What Bitcoin Did with Peter McCormack - Peter McCormack

All Bitcoin, No Fiat with Sahil Chaturvedi Aug 06, 2022

“What if there was a way to hold Bitcoin only as your money and completely sidestep financial debasement and have better financial privacy, but at the same time, you can be interoperable with the legacy Fiat financial networks. That’s an interesting concept to me.”
— Sahil Chaturvedi

Hyperbitcoinization has long been discussed within Bitcoin circles. To some it is an inevitability, to others, it is a pipedream. Notwithstanding the differences of opinion, it is generally assumed the process requires top-down nation-state actions. In the meantime, adopting, using and living with Bitcoin is a ‘side hustle’ to the practical reality of having to operate within a fiat economic system.

However, it shouldn’t be a surprise that amongst the growing number of people promoting freedom money, there is a growing community who are going all in on Bitcoin. At the extreme end of ‘getting off zero’ in terms of Bitcoin adoption, there is a movement promoting ‘getting on zero’ in terms of fiat rejection. It’s hyperbitcoinization at the individual level.

But how does one go about using Bitcoin as your personal medium of exchange and unit of account? There are a number of technical issues that need to be addressed: our fiat economic system is deeply embedded into every facet of our way of life. But there are current and emerging technologies that can assist in that process.

But arguably more important than the practical issues that need to be surmounted is the change in attitude that’s required to make this financial adjustment. Our fiat economy is also deeply embedded into our individual and collective psychologies. A change in mindset is required, particularly in relation to price.

This approach is not for everyone. Different people have specific personal needs and responsibilities that make ‘getting off zero’ unfeasible at this stage of Bitcoin’s adoption cycle. It is not a dogmatic and fanatical action, coercing others to follow suit. But at the same time, ‘getting off zero’ should be applauded as being perhaps the ultimate vote of confidence in Bitcoin.

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
Ledn - Financial services for Bitcoin hodlers
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

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WBD537 - Show Notes

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If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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How Crypto Replayed the 2008 Financial Crisis with David Morris Aug 04, 2022

“If you consider your APR a marketing tool, you’re dead in the water. That is not the business that you’re actually in…. ‘we’re gonna gather all of these customers by offering this unsustainably high APR, and then we’re going to figure out later how to deliver it’ and that doesn’t work.”
— David Morris

David Morris is the Chief Insights Columnist at CoinDesk. In this interview, we discuss the contagion that has ripped through the crypto market, and how it mirrors the worst failings of the 2008 financial crisis. Is regulation required for crypto to protect people from getting rekt?

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Over the past few months, the crypto industry has experienced a series of seismic events resulting in yet untold numbers of retail investors being wiped out. Those to blame are considered to be, at best, criminally negligent. What the heck happened?

By now, the “I told you so” refrain has long been worn out amongst groups of Bitcoiners. Unfeasibly high APRs, complex stablecoin algorithmic pegs, crypto funds attracting huge amounts of capital - this was background noise that many just cancelled out by a blanket rejection of the whole sector.

But there were targeted warnings of danger within the altcoin ecosystem. Those with a keen interest in the sector, who couldn’t be co-opted, started to investigate the fabulous promises being offered. They found alarming weaknesses, obvious failings and ruinous incentives structures. The red flags were hoisted, but, by this time, too many were caught up in the hysteria to take notice.

As we start to undertake the autopsy, on what is still metaphorically a warm body, the obvious questions arise. How did we as a collective let this happen? How can we stop this from happening again? Are we in the same position as the banking sector following the global financial crisis? Do we need regulations to enforce protections for investors?

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
Ledn - Financial services for Bitcoin hodlers
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

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WBD536 - Show Notes

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If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
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Eurodollar & The Money Printer with Lyn Alden Aug 02, 2022

“This is inherently a Ponzi scheme essentially, if there’s more debt than there’s money, it means those debts in aggregate can never be paid down. It’s not designed to ever end… it can only grow.”
— Lyn Alden

Lyn Alden is a macroeconomist and investment strategist. In this interview, we discuss the fundamentals of the current global economy: the Eurodollar system, central banks, money printing, debt, inflation and deflation.

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WBD528, “Everything You Know About the Economy is Wrong with Jeff Snider”, was very popular with listeners. It raised the concept of the global economy being controlled by the Eurodollar system, an esoteric and opaque financial market outside of the control of the United States. The issues emanating from this theory are manifold, not least that central banks aren’t in control.

A common request was to have us discuss the issues arising from Jeff Snider’s arguments with Lyn Alden. Lyn has written extensively about these issues: her November 2020 paper “Banks, QE, and Money-Printing” is a peer-leading explanation of QE. It clarified why, up to the end of 2020, QE hadn’t led to the inflation that many commentators had been warning of since 2007.

Jeff and Lyn are aligned on the theory that the Eurodollar system is a critical driver of the global economy, and that the risk of deflation is of concern. The differences in opinion center on the importance of sovereign debt. Jeff thinks we need more debt to unlock liquidity and combat recessionary forces. Lyn’s concern is that unprecedented levels of indebtedness, in the context of recessionary forces, are an existential threat.

