Unchained

Latest Episodes:

Stani Kulechov on Why Aave Is So Successful - Ep.212 Feb 16, 2021

Show notes

Stani Kulechov, founder and CEO of Aave, comes onto the show to discuss the lending protocol and second-biggest DeFi project by total value locked. Here are some of the highlights:

How Stani’s background studying law and his passion for fintech led him to the world of smart contracts (1:53)
Why he decided to transition ETHLend to Aave, and how that eliminated the “meme” narrative (5:55)
How Stani would explain Aave to a five-year-old, or your normie friend (9:04)
What new features were released in Aave v2 (15:54)
- reducing overall gas costs
- aTokens
- swapping collateral
- debt tokens
What Aavenomics is and how the “safety module” attempts to keep the protocol secure (20:39)
- How AAVE works as a governance token
- Active versus passive risk in governance staking
How Aave is transitioning from a centralized to a decentralized protocol (25:01)
- what he's finding difficult about this process
- issues with voting and an over-reliance on the Aave team
- delegating voting power to what he calls “protocol politicians” and whether this is good or bad for DeFi
Who is using Aave and how they are using it? (37:27)
- what OpenLaw is and how OpenLaw contracts work
- how credit delegation, or unsecured loans enforced by law, differ in v2 vs V1
- how people could use lending protocols to build credit
What Aave plans to do with the E-Money (EMI) license it obtained in the UK (50:51)
Since Aave was a pioneer in flash loans, which are responsible for the majority of DeFi attacks, whether Stani would do anything differently (53:12)
Aave’s partnership with tokenized real estate project RealT and how Aave manages it given that, in the US, RealT tokens are securities and can only be sold to accredited investors (58:42)
How Aave has been thinking about scaling given the high fees on Ethereum (1:03:57)
Why building a moat in DeFi is impossible (1:07:16)
What is next for Aave (1:11:40)

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: https://crypto.com/

Episode links:

Stani Kulechov: https://twitter.com/StaniKulechov

Aave: https://aave.com

Aave stats: https://aavewatch.com

Protocols mentioned

ETHLend: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ethlend-announces-launch-of-new-parent-company-aave-300713825.html
Aavegotchi: https://www.coindesk.com/defi-game-aavegotchi-preps-for-jan-4-mainnet-launch-with-nft-auctions
RealT: https://medium.com/aave/realt-market-coming-to-the-aave-protocol-da4499a1e965
Yearn: https://yearn.finance/
Uniswap: https://uniswap.org/
Sushiswap: https://sushiswap.fi/
Kyber: http://kyber.network/
Balancer: https://balancer.finance/
$LINK: https://chain.link/

Aavenomics

Aave’s documentation: https://docs.aave.com/aavenomics/
Safety Module: https://docs.aave.com/aavenomics/safety-module
Summary: https://aave.com/aavenomics/
More background: https://defirate.com/aavenomics-upgrade/

Decentralization concepts

Handing off admin keys: https://decrypt.co/46544/aave-officially-hands-over-governance-keys-to-defi-community + https://medium.com/aave/aave-admin-key-handover-3e09e603d348
OpenLaw: https://www.openlaw.io/
Protocol Governance: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/73336/defi-lending-aave-token + https://docs.aave.com/developers/protocol-governance/governance

Other topics

Electronic Money Licence: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/post/75845/aave-uk-fca-emi-license-defi
Unsecured Loans: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/post/70678/aave-launches-new-service-for-unsecured-peer-to-peer-loans-on-ethereum
Flash Loans: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/genesis/93740/flash-loans-as-a-capital-boost-tool

Aave Version 2: https://medium.com/aave/the-aave-protocol-v2-f06f299cee04 + https://github.com/aave/protocol-v2/blob/master/aave-v2-whitepaper.pdf

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Lyn Alden and Raoul Pal: Is Ethereum a Good Investment? - Ep.211 Feb 09, 2021

