Podcast appearances and mentions of frank chaparro

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 crypto market. OUTLINE 00:00 - President Trump prelude 04:00 - Sponsor break 05:01 - Bitcoin losing its identity? 10:26 - International adoption 15:17 - Bitcoin as a matter of national security 18:39 - Market trends 21:33 - Risks of Microstrategy 26:28 - Microstrategy's appeal 30:47 - Bitcoin's maturity and seeking yield 31:51 - Crypto market troubles 34:25 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS David Bailey on X: ⁠https://x.com/DavidFBailey BTC Inc: https://b.tc/ Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: ⁠⁠⁠theblock.co/campus⁠⁠⁠ This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to ⁠⁠⁠crypto.FidelityCareers.com⁠⁠⁠ to learn more.

Barry Silbert is the Founder and CEO of Digital Currency Group and Yuma. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined live by Barry Silbert to discuss his journey through the evolution of the crypto market, how his experience with the 2008 financial crisis shaped his approach to investing, and why he thinks Bittensor may be the next Bitcoin. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction   01:00 - Sponsor Break 02:00 - Barry Silbert's Crypto Journey   06:43 - Bitcoin's Evolving Narrative 09:25 - Crypto's Credit Crisis 15:24 - Bitcoin's Dampening Volatility 18:56 - How Bittensor Mirrors Bitcoin's Early Days   20:56 - Yuma's Vision and Playbook 26:10 - Barry's Priorities at Yuma 30:14 - What's Overrated in Crypto & Memes 33:50 - Final Thoughts GUEST LINKS Barry Silbert on X: https://x.com/barrysilbert Yuma Group on X: ⁠⁠https://x.com/YumaGroup⁠ Digital Currency Group on X: ⁠https://x.com/DCGco⁠ Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: ⁠⁠theblock.co/campus⁠⁠ This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to ⁠⁠crypto.FidelityCareers.com⁠⁠ to learn more.

Sebastian Bea is the President of Coinbase Asset Management. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Bea to discuss how Bitcoin's recent market behavior is driving increased institutional interest and portfolio integration, signaling a potential shift in Bitcoin's role from a high-volatility tech proxy to a store of value like gold. Bea and Chaparro also touched on a potential move by the US government to revalue gold vs the US Dollar, and its potential impact on Bitcoin. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction  01:00 - Big Changes for Bitcoin 06:45 - Frameworks for Institutional Portfolios 09:48 - Bitcoins as Digital Gold 13:54 - Getting On Board With Bitcoin 22:04 - Regulatory Designation's Market Impact  25:20 - Bitcoin's Shift From NASDAQ to Gold 27:30 - US Government's Revaluation of Gold? 34:22 - Leaving Bitcoin Dominance Behind 36:33 - Bitcoin Graduating As An Asset Class 38:59 - Capitalizing on Bitcoin's momentum 41:49 - Bitcoin as a Savings Instrument  44:31 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS Sebastian Bea on X: https://x.com/sebastianbea Coinbase Asset Management on X: ⁠https://x.com/CoinbaseAM Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: ⁠theblock.co/campus⁠ This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to ⁠crypto.FidelityCareers.com⁠ to learn more.

Austin Federa is a co-founder of DoubleZero. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Federa to discuss how the current public internet infrastructure bottlenecks blockchain performance, and how DoubleZero looks to address this by leveraging underutilized fiber optic cables to create a dedicated global network to support higher performance. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction 01:02 - Sponsor break 02:03 - DoubleZero's core thesis 05:42 - The problem with the public internet infrastructure 10:13 - Understanding the current infrastructure 16:36 - DoubleZero's impact 19:59 - Speed is the name of the game 24:18 - Timeframes for rebuilding infrastructure 31:11 - How DoubleZero finds and utilizes infrastructure 35:35 - Tokenization 36:55 - Technical difficulties 37:20 - This isn't your grandfather's internet 39:20 - Hiring talent and being a founder 40:21 - Hiring Talent for a New Layer of the Internet 44:37 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS Austin Federa on X: https://x.com/Austin_Federa DoubleZero on X: https://x.com/doublezero Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more.

John Wu is the President of Ava Labs. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Wu to discuss Avalanche's growing institutional appeal, the rise of blockchain gaming, and how his background in traditional finance shaped his approach to building in crypto. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction 00:51 - Sponsor break 02:11 - John Wu's tradfi background 06:36 - Taking crypto seriously 09:27 - Ava Labs' focus 11:11 - The gaming landscape 18:38 - Ava Labs x financial markets 24:30 - Challenges in building in Tradfi 26:11 - How enterprises select blockchains 29:03 - Project Guardian 31:52 - Looking ahead GUEST LINKS John Wu on X: https://x.com/John1wu Ava Labs on X: https://x.com/AvaLabs Ava Labs: https://www.avalabs.org/ Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more.

Guilhem Chaumont is the Co-Founder and CEO of Flowdesk. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, joined Chaumont at the Flowdesk office in Paris to discuss market volatility driven by tariffs, crypto's convergence with traditional finance, and the evolving role of digital assets in institutional portfolios. OUTLINE 00:00 – Introduction 00:43 – Sponsor break 01:43 – Flowdesk 03:14 – Tariffs and Market Turbulence 04:58 – Market Uncertainty and Institutional Hesitation 08:20 – Volatility and Weekend Selloffs 12:02 – Amplified Declines in Altcoins 16:28 – Why This Crash Is Different from FTX 21:12 – Bridging Traditional Finance and Tokenization 26:07 – The Effect of AI 30:05 – Looking ahead and Conclusion GUEST LINKS Guilhem Chaumont: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guilhem-chaumont-215091a5/ Flowdesk on X: https://x.com/flowdesk_co Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more.

In this episode, host Frank Chaparro is joined by M13 General Partner Latif Peracha and M13 Principal Mark Grace. The conversation explores the risks and opportunities presented by crypto's volatile liquid tokens, as well as the need for crypto founders to balance short-term liquidity with long-term potential when it comes to bootstrapping. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 01:17 Sponsor Shoutouts 03:40 Overview of M13 08:07 Generalist Crypto VCs 10:35 IPOs vs. ICOs 12:42 Token Volatility 18:32 Taking Profit 22:30 Opportunities in CeFi vs. DeFi 28:20 Regulatory Clarity & Innovation 31:17 Predictions & Closing Thoughts GUEST LINKS M13 - https://www.m13.co/ M13 on X - https://x.com/M13Company Latif Peracha on X: https://x.com/latifperacha Mark Grace on X: https://x.com/markwgrace This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity - Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io - Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by The Digital Chamber President Cody Carbone. In this episode, Chaparro and Carbone discussed the current U.S. policy landscape for the crypto industry under the new Trump administration. With growing bipartisan support and regulatory clarity, the conversation highlights how crypto is becoming a mainstream political issue with significant economic and electoral implications. OUTLINE 00:00 Intro 01:12 Sponsor break 03:05 The tone has shifted 05:37 IRS DeFi rule nullified 09:25 Stablecoin legislation 12:35 Fine-tuning crypto policy 15:31 Crypto's growing political influence 18:01 How Trump changed the crypto debate 24:14 The next six months 28:56 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Cody Carbone - https://www.linkedin.com/in/codycarbone/ Cody Carbone on X - https://x.com/CodyCarboneDC The Digital Chamber - https://digitalchamber.org/ The Digital Chamber on X - https://x.com/DigitalChamber