Could the Ponzi scheme fall apart? The warning signs are there: the issues in the repo market in 2019; the breaking of the US treasury market in 2020; numerous currency crises around the world, which include developed economies.

If the situation is at risk of collapse, what are the mitigations? There seems to be no official alternative to the central banks' plan to continue printing money to resolve economic problems. But, as Japan may be finding, that approach may have its natural limits. The risks are apparent, whilst the solutions are limited. Maybe we need to have Jeff and Lyn debate in person.

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
Ledn - Financial services for Bitcoin hodlers
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD535 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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How Bitcoin Reprograms the Mind with Dan Weintraub Jul 31, 2022

“In a world in which this experiment with commercial credit and debt, and then this really messed up experiment with irredeemable currency, if that goes away… as that collective memory fades, who knows how it’ll impact us neurologically? And who knows what will become?”
— Dan Weintraub

Dan Weintraub is a retired history teacher, author and Bitcoin advocate. In this interview, we discuss how fiat money results in a cycle of increasing consumption to meet our need for stimuli, destroying our neurological systems, and how Bitcoin arrests and reverses this cycle.

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Previous societies had been more spiritually centered and had long regarded the roots of materialism (i.e. pride, greed, lust, envy etc.) as being the worst of sins. Then, following industrialisation, materialism has been distorted and promoted as a desirable mindset. The capitalist rationale is obvious: meeting people's needs generates wealth.

But, have fiat currencies locked the capitalist system into a dangerous charade? Increased debt within the system means there is a need for increasing economic activity. This can be met by exploiting people to create superficial desires and wants beyond their actual needs. Advertising is now a ubiquitous facet of modern living: a 24/7/365 machine of selling.

Thus, it is not surprising that as materialism has grown, so has the reaction to it. It has long been lambasted as being harmful to society: excessive consumption can be at once wasteful, polluting and divisive. However, increasing concern has been raised over its destructive effects on human neurology: our brains are being rewired, and we have lost the memory of an alternate way to live.

Materialism enslaves us in an elusive search for satisfying stimuli. A lot of our consumption is driven by an addiction to our brain's chemical reaction: a release of endorphins and dopamine gives us momentary pleasure. With the body's exposure to any drug, we build tolerance. Then, we need a greater high to satisfy our need for stimulation. We’re biologically locked in.

Bitcoin is heralded as the opportunity for a new and more honest economic paradigm. The question is though whether Bitcoin can reset more than just the economic system; can it reset our damaged neurological systems? Can it enable us to re-establish an understanding of the path to more centered and happy lives?

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD534 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Why Bitcoin is an Inflation Hedge with Steven Lubka Jul 29, 2022

“They’re kind of these two different paradigms. One of them, you’re bearish on humanity: you think humans aren’t going to do well, we’re not going to produce stuff, we’re not going to be efficient. The other one, you’re bearish on central bankers and governments. And I know which one I’m betting on - I’m betting on humans.”
— Steven Lubka

Steven Lubka is Managing Director of Private Client Services at Swan Bitcoin. In this interview, we discuss the true meaning of inflation, the different types of inflation, and why this means Bitcoin is the best hedge against monetary inflation. We also discuss the crazy alchemy of bonds.

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Given Bitcoin’s fixed monetary policy and increasing scarcity, it has long been promoted as being a reliable inflation hedge. It was one of Bitcoin’s principal utilities. Then the consumer price index (CPI) began to rise, Bitcoin’s price tracked downwards, and commentators rushed to dismiss the “inflation hedge” theory. This included Bank of America, Mark Cuban, and a wave of financial journalists.

However, inflation is a broad term used to describe a range of phenomena within an economy. Generally, people ascribe inflation to increases in the price of goods. Originally though, inflation has been defined as an increase in the money supply. These definitions matter in examining whether Bitcoin has failed as an inflation hedge. Have people used the wrong definition?

The failure of the inflation hedge theory relates directly to the decrease in Bitcoin’s price whilst the CPI has increased over the past few months. Changes in the CPI can be caused by increased money supply, but they are also driven by supply-side changes such as supply chain shocks resulting from the pandemic and more recently the war in Ukraine.

We are going through a period of money supply deflation as the economies of the world are starting to contract. Prices are going up whilst value is going down.

Yet, significant money supply inflation has occurred since 2008. Various measures of broad money show that the US Fed has increased the money supply around 3 times since the global financial crisis. Over the same period, Bitcoin was launched, established a price, and grew to a market capitalization on par with some of the world's major currencies.

As the money supply has expanded, Bitcoin’s value has increased. Now money supply is contracting Bitcoin’s price has decreased. So, has Bitcoin actually done what it set out to do and hedge against monetary inflation? Is the real issue people’s misunderstanding of the true meaning of inflation?

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD533 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Role of Bitcoin Maximalism Part 2 with Pete Rizzo Jul 27, 2022

“The problem that Bitcoin maximalism is trying to solve, is it’s trying to get people to provide their human action to furthering Bitcoin and is trying to discourage them from building things where their financial incentives would be greater to do that elsewhere.”
— Pete Rizzo

Pete Rizzo is the editor of Bitcoin Magazine, and one of Bitcoin’s leading journalists. In this interview, we discuss Bitcoin maximalism in terms of how it should be defined and rationalised, the moral lens of maximalists, and maximalism’s advantages and limitations.