Show notes

Lyn Alden, CEO and founder of Lyn Alden Investment Strategies, and Raoul Pal, CEO & cofounder of Real Vision Group & Global Macro Investor, explain their thinking about Ethereum and its native token, and talk about their perspective on GameStop. In this episode, we discuss:

why Raoul views ether as similar to bitcoin at a macro level (1:25)
why Lyn decided ETH was not currently investable (5:06)
an analysis of utility protocols (John Pfeffer’s paper) (6:55)
counterarguments to John Pfeffer’s paper (9:31)
how to allocate between BTC and ETH (11:22)
why Raoul also invested in other coins beyond BTC and ETH (11:47)
whether Metcalfe's law applies equally to all kinds of networks (13:35)
why Lyn views Ethereum’s use case as circular, and why that makes it less investable (15:09)
whether Ethereum 2.0 and Ethereum Improvement Proposal 1559, and whether that could make ETH more investable (21:20)
the impact of fees on the value of Ethereum (23:36)
Raoul's views on what S-Curves and the Lindy Effect indicate about the development of a currency (25:22)
how high fees make DApps less attractive, while low fees potentially decrease demand for ETH (27:06)
how Lyn believes demand for DeFi is to circumvent compliance and know-your-customer processes, and she doesn't also see that as a downside for Bitcoin (33:10)
how the regulators are behind innovation in cryptocurrencies, particularly around taxation (36:32)
Raoul's and Lyn's predictions for the ETH price by end of 2021 (41:45)
what GameStop says about the democratization of financial information (45:32)
whether smart contracts could play in preventing situations similar to what happened with GameStop and/or Robinhood (49:03)
how blockchain technology could be used to prevent a situation in which the hedge funds could short more shares than existed (54:03)
how the GameStop/Robinhood saga is a giant advertisement for self-custody (54:53)
whether r/WallStreetBets' behavior was market manipulation or not (56:53)

Thank you to our sponsor!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

Episode links:

Lyn Alden: https://twitter.com/LynAldenContact

Lyn Alden Investment: https://www.lynalden.com/

Raoul Pal: https://twitter.com/RaoulGMI

Real Vision: https://www.realvision.com/contributor/raoul-pal

Global Macro Investor: https://www.globalmacroinvestor.com

Raoul's tweet storm on Ethereum: https://twitter.com/RaoulGMI/status/1347013567799848961?s=20

Lyn Alden’s research paper on Ethereum: https://www.lynalden.com/ethereum-analysis/

Raoul Pal’s tweet: ETH equals BTC: https://twitter.com/raoulgmi/status/1347013567799848961?lang=en

John Pfeffer’s paper: https://s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/john-pfeffer/An+Investor's+Take+on+Cryptoassets+v6.pdf

Network effects and Metcalfe’s Law: https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_developing-new-products-and-services/s04-12-there-is-power-in-numbers-netw.html

Quantity Theory of Money: https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_economics-theory-through-applications/s30-01-the-quantity-theory-of-money.html

How Will the Government React to GameStop?: https://www.coindesk.com/gamestop-regulators-response

GameStop and Crypto trading: https://cryptonews.com/exclusives/are-gamestop-style-surges-in-crypto-any-different-from-old-p-9151.htm

Robinhood Raises Extra funds: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/93258/report-robinhood-billions-raised-investors-1

Possible role of blockchain in trading: https://cointelegraph.com/news/cardano-foundation-ceo-says-blockchain-could-prevent-gme-type-showdowns

Caitlin Long: https://www.forbes.com/sites/caitlinlong/2019/05/16/naked-shorting-in-the-uber-ipo-it-couldnt-happen-on-a-blockchain/?sh=f2a0dcd4737d

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Everything You Need to Know About Your 2020 Crypto Taxes - Ep.210 Feb 02, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, Shehan Chandrasekara, head of strategy at CoinTracker, and Dan Hannum COO at Zen Ledger, take a deep dive into the world of crypto taxes. Over an hour and fifteen minutes they tackle a bevy of topics ranging from why the IRS is asking about your crypto history to explaining the proper way of reporting yield farming income. Shehan and Dan give up their hard-earned tax secrets and tips learned through building their respective cutting-edge crypto tax software. Here is a list of talking points covered in the discussion:

how the IRS is handling crypto this year (1:20)
where to start with reporting crypto and what constitutes a taxable event (5:59)
bitcoin corner cases:
- mining, with a description of calculating cost basis (19:48)
- wages (27:01)
- peer-to-peer transactions outside of exchanges (28:23)
defi and taxes:
- yield farming — and how it's like Russian nesting dolls (31:45)
- how the IRS taxes earned interest (36:32)
- airdrops (40:15)
crypto transactions that are not taxable: purchases, withdrawals, and stablecoins (46:28)
navigating tax documents (51:24-58-10)
NFT’s and social tokens (57:14)
tax loss harvesting (1:03:09)
how having coins on platforms like Robinhood and Paypal can have an effect on your taxes (1:05:05)
proposed tax changes (1:06:50)
crypto tax software and tips for the upcoming year (1:10:29)

Thank you to our sponsor!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

Episode links:

Guests

Shehan Chandrasekara: https://twitter.com/TheCryptoCPA
Dan Hannum: https://twitter.com/DHannum8

Software

CoinTracker: cointracker.io
ZenLedger: zenledger.io

Accounting

LIFO, HIFO, FIFO: https://www.forbes.com/sites/shehanchandrasekera/2020/09/17/what-crypto-taxpayers-need-to-know-about-fifo-lifo-hifo-specific-id/?sh=7077f8e936aa (written by Shehan)
1040 Question: https://fortune.com/2020/09/28/the-irs-is-adding-a-cryptocurrency-question-to-form-1040-for-2020/
1099 Misc: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1099msc.pdf
1099 B: https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-1099-b

Regulatory research:

2014 IRS Tax Guidance: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-14-21.pdf
IRS Virtual Currency page: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/virtual-currencies
IRS gains and losses: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p550.pdf
Equipment write-offs: https://www.section179.org/section_179_deduction/
IRS sues Coinbase: https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/29/16717416/us-coinbase-irs-records
How holding crypto at PayPal or Robinhood or any platform that does not allow you to transfer to an address off-platform could affect your taxes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/shehanchandrasekera/2021/01/28/exiting-robinhood-could-create-a-tax-nightmare-for-crypto-users/?sh=106b74a84ad6
De minimis exemption: https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/09/series63-050509.asp#:~:text='The%20De%20Minimis'%20exemption%20means,period%20with%20a%20physical%20address.
FinCEN intends to apply FBAR to cryptocurrency held offshore: https://www.coindesk.com/fincen-foreign-crypto-exchange-disclosure-rule

Backstory:

Bitcoin Cash Fork: https://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-cash-has-split-into-two-new-blockchains-again

Yield farming and social tokens:

Crypto tax guides

BlockFi: https://blockfi.com/crypto-tax-laws
Coinbase: https://www.coinbase.com/learn/tips-and-tutorials/crypto-and-bitcoin-taxes-US

Nerd Wallet: https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/investing/bitcoin-taxes

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Why Bitcoin Now: Michael Saylor on the Best Way for Companies to Buy Bitcoin - Ep.209 Jan 26, 2021

Show notes

Michael Saylor, CEO and founder of Microstrategy, explains how he decided the publicly traded business data firm needed to put its excess cash in bitcoin and what happened afterward. In this episode, we discuss:

why Microstrategy decided to buy Bitcoin, and how the pandemic spurred that
whether his previous experience with Microstrategy stock imploding after accounting irregularities were revealed had any bearing on the company's decision to buy bitcoin
the reactions of the officers and board members to his suggestion to invest in bitcoin
why they put all the excess cash into bitcoin as opposed to some percentage
what parts of the bitcoin industry could be improved to better serve corporate interests
whether Microstrategy intends to take any money off the table at the top of any future bubbles and reinvest when the price hits a new low
whether it hurts Microstrategy that GAAP rules require the company to mark Bitcoin down to the lowest price it traded at during the quarter
how his life has changed since Microstrategy bought bitcoin
what he thought of Citi downgrading Microstrategy stock
what he thinks of Renaissance Technology being the third-largest buyer of Microstrategy stock since the summer
what will happen to Microstrategy stock in a bitcoin bear market
whether or not there was any further conversation after his tweets with Elon Musk
what types of companies, and how many, have been talking with him, expressing interest in buying bitcoin
what will happen at the Bitcoin for Companies conference
what type of bitcoin data products they are contemplating offering
what he thinks will happen to the USD’s global reserve currency status
what it would take for him to sell any bitcoin