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Paris Blockchain Week Chairman Michael Amar. In this episode, Chaparro and Amar discussed the origin and development of Paris Blockchain Week. Amar shared anecdotes of the various challenges and milestones reached over the years, and gave tips on curating a top-tier crypto conference. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction 00:56 - Sponsor break 02:49 - Michael Amar's journey into crypto 06:55 - The development of Paris Blockchain Week 08:57 - Capturing the Zeitgeist each year 11:11 - Crypto conference oversaturation 13:40 - The Biggest Challenges in Running a Crypto Event 18:28 - The European crypto landscape 20:35 - Expectations for 2025 22:20 - Emerging sectors and trends 25:33 - Advice for founders entering the crypto space 30:38 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS Michael Amar - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amarmic/ Michael Amar on X - https://x.com/amarmic Paris Blockchain Week - https://www.parisblockchainweek.com/ Paris Blockchain Week on X - https://x.com/Parisblockweek

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Yellow Card Financial CTO and Co-Founder Justin Poiroux. In this episode, Chaparro and Poiroux discussed the rapid adoption of stablecoins in emerging markets, particularly in Africa. They explore how stablecoins are solving cross-border payment issues, and how Yellow Card is looking to bridging the gap between the developing world and the global financial system. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction 00:58 - Sponsor break 03:44 - Understanding Yellow Card 05:56 - Challenges of building in Africa 08:04 - How Yellow Card addresses cross-border payments 15:53 - Yellow Card's origins 20:02 - Early challenges 25:03 - Educating users & building trust in emerging markets 28:26 - Looking ahead 34:40 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS Justin Poiroux - https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinpoiroux/ Yellow Card Financial - https://yellowcard.io/ Yellow Card Financial on X - https://x.com/yellowcard_app

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Ryze Labs Founder and Managing Partner Matthew Graham. In this episode, Chaparro and Graham discussed the intersection of the crypto market, AI, and robotics, with Graham highlighting several key technological advancements that could have a profound impact on how the markets function and alter humanity's role in them. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction and market overview 1:30 AI x Crypto: current trends 08:16 The Turing test  12:19 The future of AI companions 18:33 The human edge in an AI world 19:54 The AI economy 24:46 Robotics 30:33 Investigating and investing in hardware 39:36 Looking ahead and conclusion GUEST LINKS Matthew Graham - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattysino/ Matthew Graham on X - https://x.com/mattyryze Ryze Labs - https://x.com/RyzeLabs Ryze Labs on X - https://www.ryzelabs.io/en/home

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Arca CIO Jeff Dorman. In this episode, Chaparro and Dorman discussed the disconnect between market sentiment and the developments in the crypto space. Dorman goes over the actual use cases of the crypto ecosystem and how they are being drowned out by memecoins and scandals, highlighting that big outside players are beginning to get on board. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 01:11 Sponsor break 02:04 Memes taking the spotlight 06:40 Crypto's adolescent stage 11:29 Common misconceptions about crypto 18:50 Assessing value in the crypto space 23:00 Are we still early? 29:37 The future of crypto 34:50 Where are the liquid funds? 41:30 Tradfi will eventually come 45:04 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Jeff Dorman - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-dorman-cfa-61063129 Jeff Dorman on X - https://x.com/jdorman81 Arca - https://x.com/arca Arca on X - https://www.ar.ca/

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by August Co-Founder and CEO Aya Kantorovich. In this episode, Chaparro and Kantorovich went over the state of crypto capital markets, the resilience of DeFi during market downturns, and how banks are looking to get started in DeFi. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction  01:08 From banking to crypto  02:30 Why institutions avoid DeFi  05:33 How institutions impact volatility  10:50 Crypto as the weekend market  17:00 Bitcoin as a reserve asset  20:01 Cambrian explosion of memecoins  26:28 Coinbase earnings  31:42 The resiliency of deFi  37:49 AI Agents  42:00 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Aya Kantorovich - https://www.linkedin.com/in/ayakantorovich/ Aya Kantorovich on X - https://x.com/aya_kantor August - https://www.augustdigital.io/ August on X - https://x.com/august_digital

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Lightspark Co-Founder and CEO David Marcus. In this episode, Chaparro and Marcus discuss the vision and technology behind scaling Bitcoin as a global payment network. Marcus explained how new developments, including stablecoins on Bitcoin, could transform worldwide financial systems and directly lead to an increase of GDP. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 01:52 Lightspark's mission and Bitcoin's Role 04:39 Challenges in scaling Bitcoin 09:44 Lightspark's evolution 16:10 Stablecoins x Bitcoin 21:27 Stablecoin improvements over traditional payments 27:20 Past regulatory challenges 30:23 Changing regulatory climate 35:19 Future outlook 41:37 Conclusion GUEST LINKS David Marcus - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmarcus/ David Marcus on X - https://x.com/davidmarcus Lightspark - https://www.lightspark.com/ Lightspark on X - https://x.com/Lightspark

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by SonarX Founder Patrick Kim, SonarX Global Head of BD Jesse Bornstein, and Senior Web 3 Specialist at AWS, Everton Fraga. In this episode, Chaparro, Bornstein, Fraga and Kim discussed the challenges of managing and consuming the exponential growth of blockchain data across multiple chains. Patrick, Jesse, and Everton explained how the proliferation of blockchains has led to a big data problem with petabytes of data that is difficult for enterprises to fully utilize, and what solutions there are to these issues. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 03:02 The Challenge of Blockchain Data Management 08:47 Multi-Chain Data Complexity and Solutions 14:13 Standardizing and Simplifying Blockchain Data 19:57 Institutional Challenges 23:13 Stablecoins, RWAs, and Data Demands 28:25 Public Blockchain Data and Practical Use Cases 32:23 Supporting Multiple Blockchains 35:11 AI's Role in Blockchain Data Integration 38:16 Advice for Developers and Businesses 43:23 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Jesse Bornstein - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesse-bornstein-10a774a/ Everton Fraga - https://www.linkedin.com/in/evertonfraga/ Patrick Kim - https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickkim/ SonarX - https://www.sonarx.com/ SonarX on X - https://x.com/SonarX_HQ AWS - https://aws.amazon.com/