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Following our interview with Udi to discuss Bitcoin Maximalism, we now host another interview on the topic with Pete Rizzo. The two shows together designed to look at maximalism from alternative perspectives with this interview attempting to understand if a definition of maximalism possible or is it necessarily opaque and fluid.

Bitcoin maximalism has long been discussed and has gone through numerous evolutions. WBD first did a podcast on maximalism 4 years ago. Since then, there has been a new wave of adoption, and with that a new wave of maximalists.

Pete Rizzo outlines his definition of maximalism for the current cycle: all efforts should be focused on supporting and improving Bitcoin; investments in other cryptocurrencies should be discouraged and ignored. And the market’s best method of policing this is the imposition of moral penalties on those working against maximalism.

However, is there a contradiction within maximalism? In seeking to vehemently defend the integrity of Bitcoin, could it harm specific projects outside of Bitcoin that aim to provide unique and objectively useful utility? Or, is Bitcoin’s mission so valuable that it can not afford to be nuanced, and therefore collateral damage is unavoidable?

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD532 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
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Can Bitcoin Become Legal Tender in America? With Aaron Daniel Jul 25, 2022

“We all want freedom, that’s why Bitcoin exists, is to be apolitical freedom money separate from the state; and when you start to then advocate for the state to come and be involved in your freedom money it’s, I hate the phrase slippery slope, but it starts to be a slippery slope.”
— Aaron Daniel

Aaron Daniel is an Appellate attorney and author of The Bitcoin Brief, a newsletter analysing Bitcoin’s effect on law and society. In this interview, we discuss the legal arguments around making Bitcoin US legal tender, and whether it would actually confer any meaningful benefits.

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It is assumed that for Bitcoin to become widely adopted within the US, it would need to be made legal tender. Without such legal clarity, Bitcoin may continue to be viewed by the general population as an unofficial and risky form of money, liable to be prohibited by the state. Therefore, gaining legal tender status would be a seismic positive shift in Bitcoins development.

Attempts to move the country in this direction are often applauded by Bitcoiners. Whether it is US states commencing processes to establish protections for Bitcoin’s use (including efforts in Arizona to declare Bitcoin as legal tender), to activists and politicians advocating for the Federal government to consider making Bitcoin legal tender. The assumption is these are worthy actions.

But, what is legal tender? What utility and protections does such status provide money? What legal framework(s) would be used to confer legal tender status? And, is it necessarily so that such a classification would benefit Bitcoin and it’s users?

The consideration of any nascent technology in legal terms is always fraught with uncertainty and interpretation. The constitution and bill of rights are a firm basis for the development of the world's oldest and most enduring democracy. But, the consideration of modern developments through the prism of the 18th-century founders results in legal arguments that need testing.

Whist such testing is worthwhile, seeking to make a private digital currency legal tender in the US will be a huge endeavour. And, rushing to develop the legal case misses the more essential policy question: is it beneficial to Bitcoin and its users to mandate its legal standing? Fundamentally, should freedom money remain free: free from state interference, but also free for all people to accept or reject?

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD531 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
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Is ESG Signalling Civilisational Decline? With Jeet Sidhu Jul 22, 2022

“Nick Szabo has this concept of social scalability, we may come from different areas and have totally different interests, but we can both use the internet and we can both use Bitcoin; there’s no part of using Bitcoin that requires you to embrace my values.”
— Jeet Sidhu

In this interview, I talk to Jeet Sidhu and we discuss whether the promotion of obviously deficient ESG standards is a signal of a wider societal malaise: decivilisation, overregulation, political incompetence and consistent policy failures. Is human flourishing on the ropes?

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Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) is a framework that was established by the UN in coordination with financial institutions in 2004. It was an attempt to expand the boundaries of the Friedman doctrine, which limits the social responsibility of businesses to increasing shareholder value. ESG essentially seeks to introduce altruistic goals for businesses.

The business community's reaction has been both rational and ironic: it has sought to use and capture ESG to maximise profits for shareholders. According to Bloomberg, ESG is the fastest growing asset management class, which is expected to exceed $50 trillion in value this year. Yet, according to EY, ESG is confusing, opaque, and subject to rampant greenwashing.

Is this exploitation of a worthy initiative an isolated anomaly that can be corrected? Or, is it evidence of a wider and more malevolent decline in society? The reality is that this isn’t the only major fault within our systems. Everyone is aware of the soft corruption of competence and the hard corruption of honesty. These have cascaded and infected our institutions.

We now live in a world that has exploited and tainted progressive language: selfish designs are hidden behind worthy declarations. We have rejected hard truths in return for expedient fiction. To what end? Are we more resilient? Do we have more efficient systems? Is society fairer? Seemingly not. This seems like an existential decline. Now is the time for honest new ideas.

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This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD530 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The Role of Bitcoin Maximalism with Udi Wertheimer Jul 20, 2022

“I don’t know if it relates to the whole block size war thing in 2017, I don’t know if it’s something else, but we changed the focus. The focus is not really on Bitcoin anymore. It’s on all the things that Bitcoin isn’t.”
— Udi Wertheimer

Udi Wertheimer is an independent developer and consultant, and an active member of Bitcoin’s Twitterverse. In this interview, we discuss the evolved status and definition of Bitcoin maximalism, what success for Bitcoin means, and how Bitcoiners should interact with crypto investors.