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

1inch: http://1inch.exchange

Episode links:

Michael Saylor: https://twitter.com/michael_saylor

Microstrategy: https://www.microstrategy.com/en

Bitcoin for Corporations: https://www.microstrategy.com/en/resources/events/world-2021/bitcoin-summit

Microstrategy purchases an additional $10 million in bitcoin:

https://www.microstrategy.com/content/dam/website-assets/collateral/financial-

documents/financial-document-archive/Form-8-K_jan-22-2021.pdf

Unchained interview with Saifedean Ammous:

August 11, 2020: Microstrategy adopts Bitcoin as its primary reserve asset:

August 11, 2020: Microstrategy makes tender offer to purchase up to $250 million of its common stock:

September 11, 2020: Microstrategy to purchase $60.5 million of common stock:

Plan to offer $550 million in convertible notes: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/87120/microstrategy-550m-convertible-notes-bitcoin

Microstrategy announces over $1 billion in Bitcoin purchases in 2020:

Michael Saylor’s 2013 tweet on Bitcoin: https://twitter.com/michael_saylor/status/413478389329428480?s=20

Forbes expose on unusual accounting practices by Microstrategy back in 2000: https://www.forbes.com/global/2000/0306/0305024a.html?sh=46312df01674

April 2000 profile of Michael in The New Yorker: https://archives.newyorker.com/newyorker/2000-04-03/flipbook/034/

SEC enforcement action against Microstrategy: https://www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/34-43724.htm

Forbes profile after the SEC enforcement action: https://www.forbes.com/2000/12/18/1218faces.html?sh=523061e03bf9

Forbes announcing Microstrategy would restate earnings after its expose: https://www.forbes.com/2000/03/20/mu3.html?sh=21efe89d1ee6

Summary of SEC action:

Citi downgrading MSTR:

Renaissance Technologies has been third-largest buyer of Microstrategy’s stock since the summer: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/87194/renaissance-technologies-microstrategy-bitcoin

Microstrategy contemplating bitcoin data products: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/post/85310/microstrategy-bitcoin-data-products

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The SEC's Lawsuit Against Ripple and 2 Execs: What You Need to Know - Ep.208 Jan 19, 2021

Show notes

Stephen Palley, partner at Anderson Kill. and Gabriel Shapiro, partner at BSV Law, discuss the SEC's lawsuit against Ripple and two executives, Chris Larsen and Bard Garlinghouse. In this episode, they explain:

what was so "egregious" that the SEC went after two executives, Chris Larsen and Brad Garlinghouse, were charged
why their sales showed an information asymmetry, and why that matters
why the complaint comes close to being a fraud case, but why the SEC didn't charge them with fraud
why the idea that XRP is a currency and therefore cannot be a security will likely not fly
why it's unlikely the case will go to the Supreme Court
the SEC's case for why XRP is a security, and Ripple's role in it
how even on a technical level, the XRP network is centralized
how strong the SEC's case is against Larsen and Garlinghouse
Stephen's and Gabriel's predictions on how the lawsuit will play out
how this will likely impact XRP investors
whether or not Ripple could become an SEC-reporting company and XRP a security
what happened with Ripple's lead investor in its most recent fundraising round
whether or not the SEC might go after exchanges or other players who made money off XRP or collaborated with Ripple around XRP trading
what this means for Coinbase, in particular, because it's going public later this year
what Ripple's defense, in its summarized Wells submission, was
how this case compares to some of the other big SEC/crypto securities cases, Kik/Kin and Telegram
whether there might ever be a digital token that is determined to be a security for specific transactions but not others
what the wider implications of the case are for the rest of the crypto industry

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

1inch: https://1inch.exchange

Episode links:

Stephen Palley: https://twitter.com/stephendpalley

Gabriel Shapiro: https://twitter.com/lex_node

SEC lawsuit against Ripple: https://www.sec.gov/litigation/complaints/2020/comp-pr2020-338.pdf