In this episode of the Tearsheet Podcast, I sit down with Frank Chaparro, the host of The Scoop and Director of Special Products at The Block. He has years of experience at the intersection of digital assets and Wall Street. Frank offers a unique perspective on blockchain technology and tokenization, highlighting their early impact on financial markets and projecting out where Web3 may lead for financial services. “When you're managing trillions of dollars, offering new, innovative products isn't just risky. It's a massive operational challenge,” says Chaparro. His insights explain why tokenization, stablecoins, and blockchain technology are growing in popularity. These innovations overcome challenges faced by traditional financial institutions, offering new solutions and efficiencies in the financial sector. Frank explores how stablecoins bridge decentralized finance and traditional systems. For example, he explores the challenges of institutional investment in crypto ETFs. His analysis covers the complexities of this fast-evolving space. The Big Ideas Tokenization could revolutionize industries by making processes more efficient. Frank highlights its application in property transactions. He says, “Tokenizing deeds could bring unprecedented efficiency to a traditionally slow process.” Stablecoins are enabling seamless transactions between traditional and decentralized finance. “It's just so damn easy to send stablecoins compared to alternatives like PayPal,” says Frank. Despite regulatory and operational hurdles, major banks are inching closer to crypto adoption. Frank predicts, “By 2025, we'll see wealth management portals opening up to these assets.” Regulatory clarity remains a double-edged sword. Frank explains, “Banks fear the potential repercussions of engaging with digital assets. Even when there's no explicit rule against it.” Meme coins and NFTs hint at a future where culture and finance intersect. Frank calls it “extracting value out of humor,” a concept that could reshape how we view digital assets.

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Congressman and House Majority Whip Tom Emmer. In this episode, Chaparro and Emmer discussed President Trump's first weeks in office, the Democrat's missteps with voters in general and on crypto, and alleged waste and fraud in government spending. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction and Super Bowl Recap 02:13 Crypto Policy and Political Dynamics 07:11 Identity Politics and Crypto Perception 10:18 Democrats' Missteps and Voter Alienation 12:40 Speed of Policy Changes and Potential Risks 15:27 Fraud in Government Agencies 17:19 Congressional Oversight and Budget Issues 20:32 Ensuring Long-Term Crypto Regulation 22:33 Promises to the Crypto Industry 25:46 Malice in Crypto Regulation? 28:11 Stablecoin Legislation 30:29 Closing Remarks and Farewells GUEST LINKS Rep. Tom Emmer - https://emmer.house.gov/ Rep. Tom Emmer on X - https://x.com/tomemmer GOP Majority Whip on X - https://x.com/GOPMajorityWhip

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by VP of Product at QuickNode, Josh Neuroth. In this episode, Chaparro and Neuroth explored the rapid growth and increased adoption of blockchain by traditional financial institutions. They also unpacked QuickNode's role in providing high-performance infrastructure to support both emerging blockchain projects and enterprise adoption. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction and Quick Node's Journey 03:14 Trends in Blockchain and Enterprise Adoption 07:38 Financial Institutions and Blockchain Scaling 12:54 Developer Activity Surge on Solana and Base 18:11 Emerging Ecosystems and Quick Node's Focus 21:30 Future Plans and Tokenization of Real-World Assets 25:38 Conclusion and Farewells GUEST LINKS Josh Neuroth - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshneuroth/ Josh Neuroth on X - https://x.com/EastofETH QuickNode - https://www.quicknode.com/ QuickNode on X - https://x.com/QuickNode

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Custodia Bank Founder and CEO Caitlin Long. In this episode, Chaparro and Long discussed the state of crypto banking, the potential restructuring of regulations under the Trump administration, and the Federal Reserve's stance on crypto. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 1:39 Powell's crypto remarks 3:02 Custodia and the Fed 7:19 Trump's crypto executive order 8:34 Banks' path to crypto custody 12:12 12 month forecast 17:51 State of crypto banking 24:34 The Crypto Vote 30:15 Trump's meme coin 32:50 Privatising fed wire 38:40 Crypto in Wyoming 41:25 Closing thoughts GUEST LINKS Caitlin Long - https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlin-long-/ Caitlin Long on X - https://x.com/CaitlinLong_ Custodia Bank - https://custodiabank.com/ Custodia Bank on X - https://x.com/CustodiaBank This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Cambrian Asset Management President Tony Fenner-Leitão. In this episode, Chaparro and Fenner-Leitão discussed his firm's approach to the crypto market, which involves using machine learning and data-driven models. They also touched on the impact of increased institutional participation and regulatory changes in the crypto space and how these developments have affected the overall market dynamics. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 03:29 Lack of liquid participants 08:25 Cambrian's perspective on the Trump meme coin 13:31 Shifting market dynamics 17:18 Regulatory changes 22:56 Cambrian's requirements for entering a market 29:16 Active management vs VC allocation 35:39 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Tony Fenner-Leitão - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tonyfennerleitao/ Cambrian Asset Management - https://www.cambrianasset.com/ Cambrian Asset Management on X - https://x.com/CambrianAsset This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Story Protocol Co-Founder Jason Zhao. In this episode, Chaparro and Zhao discussed the inefficiencies and challenges in the current IP landscape, and how Story aims to address these by allowing creators to monetize and license their IP in a more open and efficient manner, especially in the context of the rise of AI. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 05:29 Philosophy meets Crypto 09:08 The world of intellectual property 12:49 The financialization of IP 16:55 AI and ownership of IP 20:20 Getting started with AI and IP 24:40 Standing out in a sea of Picassos 27:45 Gen AI platforms 31:49 Story Protocol looking ahead 34:03 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Jason Zhao - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonjinzhao/ Jason Zhao on X - https://x.com/jasonjzhao Story Protocol - https://www.story.foundation/ Story Protocol on X - https://x.com/StoryProtocol This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Welcome back to The Aubservation! We are joined by my dear friend and colleague, Frank Chaparro of The Block & The Scoop Podcast. we discuss: -where does our industry go from here -the media's coverage of crypto -how Italian is he? -& why he's bullish on Wall Street breaking into crypto in 2025 Thank you Ledger & Cake Wallet for sponsoring this episode!

The Scoop's host Frank Chaparro was joined by LMAX Group CEO David Mercer. In this episode, Chaparro and Mercer discussed the accelerating institutional adoption of crypto, with major banks entering the market and driving stability, maturity, and significant capital inflows. They also explored how improved interoperability between tradfi and crypto could increase adoption by enabling more seamless asset movement between the two ecosystems. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 02:43 Bullish vs Bearish narratives 06:23 Improving regulatory environment 09:24 This ain't mania 14:54 Competent credit offering   18:55 The necessary infrastructure  24:04 Capitalising on future growth 33:35 Good tech solutions will win 35:19 Conclusion GUEST LINKS David Mercer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mercerdavid/ David Mercer on X - https://x.com/mercerdavid LMAX Group - https://www.lmax.com/ LMAX Group on X - https://x.com/LMAX This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network  

The Scoop's host Frank Chaparro was joined by Dragonfly Partner Tom Schmidt. In this episode, Chaparro and Schmidt discussed the cryptocurrency market acting as an institutional asset class moving into 2025, and how this cycle has been different for venture captial operating within the space. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 01:39 Crypto as an institutional asset 11:47 Crypto market idiosyncrasies 18:20 Opportunities in 2025 22:28 Application in 2025 25:59 Anti-VC backlash 30:37 Customer acquisition 35:36 Closing thoughts GUEST LINKS Tom Schmidt - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomhschmidt/ Tom Schmidt on X - https://x.com/tomhschmidt Dragonfly - https://www.dragonfly.xyz/ Dragonfly on X - https://x.com/dragonfly_xyz This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network  

