The Breakdown

Latest Episodes:

The Banking System Broke; Will That Force a Fed Pivot? Mar 15, 2023

Show notes

At this point, markets are racing to figure out what they believe the recent spate of U.S. bank failures means for monetary policy. Will the Federal Reserve stay the course? Will it be forced to pivot on raising interest rates? NLW brings you the debate as well as how the latest CPI inflation data affects the discussion.

Even Barney Frank Thinks Signature Was Shut Down to Send an Anti-Crypto Message Mar 14, 2023

Show notes

On Sunday, as government authorities announced that Silicon Valley Bank depositors would be protected, they added that the New York Department of Financial Services would be shuttering Signature Bank. Little explanation was given but some, including Signature board member and bank regulation architect Barney Frank, think it was a calculated move to send an anti-crypto message.

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We Pushed Semiconductors Offshore; Are We Doing the Same to Crypto? Mar 12, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s Long Reads Sunday, NLW reads:

Semiconductors: A Cautionary Tale by Sheila Warren

The SEC’s Other Option by TuongVy Le

SEC Bitcoin ETF Dissent - Commissioner Hester Peirce and Commissioner Mark Uyeda

“The Breakdown” is written, produced and narrated by Nathaniel Whittemore aka NLW, with editing by Michele Musso and research by Scott Hill. Jared Schwartz is our executive producer and our theme music is “Countdown” by Neon Beach. Music behind our sponsor today is “Foothill Blvd” by Sam Barsh. Image credit: Malte Mueller/ Getty Images, modified by CoinDesk.

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Join the most important conversation in crypto and Web3 at Consensus 2023, happening April 26-28 in Austin, Texas. Come and immerse yourself in all that Web3, crypto, blockchain and the metaverse have to offer. Use code BREAKDOWN to get 15% off your pass. Visit consensus.coindesk.com.

The Government Game Plan: Call Ether a Security, Tax the Crap Out of Bitcoin Mining Mar 11, 2023

Show notes

What a week. On this edition of the “Weekly Recap,” NLW updates on the Silicon Valley Bank situation, discusses the New York Attorney General’s lawsuit against KuCoin that claims ether is a security and looks at the Biden Administration’s plan to lay a 30% excise tax on energy used for crypto mining.

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The 2nd Biggest Bank Failure In American History: Silicon Valley Bank Is No More Mar 11, 2023

Show notes

Just days after Silvergate announced an orderly winding down, Silicon Valley Bank has come to a very disorderly end. Today, California regulators stepped in to put the bank in FDIC receivership. NLW explains how we got here and what it might mean.

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The Real Reasons Silvergate Collapsed Mar 10, 2023

Show notes

Beleaguered Silvergate Bank has announced that it will be winding down. NLW examines whether the turn of events is due to banking crypto companies, specific business decisions made by Silvergate or a coordinated political campaign against the company.

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Fed’s Powell Brings the Dog and Pony Show to DC for the Semiannual Monetary Policy Review Mar 09, 2023

Show notes

In today's episode, NLW looks at the macro as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell discusses monetary policy this week before Senate and House of Representatives banking committees. The markets are betting on a 50 basis point rate hike at the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting based on his Tuesday comments.

Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.

Fireworks in the Grayscale Bitcoin ETF Lawsuit as Judge Visibly Rattles SEC Attorney Mar 08, 2023

Show notes

Last year, Grayscale, a CoinDesk sister company, filed suit against the Securities and Exchange Commission after its proposal to convert the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust into a bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund was rejected. Today the hearing began, and the SEC was almost immediately put on the defensive. In this episode, NLW explains the background of the SEC and bitcoin ETFs, the specifics of the Grayscale case and how the community is reacting to today's hearing.

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Are the WSJ Articles on Binance and Tether ‘Trial by Press’? Mar 07, 2023

Show notes

Today, NLW discusses recent Wall Street Journal articles about Tether using fraudulent bank accounts to access banking services and private chat threads from former Binance employees arguing that Binance and Binance.US were closely aligned.

Join the discussion at discord.gg/VrKRrfKCz8.