SEC lawsuit against Ripple being close to a fraud case: https://twitter.com/stephendpalley/status/1341523294344896515?s=20

Former SEC commissioner Joe Grundefest on the case: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/linked/89164/former-sec-commissioner-says-ripple-lawsuit-will-cause-multi-billion-dollar-losses-to-innocent-third-parties

Other lawsuit against Ripple: https://www.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.334410/gov.uscourts.cand.334410.115.0.pdf

Technical assessment of Ripple network: https://cryptobern.github.io/noconsensusripple/

Tetragon’s case against Ripple: https://twitter.com/stephendpalley/status/1346531087971999749?s=20

What the case means for exchanges: https://www.coindesk.com/coinbase-delist-xrp-exchanges-dilemma

Coinbase suspends trading in XRP: https://blog.coinbase.com/coinbase-will-suspend-trading-in-xrp-on-january-19-2e09652dbf57

https://www.coindesk.com/coinbase-suspends-xrp-trading

Lawsuit against Coinbase: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-12-30/coinbase-sued-over-xrp-commissions-after-sec-pursues-ripple?sref=m9L277rN

https://twitter.com/stephendpalley/status/1344352455895691269?s=20

People in the industry thinking for a while that XRP is a security: https://www.theblockcrypto.com/genesis/57366/xrp-is-probably-a-security-dont-at-me

Mary Jo White: https://www.coindesk.com/former-sec-chair-represents-ripple-xrp-lawsuit

Ripple’s Wells submission: https://ripple.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Ripple-Wells-Submission-Summary.pdf

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Willy Woo: How Bitcoin Reaches up to $300,000 by End of Year - Ep.207 Jan 12, 2021

Show notes

Willy Woo, a prominent on-chain Bitcoin analyst and author of the “The Bitcoin Forecast,” a market intelligence newsletter, explains the parabolic activity of Bitcoin in the past month. We cover:

why he thinks Bitcoin has more than doubled in the last month
what the "double pump" market is and why Bitcoin may see two rallies this cycle
what stage of the Bitcoin bull market we are currently in
who is buying, and how they've differed from previous investors
who still is yet to buy this cycle
why Bitcoin hitting new all-time highs mean that we're in "uncharted price discovery"
how his "top cap model" shows Bitcoin could be around $95k by end of year
and how if certain trends accelerate, it could reach $200,000-$300,000 by year's end
how the pandemic impacted Bitcoin’s price
what on-chain movements he's seeing that make him call the current cycle of Bitcoin "whale spawning season”
how to gauge the increasingly rapid investor activity
what to expect from Bitcoin and Ethereum in 2021

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

1inch: http://1inch.exchange

Episode links:

Willy Woo: https://twitter.com/woonomic

Woobull.com: http://charts.woobull.com

Willy on Unconfirmed: https://unchainedpodcast.com/willy-woo-on-why-its-an-extremely-great-time-to-buy-bitcoin/

Fibonacci traces tweet: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1347433551906500614?s=20

Bitcoin reflexivity: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1344189627997949952/photo/1

Who has been buying recently: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1347127159538688002?s=20

Double pump bull market: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1346889817792004096?s=20

Buying by long-term holders: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1346827893322616833/photo/1

What percentage of the Bitcoin supply is liquid: https://insights.glassnode.com/bitcoin-liquid-supply/

Premium above NVT Price: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1346797291668029440/photo/1

Accumulation of BTC before the OCC announcement: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1346296294797582336/photo/1

Will never see a $20k BTC again: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1345660018541019138?s=20

Bitcoin as investment vs. tech: https://twitter.com/woonomic/status/1345221723751206912?s=20

NVT Ratio: http://charts.woobull.com/bitcoin-nvt-ratio/

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Central Bank Digital Currencies: How Should Privacy Be Built In? - Ep.206 Jan 05, 2021

