The Blockcrunch Podcast Jason Choi

*Apologies for the audio quality this week! Usual quality will resume in the next episode


DeFi has been accused of being propped up by unsustainable ponzis - can Ribbon be the solution?


Ribbon is a DeFi protocol that allows users access to crypto structured products. Till date, they reported over $10 billion in notional volume and claims to offer 24% on their ETH - despite being in a bear market.
 
Today, Ribbon’s Co-Founder Julian Koh shares with us:
How Ribbon generates yield Building new products vs integrating with others What is takes to revive DeFi Potential regulations on crypto space  
Host: Jason Choi @mrjasonchoi . Not financial advice.

 
------------ Timestamps -------------
(00:00:00) – Introduction
(00:03:41) – Road to founding Ribbon
(00:07:34) – Primer on structured products
(00:11:31) – Risks of capital loss on Ribbon
(00:14:16) – Managing options with automated smart contracts
(00:16:00) – Preventing market makers from front-running
(00:19:42) – Types of Ribbon’s customers
(00:21:14) – Reasons for Ribbon’s success
(00:23:18) – New Ribbon products and plans
(00:31:55) – Is composability just a meme
(00:35:37) – Underwriting lending risks
(00:39:27) – Moving away from Opyn & building own exchange
(00:47:38) – Allowing DAOs to issue bonds
(00:51:50) – Primary drivers of future of DeFi
(00:58:26) – Potential regulations on crypto-space
 
----------- Sponsors -------------
dYdX is the Leading Decentralized Exchange for trading perpetual contracts. Users enjoy low fees, deep liquidity, up to 20x more buying power and even earn $DYDX from trading. Trade on dYdX today at: https://trade.dydx.exchange
 
----------- More Resources ---------
Guest
Julian’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/juliankoh
Ribbon Finance’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/ribbonfinance


 
Blockcrunch
Blockcrunch VIP: https://blockcrunch.substack.com/
Blockcrunch Twitter: https://twitter.com/theBlockcrunch
Jason Choi’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrjasonchoi
 
------------ Disclosures -------------
Disclaimer: The Blockcrunch Podcast (“Blockcrunch”) is an educational resource intended for informational purposes only. Blockcrunch produces a weekly podcast and newsletter that routinely covers projects in Web 3 and may discuss assets that the host or its guests have financial exposure to. Views held by Blockcrunch’s guests are their own. None of Blockcrunch, its registered entity or any of its affiliated personnel are licensed to provide any type of financial advice, and nothing on Blockcrunch’s podcast, newsletter, website and social media should be construed as financial advice. Blockcrunch also receives compensation from its sponsor; sponsorship messages do not constitute financial advice or endorsement.

Many businesses have been disrupted by technology - Electric Capital thinks investing is no different
 
Electric Capital, a crypto VC fund with more than $1 billion AUM, hires Software Engineers and Designers instead of Financiers to manage its fund. 
 
Today, Managing Partner Avichal from Electric Capital shares with us:
 
Thesis on Software Eating Money DAOs as Internet-native corporations Importance of UI/UX to onboard the next billion users Great Thinkers = Good Founders  
Host: Jason Choi @mrjasonchoi . Not financial advice.

 
------------ Timestamps -------------
(00:00:00) – Introduction
(00:02:32) – Avichal’s hop from Facebook to managing $1b fund
(00:07:15) – Thesis on Software eating Money
(00:13:05) – 3 things Electric’s Engineers do
(00:16:26) – Why is Electric bullish on DAOs
(00:25:29) – Examples of good DAO governance
(00:31:30) – Good UI/UX to onboard next billion users
(00:37:36) – Identifying unobvious but good investments
(00:40:33) – Investing in great founders
(00:44:42) – Will crypto fail because of regulation
 
----------- Sponsors -------------
dYdX is the Leading Decentralized Exchange for trading perpetual contracts. Users enjoy low fees, deep liquidity, up to 20x more buying power and even earn $DYDX from trading. Trade on dYdX today at: https://trade.dydx.exchange
 
----------- More Resources ---------
Guest
Avichal’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/avichal
Electric Capital’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/ElectricCapital



Blockcrunch
Blockcrunch VIP: https://blockcrunch.substack.com/
Blockcrunch Twitter: https://twitter.com/theBlockcrunch
Jason Choi’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrjasonchoi
 
------------ Disclosures -------------
Disclaimer: The Blockcrunch Podcast (“Blockcrunch”) is an educational resource intended for informational purposes only. Blockcrunch produces a weekly podcast and newsletter that routinely covers projects in Web 3 and may discuss assets that the host or its guests have financial exposure to. Views held by Blockcrunch’s guests are their own. None of Blockcrunch, its registered entity or any of its affiliated personnel are licensed to provide any type of financial advice, and nothing on Blockcrunch’s podcast, newsletter, website and social media should be construed as financial advice. Blockcrunch also receives compensation from its sponsor; sponsorship messages do not constitute financial advice or endorsement.