In today's episode of The Milk Road Show, Frank Chaparro, founding reporter at The Block and host of The Scoop, joins us to discuss the 4 factors driving crypto prices in 2025! From Bitcoin's resilience to the surprising Coinbase projections, we cover it all. Plus, learn why ignoring the mainstream media during the holidays might be the best investment strategy. ~~~~~

The Scoop's host Frank Chaparro was joined by The Block's CEO Larry Cermak, Editor-in-Chief Tim Copeland, and Foresight Centures Co-Founder Forest Bai for a year-end special. In this episode, Chaparro, Copeland, Bai and Cermak covered a myriad of pertinent topics  in the crypto market, including the factors that lead to a successful ecosystem, underexposure to bitcoin relative to memecoins, AI, and what they both expect and hope to see in the year ahead. OUTLINE 00:00 End-of-Year drawdown 5:56 Memes vs fundamentals 08:25 Importance of community 11:47 Shifting investment landscapes 14:34 AI x Blockchain 18:54 Newsroom expectations for 2025 23:48 Telegram games and improving UX 26:37 Standing out in the market 34:19 2025 expectations 41:50 Microstrategy's Bitcoin bet 47:30 AGI & Quantum attacks on encryption 48:29 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Forest Bai - https://x.com/ForestBai1 Larry Cermak - https://x.com/lawmaster Tim Copeland - https://x.com/Timccopeland This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network  

Jeff Garzik is the CEO of Hemi Labs, a modular Layer 2 protocol that integrates Bitcoin and Ethereum. In this episode, Garzik and The Block's Frank Chaparro discuss Hemi and its "proof-of-proof" security model, and Garzik shares his views on the future of multi-chain interoperability and the evolution of decentralized governance models. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction and Hemi overview 03:17  - The endangered Bitcoin maximalist 05:33 - Proof of proof  10:01 - Lessons from testnet 13:32 - ETH vs. Bitcoin in the multi-chain future  19:05 - Envisioning the multi-chain future 24:14 - Darwinian trial by fire 33:34 - Main net plans and closing remarks GUEST LINKS Jeff Garzik - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffgarzik/ Jeff Garzik on X - https://x.com/jgarzik Hemi Labs - https://x.com/hemi_xyz Hemi Labs on X - https://hemi.xyz/ This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Edan Yago is the co-founder and CEO of BitcoinOS, a Layer 2 platform and "operating system" for Bitcoin. In this episode, Yago and The Block's Frank Chaparro discuss BitcoinOS and how Bitcoin can evolve from being just “digital gold” into a fully programmable, global ledger for ownership and financial innovation. OUTLINE 00:00 – Introduction
 02:17 – Bitcoin and digital property rights
 04:40 – Bitcoin's spirit of innovation
 08:17– Bitcoin smart contracts vs. rival chains 
 15:29 – Bitcoin DeFi's value add
 20:44 – Solving scalability
 25:12 – Bitcoin, AI, and the next Trillion in assets
 28:28 – The next five years
 35:07 – Short term shifts 37:42 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS Edan Yago - https://www.linkedin.com/in/edanyago/ Edan Yago on X - https://x.com/edanyago BitcoinOS - https://www.bitcoinos.build/ BitcoinOS on X - https://x.com/BTC_OS This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Zachary Townsend is the co-founder and CEO of Meanwhile, a life insurance company for the crypto economy. In this episode, Townsend and The Block's Frank Chaparro discuss Meanwhile's model of Bitcoin-denominated life insurance and the advantages of this approach vs. traditional dollar-denominated insurance policies, such as protection against inflation and the ability to borrow against the policy's value tax-free. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 04:48 How Meanwhile works 10:33 Role of insurance in the Bitcoin economy 14:09 Charting new territory 16:38 Bitcoin vs dollar-denominated insurance 20:32 Approaching new customers 24:10 Zac's background 26:23 Looking forward 30:04 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Zac Townsend - https://www.linkedin.com/in/zactownsend/ Zac Townsend on X - https://x.com/ztownsend Meanwhile - https://meanwhile.bm/ Meanwhile on X - https://x.com/meanwhilelife This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Himanshu Sahay is the Co-Founder and CTO of Arch. In this episode recorded live at Emergence in Prague, Sahay and The Block's Frank Chaparro discuss the evolution of crypto lending after the 2022 market turmoil and Arch's approach to expansion and collateral. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 01:16 Intro to Arch  03:15 Shifting collateral standards  07:33 The state of crypto credit 12:48 New administration, new regulation 14:35 Debanking and Barron Trump 17:41 Arch's global expansion 19:29 Encounters with Voyager and Celsius 20:47 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Himanshu Sahay - https://www.linkedin.com/in/himanshusahay/ Himanshu Sahay on X - https://x.com/hhsahay Arch - https://archlending.com/ Arch on X - https://x.com/ArchLending This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Samantha Bohbot is the Chief Growth Officer & Partner of RockawayX, a blockchain-focused venture capital fund. In this episode recorded live at Emergence in Prague, Bohbot and The Block's Frank Chaparro discuss discuss challenges facing European firms compared to their American counterparts, and RockawayX's credit fund and developing opportunities in DeFi. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 00:36 RockawayX 03:38 Tech and investment in Europe 07:11 Post-election investment 09:19 DeFi rally 11:58 Crypto credit 17:56 Standing out to investors 21:24 Value-add investor 25:32 The race to the bottom 27:52 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Samantha Bohbot - https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-bohbot-7622b933/ Samantha Bohbot on X - https://x.com/samantha_bohbot RockawayX - https://www.linkedin.com/company/rockawayx/ RockawayX on X - https://rockawayx.com/ This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Frank Chaparro is an acclaimed speaker, angel investor and host of "The Scoop" podcast. He was founding reporter at The Block, a research and news company. Previously, he served as a fintech and market structure reporter at Business Insider and started his career in marketing and communications at NASDAQ.Follow Decential Media: Website: https://www.decential.io/Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@decentialmediaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/decential_mediaTiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@decential_mediaLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/decential-media/Newsletter: https://decential.beehiiv.com/ Follow Matt Leising: https://twitter.com/mattleisingSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode of The Scoop, Frank Chaparro and former Deutsche Bank payment analyst Ryan Todd delve into Coinbase's financial performance for the fourth quarter. Todd, a former payments analyst at Deutsche Bank, offers an in-depth analysis of why Wall Street regularly underestimates Coinbase's earnings. He sheds light on the structural factors leading to consistent earnings outperformance, not only by Coinbase but also by major tech companies overall.