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Nearly 2 years ago I interviewed Udi to discuss Bitcoin, Ethereum and maximalism. He’s an important voice as, whilst being a Bitcoin advocate, Udi also provides valid critical analysis. As the merits and risks of Bitcoin maximalism are again at the forefront, it is valuable to hear his current views. The fundamental issue is whether maximalism is a net positive or negative for #Bitcoin.

The difficulties start with defining maximalism, and what unique utilities of Bitcoin maximalists are to coalesce behind. Is it a movement to protect the technical development of Bitcoin i.e. protecting monetary policy, protecting the protocol?

Or is maximalism a cultural phenomenon predicated on developing a moral framework that seeks to provide refuge from more brutal capitalist behaviours? Does maximalism need to be unrelenting in its dismissal of other developments within crypto for the purposes of protecting green retail investors from scams? When, if ever, does defence need to become attack?

Maximalism has served as a moral check on the development of Bitcoin. Adherents are right to treat manifestations of the status quo with suspicion. However, there is a delicate line to be taken. History is littered with examples of principled movements being radicalized into counter productive factions.

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD529 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
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Everything You Know About the Economy is Wrong with Jeff Snider Jul 18, 2022

“The inflation target is, pardon my French, bullshit. And it’s supposed to be: it reinforces the idea that the Federal Reserve is a central bank, and therefore, it is targeting inflation and just responsible for inflation; but it simply reinforces what the Federal Reserve actually does, which is trying to manipulate opinions and emotions.”
— Jeff Snider

Jeff Snider is co-host of the Eurodollar University podcast and Head of Global Research at Atlas Financial Advisors. In this interview, we discuss the fundamentals of money, how the Eurodollar controls the global monetary system, and signals of a deflationary depression.

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The common narrative about the global economy is bleak. Money printing by central banks has been out of control. This new money fed into the economy and resulted in runaway inflation. Years of interest cuts to stimulate economies means cash is now trash, whilst economies are stagnating. Debt is unmanageable. The search for alpha is focused on wealth protection.

But others think this narrative is wrong. Our perceived reality is a mirage. Central banks are not in control of the levers of money, they are mere bystanders playing the role of the wizard behind the curtain. The global monetary system is controlled by an opaque and unregulated dollar exchange market developed in the 1950s: the Eurodollar system.

The Eurodollar market is sending signals that defy the forecasts that inflation will endure. The market predicts inflation will be transitory. In its wake, an aggressive period of deflation will soon rock the global economic order. Various economists over time have argued that whilst inflation is damaging, deflation is a worse evil. It has been blamed for depressions throughout history.

If these forecasts are right, we could be about to enter a period of significant economic stress.

Whilst there is consensus on the cause of the current economic malaise, i.e. profligate behaviours within the financial industry, opinions on solutions couldn’t be more different. Those who follow Eurodollar signals believe global financial systems need more US dollars in the form of debt. A lack of liquidity is leading to a lack of risk-taking that is hurting the global economy.

So, as we stand on the brink of widespread societal hardship, we have a representation of cause and response at odds with conventional wisdom. With the stakes so high, can we afford to reject these emergent opinions?

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD528 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
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Bitcoin Conviction with Eric Weiss Jul 15, 2022

“When that changes, you’re gonna see a lot more capital come in… I don’t want to be all dramatic and be like, it’s gonna be a tidal wave of money coming in and they’re all just waiting for this. But I think we’ll see it, I think it’d be making a material difference. And as you know, when any money comes into our space, there’s such a limited supply, that it doesn’t take much.”
— Eric Weiss

Eric Weiss is CEO of the Blockchain Investment Group, and the man who orange-pilled Michael Saylor. In this interview, we discuss the current malaise in the Bitcoin price, why regulation will change this and be good for Bitcoin, and why Bitcoin provides value to all Americans.

- - - -

As Bitcoin continues to track sideways, with a current sentiment of extreme fear and continued reports of its demise, it’s easy to lose the bigger picture. In 13 years Bitcoin has come from zero to an asset comparable to state-sized currencies, which is being discussed at the highest levels of government around the world.

Whilst the wider industry suffers from its own 2007-style financial crisis, where leverage, deception and greed risk an investor bloodbath, Bitcoins ethos remains morally and ethically sound. Bitcoiners' advice to avoid wider altcoin and Web3 proposals has arguably been vindicated. The maxim to hodl is being tested, but long term investors are holding the line.

Why is this? As Eric Weiss states, Bitcoin has grown to become a global phenomenon without a marketing budget. Let that sink in. The growth of Bitcoin has been viral. Individuals have become orange-pilled, and in various forms brought others into the fold. There is no one reason for this, and that is Bitcoin’s strength. It has utility for everyone.

High worth individuals, the middle class and low income groups are all affected by inflation. Yes, in the current environment, the impacts are more immediate for those with less assets. And, Bitcoin’s volatility isn’t a theoretical risk at this time. But even in periods of moderate inflation, compound effects mean that the dollar is losing value year on year.