Show notes

This panel, from a panel for the fifth anniversary of Hyperledger, features Rob Palatnick, managing director of global head of technology research and innovation at the DTCC and chairman of the Hyperledger board, Matthieu Saint Olive, Codefi payments product manager and CBDC advisor at ConsenSys, and Robert Bench, assistant vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. In this discussion on the current outlook on central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), they cover:

what main problems CBDCs can solve
whether CBDCs should be open sourced
why building a new technology for CBDCs is preferred over using existing tech
how concerns over CBDCs and their privacy implications differ across countries
what possible pain points or opportunities CBDCs pose for central banks
whether CBDCs should be blockchain-based
to what extent CBDCs will be distributed and open networks, and whether fees would be charged for transactions
how central banks are thinking about methods of adoption, like whether they will bank directly with retail customers or still use commercial banks
how developers balance the drawbacks and benefits of blockchain-based CBDCs with different stakeholders
whether stable coins will be replaced by or coexist with CBDCs
and what the future holds for the continued development of CBDCs

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

1inch: http://1inch.exchange

Episode links:

Rob Palatnick: https://www.dtcc.com/our-experts/robert-palatnick

Brian Behlendorf: https://twitter.com/brianbehlendorf?lang=en

Matthieu Saint Olive: https://twitter.com/msaintolive?lang=en

Robert Bench: https://www.bostonfed.org/home/people/bank/robert-bench.aspx

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2020 Highlights: The Biggest News Stories of the Year in Crypto - Ep.205 Dec 29, 2020

Show notes

Host Laura Shin recaps the biggest stories of the year in crypto, with clips from shows throughout the year. In this episode, we cover how the pandemic drove Bitcoin to new all-time highs, how regulation began to come for the crypto space in a big way, plus new trends in DeFi, corporate structures, and how ETH will change as an asset.

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

1inch: https://1inch.exchange

Episode links:

Meltem Demirors on Bitcoin’s behavior during the recession https://unchainedpodcast.com/why-bitcoin-now-meltem-demirors-and-lyn-alden-on-the-perfect-conditions-for-bitcoin/

Mike Novogratz and Raoul Pal on Bitcoin’s relation to fiat https://unchainedpodcast.com/why-bitcoin-now-mike-novogratz-and-raoul-pal-on-the-single-greatest-brand-of-the-last-10-years/

Chamath Palihapitiya on Bitcoin as a financial hedge https://unchainedpodcast.com/chamath-palihapitiya-why-bitcoin-will-be-the-category-winner/

Cathie Wood and Dan Tapiero on corporate adoption of Bitcoin https://unchainedpodcast.com/why-bitcoin-now-bitcoin-under-a-biden-administration/

Dave Jevans and Siân Jones on regulation and VASPs https://unchainedpodcast.com/why-the-travel-rule-is-one-of-the-most-significant-regulations-in-crypto/

Jake Chervinsky and Kristin Smith on the Swiss Rule and self-hosted wallets https://unchainedpodcast.com/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-looming-battle-over-privacy-in-crypto/

Jeremy Allaire and Kristin Smith on Mnuchin’s proposed FinCEN rule https://unchainedpodcast.com/why-is-the-proposed-fincen-rule-for-unhosted-wallets-being-pushed-so-quickly/

Jessi Brooks and Zia Faruqui on cryptocurrencies facilitating illicit activity https://unchainedpodcast.com/how-this-doj-strike-force-hunts-down-cryptocurrency-criminals/

Brian Brooks on Americans accepting more privacy restrictions https://unchainedpodcast.com/acting-comptroller-of-the-currency-brian-brooks-on-crypto-banks/

Meltem Demirors on privacy being under attack https://unchainedpodcast.com/why-bitcoin-now-meltem-demirors-and-lyn-alden-on-the-perfect-conditions-for-bitcoin/

Haseeb Qureshi on the maturation of DeFi https://unchainedpodcast.com/why-decentralized-trading-has-10xed-in-a-few-months/

Vitalik Buterin on risks that still exist in DeFi https://unchainedpodcast.com/vitalik-buterin-on-ethereums-five-year-anniversary/

Taylor Monahan and Dan Guido on DeFi security https://unchainedpodcast.com/defi-security-with-so-many-hacks-will-it-ever-be-safe/