This is Eric Golden and my guest today is Frank Chaparro. Frank is Editor-at-large at The Block and host of The Scoop podcast. Many of you know him as Fintech Frank on Twitter. This episode is a little different as we dive into what it's like to be a journalist covering frontier technology that moves at such a rapid pace. We cover the challenges of reporting in crypto, lessons learnt from the FTX saga, and Frank's views on the overall ecosystem. Please enjoy my conversation with Frank Chaparro For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here. ----- This episode is brought to you by OKX. You may have seen OKX on McLaren's Formula 1 race car or Manchester City's football kit. But what is OKX? OKX has over 730 spot trading pairs, 280 derivatives markets, and 1000 options markets. It processes 400,000 requests per second with 99.95% uptime. That's why over 20 million traders and institutions choose OKX when they want to trade. Visit okx.com to learn more. ----- Web3 Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Web3 Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @Web3Breakdowns | @ericgoldenx | @patrick_oshag  Show Notes (00:02:23) - (First question) - Some of the biggest groups he's had fun reporting on (00:05:59) - How he processes the incredible volume of information in the crypto space and decides on which story he'd like to write and why (00:08:11) - The ways crypto Twitter serves as a source and the village center for information (00:11:19) - How it feels as a journalist navigating the crypto space   (00:12:23) - Developing relationships and handling building them as a reporter  (00:14:35) - Whether or not it's hard to just turn off in his news-centric relationships (00:15:28) - Some of the things he thinks about given the nature of the FTX fallout  (00:17:14) - The balance between being funny online and a hardnose journalist (00:19:35) - His initial reaction to the news about the FTX fraud and becoming a part of it (00:22:38) - What he'd write if he could write the Wikipedia page for The Block  (00:23:19) - Comparing this bear market to other bear market cycles  (00:24:47) - Where we go from here and thoughts on regulation  (00:28:42) - Traditional media covering crypto versus crypto-specific media outlets (00:31:22) - The anti-crypto media and motives for someone like Elizabeth Warren (00:33:55) - The Block's global offering to clients beyond just writing and reporting  (00:38:44) - His preparation process for interviewing guests on their podcast (00:40:08) - What he's most focused on over the next six months and six years 

Policy and regulation in the U.S. is top of mind in the industry of crypto and digital assets. The Scoop's Frank Chaparro sat down with The Block's policy reporter Stephanie Murray and broke down the biggest stories and trends from Gary Gensler's big bet against crypto to CBDCs and who takes Sam Bankman-Fried's place in Washington, DC. From the collapse of FTX, Blockfi, Voyager, Celsius and others, to the aggressive stance regulators are displaying, it's been busy in Washington. "We went from big bull market to the collapse of some of the biggest crypto firms that sent ripples through the entire industry," Murray said.  "It's definitely impacted me. And Stephanie, I mean, most of the companies I wrote about are now bankrupt or are out of business, about 50% from Blockfi to FTX to Celsius," Chaparro said. "I'm gonna have to hope on the policy beat, I don't really have much to do these days!" Who's Bankman-Fried's Washington replacement? For all his faults, Chaparro noted that Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder of bankrupt FTX, stepped up to represent the industry in Washington, DC, to agitate for change. Chaparro cited Coinbase's Brian Armstrong and Kraken's Jesse Powell as leaders who, while not running apparent frauds, are antagonistic to politicians and may not be great replacements. "Whereas Sam was not antagonistic to regulators, but ran a fraud. So what we need is someone who doesn't operate a fraud, and who is not antagonistic to regulators. So there's a Venn diagram there, and somewhere there is a CEO or a figurehead who can fill the gap," Chaparro said.  This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Circle and CleanSpark. About Circle Circle is a global financial technology company helping money move at internet speed. Our mission is to raise global economic prosperity through the frictionless exchange of value. Visit circle.com/Scoop to learn more. About CleanSpark CleanSpark (NASDAQ: CLSK) is America's Bitcoin Miner™. Visit cleanspark.com/theblock to learn more about the CleanSpark way.

Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., newly elected House GOP whip and a member of the House Financial Services Committee, has long been at the forefront of shaping the conversation regarding the regulation of cryptocurrencies and digital assets in the United States. In this episode of The Scoop, Rep. Emmer provides an overview of how Congressional attitudes towards crypto are shifting in light of the tumultuous events of 2022, and how the new asset class is gaining support across the political spectrum. According to Emmer, the Congressional Blockchain Caucus has been spreading the message that the collapse of FTX is not representative of the broader crypto industry: "We have been pushing back on this nonsense that FTX is indicative of crypto. It's not. It is as old as finance, it is centralized finance, and the abuses that happen when you have an opaque operation with a very small group of people that are running it on the inside." Congressional inquiries regarding regulators' lack of oversight in the case of FTX have come from both sides of the aisle, with Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres (NY-15) officially calling on the US Government Accountability Office to investigate the SEC.  Despite representing opposing political parties, Rep. Emmer explains that crypto is one issue where he and Rep. Torres see eye-to-eye: "Ritchie Torres and Tom Emmer could not be more different — where we come from, our lives, from what I know — and yet, we could not be more alike when it comes to this issue of crypto." During this episode, Chaparro and Rep. Emmer also discuss: Why digital assets empower the individual How the SEC could have prevented FTX What crypto regulation to expect in 2023 Disclaimer: Beginning in 2021, Michael McCaffrey, the former CEO and majority owner of The Block, took a series of loans from founder and former FTX and Alameda CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. McCaffrey resigned from the company in December 2022 after failing to disclose those transactions. Episode 4 of Season 5 of The Scoop was recorded remotely with The Block's Frank Chaparro and Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Circle, Railgun, Flare Network, NordVPN About Circle Circle is a global financial technology company helping money move at internet speed. Our mission is to raise global economic prosperity through the frictionless exchange of value. Visit Circle.com to learn more. About Railgun RAILGUN is a private DeFi solution on Ethereum, BSC, Arbitrum, and Polygon. Shield any ERC-20 token and any NFT into a Private Balance and let RAILGUN's Zero-Knowledge cryptography encrypt your address, balance, and transaction history. You can also bring privacy to your project with RAILGUN SDK and be sure to check out RAILGUN with partner project Railway Wallet, also available on iOS and Android. Visit Railgun.org to find out more. About Flare Flare is an EVM-based Layer 1 blockchain designed to allow developers to build applications that can use data from other blockchains and the internet. By providing decentralized access to a wide variety of high integrity data from other blockchains and the internet, Flare enables new use cases and monetisation models. Build better and connect everything at Flare.Network About NordVPN NordVPN is essential for keeping crypto transactions secure, hiding your IP address and protecting your devices from hackers and data theft. Get premium cyber-security on up to 6 devices for the price of a cup of coffee a month. Get your exclusive NordVPN Deal and try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee: Visit https://nordvpn.com/thescoop

