has been suppressing crypto content. Don't miss Kain's story on how he lost nearly $250K in a wild vibe coding experiment. Plus, Is Vitalik's “walkaway test” too “aspirational?” And could X cashtags usher in the next altseason? Hosts: Luca Netz Kain Warwick Taylor Monahan Links: Why the Privacy Coins Mania Is Much More Than Price Action Eric Adams' NYC Token Crashes Amid Liquidity Concerns Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin Says Blockchain Trilemma ‘Has Been Solved' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Figure! Ethereum scaling network Polygon is charting a new course. Polygon on Jan. 13 announced that it was becoming a “regulated U.S. payments platform” following the acquisition of Web3 services companies Coinme and Sequence. In this Unchained episode, Polygon Labs CEO Marc Boiron reveals the motivations behind the pivot and what it means for the network and its native token POL. He says that despite the pivot, Polygon is not becoming an application chain. Can Polygon thrive in the stablecoin dominated space? And will POL benefit? Guests: Marc Boiron, Chief Executive Officer at Polygon Labs Links: Flutterwave and Polygon to Launch Africa-Wide Stablecoin Payments Why Wall Street Banks Need to Launch Their Own Stablecoins Stripe and Paradigm Announce New Layer 1 Blockchain 'Tempo' Circle to Launch Layer 1 Blockchain ‘Arc' Stablecoin Blockchains Are Coming. Here's Why These Two Giants Should Be Nervous Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Figure! As tensions between the Trump administration and the Federal Reserve rise, gold and silver have surged to record highs. Bitcoin, meanwhile, has struggled to keep pace, raising uncomfortable questions about its “digital gold” narrative. In this back-to-back Unchained episode, Vinny Lingham, cofounder of Xash, and Eric Fine, portfolio manager at VanEck, offer two distinct but complementary perspectives on what's happening beneath the surface of global markets. Vinny explains why gold's liquidity, trust, and central-bank adoption still dwarf Bitcoin's, and why that gap led him to design a gold-backed, reward-bearing stablecoin, USDX. Eric walks through VanEck's provocative analysis showing gold could reach $39,000 or even $184,000 if the dollar were to lose its reserve-currency dominance and gold had to back the money supply. He also dives into why some developed markets may be more fragile than investors assume. Guests: Vinny Lingham, Co-founder, and President of Xash Eric Fine, Portfolio Manager, Active Emerging Markets Debt at VanEck Links: Why Gold and Bitcoin Work Best Together Why Bitcoin Is Tanking Despite Gold Reaching High After High How Venezuela Shows Why Bitcoin, Crypto and Stablecoins Help Everyday People Bitcoin Rallies to $93,000 After U.S. Attack on Venezuela Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Figure! As tensions between the Trump administration and the Federal Reserve rise, gold and silver have surged to record highs. Bitcoin, meanwhile, has struggled to keep pace, raising uncomfortable questions about its “digital gold” narrative. In this back-to-back Unchained episode, Vinny Lingham, cofounder of Xash, and Eric Fine, portfolio manager at VanEck, offer two distinct but complementary perspectives on what's happening beneath the surface of global markets. Vinny explains why gold's liquidity, trust, and central-bank adoption still dwarf Bitcoin's, and why that gap led him to design a gold-backed, reward-bearing stablecoin, USDX. Eric walks through VanEck's provocative analysis showing gold could reach $39,000 or even $184,000 if the dollar were to lose its reserve-currency dominance and gold had to back the money supply. He also dives into why some developed markets may be more fragile than investors assume. Hosts: Laura Shin Guests: Vinny Lingham, Co-founder, and President of Xash Eric Fine, Portfolio Manager, Active Emerging Markets Debt at VanEck Links: Why Gold and Bitcoin Work Best Together Why Bitcoin Is Tanking Despite Gold Reaching High After High How Venezuela Shows Why Bitcoin, Crypto and Stablecoins Help Everyday People Bitcoin Rallies to $93,000 After U.S. Attack on Venezuela Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Uniswap! If trust in central banks erodes, what replaces it? This week's Bits + Bips connects AI, energy, inflation, and Bitcoin. In this episode of Bits + Bips, hosts Austin Campbell, Ram Ahluwalia, and Chris Perkins are joined