Unchained

Latest Episodes:

DCG's Dilemma: Should It Sell Its GBTC Holdings to Repay Gemini? - Ep. 442 Jan 13, 2023

Show notes

Gemini has accused Digital Currency Group CEO Barry Silbert of fraud after allegedly misrepresenting the financials of his company. The accusations follow a dispute over the return of $900 million in assets owed to Gemini Earn’s users. Karim Dandashy, CFA and portfolio manager at XBTO Group, discusses everything about the ongoing drama between Genesis, its parent company DCG, and Gemini.

Show highlights:

the fraud accusations against DCG CEO Barry Silbert
all the details disclosed in Barry's response
whether Genesis will file for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection
the meaning of the $1.1 billion promissory note being not callable
the EDNY and SEC investigation on transfers between DCG and a subsidiary – potentially Genesis
whether the 1% interest rate charged for the loan was suitable considering the nature of Genesis' business
whether DCG could sell its venture investments to plug the hole
why Bitvavo rejected an offer from DCG to return 70% of the $300 million owed to them
what Karim would do if he was leading DCG

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Crypto.com

Guest

Karim:

Previous coverage of Unchained on DCG and Genesis:

Genesis/Gemini:

Unchained:
Gemini Ends Its Earn Program and Calls for Barry Silbert’s Ouster
DCG Under Investigation by DOJ and SEC: Report
Genesis CEO Says Firm Needs More Time to Find a Solution
Gemini Co-Founder Accuses DCG’s Barry Silbert of ‘Bad Faith and Stall Tactics’
Genesis Warns of Bankruptcy If Funding Plans Fail: Report
Financial Times: DCG’s crypto broker Genesis owes creditors more than $3bn
Protos: Scoop: Larry Summers gives up advisory role at crypto firm DCG amid criticism
CNBC: Crypto firms Genesis and Gemini charged by SEC with selling unregistered securities
Forbes: Gemini Faces Class-Action Lawsuit Over Unregistered Interest-Bearing Accounts
Decrypt:
Dutch Bitcoin Exchange Bitvavo Says DCG’s Payback Plan ‘Not Acceptable’
Sam Andrew’s thread
Ram Ahluwalia on DCG CEO’s update to shareholders
Ryan Selkis on the definition of the current assets

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What Does Mango Markets Exploiter Avi Eisenberg's Arrest in Puerto Rico Mean for DeFi? - Ep. 441 Jan 10, 2023

Show notes

Gabriel Shapiro, general counsel at Delphi Labs, and Collins Belton, managing partner at Brookwood P.C., dive into the controversial case of Avi Eisenberg, the self-described “applied game theorist” who was arrested in Puerto Rico on Dec. 26 on market manipulation and fraud charges. The two crypto lawyers discuss the case’s potential impact on DeFi and DAO governance — and whether “code is law” stands a chance in the courtroom.

Show highlights:

whether Avi’s manipulation of the markets constitutes fraud
debating the crypto maxim “code is law”
whether it’s wrong to use DeFi code in a “smarter way”
how the Mango Markets exploit happened due to poor governance management
whether crypto should be regulated from the securities angle or the commodities angle
the consequences of Avi’s arrest for the DeFi space
whether MEV could constitute market manipulation, even if it’s democratized for everybody
the role of DAOs and whether early-stage projects should maintain some level of centralization
how DAOs could be designed to have better mechanisms in order to deal with potential issues
whether members of the Mango Markets DAO are liable because of their role in designing the system
how Avi was “naive” to think he could avoid legal liability by returning the funds
why Gabe thinks credit protocols are socially positive and why he hopes that prosecutors won’t “throw everyone in jail”

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DeFi Saver

Links

Guests:

Gabriel:

Twitter
Delphi Labs
Gabriel’s Twitter thread on the case
Previous appearances on Unchained:
The SEC's Lawsuit Against Ripple and 2 Execs: What You Need to Know

Collins:

Twitter
LinkedIn
Previous appearances on Unchained:
How the Greatest Decentralizing Force for Crypto Projects Is the SEC

Episode Links:

Previous coverage of Unchained on Avi Eisenberg and the Mango Markets exploit:

Mango Markets exploit

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Gemini vs. DCG Is Heating Up. Could Gemini Force Genesis Into Bankruptcy? - Ep. 440 Jan 06, 2023

Show notes

Ram Ahluwalia, CEO and cofounder at Lumida, talks about the ongoing dispute between Gemini and Digital Currency Group (DCG), specifically focusing on the actions and statements of DCG CEO Barry Silbert and Gemini’s cofounder Cameron Winklevoss. Ram discusses various aspects of the conflict, including the potential commingling of assets between DCG and its subsidiary Genesis and the options available to Gemini if DCG does not cooperate.