For The Scoop's final episode of 2022, Larry Cermak, vice president of Research at The Block, joins host Frank Chaparro to unpack highlights from The Block Research's 2023 Digital Assets Outlook Report and to break down some of the major events that shaped the crypto market in 2022. The Block Research's 2023 Digital Assets Outlook Report offers a deep look into the state of the crypto markets today and analysis on trends that could emerge in the year ahead. Generally speaking, Cermak says institutional investors are becoming more comfortable with crypto's extreme volatility: “The institutional investors understand now that just because we have dropped by 80%, and just because a lot of funds and a lot of companies have gotten destroyed, that doesn't mean that crypto will not come back. They understand the volatility, understand the cycles, and a lot of them want to be in a better position before the next movement.” Although bear markets are characterized by a lack of exuberance among market participants, “these are really the periods when a lot of new projects are born,” Cermak says. “A lot of new narratives for the industry are going to be born.” Disclaimer: Beginning in 2021, Michael McCaffrey, the former CEO and majority owner of The Block, took a series of loans from former FTX and Alameda founder Sam Bankman-Fried. McCaffrey resigned from the company in December 2022 after failing to disclose those transactions. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn, Athletic Greens, NordVPN About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first-class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provide a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real-life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io About Athletic Greens Build a Foundation for Better Health. It's time to reclaim your health and arm your immune system with convenient, daily nutrition! Fill nutrient gaps, promote gut health, and support whole-body vitality with AG1. One daily serving delivers a potent blend of 9 health products—a multivitamin, minerals, probiotics, adaptogens and more—working together to help you feel like your healthiest self. For more information visit AthleticGreens.com/Scoop About NordVPN NordVPN is essential for keeping crypto transactions secure, hiding your IP address and protecting your devices from hackers and data theft. Get premium cyber-security on up to 6 devices for the price of a cup of coffee a month. Get your exclusive NordVPN Deal and try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee: Visit https://nordvpn.com/thescoop

Founded in 2013, GSR is one of the oldest crypto market makers and is also an active venture investor. In this episode of The Scoop, GSR CEO Jakob Palmstierna discusses how his firm is responding to the collapse of FTX and shares his forecast for what a crypto recovery might look like. According to Palmstierna, GSR covered the losses of all of its customers who had funds stuck on FTX:  “We announced that customers of ours that had funds locked in FTX, we would reimburse them so they didn't have those losses, which is not ‘effective altruism,' it's about creating some stability within the market and being here for the future.” Although 2022 was filled with calamities for the crypto industry, Palmstierna says the underlying technology is continuing to develop: “Everything that happened over 2022 has very little to nothing to do with the underlying technology of crypto. There are well-funded projects out there, there are really good builders — it's one of the biggest sections of talent density that we have seen since the early internet days.” Disclaimer: Beginning in 2021, Michael McCaffrey, the former CEO and majority owner of The Block, took a series of loans from former FTX and Alameda founder Sam Bankman-Fried. McCaffrey resigned from the company in December 2022 after failing to disclose those transactions. Episode 128 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded live with The Block's Frank Chaparro and GSR CEO Jakob Palmstierna. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn, Athletic Greens About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first-class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provide a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real-life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io About Athletic Greens Build a Foundation for Better Health. It's time to reclaim your health and arm your immune system with convenient, daily nutrition! Fill nutrient gaps, promote gut health, and support whole-body vitality with AG1. One daily serving delivers a potent blend of 9 health products—a multivitamin, minerals, probiotics, adaptogens and more—working together to help you feel like your healthiest self. For more information visit AthleticGreens.com/Scoop

Founded in 2011, Bitstamp has navigated the ups and downs of multiple crypto market cycles over the years. In this episode of The Scoop, Bitstamp USA CEO Bobby Zagotta discusses Bitstamp's resilience, and explains how centralized exchanges can restore user confidence in the wake of FTX's collapse. According to Zagotta, "proof-of-reserves" is an important step towards giving customers more visibility into how centralized exchanges manage customer assets:  "On the one hand, the way many exchanges operate is pretty opaque; but on the other hand, blockchain technology creates the opportunity for radical transparency… Proof-of-reserves will allow customers to see that the assets on the exchange exceed the liabilities on the exchange.” Although large exchanges such as Binance, KuCoin and Crypto.com have all attempted to establish proof-of-reserves, the accounting firm conducting these reports announced last week that it is pausing all work for its crypto exchanges clients, and others around the industry have been skeptical of the legitimacy of these reports. The current method for proof-of-reserves “is not perfect,” Zagotta says, because “it's a snapshot in time.” Episode 127 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded remotely with The Block's Frank Chaparro and Bitstamp USA CEO Bobby Zagotta. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn, About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io

To date, Silicon Valley-based VC firm a16z has raised over $7.6 billion to invest in crypto and web3. In this episode of The Scoop, a16z General Partner Chris Dixon shares some of the guiding principles that determine a16z's investments in the crypto space and explains why the time is ripe for decentralized networks to replace centralized, corporate networks. According to Dixon, both a16z and other VC firms have begun to shy away from investing in projects building on top of corporate networks: “Our firm and others do not invest in things anymore that are building on these networks — on these corporate networks like Facebook and TikTok and things — because they know we've seen before that if you're successful, they'll just take all the money.” While corporate networks had initial advantages such as access to VC funding and the ability to subsidize parts of their business models, Dixon believes decentralized networks have matured to the point where they are ready to take on their corporate counterparts. As Dixon explains, “Now we have the tools, I believe we, meaning the side of people that want things to be open and community-owned through blockchains, now have the tools to rival corporate networks and beat them.” Episode 126 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded remotely with The Block's Frank Chaparro and a16z General Partner Chris Dixon. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn, Athletic Greens About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io About Athletic Greens Build a Foundation for Better Health. It's time to reclaim your health and arm your immune system with convenient, daily nutrition! Fill nutrient gaps, promote gut health, and support whole-body vitality with AG1. One daily serving delivers a potent blend of 9 health products—a multivitamin, minerals, probiotics, adaptogens and more—working together to help you feel like your healthiest self. For more information visit AthleticGreens.com/Scoop

Solana co-founder Raj Gokal has referred to the FTX crisis as a "crucible moment" for Solana's ecosystem. The amount of value moved on Solana has decreased dramatically since Alameda declared bankruptcy in November, data from The Block shows. In this episode of The Scoop, Solana co-founders Raj Gokal and Anatoly Yakovenko discuss how Solana initially became intertwined with FTX, and when they first started to notice that Sam Bankman-Fried's ambitions diverged from the crypto ethos. While Bankman-Fried and FTX were focused on building a centralized exchange, the Solana co-founders were focused on building self-custody solutions. As Yakovenko explains, “FTX became a much bigger brand and started going in a very global direction … but we were focused on building stuff for self-custody users.” Despite the setback FTX's collapse has had on Solana's ecosystem, Gokal says the focus on self-custody has led to real user adoption: “It's pretty exciting now to see that focusing on self-custody users and open-source software has created this huge boom — it's what captured most of the users and active addresses on Solana.” Disclaimer: Beginning in 2021, Michael McCaffrey, the former CEO and majority owner of The Block, took a series of loans from former FTX and Alameda founder Sam Bankman-Fried. McCaffrey resigned from the company in December 2022 after failing to disclose those transactions. Episode 125 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded remotely with The Block's Frank Chaparro and Solana co-founders Raj Gokal and Anatoly Yakovenko. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io