Vitalik Buterin reflecting on the last five years of Ethereum https://unchainedpodcast.com/vitalik-buterin-on-ethereums-five-year-anniversary/

Ryan Watkins on Ethereum 2.0 https://unchainedpodcast.com/ethereum-2-0-what-you-need-to-know/

Olaf Carlson-Wee on DeFi impacting the traditional corporate structure https://unchainedpodcast.com/olaf-carlson-wee-if-there-is-a-money-losing-exploit-the-money-is-gone/

Andrew Cronje on shifting corporate structures https://unchainedpodcast.com/andre-cronje-of-yearn-finance-on-yfi-and-the-fair-launch-im-lazy/

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Why Is the Proposed FinCEN Rule for Unhosted Wallets Being Pushed So Quickly? - Ep.204 Dec 22, 2020

Show notes

Jeremy Allaire of Circle Pay and Kristin Smith of the Blockchain Association explain the impact of and motivation behind Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin’s proposed FinCEN rule that targets “unhosted” wallets. In this episode, they cover:

what the new FinCEN rule says, and how it would impact unhosted or self-hosted wallets, as well as crypto businesses
why they believe this is really politically motivated and unilateral midnight rule making by Secretary Mnuchin
what other bureaucrats and policymakers think should be done instead
whether the rule only affects businesses rather than individuals
what information will be recorded according to the rule
ways to circumvent compliance
how the rule affects DeFi and Web3
the procedural hurdles Mnuchin took to propose the rule, and what they recommend the crypto community to do try to stop the implementation of the rule
how the rule comports with European GDPR regulations
which government entities will be tasked with making the regulatory changes the space needs
why President-Elect Joe Biden’s administration may be more favorable for the space

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com: http://crypto.com

1inch: http://1inch.exchange

Episode links:

Jeremy Allaire: https://twitter.com/jerallaire

Kristin Smith: https://twitter.com/kmsmithdc

Circle: https://www.circle.com/en/

The Blockchain Association: https://theblockchainassociation.org

Stories on proposed rule:

https://www.coindesk.com/fincen-proposes-kyc-rules-for-crypto-wallets

https://www.theblockcrypto.com/post/88347/treasury-crypto-wallets-reporting-rule

Effect on DeFi: https://twitter.com/jerallaire/status/1340060806088671232?s=20

https://twitter.com/jchervinsky/status/1340050400871911424?s=20

Coin Center response: https://www.coincenter.org/a-midnight-rule-for-cryptocurrency-transaction-reports/

Brian Armstrong’s earlier tweet thread: https://twitter.com/brian_armstrong/status/1331745196887867393

Collins Belton’s tweet thread: https://twitter.com/collins_belton/status/1340051986008350721?s=20

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All the Ways Crypto Can Make Gaming More Fun - Ep.203 Dec 15, 2020

Show notes

Marguerite deCourcelle is co-founder and CEO of Blockade Games, which is releasing the role-playing game game Neon District the day this episode comes out. She discusses her background in art, how her love of video games led her to discover Bitcoin in the early days of the cryptocurrency, and how she helps create the next phase of web 3.0 content creation and distribution. Topics include:

how Marguerite became involved in crypto and what led her to co-found Blockade Games
her work on Pineapple Arcade and Plasma Bears
the problems she sees with gaming and how blockchain technology can solve them
how Blockade Games is utilizing blockchain tech
Neon District, a blockchain-based RPG game with active gameplay and animation that uses NFTs and farming
the difference between ERC-721 and ERC-1155 tokens and how each is utilized in Neon District
how they have been marrying NFTs with DeFi through the NIFTEX exchange
how an open economy challenges the dynamics of gameplay and how they account for this in their game design
why a decentralized profile can be so powerful in gaming
the types of users Blockade Games hopes to attract with Neon District
why they are using the Matic Network
how blockchain tech within a game changes the business model for Blockade as opposed to a traditional gaming company
whether she thinks conventional gaming companies will be disrupted by blockchain technology
the problems in content creation business models and distribution and how she thinks blockchain can solve them
her personal token, COIN, how it is connected to CRED and how the two work together and people earn them
what Coin Artist Liquidity Mining is and how it works