Show highlights:

how Cameron Winklevoss’s tweets attempt to put Barry Silbert in the same class of actors as Celsius and BlockFi
whether the assets of DCG and Genesis are commingled
what Gemini’s options are if DCG does not commit to cooperate
whether Gemini will file an involuntary petition for Genesis to enter chapter 11 bankruptcy
why Barry's statement that DCG didn't borrow $1.675 billion from Genesis is "very surprising" to Ram
why it is relevant whether Genesis has a liquidity issue or an insolvency one
whether a class-action lawsuit alleging Gemini's earn product is an unregistered security has any merit
the essential role of the $1.1 billion promissory note and whether Genesis will drag DCG into bankruptcy
if DCG goes under, what would happen to Grayscale
whether Valkyrie is going to become the hero and save GBTC
why DCG needs to accept the credit committee terms, according to Ram

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Guest

Ram:

Twitter
Ram Ahluwalia’s thread on Fir Tree and Valkyrie
Previous appearances on Unchained:
Genesis May Be Facing Bankruptcy. Could It Take DCG Down With It?
Why Genesis Could Very Well Be Insolvent, Not Just Illiquid

Previous coverage of Unchained on DCG and Genesis:

Genesis:

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Could the Crypto Markets Revive in 2023? Two Researchers Discuss - Ep. 439 Jan 03, 2023

Show notes

Lucas Nuzzi, head of R&D at CoinMetrics, and Larry Cermak, VP of research at The Block, discuss the current state of the crypto market, including the potential for contagion effects and the challenges faced by VC companies. They also delve into the mining industry and the issues surrounding MEV and Ethereum. The conversation also touches on stablecoins, DeFi activity and NFT trading, and the potential dangers of Binance's dominance in the industry.

Show highlights:

how the collapse in 2022 of FTX and other behemoths will affect the industry in 2023
why there's been a lot of forced selling in the markets recently
why the industry could still be headed to more contagion effects
the characteristics of the current bear market, how it differs from previous ones, and the role of the macroeconomic environment
why it's very hard to predict how prices will behave in 2023
why VC firms will have to focus on long-term projects rather than speculation
what's going to happen in the Bitcoin mining industry in 2023 considering the current tough situation
why Lucas thinks that Bitcoin "drastically overpays for security"
why MEV is a concerning issue and how it represents a single point of failure for Ethereum
how the narrative of alternative layer 1s has changed and why the focus will shift to layer 2s
whether there is a need to develop better blockchain monitoring tools
why stablecoin issuers have a very good business model given the interest rate environment
what are the problems of stablecoins and how they will be regulated
why DeFi activity and NFT trading were down so heavily in 2022 and whether the downtrend will change
how Binance's dominance is "terrifying" and whether it could hurt the industry
Lucas' concerns about the lack of transparency around Binance's BNB token

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Links

Guests:

Lucas :

Larry:

Twitter
The Block Research
Previous appearances on Unchained:
Larry Cermak of The Block on What 90% of Bitcoin Trading Is For

The year in crypto:

FTX

Previous coverage of Unchained on Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX:

NFTs:

MEV:

BTC Mining:

Contagion:

Genesis/DCG:
Unchained:
Genesis May Be Facing Bankruptcy. Could It Take DCG Down With It?
Genesis Owes Creditors At Least $1.8B: Report

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Why Martin Shkreli Thinks SBF's New Judge Could Still Be Lenient - Ep. 438 Dec 30, 2022

Show notes

Martin Shkreli, entrepreneur, investor and convicted white-collar criminal, talks about the new judge assigned to the case against Sam Bankman-Fried, whether Sam’s going to plead guilty or not, and the potential involvement of his family in the lawsuit.