Six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen is making his mark on the metaverse with a digital sneaker collection featuring 1,000 unique ‘SP33' NFTs. For the launch, Pippen partnered with Orange Comet — the company that recently helped Sir Anthony Hopkins launch his own NFT collection. In this episode of The Scoop, Scottie Pippen and Orange Comet CEO Dave Broome discuss how Web3 is creating new ways for celebrities and fans to connect, and share the story behind the upcoming ‘SP33' NFT collection. According to Pippen, launching a digital sneaker collection is a way to bring his brand into the digital era. “I was a big sneakerhead growing up in the NBA world, so this is my opportunity to really resurface back into the sneaker world, but do it from a digital standpoint.” Not only will holders be able to wear their SP33 shoes around the metaverse, but 33 of the 1,000 NFTs will also come with a real-world sneaker prototype. Episode 124 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded live with The Block's Frank Chaparro and NBA legend Scottie Pippen and Orange Comet CEO Dave Broome. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Or click here to watch the full interview on YouTube. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn, NordVPN About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io About NordVPN NordVPN is essential for keeping crypto transactions secure, hiding your IP address and protecting your devices from hackers and data theft. Get premium cyber-security on up to 6 devices for the price of a cup of coffee a month. Get your exclusive NordVPN Deal and try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee: Visit https://nordvpn.com/thescoop.

A DeFi protocol known as Cryptex offers a permissionless way to speculate on the total crypto market capitalization through its novel index token, TCAP. Now, Cryptex is on the verge of releasing its newest index token, JPEGz, which will allow holders to track the total market cap of NFTs on Ethereum. In this episode of The Scoop, Cryptex co-founder Joe Sticco shares the details behind the upcoming JPEGz NFT index token, including why the index token is a good way to speculate on the future growth of the NFT sector. According to Sticco, the list of NFT collections included in the JPEGz index token is dynamic, which ensures that whenever a hot new NFT project crops up in the future, it will be included in the index. As Sticco explains, “NFTs are literally in their infancy. I look at them now and it's like where crypto was in 2017 — we had that first bust cycle now, and now we're in the ground, and who knows what happens next, but JPEGs is going to be the ability to track the NFT market cap.” Episode 123 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded live with The Block's Frank Chaparro and Cryptex co-founder Joe Sticco. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Or click here to watch the full interview on YouTube. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn About Tron TRON is dedicated to accelerating the decentralization of the internet via blockchain technology and decentralized applications (dApps). Founded in September 2017 by H.E. Justin Sun, the TRON network has continued to deliver impressive achievements since MainNet launch in May 2018. July 2018 also marked the ecosystem integration of BitTorrent, a pioneer in decentralized web3 services boasting over 100 million monthly active users. The TRON network completed full decentralization in December 2021 and is now a community-governed DAO. | TRONDAO | Twitter | Discord | About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io

In this month's 'Market Pulse' episode of The Scoop, The Block Vice President of Research Larry Cermak and Loomdart, a founding member of crypto-native venture firm eGirl Capital, reflect on FTX's collapse and speculate on what comes next for the crypto industry. According to Cermak, former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) is remaining in the Bahamas to stay engaged with local regulators: “Sam still has connections in the Bahamas and the government is still standing by him … He just made them look terrible, so they kind of have to go in this direction” During a recent interview, SBF confirmed he is still living in the Bahamas, although he is not communicating with FTX's new CEO John Ray. While FTX's collapse pushed crypto prices to new yearly lows, Loomdart says it is ultimately better for the long-term health of the industry:  “Crypto is such an open and free ecosystem to where if we don't have this type of education by fire it just keeps getting worse … If FTX didn't blow up now and they managed to keep going — I don't think that hole was going to shrink.” Episode 122 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded remotely with The Block's Frank Chaparro and Larry Cermak, and Loomdart, co-founder of eGirl Capital. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Or click here to watch the full interview on YouTube. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn About Tron TRON is dedicated to accelerating the decentralization of the internet via blockchain technology and decentralized applications (dApps). Founded in September 2017 by H.E. Justin Sun, the TRON network has continued to deliver impressive achievements since MainNet launch in May 2018. July 2018 also marked the ecosystem integration of BitTorrent, a pioneer in decentralized web3 services boasting over 100 million monthly active users. The TRON network completed full decentralization in December 2021 and is now a community-governed DAO. | TRONDAO | Twitter | Discord | About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io

Frank Chaparro is the Editor at Large at The Block. In this conversation, we discuss the FTX aftermath, the crypto contagion, Frank's soul searching after interviewing SBF multiple times, and what he expects to happen in the crypto industry going forward ======================= Valour (formerly DeFi Technologies) represents what's next in the digital economy -- providing simplified, trusted access to crypto, decentralized finance and Web 3.0 investment opportunities. Institutions and investors can gain diversified, secure, compliant, and easily tradable access to a diversified set of industry-leading equity products and protocols, through a single stock purchase on a regulated exchange. Currently listed on U.S. (OTC: DEFTF) and Canadian (NEO:DEFI) exchanges. For more information or to subscribe to receive company updates and financial information, visit our website at valour.com ======================= With a Messari Pro subscription, you gain access to exclusive industry-leading long-form daily research reports, daily crypto news & insights in your inbox, advanced asset screeners, curated sets of charts and metrics and so much more. Try Messari Pro today! Get up to 25% off their Messari Pro membership by visiting www.messari.io/pro and entering promo code "POMP" at checkout. ======================= Exodus is leading the world out of the traditional financial system by building beautiful and user-friendly blockchain products. With its focus on design and user experience, Exodus has become one of the most popular and loved cryptocurrency apps. It's supported on both desktop and mobile, allowing you to sync your wallet across multiple devices so you can have access to your funds anywhere. You can instantly exchange around 100 different cryptocurrencies straight from your wallet. Interactive charts let you view an asset's price history and your portfolio's performance over time. And maybe the best part, Exodus is integrated with the Trezor hardware wallet - making advanced security easy for everyone. Visit exodus.com/pomp for your free download or search Exodus on the App Store or Playstore. ======================= This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep. The Eight Sleep Pod is a tech layer that fits onto your mattress like a fitted sheet. The Pod dynamically cools and heats each side of the bed, to maintain the optimal sleeping temperature for what your body needs. With the Pod, you can start sleeping as cool as 55°F or as hot as 110°F. The result: Clinical data shows that Eight Sleep users experience up to 34% more deep sleep. Go to eightsleep.com/pomp for exclusive holiday savings and ring in the most wonderful time of night. Eight Sleep currently ships within the USA, Canada, the UK, select countries in the EU, and Australia. ======================= The number one name in NFT domains and the world's most powerful wallet are teaming up to bring something new to the crypto and Web3 world: That's right, Unstoppable Domains and Blockchain.com partnered to create NFT domain names ending in .Blockchain. It's the perfect ending to show that you're a believer in a decentralized future. The Blockchain.com community can get one, for free by signing up for the waitlist here. Free NFT domains provide all the benefits of premium Unstoppable Domains, including fee-free, lifelong ownership. Don't have a Blockchain.com wallet? No worries, these new domains are available to everyone for as low as $5. Either sign up for a free blockchain.wallet or visit Unstoppabledomains.com to buy your domain today. ==================