Bitcoin advocates are confident in the medium term it is going to beat the dollar. Even Charlie Munger thinks the dollar is going to zero over the long term. What amount of Bitcoin constitutes a sensible scale of investment in open to debate, but, as one commentator opined in Bitcoin Magazine on Jul 13th “there is one clearly unwise allocation size when it comes to Bitcoin: zero.”

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

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WBD527 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Turning Garbage into Bitcoin with Adam Wright Jul 13, 2022

“You could either mine Bitcoin on one small landfill for a year, or you could plant 5 million trees and let them grow for 10 years - both of those are going to have the same environmental impact.”
— Adam Wright

Adam Wright is a Co-Founder and CEO of Vespene Energy. In this interview, we discuss using landfill methane to power Bitcoin mining, turning waste into an asset, reducing greenhouse emissions, building decentralised baseload energy facilities, and orange pilling local government.

- - - -

According to the Environmental Defense Fund, a leading environmental nonprofit organisation, methane has more than 80 times the warming power of CO2 and drives at least 25% of today’s global warming. Further, it is a short-lived greenhouse gas remaining potent for just 12 years. And yet, for many years climate change strategies focused on reducing man-made carbon emissions.

This is changing: “Reducing human-caused methane emissions is one of the most cost-effective strategies to rapidly reduce the rate of warming and contribute significantly to global efforts to limit temperature rise to 1.5°C… Focused strategies specifically targeting methane need to be implemented to achieve sufficient methane mitigation.” UN Global Methane Assessment 2021.

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a third of US methane emissions are generated by landfills. The EPA recognises that methane recovery is not widespread around the world due to a lack of knowledge regarding technologies, and investment challenges. Last year the EPA issued new mandatory guidelines to reduce these emissions within the US.

So, imagine you were a municipal official with responsibility for landfills, and someone told you they would: take responsibility for converting methane emissions into EPA-compliant carbon emissions, pay you for the privilege with a profit share deal, and, for isolated landfills, build out the potential for a decentralised energy facility. In short, they could turn waste from being a liability, into an asset.

This is what Vespene Energy is proposing. It is hoping to orange pill state and local authorities with their vision of turning methane into Bitcoin. It is another exciting opportunity that Bitcoin opens up; another demonstrable rebuttal of the environmental FUD - enabling the rapid build-out of energy facilities across the thousands of landfill sites across the US, and then the world, whilst tackling climate change. It really is alchemy.

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD526 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The State v Julian Assange with Gabriel Shipton & Stella Moris Jul 11, 2022

“He represents democracy and freedom at its strongest, and they’ve put him in prison. It’s in everyone’s interest that Julian is freed, it’s a disgusting injustice that demeans our democracies and has a real effect on our freedoms because it sets a precedent. What they’re doing to Julian, they will do, it’s not just that they can do, they will do to others, it’s a matter of time.”
— Stella Moris

Gabriel Shipton is a Film Producer & advocate for his brother Julian Assange; Stella Moris is a lawyer & wife to Julian Assange. In this interview, we discuss the unprecedented State assault on Assange’s freedom, the effects on his mental & physical well-being, & the threat to journalism.

- - - -

On March 15th 2006, US forces dropped from helicopters onto the roof of a house in a village north of Baghdad. The mission was reportedly to intercept a member of al-Qaeda who was visiting the dwelling. The US troops gathered 11 family members in one room, handcuffed them, and shot them all in the head. This included 5 children under 6, one of whom was a 6-month-old baby. US soldiers then called in an airstrike to destroy evidence of their crimes.

Iraqi police reported the details of the incident at the time, but the US military refuted these claims, stating a fire-fight with insurgents caused the deaths, and that “[US forces] take every precaution to keep civilians out of harm’s way.” Their investigations ended, effectively neutering any other external examination of their conduct.

This was until 2010 when WikiLeaks released a series of classified US documents on the Afghan War, Iraq War, and cables between the US State Department and its diplomatic missions around the world. One such cable was from a March 2006 investigation of the above incident by the UN, which corroborated the Iraqi police’s accusations that a horrific war crime had been committed.

WikiLeaks releases in 2010 highlighted hundreds of other unreported civilian deaths at the hands of the US military in both the Afghan and Iraq conflicts, including military coverup of the torture (using drills and acid) and execution of Iraqi detainees by Iraqi authorities.

Julian Assange is the only person linked to these incidents who has been punished. In August it will be 10 years since he sought asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. During that time the CIA had planned to kidnap and execute him. Then, 3 years ago Assange was arrested in the embassy and taken to the UK’s highest security prison, Belmarsh, where he’s still kept. All because he published source material, a journalistic practice acting as a bedrock of democracy.

US authorities have indicted Assange, an Australian citizen residing in the UK, using their 1917 espionage act; this has never previously been used against a journalist. The US is seeking to extradite Assange using a 2003 UK-US treaty, which was hurriedly brought into law without oversight as a response to the war on terror. The rights of individuals in the UK are limited by this treaty. To compound issues further, Assange will not benefit from US constitutional rights.

The full weight of the US and UK states is being used against Assange. His physical and mental condition is deteriorating. Assange’s treatment is being used as a warning to others. Whatever your preconceived ideas are about this case, the implications are chilling: the US is seeking to make journalism a crime, and those they accuse suffer.