Show highlights:

whether Sam Bankman-Fried truly did not have money to post bail
why the government did not restrict Sam's usage of the internet and social media
why Martin thinks the new judge assigned to the case, Judge Lewis Kaplan, is good for SBF
how many years Judge Kaplan could sentence SBF to, given his unusual work experience
whether there's still a chance that Sam could paint this case as a business failure
how defense attorneys will likely try to exploit the romantic relationship between Ellison and SBF in their favor
why it is unlikely that SBF will plead guilty on the January 3rd arraignment date
what a telemarketing fraudster case has to do with FTX
how the prosecutors could indict SBF's family if he doesn't plead guilty
how a jury would be selected
whether Sam has enough funds to pay for a decent lawyer and how that's going to affect the case
how Martin learned about crypto while he was in prison
how prisoners engage with crypto while incarcerated
whether Sam could run a business from prison

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Guest

Martin:

Socials
Previous appearances of Martin on Unchained:
Martin Shkreli Explains Why Sam Bankman-Fried Got Lucky With His Judge - Ep. 435
Videos on SBF:
Which Gang Will Sam Bankman Join In Prison? | Martin Shkreli Gives Prison Advice to FTX CEO
My Boy Sam Bankman Is Facing Life in Jail for Sure | Martin Shkreli Predicts the FTX Court Hearing

Episode Links

Previous coverage of Unchained on Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX:

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The Chopping Block Recaps 2022: Crypto's Biggest Winners and Losers and Best Memes - Ep. 437 Dec 28, 2022

Show notes

Welcome to The Chopping Block! Crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Robert Leshner, Tom Schmidt, and Tarun Chitra chop it up about the year 2022 in the crypto industry and share their biggest winners and losers of the year, what were the best mechanisms, the biggest surprises and the best memes, and their predictions for the upcoming year.

Show topics:

why stablecoin bulls performed so well in 2022, as well as journalism, DeFi, and the EVM
how the reputation of the industry suffered tremendously in 2022
how Solana had to endure multiple hacks and challenges and whether it’s having its “ETH moment”
whether ETH is the only crypto with good tokenomics
why MEV has seen such a massive adoption, even if it’s technically not good for crypto
why the investment landscape changed so much in June
whether Arbitrum is the winner among layer 2s on Ethereum and the role of retroactive airdrops
why so many lending companies went bust this year
whether proof of reserves is a useful concept
whether developers will go back to build on Ethereum rather than alternative layers 1s

Hosts

Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly Capital
Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures
Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly Capital

Links

Last year's episode:

The Chopping Block... 2021 in Crypto: The Biggest Winners, Biggest Losers, and Best Memes - Unchained Podcast

FTX:

Tornado Cash

Solana

Terra:

Others:

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Collapses, Bankruptcies, and Fraud: How 2022 Became the Year of Crypto Carnage - Ep.436 Dec 27, 2022

Show notes

This episode of Unchained looks back on a tumultuous year for the cryptocurrency industry in 2022. Significant events such as the bankruptcies of FTX, Three Arrows Capital, Celsius, Voyager, BlockFi, and the collapse of Terra/LUNA, led to billions being lost due to market plunges and also due to numerous hacks.

This year also brought the Ethereum Merge, one of the most awaited events in crypto's short history. Amidst the turmoil, true believers like Chris Burniske saw a silver lining, while the crypto community watched for the further fallout of this year’s crypto contagion to play out.

Thank you to our sponsors!

DAO attacker revealed:

Ukraine War:

Hacks and exploits:

Bridge Hacks Have Caused ~$1 Billion in Losses. Here’s Why Bridge Security Is Tricky - Unchained Podcast

Terra collapse:

Bankruptcies - 3AC, Celsius and Voyager:

Tornado Cash:

The Merge:

Do Kwon comes on Unchained:

Do Kwon of Terra: ‘It Was Never Really About Money or Fame or Success’ – Ep. 408

NFT royalties:

FTX Collapse:

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Martin Shkreli Explains Why Sam Bankman-Fried Got Lucky With His Judge - Ep. 435 Dec 23, 2022

Show notes

Martin Shkreli, entrepreneur and investor, talks about what Sam Bankman-Fried’s potential life in prison could look like. As a former white-collar criminal, Martin had a lot to say about prison culture, how judge selection affects sentencing, and more.

Show highlights:

why Martin says that the prosecution part of the case is the most difficult to endure
why he thought Sam had "no chance at bail" (although shortly after we recorded, news broke that Sam had been released on what is believed to be the largest bail bond ever – $250 million)
whether SBF should plead guilty and hope to be favored by his cooperation
what jails in New York are like and how the other inmates might treat SBF
whether SBF will be in danger if he goes to prison and Martin's suggestions for him if he wants to survive
why the FTX's case is so unprecedented, especially considering the current sentencing guidelines
Martin's take on Ronnie Abrams, the judge in charge of the case, and why her selection will be good for SBF
whether Caroline Ellison made a mistake by pleading guilty to so many counts
why Gary Wang would likely face a tough time in prison for ratting out SBF

Thank you to our sponsors!