by Daniel Ives, one of Wall Street's most closely followed technology analysts, to break down how AI is colliding with macroeconomics. They debate whether AI will ultimately be inflationary or deflationary, why energy may become the binding constraint on technological growth, and how rising productivity could force the Federal Reserve into uncomfortable trade-offs. The conversation also covers pressure on central bank independence, the fragility of trust in fiat systems, and why Bitcoin increasingly enters the conversation when that trust erodes. Hosts: Ram Ahluwalia Austin Campbell Christopher Perkins Guests: Daniel Ives, Managing Director and Senior Equity Research Analyst at Wedbush Links: Bitcoin Briefly Pops to $92K on Powell DOJ News, Then Retreats Tether Freezes $182 Million in USDT on Tron Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Mantle! After months of anticipation, U.S. Senators have unveiled draft crypto market structure legislation. In this episode of DEX in the City, hosts Jessi Brooks, Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos and Vy Le are joined by Blockchain Association CEO and former CFTC Commissioner Summer Mersinger to unpack all the provisions that stand out. These include the bill's attempt to draw a line between centralized and decentralized platforms, the amended stance on stablecoin yield and exemptions for assets with ETFs. Would the bill “sweep up all of DeFi?” Has crypto lost the fight over stablecoin yield? And is Trump playing interference for crypto? Hosts: Jessi Brooks Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos TuongVy Le Guests: Summer Mersinger, CEO Blockchain Association Links: Tether Freezes $182 Million in USDT on Tron Senators Move to Curb Passive Stablecoin Yields in Market Structure Push How the Crypto Market Structure Law Would Expose that Trump's WLFI Isn't DeFi Jessi and Katherine's paper on programmable risk management Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Chopping Block breaks down the Kontigo Venezuela sanctions scandal, poly market insider trading drama around Maduro's capture, and the explosive Zcash governance crisis that has the entire Electric Coin Company team quitting to launch CashZ amid foundation versus for-profit wallet debate. 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, the crew dives deep into Venezuela's unexpected crypto connections following Maduro's capture, unpacking how the YC-backed fintech Kontigo allegedly used stablecoins to arbitrage sanctions and capital controls. They debate the moral complexities of banking the unbanked versus violating US sanctions, and whether stablecoins are fulfilling their promise of financial freedom or enabling bad actors. The conversation then shifts to prediction markets drama, as a mysterious trader made $400k betting on Maduro's downfall just hours before it happened — sparking calls for insider trading laws in political betting markets. Finally, they tackle the governance chaos in Zcash land, where the entire Electric Coin Company team quit en masse over disagreements with the nonprofit board, launching a new for-profit venture called CashZ. The hosts debate whether this signals the end of the foundation era in crypto, or just growing pains for protocols trying to build killer products. Hosts: Haseeb Qureshi Robert Leshner Tarun Chitra Tom Schmidt Links: FinTech Business Weekly - Kontigo: Y Combinator's Venezuelan Sanctions Evasion Startup Wall Street Journal - A Mystery Trader Made $400,000 Betting on Maduro's Downfall Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors, Uniswap and Figure Markets! Amid several years of economic challenges, Venezuela boasts a long and intriguing relationship with crypto. Following the capture of President Nicolas Maduro by the U.S. government, these crypto ties have again been brought into focus. In this Unchained podcast episode, Ledn cofounder Mauricio Di Bartolomeo and Economic Inclusion Group President Jorge Jraissati join Laura Shin to unpack this history, including the plausibility of the Latin American country sitting on a $60 billion Bitcoin stash. Mauricio details how the hums of Bitcoin mining rigs became the sound of freedom for Venezuelans. Jorge says post-Maduro Venezuela will “demand” a crypto powered economy. Will the crypto industry shape the future of Venezuela? And what does such a future look like? Hosts: Laura Shin Guests: Mauricio Di Bartolomeo, Cofounder and CSO