Josh Cincinnati on the challenge of blockchain governance (EP.144)
Josh Cincinnati, former Executive Director of the Zcash Foundation, joins the show to talk about his tenure at that organization, and lessons he’s taken from the experience. In this episode: The genesis of the Zcash Foundation Prior foundation mistakes that Josh sought to avoid The difference between governing a non-cryptocurrency FOSS project and an open […]
Bruce Fenton (Chainstone Labs) on the paradox of governance tokens (EP.139)
Bruce Fenton, founder of the Satoshi Roundtable and Chainstone Labs, joins the show to talk security tokens and tokens-which-are-securities. In this episode: About Bruce’s company Chainstone labs How the Bitcoin Roundtable is intertwined with Bitcoin history and the blocksize debate Coinbase’s ongoing rapprochement with Bitcoiners Why longevity is so difficult in the crypto industry Are […]
Weekly Roundup 11/06/20 (Blockchain voting, a $1B Bitcoin forfeiture, election outcomes and inflation) (EP.145)
Matt and Nic cover deals and the news of the week. In this episode: The latest on Matt’s bike saga Possible election outcomes and the prospect for inflation How Kelly Loeffer’s runoff election might affect Bitcoin Were prediction markets vindicated by the election? The government seizes $1b worth of Bitcoin Why the seized bitcoin is […]
Alan Lane (Silvergate) on banking the cryptoasset industry (EP.146)
Alan Lane, the CEO of Silvergate Financial joins the show. In this episode we discuss: How Silvergate came to bank blockchain companies. The challenges and opportunities in providing services in this fast growing market. Silvergate Exchange Network – how this product is driving growth and solving customer pain points. Alan’s perspectives on stablecoins and how […]
Weekly Roundup 11/13/20 (Cred insolvency, Zelleification in Venezuela, Can Bitcoin be 6102’ed?) (Ep.147)
Nic and Matt return for news and deals of the week. In this episode: Cred files for bankruptcy Why Bitcoin banking is uniquely robust Why we should not be discouraged by the occasional failure of Bitcoin banks The ECB looks to create a CBDC within 2-4 years Gary Gensler’s influence on the Biden administration XRP’s […]
Parker Lewis (Unchained Capital) on unlocking Bitcoin’s potential with multisig (EP.148)
Parker Lewis, head of Business Development at Unchained Capital, and author of the Gradually then Suddenly series, joins the show. In this episode: Parker’s progress in our Bitcoin fantasy league Our views on how Bitcoin gives purpose Bitcoin’s relationship to the prospects for fiscal spending How the virus may have been an excuse to extend […]
Weekly Roundup 11/20/20 (Claytons leave the SEC, the not so quiet Quiet Rally, Bitcoin interest rates) (EP.149)
Nic and Matt return for deals and news of the week. In this episode: Nic’s appearance on Bloomberg TV Is Jay Clayton’s departure good for the SEC? Our dark horse pick for SEC Chair Scaramucci’s fund considers a Bitcoin position Is Binance decentralized? How are enterprise blockchains still going? How Bitcoin is akin to gold […]
John Newbery (Brink) on funding Bitcoin development (EP.150)
John Newbery, Bitcoin Core developer and founder of Bitcoin Optech, announces an independent nonprofit organization to support Bitcoin development, Brink. Donate here. In this episode, we discuss the formation and mandate of Brink, as well as the developer funding context that we find ourselves in. Covered in the episode: John Newbery’s core developer story and […]
Weekly Roundup 11/27/20 (What we are thankful for, USDC in Venezuela, is GBTC behind the rally?) (EP.151)
Nic and Matt return with a special Thanksgiving issue of OTB. In this episode: How Castle Island VC was almost Brink VC The difference between financialized walled-garden gold and its Bitcoin equivalent How USDC is being used in Venezuela via AirTM How stablecoins are now tools of geopolitical power projection Vaneck lanches an ETN on […]
Pelle Brændgaard (Notabene) on how crypto service providers are dealing with the Travel Rule (EP.152)
Pelle Brændgaard, the cofounder and CEO of Notabene, an enterprise software company building compliance tools to enable trusted cryptoasset transactions between financial services firms, joins the show. In this episode we discuss: Pelle’s early work in distributed systems and pre-bitcoin cyber-cash projects His path to cofounding Uport and his views on decentralized identity systems The […]