Most wouldn’t be comfortable with broadcasting their daily lives to the entire world - but that’s what happening with the transparent nature of blockchains
 
Founders of Aztec Network believe that privacy is a fundamental human right and that crypto-users should have easy and cheap access to privacy.
 
Today, Co-Founder Joe Andrews and Head of Growth Jon Wu from Aztec shares with us:
Use-cases for privacy beyond illegal activities Achieving privacy as a default option Regulatory landscape for on-chain privacy  
Host: Jason Choi @mrjasonchoi . Not financial advice.

------------ Timestamps -------------
(00:00:00) – Introduction
(00:03:45) – Why is privacy important to people
(00:09:28) – What exactly is Aztec
(00:15:12) – Like a VPN for Ethereum Network
(00:21:56) – Achieving low transactions cost & privacy
(00:24:27) – Aztec versus other privacy protocols
(00:29:30) – Regulatory risk for users on Aztec
(00:36:52) – Making it difficult for illicit activities
(00:38:43) – Paths to preserving privacy vs remaining compliant
(00:44:42) – Use-cases of on-chain privacy
(00:47:44) – Are users liable for violating sanctions by using Aztec
(00:51:17) – Convincing developers to build using Aztec’s Noir
 
----------- Sponsors -------------
dYdX is the Leading Decentralized Exchange for trading perpetual contracts. Users enjoy low fees, deep liquidity, up to 20x more buying power and even earn $DYDX from trading. Trade on dYdX today at: https://trade.dydx.exchange
 
 
----------- More Resources ---------
Guest
Aztec’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/aztecnetwork
Joe Andrew’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/jaosef
Jon Wu’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonwu_
 
Blockcrunch
Blockcrunch VIP: https://blockcrunch.substack.com/
Blockcrunch Twitter: https://twitter.com/theBlockcrunch
Jason Choi’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrjasonchoi
 
------------ Disclosures -------------
Disclaimer: The Blockcrunch Podcast (“Blockcrunch”) is an educational resource intended for informational purposes only. Blockcrunch produces a weekly podcast and newsletter that routinely covers projects in Web 3 and may discuss assets that the host or its guests have financial exposure to. Views held by Blockcrunch’s guests are their own. None of Blockcrunch, its registered entity or any of its affiliated personnel are licensed to provide any type of financial advice, and nothing on Blockcrunch’s podcast, newsletter, website and social media should be construed as financial advice. Blockcrunch also receives compensation from its sponsor; sponsorship messages do not constitute financial advice or endorsement.

Who best to understand struggles of crypto founders than fellow founders? 
 
Tascha is the Co-Founder of Alpha Venture DAO and built a DeFi protocol that had a TVL of $3 billion at its peak.
 
Today, she joins us as a mentor in Tangent to share with us:
 
How Alpha scaled to $3B in deposits 2 crypto verticals Tascha is excited about How to identify great founders in 60 minutes  
Host: Jason Choi @mrjasonchoi . Not financial advice.


------------ Timestamps -------------
(00:00:00) – Introduction
(00:02:42) – Early days of Alpha Finance
(00:06:10) – Motivation behind building levered yield farming back in 2020
(00:09:44) – What is Alpha Venture
(00:13:17) – How to be a successful founder
(00:17:53) – Balancing between reinvention and solving pain points
(00:26:07) – Key areas that Tascha is excited for
(00:30:09) – Thought process for identifying market opportunity
(00:32:11) – Identifying great founders to invest in
(00:40:36) – Difficulties of running a crypto start-up

----------- Sponsors -------------
dYdX is the Leading Decentralized Exchange for trading perpetual contracts. Users enjoy low fees, deep liquidity, up to 20x more buying power and even earn $DYDX from trading. Trade on dYdX today at: https://trade.dydx.exchange
 
----------- More Resources ---------
Guest
Taschas Twitter: https://twitter.com/tascha_panpan
Alpha Venture DAO’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/AlphaVentureDAO
 
Blockcrunch
Blockcrunch VIP: https://blockcrunch.substack.com/
Blockcrunch Twitter: https://twitter.com/theBlockcrunch
Jason Choi’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrjasonchoi
 
------------ Disclosures -------------
Disclaimer: The Blockcrunch Podcast (“Blockcrunch”) is an educational resource intended for informational purposes only. Blockcrunch produces a weekly podcast and newsletter that routinely covers projects in Web 3 and may discuss assets that the host or its guests have financial exposure to. Views held by Blockcrunch’s guests are their own. None of Blockcrunch, its registered entity or any of its affiliated personnel are licensed to provide any type of financial advice, and nothing on Blockcrunch’s podcast, newsletter, website and social media should be construed as financial advice. Blockcrunch also receives compensation from its sponsor; sponsorship messages do not constitute financial advice or endorsement.

If you’re a gamer you must have thought it’d be nice if you could transfer your in-game resources from one game to the other. Well, you finally can with composable resources in Treasure’s game ecosystem. 
 