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD525 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Orange Pilling the White House with David Zell Jul 08, 2022

“We have to recognise that there is value in market-based alternatives, and that open monetary networks, bring risks like anything, but also bring unimaginable opportunity for spreading democracy, for ensuring civil liberties and rights, and for connecting more people to the global economy.”
— David Zell

David Zell is a co-founder of the Bitcoin Policy Institute and Director of Policy at BTC Inc. In this interview, we discuss fighting to make congress aware of Bitcoin’s social value, the strategic benefits of Bitcoin for the US and how our rights are being erased in a digital world and Bitcoin’s defence.

- - - -

On June 1st a letter in “Support of Responsible Fintech Policy” was sent to Congress. Purportedly from 1,500 “computer scientists, software engineers, and technologists”, it excoriated blockchain technology, stating it “has been a solution in search of a problem and has now latched onto concepts such as financial inclusion and data transparency to justify its existence.”

FUD in the media is one thing. Direct lobbying of congress using persuasive but purposefully misleading arguments is another. Coordinated attack vectors have affected Bitcoin at numerous stages of its evolution. These attacks are now focused on galvanizing the most powerful of external forces: persuading the US government Bitcoin is of no social value is arguably the most dangerous moment yet.

The battles over technical details have now become battles over ideas. And the constituency over which this battle is being fought has grown from an informed and knowledgeable clique of insiders to a less informed but more consequential clique of legislators.

But, just as the assaults on Bitcoin have become more political and trenchant, the defensive measures have witnessed significant maturation. Bitcoin has always had persuasive individuals. Now it has powerful institutions. Most importantly it has its own think tank, bringing together some of the most interesting and original voices within the industry.

In this new stage of Bitcoin’s development, we are lucky to have those who can see the battle that needs to be fought at the nation-state level. And we’re also lucky to have those who can develop arguments that are persuasive to those looking for the collective needs of wider society.

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD524 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Moral Case for Renewable Energy with Andrew Dessler Jul 06, 2022

“So wind and solar are the cheapest energy sources. A grid that’s primarily wind and solar will be cheaper than a grid that’s running on fossil fuels, so the price will come down. And again, it will also be predictable, and it’ll be at a low price. And we’ll be at that low price in the long term, for decades.”
— Andrew Dessler

Andrew Dessler is a Professor of Atmospheric Sciences at Texas A&M University. In this interview, we discuss the settled science of climate change, the polarisation of the climate change debate, our need for more energy, and the market inevitability of wind and solar-dominated grids.

- - - -

In April, WBD interviewed Alex Epstein who stated humans need access to more low-cost energy. Energy enables humans to survive in otherwise inhospitable climates but also flourish. Epstein stated that energy at the moment is dominated by fossil fuels, which are very hard to replace. Further, he asserts claims of climate change catastrophe are being overstated.

Andrew Dessler, who has previously publicly debated Alex Epstein, wanted an opportunity to rebut some of Alex Epstein’s claims. Dessler agrees that humans need access to more energy; underinvestment over previous decades has contributed to the current energy crisis. But, humans also need to be concerned about the existential risks of increasing carbon emissions.

There is widespread consensus amongst climate scientists that the science of climate change is correct, and the forecasts have been proven to be reliable. The risks are real and significant. There is a fear that attempts to refute the science feed the culture wars, where climate change views are predetermined by political allegiance.

Dessler also claims that refuting science is a cynical tactic to avoid moving the debate onto the policy. His rationale is that the case for transitioning to renewables isn’t just predicated on reducing carbon emissions, there is also a compelling economic case: it is an energy source with a marginal cost of zero. A strong supply market for solar and wind is powerful validation for this.

That’s not to say 100% of our energy needs can be derived from wind and solar. Those advocating for increased use of renewable energy are fully aware of the need for reliable dispatchable power from other energy sources. But there is a strong conviction that renewable energy can become a dominant provider for our energy needs of today and tomorrow.

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD523 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Bitcoin Behind the Veil with Craig Warmke Jul 04, 2022

“You can’t just sit in a hut and think that the technology that you built is inevitably going to take over the world. You actually have to do the hard work of convincing people and getting in front of the public. So you can have an effect on the public imagination. And so building is not enough… I think you have to build and teach”
— Craig Warmke

- - - -

Craig Warmke is a philosopher and fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute. In this interview, we discuss the biases and pressures that distort opinions about Bitcoin, and a framework for enabling objective evaluation of Bitcoin’s value and risk to individuals and society.

- - - -

Bitcoin has proved itself to be the hardest money ever created at a time when the world’s monetary systems are under unprecedented stress. It also provides an array of unique utilities: it helps vulnerable people; disrupts rent-seeking exploitation and brings pluralism to money for ordinary people.

And yet, for the majority, Bitcoin is still funny internet money, or worse, a Ponzi scheme, criminal back channel and/or environmental disaster. Why are so many people still struggling to see what Bitcoiners see?

Hal Finney’s writings are uncannily prescient. One such example is ‘Politics vs Technology’: a short 1994 article about cypherpunk responses to the dangers of government overreach. Many believed solutions were to be found in coding new tools. Finney was less sure that technology in isolation would change the world. To him, active engagement is vital: “If we want freedom and privacy, we must persuade others that these are worth having. There are no shortcuts.”