Crypto.com

Guest

Martin:

Episode Links

Previous coverage of Unchained on Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX:

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2022 in Review + How Cobie and Chris Burniske Are Playing the New Year - Ep. 434 Dec 20, 2022

Show notes

What a year. Cobie, crypto investor and host of UpOnly, and Chris Burniske, partner at Placeholder Ventures, sift through 2022’s rubble for clues as to what lies ahead in 2023. The two bright lights of Crypto Twitter weigh in on SBF’s fraud, how to succeed through the bear market, and what remains promising despite the gloom and doom.

Show highlights:

why 2022 is “the hangover of 2021”
why this year’s big meltdowns were different and dispiriting
why it was actually a year to remind us of why we’re all here
how the underlying protocols didn’t skip a beat
how to survive the bear market
what Chris feels guilty about in the wake of Alameda’s collapse
why Cobie hopes SBF spends life in jail
whether people will actually use decentralized alternatives – or if banking-like relationships will prevail
what Chris sees as the 2023 version of proof-of-stake in 2017
why Cobie thinks bitcoin is an area of opportunity over the next few years
whether the multichain thesis (“Solunavax”) will ever rise again
whether the contagion is over
if disgraced figureheads deserve a second chance
a lightning round lookback on 2022

Thank you to our sponsors!

Guests:

Cobie:

Twitter
Substack
UpOnly
Previous appearances on Unchained:
Erik Voorhees and Cobie on Why FTX Loaned Out Customers’ Assets
Cobie and Chris Burniske on How to Navigate a Crypto Bear Market

Chris:

Twitter
Placeholder VC
Previous appearances on Unchained:
Chris Burniske: A Blank Slate of State
Chris Burniske of Placeholder on the Downsides of ICOs

The year in crypto:

FTX
Unchained:
CFTC and SEC File Damning Complaints Against Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX
Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried Arrested Amid US Indictment
FTX Bankruptcy Overseer Says Company’s Collapse Is Worst He’s Ever Seen
Terra:
CoinDesk: The Fall of Terra: A Timeline of the Meteoric Rise and Crash of UST and LUNA
Three Arrows Capital
CNBC’s full interview with Three Arrows Capital’s Kyle Davies on the downfall of the defunct crypto hedge fund
CoinDesk: Three Arrows Capital Files for Bankruptcy in New York Tied to British Virgin Islands Proceeding
DeCrypt: Bankrupt Three Arrows Capital Owes $3.5B to Creditors, Including $2.3B to Genesis
Binance
Unchained:Binance Passes Withdrawal ‘Stress Test’ After $3B in Daily Outflows
Forbes: Kevin O’Leary Points Finger At Binance For FTX Crash In Senate Testimony
Silvergate
The Block: Silvergate CEO seeks to reassure investors over crypto contagion
The Financial Times: Silvergate: from tiny local lender to bank behind the crypto boom
Genesis/DCG:
Unchained:
Genesis Warns of Bankruptcy If Funding Plans Fail: Report
On-chain Analysts ID 432 GBTC Addresses After Grayscale Says No to Proof-of-Reserves

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The Chopping Block: Was FTX a Scam From the Very Beginning? - Ep. 433 Dec 17, 2022

Show notes

Welcome to The Chopping Block! Crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Robert Leshner, and Tarun Chitra were joined by Laura Shin to chop it up about the latest news.

Show topics:

the details of the SEC and CFTC complaints
how crypto traders have always speculated about Alameda's preferential treatment
whether many people knew about the mismanagement of funds and alleged fraud
why Haseeb thinks SBF was a "f*cking psycho"
how helpful Tarun believes a testimony from Sam Trabucco, former co-CEO of Alameda, would be
why Alameda and FTX lost billions of dollars, and the poor diligence of SBF's venture investments
Sam's "ineffective altruism"
why a bull market wouldn't have solved the insolvency problems of FTX
whether SBF will fight extradition and how long it would take
how Sam's consistent use of Facebook and his anti-Maker stand shows he was not a crypto-native
why Laura thinks that The Block CEO's undisclosed loans represent a "total betrayal"
Robert's take on the ineffectiveness of the government's control of information
why Binance is under scrutiny and whether it's the "next FTX"