Treasure is building the decentralized app-chain for an interoperable metaverse. In less than a year, Treasure onboarded over 100,000 community members and facilitated over $264 million with their NFT marketplace.


Today, we have John and Karel, Co-Founder and COO of Treasure on the show to share with us:

What exactly Treasure is Benefits of building and playing in Treasure’s game ecosystem Sustainability and long-term use case of $MAGIC tokens  
Host: Jason Choi @mrjasonchoi . Not financial advice.

 
------------ Timestamps -------------
(00:00:00) – Introduction
(00:03:25) – What exactly Treasure is
(00:06:51) – The power of community-driven content
(00:10:26) – How did Loot inspire Treasure
(00:13:44) – Developer’s benefits of building on Treasure
(00:19:40) – Why build a decentralized game infrastructure
(00:24:49) – Treasure’s main metaverse: Bridgeworld
(00:31:32) – Comparison to P2E games and if it’s sustainable
(00:34:57) – Examples of partner games on Treasure
(00:45:30) – Long-term use case of $MAGIC tokens
(00:49:08) – Building out Treasure’s own app-chain on AnyTrust
(00:53:23) – Why is NOW the best time to be part of Treasure
 
----------- Sponsors -------------
dYdX is the Leading Decentralized Exchange for trading perpetual contracts. Users enjoy low fees, deep liquidity, up to 20x more buying power and even earn $DYDX from trading. Trade on dYdX today at: https://trade.dydx.exchange
 
----------- More Resources ---------
Guest
Treasure’s Twitter:https://twitter.com/Treasure_DAO
Treasure’s Discord: https://discord.com/invite/treasuredao
John Patten’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/jpatten__
Karel Vuong’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/0xkarel
 
Blockcrunch
Blockcrunch VIP: https://blockcrunch.substack.com/
Blockcrunch Twitter: https://twitter.com/theBlockcrunch
Jason Choi’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrjasonchoi
 
------------ Disclosures -------------
Disclaimer: The Blockcrunch Podcast (“Blockcrunch”) is an educational resource intended for informational purposes only. Blockcrunch produces a weekly podcast and newsletter that routinely covers projects in Web 3 and may discuss assets that the host or its guests have financial exposure to. Views held by Blockcrunch’s guests are their own. None of Blockcrunch, its registered entity or any of its affiliated personnel are licensed to provide any type of financial advice, and nothing on Blockcrunch’s podcast, newsletter, website and social media should be construed as financial advice. Blockcrunch also receives compensation from its sponsor; sponsorship messages do not constitute financial advice or endorsement.

The Merge, which marks the official transition to Proof-of-Stake, is slated to occur around September 15 - 16th and is possibly the largest crypto event to happen in a long time. The transition to Proof-of-Stake is supposedly a bullish event, but lately, there have been concerns raised on whether it is the right move. 


If you’re a founder or investor in crypto, you should be prepared for what’s to come.


Today, we have Anthony Sassano, one of the largest proponents and educator of Ethereum on the show to share with us:


What is The Merge How OFAC’s censorship may affect Ethereum Is Proof-of-Stake really better than Proof-of-Work? Reasons to be bullish for Proof-of-Stake  
Host: Jason Choi @mrjasonchoi . Not financial advice.

 
------------ Timestamps -------------
(00:00:00) – Introduction
(00:01:40) – Introduction to OFAC & The Merge
(00:03:06) – What is The Merge
(00:10:21) – Why might there be 2 Ethereum chains after The Merge?
(00:17:46) – What is OFAC and why is it scary?
(00:28:50) – Would PoW be more censorship-resistant than PoS?
(00:39:54) – Why is it harder for OFAC to enforce sanctions in PoW?
(00:45:49) – Pros and cons of social slashing
(00:57:19) – How are Flashbots and MEV contributing to censorship?
(01:02:35) – Reasons to be bullish for PoS
 
----------- Sponsors -------------
dYdX is the Leading Decentralized Exchange for trading perpetual contracts. Users enjoy low fees, deep liquidity, up to 20x more buying power and even earn $DYDX from trading. Trade on dYdX today at: https://trade.dydx.exchange
 
 
----------- More Resources ---------
Guest
Anthony Sassano’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/sassal0x
 
Blockcrunch
Blockcrunch VIP: https://blockcrunch.substack.com/
Blockcrunch Twitter: https://twitter.com/theBlockcrunch
Jason Choi’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrjasonchoi
 
------------ Disclosures -------------
Disclaimer: The Blockcrunch Podcast (“Blockcrunch”) is an educational resource intended for informational purposes only. Blockcrunch produces a weekly podcast and newsletter that routinely covers projects in Web 3 and may discuss assets that the host or its guests have financial exposure to. Views held by Blockcrunch’s guests are their own. None of Blockcrunch, its registered entity or any of its affiliated personnel are licensed to provide any type of financial advice, and nothing on Blockcrunch’s podcast, newsletter, website and social media should be construed as financial advice. Blockcrunch also receives compensation from its sponsor; sponsorship messages do not constitute financial advice or endorsement.