of Ledn Jorge Jraissati, President of Economic Inclusion Group Links: Bitcoin Rallies to $93,000 After U.S. Attack on Venezuela How Maduro's Capture and a ‘Pre-War World' Affects Bitcoin: Bits + Bips Brian Kelly on Token-Curated Registries, Robinhood Crypto Trading and the Petro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsors, Multichain Advisors and Mantle! Aave DAO on Christmas Day lost the vote to take control of Aave brand assets, but the fight is likely not over. In this Uneasy Money episode Aave Chan Initiative (ACI) founder Marc Zeller takes hosts Kain Warwick and Taylor Monahan inside the fight over one of DeFi's biggest names, teasing a “phase two” of the fight. Plus, why is Infinex's ICO getting so much flak and are claims of insider trading on Polymarket misguided? Hosts: Kain Warwick Taylor Monahan Guests: Marc Zeller, Founder of the Aave Chan Initiative (ACI) Links: Uneasy Money: Why Token Holders Have No Rights & Why Every DAO ‘Has Failed' Aave Labs Proposes Off-Protocol Revenue Sharing With Token Holders Aave's Rushed Governance Vote Draws Backlash Infinex Changes INX Token Sale Terms After Low Demand MegaETH Just Had Its Public Sale. Can It Succeed in Building a Web2-Like Experience? Polymarket Introduces Taker Fees in 15-Minute Markets Polymarket Resolves Issues After Polygon Network Disruption How to Trade Prediction Markets Without an Opinion on the Event Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin Says Blockchain Trilemma ‘Has Been Solved' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Mantle! Canton's in bed with Nasdaq, a Google DeepMind's paper talks up the role of blockchain in an agentic economy and an alleged insider cashes in on Maduro's capture. In this DEX in the City episode, hosts Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos, Jessi Brooks and Vy Le dive into the implications of Canton's Nasdaq deal, why DeepMind's study matters for crypto and the legality of insider trading on prediction markets. Vy highlights what Canton's Nasdaq deal signals about the priorities of institutions adopting blockchain technology. Katherine and Jessi engage in what happens when the machines take over. Plus, should federal officials be banned from using prediction markets? Hosts: Jessi Brooks Katherine Kirkpatrick Bos TuongVy Le Links: Bitcoin Rallies to $93,000 After U.S. Attack on Venezuela How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Why the Black Friday Whale's $192 Million Crypto Trade Was Legal DEX in the City: Insider Trading and Crypto: What the Law Actually Says Google DeepMind's agentic economy paper Pawthereum's website A copy of Rep. Ritchie's bill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thank you to our sponsor, Mantle! In this Unchained podcast episode, guests Alex Thorn and Ryan Graham share their 2026 outlook for Bitcoin and the broader crypto market, exploring why the year looks unusually uncertain. The conversation also digs into questions around Ethereum's long-term value, whether killer apps are enough to drive adoption, prediction markets' push into sports betting, and why the privacy meta could continue in 2026. Hosts: Laura Shin Guests: Ryan Graham, Research Analyst at Messari Alex Thorn, Head of Firmwide Research at Galaxy Digital Links: DAT Stocks Are on Sale. Are They a Buy? Plus, Why Crypto Is Dead Ethereum's Vitalik Buterin Says Blockchain Trilemma ‘Has Been Solved' Solana Withstands Week-Long DDoS Attack Solana Mulls Proposal to Lower Inflation Rate Western Union Files ‘WUUSD' Trademark After Solana Stablecoin Reveal Why the Privacy Coins Mania Is Much More Than Price Action The Chopping Block: Hyperliquid vs. Tarun, ADL Transparency & The Coming Perps Arms Race How to Trade Prediction Markets Without an Opinion on the Event Why Wall Street Banks Need to Launch Their Own Stablecoins How the GENIUS Act Creates a Built-In Advantage for Banks and Deposit Tokens Klarna Launches Stablecoin Built on Stripe's Tempo Chain How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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. It's a new year, and that means the crew is back with their annual year-end awards and predictions episode. First up: the 2025 winners and losers. From Trump's meme-coin windfall to Gary Gensler's legacy getting torched, from prediction markets going mainstream to Web3 getting its official eulogy — no one is safe. The team debates the biggest surprises (Circle's shocking IPO run, Ethereum's pivot under new leadership, Zcash's unlikely comeback), the best new mechanisms (ICO 2.0, DATs, federal preemption), and the year's best memes (including the Chopping Block's own tariff factory video). Then comes the flops and comebacks: AI agents that overpromised, Berachain's fall from grace, and Tether somehow winning again. Finally, the crew reviews how badly their 2025 predictions aged — spoiler: not great — and lays out fresh calls for 2026 including AI-powered hacks, stable-coin-funded AI capex, and equity perps taking over DeFi. New year, fresh takes, brutal honesty — let's get into it. Show highlights