In this episode of The Scoop, Sam Bankman-Fried describes how a legacy payment system linked FTX's future to Alameda Research's fate, and explores why regulators and auditors alike failed to discover this relationship. According to Bankman-Fried, many FTX customers would fund their accounts via direct wire transfers to Alameda Research bank accounts: “What that flow I think looked like was basically: Bob wires $100 straight to Alameda Research, and then Alameda effectively ledger transfers $100 to Bob on FTX.” SBF has claimed that wired customer funds contributed to over half of Alameda's position on FTX, likely totaling over $5 billion, as reported by the WSJ. In hindsight, SBF says a “reasonably responsible” way of managing direct wire transfers would have been only debiting Alameda's primary FTX account. In practice, however, wired customer funds were being credited from an Alameda stub account that SBF says “was specifically meant to be a ledger for wire transfers.” When pressed on how regulators and auditors failed to uncover the extent of Alameda's relationship to FTX, SBF alleged that customer positions — including Alameda's — were not part of FTX's balance sheet: “This was effectively a customer negative position, and many customers had negative positions open on FTX… Those were not part of FTX's assets or liabilities, they were customer assets and liabilities, and so FTX's financials were not directly impacted by this.” Episode 121 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded remotely with The Block's Frank Chaparro, and Sam Bankman-Fried, Co-Founder of FTX and Alameda Research. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn, Athletic Greens About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io About Athletic Greens Build a Foundation for Better Health. It's time to reclaim your health and arm your immune system with convenient, daily nutrition! Fill nutrient gaps, promote gut health, and support whole-body vitality with AG1. One daily serving delivers a potent blend of 9 health products—a multivitamin, minerals, probiotics, adaptogens and more—working together to help you feel like your healthiest self. For more information visit AthleticGreens.com/Scoop

In 2020, Cowen Digital formed to allow institutional customers of the investment bank Cowen to trade digital assets. The digital arm has been growing steadily in its eight months of existence, despite the onset of crypto winter. In this episode of The Scoop, Cowen Digital managing director and head Drew Forman explains how the crypto industry can rebuild in the wake of FTX's meltdown, as well as what it will take to repair trust in the space among institutional investors. According to Forman, many of Cowen's institutional clients are “getting the pipes ready” to take part in crypto's next wave. But regulatory clarity is still needed before large, sophisticated institutions get involved. Forman explains: “I welcome a set of rules ahead of time that we all look to abide by — and hopefully that allows the big institutional investors with the trillion dollar balance sheets to start allocating to the space.” The SEC and DOJ are currently examining FTX's case, and the CFTC chair's is set to appear before the Senate Agriculture Committee on December 1 to testify on the exchange's collapse. Episode 120 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded live with The Block's Frank Chaparro, and Drew Forman, Managing Partner and Head of Cowen Digital. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io

As the crypto market struggles to gain its footing in the wake of FTX's demise, sweeping layoffs have thinned the ranks of many companies. In this episode of The Scoop, Rob Paone, founder and CEO of crypto recruiting firm Proof of Talent, shares his perspective on how the crypto hiring landscape has changed during the bear market. According to Paone, the current dynamic between job seekers and prospective employers is much more balanced than it was last year: “It's not 100% a company market right now… but it is a lot more equal than six to twelve months ago — it was a totally candidate-driven market of individuals naming their price and going wherever they wanted with multiple offers.” Paone says that candidates with technical skills should still be able to find plenty of opportunities:  “The easiest transition for a lot of people is technical roles — there is a huge demand still for engineering talent…the non-technical roles can get a little bit more challenging.” Episode 119 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded live with The Block's Frank Chaparro, and Rob Paone, Founder and CEO of Proof of Talent. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first-class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io

In the fourth installment of The Scoop's continued coverage of FTX's demise, host Frank Chaparro examines the legal underpinnings of FTX's bankruptcy and restructuring process with Dan Besikof, a partner at the law firm Loeb & Loeb, and Mark Shapiro, Chair of the Financial Restructuring Group and a partner at the law firm of Shearman & Sterling. In 2008, Shapiro served as the Head of Restructuring for Lehman Brothers, where he guided the sale of the firm's U.S. assets in chapter 11. According to Besikof, FTX's fiduciary will likely attempt to bring money back into the estate through lawsuits: “One of the things that they're going to look at is where did money go out where value didn't come back, and to the extent money went out and value didn't come back, that's a natural target for a fraudulent conveyance lawsuit or a fraudulent transfer lawsuit.” FTX has notified a federal judge it wants BitGo to custody its $740 million worth of digital assets. While the exact situation of FTX's finances is still uncertain, Shapiro says the sheer amount of money lost by FTX users is likely to prompt regulators to take a more proactive approach going forward: “Now that it's become so public and so much money has been lost, I think the paternalistic side of the government is going to take over and try to do something about protecting investors.” Episode 118 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded live with The Block's Frank Chaparro, Dan Besikof, a Partner at Loeb & Loeb, and Mark Shapiro, a Partner at Shearman & Sterling. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io

Web3 investment firm CoinFund recently launched a $300 million fund targeting early-stage crypto and web3 startups. In this episode of The Scoop, CoinFund Managing Partner David Pakman shares how this fund fits into CoinFund's broader investment thesis for crypto and web3, including why the fund is specifically targeting early-stage startups. The new fund is intended for new crypto startups already showing signs of success. As Pakman explains, “We saw a lot of seed-stage companies graduating to have real progress and we wanted to invest in that stage too, so we raised a fund purposefully to invest at the Series A, maybe Series B stage of crypto projects that are showing some traction.” While CoinFund is also looking to raise an additional $250 million fund specifically for seed-stage investments, Pakman says the early-stage investments typically see the most value creation: “A company is showing a little bit of progress, they may be showing some evidence of product market fit, and they're going to raise — not growth capital yet — but, you know, ten to fifteen million dollars… the steepest part of the value creation can happen just after that moment.” Episode 117 of Season 4 of The Scoop was recorded live with The Block's Frank Chaparro and CoinFund Managing Partner David Pakman. Listen below, and subscribe to The Scoop on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts. Email feedback and revision requests can be sent to podcast@theblockcrypto.com. This episode is brought to you by our sponsors Tron, Ledn About Tron Founded in 2013, Huobi Global is one of the largest virtual asset exchanges in the world. Huobi Global serves millions of users across international markets. Since its establishment, Huobi Global has committed to providing first class virtual asset investment services. Huobi Global's robust infrastructure, product innovation and capital strength provides a truly customer-centric and secure trading environment to help our international users to achieve their investment objectives. Please refer to Huobi's official website for more information: huobi.com. About Ledn Ledn was founded on the unshakeable conviction that digital assets have the power to democratize access to the global economy. We help you to experience the real life benefits of your Bitcoin without having to sell it. Start a savings account, take out a loan, or double your Bitcoin. For more information visit Ledn.io