Unchained Laura Shin

Nathaniel Popper just published his latest book, "The Trolls of Wall Street," covering the Wall Street Bets phenomenon. Funnily enough, his book comes at a time when there are striking similarities with the current memecoin mania in crypto. 
In this episode, Popper explores the rise of online investing communities like Wall Street Bets and their reflection of broader societal changes, particularly among young men. 
He also touches on the parallels between the trolling culture of these communities and the rise of figures like Donald Trump, and delves into the hidden dangers and psychological influences of memes in modern investing.
Show highlights:

01:21 The rise of online money communities and the shift towards investing based on ideas rather than traditional financial fundamentals

04:06 How the changing roles of young men in society have influenced the growth of crypto and online financial communities

13:36 How Robinhood's design choices changed retail investing, sparking FOMO and controversy by making trading as easy as a swipe

18:04 The hidden dangers of memes in modern investing, and how they balance fostering community with driving speculation

22:56 Why Trump's ties to the crypto community highlight the mix of serious intent and trolling

30:07 Crypto News Recap

Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
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Guest

Nathaniel Popper, author of The Trolls of Wall Street

Links
Previous coverage of Unchained on memecoins:

Unchained: Why Memecoins Have Been 2024's Most Profitable Crypto Trade: Ansem and Kelxyz - Ep. 641


BRETT Becomes First Memecoin on Base to Reach $1 Billion in Market Cap

DWF Labs to Invest in Memecoins, Onchain Data Reveals LADYS Transactions

Celebrity Tokens Continue to Bleed With Some Memecoin Traders Losing Six-Figures

The book:

Blockworks: What do memecoins and meme stocks have in common?: A review of ‘The Trolls of Wall Street’


Fortune: Q&A with the author of ‘The Trolls of Wall Street’: Gambling, conspiracies, and the return of Roaring Kitty, 

Meme culture

WSJ: 

Meme Stocks Are Back, but Fund Investors Moved On

Meet the ‘Degen’ Traders Fueling the Latest Meme-Stock Mania

CoinDesk: In Defense of Meme Coins



What else could memecoins be? By Vitalik Buterin


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Robinhood has been in the spotlight for its $200 million acquisition of European crypto exchange Bitstamp. The TradFi app’s venture into crypto is paying off: its recent earnings showed that revenue is growing substantially, and the Bitstamp acquisition is just one way the company will grow the pie.
Johann Kerbrat, general manager of Robinhood Crypto, came on the show to discuss the acquisition, Robinhood's plans for expanding its crypto business internationally and into the institutional market, the company's approach to listing crypto assets, how regulation has affected its business decisions, and its efforts to bridge traditional finance and decentralized finance.
Show highlights:

02:14 How the acquisition of Bitstamp will reshape Robinhood

08:51 Whether Robinhood could list more coins and whether it’s considering more acquisitions

11:54 Whether the U.S.’s unclear crypto regulation influenced the decision to acquire Bitstamp and which other jurisdictions, besides the EU, Robinhood Crypto is eyeing

17:46 Why Johann was disappointed by the Wells notice Robinhood received from the SEC

20:47 Johann’s U.S. crypto regulation wish list and why Robinhood supports the FIT21 bill

24:09 Why Robinhood delisted ADA, MATIC, and SOL, and the process for listing or delisting a coin on the platform

29:49 Johann’s background in crypto and trajectory at Robinhood Crypto

31:35 How Robinhood is uniquely poised to help bring real-world assets and securities on-chain, and how it will handle offerings for institutional investors

37:48 The impact and importance of the introduction of spot bitcoin ETFs

44:26 Why Robinhood decided to offer staking, but only for Solana, not Ethereum

46:11 Whether there’s demand for crypto-native features in the Robinhood platform

48:26 Robinhood’s collaboration with Arbitrum and whether the company might build their own Layer 2

54:29 Johann’s take on the memecoin mania and whether Robinhood could list them

59:26 What Johann thinks about the political fight around crypto in the U.S.


Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
Polkadot
Guest:

Johann Kerbrat, general manager of Robinhood Crypto
Links
Acquisition of Bitstamp: 

Unchained: Q&A With Robinhood Crypto General Manager: Why the Crypto Giant Went to the EU


Fortune: Robinhood defies the SEC by forking over $200 million for a crypto exchange


DL News: Robinhood crypto head says Bitstamp will help lure wealthy investors


Robinhood’s crypto business:

Bloomberg: Robinhood (HOOD) Profit Beats Estimates as Crypto Revenue Surges


Robinhood Reports First Quarter 2024 Results

Regulatory actions:

Reuters: Robinhood Crypto gets Wells notice from US SEC 

Robinhood Crypto Launches Staking in Europe with Localized Apps to Follow

Memecoin mania

Unchained: 

Celebrity Tokens Continue to Bleed With Some Memecoin Traders Losing Six-Figures 

Why Memecoins Have Been 2024's Most Profitable Crypto Trade: Ansem and Kelxyz


Ether ETFs:

Unchained: 

Ethereum ETFs Likely Protect Ether From the SEC. But What About Staked ETH? 

Why the SEC May Not Be Done in Its Legal Battles Over Ethereum

Kerbrat’s statement on ETFs



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Coinbase’s “onchain summer” has kicked off with the launch of its new smart wallet. This interview with Luke Youngblood, founding contributor to Moonwell, gives a peek at how it’s sweetening the pot for developers and users alike. 
In this episode, Youngblood describes how smart wallets are different from traditional wallets, how they do away with past security issues, and the more minor potential risks that still do exist with smart wallets. He also gives details on the ways that Coinbase is trying to use its smart wallet to get users onchain: making it much easier to transact onchain directly from their Coinbase accounts, subsidizing gas costs for certain dapps, and making sure everything is web-accessible. 
Plus, he explains why Moonwell chose Base, how it is branching out to non-crypto native DeFi users, such as populations that only have mobile phones and not desktop computers in geographies like Africa, Latin America, and Asia, and how the DeFi lending protocol differentiates itself from bigger ones that have established a beachhead on Base. 
Show highlights:

(00:00) Intro

(01:40) How smart wallets differ from traditional wallets and embedded wallets

(04:06) Why Luke is excited to be working with Coinbase smart wallet

(06:33) What happens if the user loses the device linked to their smart wallet

(08:12) How hard it would be for a hacker to try to get access to the assets in this smart wallet

(09:36) How Coinbase is initially paying for user gas fees on dapps like Moonwell and other launch partners

(12:02) How Coinbase’s Magic Stand feature enables users to transact onchain straight from their Coinbase accounts

(14:24) How Coinbase might keep paying gas fees for some dapps even after the initial launch period

(16:38) Why the smart wallet is also accessible via the web, and not just through an app

(19:50) Why Moonwell has focused on lending and borrowing

(18:03) Why Moonwell chose to build on Base as opposed to, say, Solana

(21:24) Moonwell’s plans to grow 

(23:00) How having access to Coinbase’s user base changes Moonwell’s strategy for attracting users

(26:14) Crypto News Recap


Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!

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Guest
Luke Youngblood
Links

Previous coverage on Unchained:

Coinbase Smart Wallet: Coinbase Launches Its Smart Wallets, Dubbing It Crypto’s ‘IPhone Moment’


Wallets: 

Why (Almost) Everyone in Ethereum Is So Excited About a Wallet-Related Proposal

What Are Externally Owned Accounts (EOAs) in Ethereum?

An Introduction to ERC-4337 (Account Abstraction) Standard

Base: 

How Ethereum’s Dencun Upgrade Could Lead to the Rise of Millions of Layer 3s

Dencun Day One: Ethereum Layer 2 Networks See Drastic Drop in Transaction Fees



Base Daily Transactions Spike to 2 Million Post Dencun Upgrade 

Why Base’s Creator Thinks Social Apps Will Be a ‘Huge Part’ of the Layer 2 Blockchain’s Success

Base TVL Hits $4 Billion as Transactions Per Second Surpass Ethereum

3 Reasons Why Layer 2 Network Base Has More Than Doubled Its Total Value Locked This Year

Ethereum Layer 2s:

Ethereum L2 Networks Reach Record High of 7 Million Distinct Addresses


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In this episode of Bits + Bips, hosts James Seyffart, Alex Kruger, and Joe McCann, along with guest Hal Press, founder of North Rock Digital, dive into the intricate challenges of pitching the ETH spot ETF to traditional finance and the Federal Reserve’s anticipated next steps. They discuss why Biden vetoed the repeal of SAB 121, and why that veto lends credence to an alternative theory as to why the SEC approved Ethereum ETFs. 
Also, they talk about why the spot ETH ETFs are already turning out to be different from the Bitcoin ETFs, Hong Kong's (and perhaps China’s?) crypto ambitions, recent U.S. macroeconomic indicators, and whether or not Roaring Kitty’s recent antics with GME stock are illegal—and how he’s impacting memecoins. 
Show highlights:

Why Biden vetoed the repeal of SAB 121 and whether it was priced in

The recent political change around crypto and the surprise Gen Z celebrity who could swing the U.S. presidential election

The impact of the Trump conviction on the crypto industry

Why ETF issuers were caught off guard with the spot ETH ETF approvals

Whether Bitcoin ETF buyers will rotate to Ethereum, and when the products will launch 

How the ETH ETF will be pitched to TradFi 

Why Alex thinks ETH/BTC will go up 

How Hong Kong is trying to become the Wall Street of crypto, according to Joe

The recent macroeconomic indicators in the U.S. and their implications for crypto

The massive glitches in the NYSE that showed Berkshire Hathaway going down 99%

Whether what Roaring Kitty is doing with the GME stock is illegal


Hosts:


James Seyffart, Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence


Alex Kruger, Founder of Asgard


Joe McCann, Founder, CEO, and CIO of Asymmetric

Guest:

Hal Press, Founder of North Rock Digital
Links
Politics: 

Unchained: President Biden Vetoes SAB121 Repeal


Unchained: FIT21 Bill Heads to The Senate: Should We Really Be Excited?


POLITICO: Crypto super PACs get $25M boost


Fortune: Coinbase donates $25 million to super PAC Fairshake days after Biden vetoes crypto custody bill


Ether ETFs:

Unchained: 

Ethereum ETFs Likely Protect Ether From the SEC. But What About Staked ETH? 

Why the SEC May Not Be Done in Its Legal Battles Over Ethereum

Why ETH Spot ETFs Could Benefit Stakers and Make Ethereum More Resilient

ETH ETFs Will Be Approved. But Could Grayscale Outflows Depress the Price of ETH?

Blockworks: What we learned from the latest ETH ETF filing dump


Hong Kong
Bloomberg: Hong Kong Says 11 Crypto Exchanges Are Closer to Getting Permits

Other recent events: 

CNN Business: Berkshire Hathaway: NYSE says glitch that showed stock down 99.97% has been resolved 


WSJ: E*Trade Considers Kicking Meme-Stock Leader Keith Gill Off Platform 


TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Intro

01:59 Why Biden vetoed the repeal of SAB 121 and whether it was priced in

08:43 The recent political change around crypto and whether this particular Gen Z celeb could swing the U.S. presidential election

12:07 What the impact of the Trump conviction had in the crypto industry

15:38 Whether Bitcoin ETF buyers will rotate to Ethereum, and when the ETH ETFs will launch 

25:53 How the ETH ETF will or should be pitched to TradFi 

31:02 Why Alex thinks ETH/BTC will go up 

32:48How Hong Kong is trying to become the Wall Street of crypto, according to Joe

36:27 The recent macroeconomic indicators in the U.S. and their implications for crypto

45:15 The massive glitches in the NYSE that showed Berkshire Hathaway going down 99%

49:26 Whether what Roaring Kitty is doing with the GME stock is illegal


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In this episode, Laura Shin speaks with former CFTC chairman Chris Giancarlo and former CFTC chief innovation officer Daniel Gorfine on the pressing need for the U.S. to safeguard the dollar. They explain why they believe the future of regulation is the government operating nodes on blockchains rather than regulating intermediaries, why even private USD stablecoins will want a USD central bank digital currency, and how China might export the technology behind the digital yuan—and its surveillance capabilities—to other countries. They also touch on how the upcoming U.S. elections could influence crypto policy, why stablecoins are more than just trading instruments, and what the U.S. must do to maintain its financial leadership.
Show highlights:

How governments should embrace blockchain technology to become better at its job, according to Chris

How the financial system needs to change for the younger generations

Whether the U.S. is losing ground in terms of innovation

Why Daniel thinks stablecoins are much more than a trading instrument for crypto

Why Daniel believes that the U.S. is making the regulation of stablecoins “far more complicated than it needs to be”

How Singapore is already giving licenses to USD stablecoin issuers

Whether the dollar should be trademarked to protect it

How Tether has become one of the most profitable companies per employee in history without being under U.S. jurisdiction

Who should be the next chair of the SEC and the need to regulate DeFi in order for it to become mainstream

Why Daniel thinks that some of the criticism of the FIT21 bill “doesn’t hold water”

Why Chris believes that China is lying about not intending to export the technology behind the digital yuan

Whether algorithmic stablecoins should be banned, as proposed in the Lummis-Gillibrand bill


Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
First Bits + Bips episode: Bits + Bips: Does Macroeconomics Point to a Potential Crypto Supercycle?
Thank you to our sponsors!

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VaultCraft

Guests:


Chris Giancarlo, Former Chairman of the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission, author of CryptoDad

Forbes: ‘Elizabeth Warren’s Anti-Crypto Wing Is A Shrinking Iceberg’, Says Former Top Regulator


FoxBusiness Interview: Elizabeth Warren and others have declared war on cryptocurrency: Chris Giancarlo


Op-ed in the FT Banking Risk & Regulation: Can CBDCs be made safe for democracy?



Daniel Gorfine, Founder & CEO of boutique advisory firm Gattaca Horizons, former Chief Innovation Officer at the U.S. CFTC, and adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center

Opinion: Stablecoin and other digital assets are falsely framed as a choice between personal privacy and national security. We can have both. - MarketWatch

Building digital infrastructure for the future of finance


Links
Stablecoins:


Stablecoins Are Defense Tech by Morgan Beller 

Unchained: 

Opinion: Regulated Dollar Stablecoins Created by a Proposed New Senate Bill Would be Crypto’s Ultimate Trojan Horse 


Tether's Record $4.5 Billion Q1 Profit Highlights Its Dominance of the Stablecoin Industry

SAB 121
Unchained: President Biden Vetoes SAB121 Repeal

FIT21

Unchained: FIT21 Bill Heads to The Senate: Should We Really Be Excited?

Spot Ether ETFs
Unchained: Analysts Up Odds of Spot Ether ETF to 75% as Prometheum Launches Product That Treats ETH as a Security


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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Robert Leshner, and Tarun Chitra explore the latest trends in crypto. This episode explores the buzz around LeBron James' potential memecoin, the recent approval of Ether ETFs, and Biden's shifting stance on crypto policy. We dissect the implications of Trump's pro-crypto promises and the FIT21 legislation. Tune in for a lively debate on celebrity coins, the market's reaction to regulatory changes, and the evolving landscape of political influence in the crypto space.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Pandora, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Show highlights
🔹 Celebrity Coins: In-depth discussion on the rise of celebrity-endorsed cryptocurrencies, focusing on LeBron James' potential memecoin and its market implications.
🔹 Ether ETF Approval: Examination of the recent Ether ETF approval, the political motivations behind it, and how it might impact the broader crypto market.
🔹 Biden's Crypto Policy: Analysis of Biden's evolving crypto stance, including recent outreach to the crypto industry and the potential effects on the upcoming elections.
🔹 Trump's Crypto Strategy: Debate on Trump's newfound pro-crypto stance, his promises to the crypto community, and the potential impact on his voter base.
🔹 FIT21 Legislation: Overview of the Financial Innovation and Technology in the 21st Century Act, its key provisions, and the potential for bipartisan support.
🔹 Political Influence in Crypto: Discussion on the increasing influence of politics in the crypto space, including the roles of key figures and the impact of regulatory developments.

Hosts
⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly 
⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly
⭐️Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate
⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures

Disclosures

Timestamps 

00:00 - Intro

02:45 - ETF Approval 

07:00 - How deep is this policy shift?

09:00 - FIT21

15:45 - Trump's Pro-Crypto Stance

24:40 - Caitlyn Jenner's Memecoin Launch


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