Thank you to our sponsor, Uniswap! In this episode of Bits + Bips, hosts Austin Campbell, Ram Ahluwalia, and Chris Perkins are joined by macro strategist Peter Tchir to unpack one of the most consequential geopolitical events in years: the U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The conversation explores why Bitcoin surged past $94,000, what the operation signals about U.S. power and strategy, and how investors should think about energy, supply chains, and national security in a shifting global order. The group also debates whether crypto's 24/7 markets are revealing a structural weakness in traditional finance, whether Latin America is poised for an investment renaissance, and why “production for security” may replace ESG as the dominant investment framework. Hosts: Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Austin Campbell, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting Christopher Perkins, Managing Partner and President of CoinFund Guest: Peter Tchir, Head of Macro Strategy at Academy Securities Links: Bitcoin Rallies to $93,000 After U.S. Attack on Venezuela The Venezuelan Oil Narative is PURE THEATRE Venezuela: The $60B+ Bitcoin "Shadow Reserve" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Thank you to our sponsor, Mantle. Sign up for their hackathon here! Crypto markets this year failed to live up to expectations, raising questions about the trajectory for next year. The situation is further complicated by speculation that Bitcoin is about to kick off a multiyear decline in line with the so-called four year cycle. In this Unchained podcast episode, Delphi Digital analysts Jason Pagoulatos and Jordan Yeakley break down the market and applications outlook for next year. They look at whether the four year cycle would hold, what gold's run means for Bitcoin and the conditions that have led to recent market apathy. They also discussed whether the recent resurgence of privacy coins is a fad and who would come out on top in the race to become an “everything app.” Is the four year cycle the result of multiple coincidences? And, is X the dark horse in the everything app meta? Guests: Jason Pagoulatos, Head of Markets at Delphi Digital Jordan Yeakley, CFA, Research Analyst at Delphi Digital Previous appearances on Unchained: What Went Wrong With Pump's ICO and Where It Goes From Here How Crypto Markets Are Post-Selloff, With Election/Fed Uncertainty Links Unchained: Will Bitcoin's New Phase Change It Forever? And Is the 4-Year Cycle Dead? The Chopping Block: Hyperliquid vs. Tarun, ADL Transparency & The Coming Perps Arms Race What Ethereum Will Look Like When It Implements Its New Privacy Focus Why the Privacy Coins Mania Is Much More Than Price Action Coinbase Launches Stock Trading and Prediction Markets Inside Robinhood's Big Super App Plan: ‘There's Still a Lot of Work to Be Done' How the x402 Standard Is Enabling AI Agents to Pay Each Other Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 episode opens with the Aave DAO civil war: a CoWSwap integration that allegedly routed swap fees to Aave Labs/Avara instead of the DAO, igniting “stealth privatization” claims, a “poison pill” push to seize Aave IP/brand, and a bigger fight over who really owns Aave.com and the protocol's front door. Next, the crew unpacks the Flow hack (a $3.9M mint exploit) and the wild rollback talk that followed — plus why forks and bridges make rollbacks dangerous, turning bridges into accidental custodians and breaking old security assumptions. Finally, they break down Coinbase's System Update and the “Everything Exchange” strategy — stocks, tokenization, perps, prediction markets, stablecoin rails — and whether this approach can win against Robinhood. DAO wars, chain chaos, and super-app ambition — let's get into it. Show highlights