If education is the magic bullet, how should we persuade those still on the sidelines? Craig Warmke has proposed a framework that enables people to strip away their unconscious bias, subjective viewpoints and peer group constraints. The critical characteristic of the framework is that it requires openness to all of Bitcoin’s tradeoffs; bias affects both sides of the debate.

It makes the approach a powerful educational weapon: each individual can see the issues through a new lens; and, because both sides are required to confront their partiality, the conversation can become honest and collaborative. It also enables a fair review of the hidden costs of wider Bitcoin adoption, so that Bitcoin’s case can be further strengthened.

- - - -

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD522 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Will Bitcoin Replace Central Banks with Lyn Alden Jul 01, 2022

“I think this decade is going to be transformative, but we’re still too early to say exactly where this ends up or how quickly this goes.”

— Lyn Alden

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Lyn Alden is a macroeconomist and investment strategist. In this interview, we discuss the rise and role of Central Banks: their intermittent role in the US’s history, the piecemeal erosion of a gold standard, the new era of easy money, and whether Bitcoin could replace Central Banking.

- - - -

Central Banks have played such a dominant role in our societies it’s easy to assume that they are required institutions within modern governmental systems. The idea that the market can determine a monetary policy and the price for money is well outside of the Overton window.

Yet, for long periods in the industrialised era modern civilised societies have functioned, developed and prospered without such institutions. Further, there is ample evidence that central banks are now far from being a steadying force that brings stability to economies.

For around 100 years, the international monetary system was pegged to gold; albeit there were debasements, new controls, and periodic abandonments during this period. Then in 1971, the monetary system was taken off any remnants of a gold standard. Its constraints on US fiscal policy had become too burdensome. It led to the development of fiat currencies and a period of easy money.

Governments have become increasingly dependent upon Central Banks in creating new money to assist with economic shocks: following the global financial crisis the production of dollars markedly increased. But these events were dwarfed by the injection of new money during the pandemic. Inflation is now catching up, but at a time when economies are stagnating.

Cycles of debt accumulation always come to an end. Without careful political judgement, coordination and luck, the resolution of unsustainable debt at the global level can lead to domestic and international conflict. So, we’re entering a transformative decade.

The question is whether Bitcoin, the strongest form of money ever invented, can enable society to navigate through this unwinding of the long-term debt cycle? Additionally, can it enable the market to again determine the price of money?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Pacific Bitcoin - Bitcoin‑only event, Nov 10 & 11, 2022
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source, privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD521 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Privacy on Monero vs Bitcoin with Seth for Privacy Jun 29, 2022

“People need to realise that politics can rapidly change, countries can rapidly change. And the things you do today on-chain and Bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency, those things last forever.”
— Seth for Privacy

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Seth for Privacy is a privacy advocate and host of the Opt Out Podcast. In this interview, we discuss how financial privacy protects all other rights, the current limitations with Bitcoin’s privacy, and Monero’s protocol privacy that some Bitcoiners find beneficial.

- - - -

Most people have slowly acquiesced to the undermining of personal privacy by tech companies. There has been a trade-off: free access to powerful social media software for the monetisation of our data. The problem is a false sense of security has been allowed to fester: there is a material lack of concern that such transgressions could become more malign and overt abuses of power.

The wake-up call for many was the treatment of the Candian truckers. Not many foresaw Bitcoin’s privacy weaknesses being exploited by a western liberal democratic power led by a young charismatic leader. But they were exploited. The Canadian authorities were unrepentant. And there was nothing the truckers could do. Once your privacy is compromised that’s it.

Whilst it is a wake-up (or should be a wake-up call), Bitcoin’s fully auditable pseudonymous transaction history presents significant privacy challenges. That’s not to say that non-technical users can’t improve their privacy using Bitcoin, or that privacy concerns always need to be front and centre of decisions to hold Bitcoin. Rather, there may be another option under certain circumstances.

Monero is an altcoin that some Bitcoiners are willing to adopt given its unique out-of-the-box privacy features. It is being used to complement the use case for Bitcoin. And yet, there is still toxicity from some quarters towards Monero and those who advocate for it. Is this healthy? Does Monero deserve to be treated like other altcoins?

Fundamentally, should Bitcoiners be open to using Monero? Or, do maximalists who have served the community well express warranted concerns? What are the tradeoffs being made and how do they affect users?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD520 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Inflation’s Hidden Cost with Avik Roy Jun 27, 2022

“A lot of people, particularly intellectuals, like to complain about our consumerist culture in America. Well, what creates a consumerist culture? A monetary policy that destroys the long-term value and reward for saving your own money.”
— Avik Roy

Avik Roy is president of the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity think tank and a policy Editor at Forbes. In this interview, we discuss the Lummis Gillibrand Responsible Financial Innovation Act, inflation’s compounding impact on the poor and why Bitcoin provides optimism.

- - - -

On June 7th Republican Senator Lummis and Democratic Senator Gillibrand introduced the Responsible Financial Innovation Act, which aims to establish a regulatory framework for digital assets in the US. Many Bitcoiners believe Bitcoin is designed to work outside of regulatory oversight. But is this proposal inimical to Bitcoin’s potential to positively contribute to society?

If Bitcoin is to play a dominant role within society, can it do that outside of the law? Irrespective of Bitcoin, should governments have a role in protecting citizens from the negative impacts of the wider altcoin market? What are the dividing lines between different digital assets? And, could the lack of regulation in the near term actually be detrimental to Bitcoin in the long run?

Bitcoin’s advocates are heavily engaged in trying to obtain regulatory clarity - they fear continued uncertainty could delay or damage its ability to provide utility to those who really need it. This is particularly for those impacted by the ravages of inflation.

The current inflationary environment has resulted in renewed consideration of this economic condition. The issue is that there is actually a deficit of understanding of inflation’s regressive impacts. It impacts the poorest in society hardest, whilst benefiting the richest. These impacts compound over time such that inequality explodes even in low inflationary environments.

Does this mean inflation as a policy is a busted flush? Should economies aim for zero inflation? These are radical policy shifts that are unlikely to happen anytime soon. This is why Bitcoin provides some with optimism: it’s trying to be the hardest money the world has ever seen.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD519 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin Privacy with Matt Odell Jun 24, 2022

“I’ve already come to the conclusion that with or without me, with or without you, with or without anyone in this room, Bitcoin will be the money of the world. So it’s up to us to make sure that it’s actually freedom money and not cuck money.”
— Matt Odell

Matt Odell is host of the Citadel Dispatch and venture partner at Ten31. In this interview, we discuss why each additional positive act of privacy protection improves Bitcoin's resilience and value. Perfecting privacy is not the goal; making a start is, as we don’t know what the future holds.

- - - -

Our privacy is continuously being eroded. Current best estimates are that 2.5 million terabytes of data are produced every day. A material amount of that information has extremely lax privacy protection: 98% of Internet of Things data is unencrypted; 83% of companies encrypt less than half the data they store on the cloud; 25% of websites are visited without encryption.

Vast amounts of the data we freely shed are stored, analysed and triangulated for commercial reasons. These tactics are so sophisticated that it’s not uncommon for people to think companies are listening to their conversations.

We are being squeezed for our data in almost all aspects of our lives while cash, traditionally the only semi-private way of transacting, is being removed from society, and CBDCs inch closer to reality. Imagine if companies or governments could access and track your income, store of wealth and all those with whom you transacted. What is currently unnerving behaviour by those who track our data could rapidly become something much more maligned and coercive.

Bitcoin is freedom money. But using bitcoin privately isn’t an easy task. The vast majority of Bitcoin is bought using exchanges that have stringent KYC/AML requirements. When you pair these onramps with surveillance firms like Chainalysis, using bitcoin goes from being pseudonymous to almost entirely transparent. But there are things you can do to gain good privacy with bitcoin. Tools like coinjoin and non-KYC exchanges like Bisq are getting better all of the time, and more and more people are using the Lightning Network for cash like transactions, which offers improved privacy.

Perfect privacy, whether with bitcoin or not, is a pipedream. The goal is to continually improve in protecting a fundamental human right, privacy.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

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WBD518 - Show Notes

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If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Bitcoin: The Perfect Machine with American HODL Jun 22, 2022

“In the long run, Bitcoin will have been a story about when a bunch of imperfect humans met a perfect machine, and what happened - that’s the story of Bitcoin.”
— American HODL

In this interview with American HODL, we discuss escaping from social media echo chambers, stablecoins and altcoins, whether free speech has limits, Bitcoin’s current price activity, the need for reasoned thinkers in Bitcoin, and the protocol being a perfect machine.

- - - -

Bitcoin’s volatility remains a persistent feature: all-time highs are followed by precipitous falls and statements of its imminent demise. And yet, many Bitcoiners unwaveringly advocate for people to continue to hodl through these cycles. Whilst their advice has been proven right many times, it’s appropriate to be testing such convictions during a bearish period for Bitcoin.

Many see the current price fluctuations as a positive sign that the asset is maturing, and it is now subject to the same macro headwinds as other globally significant investment vehicles. Hodlers faith is rooted in a maximalist sentiment: Bitcoin was a “zero to one” moment. Other versions don’t and won’t match its elegant design, clarity of purpose and first-to-market network effects.

The issues emanating from algo stablecoins and projects offering wild returns have vindicated and hardened these positions. But does that mean it’s Bitcoin or bust? Stablecoins do have utility for those living in countries suffering currency debasements. So, can stablecoins support people as a short-term fix to economic crises, whilst Bitcoin is the longer-term solution?

What about the current state of Bitcoin Twitter and the wider discussions about freedom of speech? Toxicity and unoriginal talking points cast Bitcoin’s community in a poor light; can a new wave make a compelling case with an authentic voice? Further, whilst freedom of expression is a pillar of Americanism and a bulwark against the rise of China, should all speech be free?

Irrespective of these issues, American HODL is holding the line. He believes Bitcoin will transcend other assets and innovations. He believes it is an unstoppable perfect machine.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD517 - Show Notes

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If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Is Hyperinflation Coming? With Preston Pysh Jun 20, 2022

“This is a math problem, this is just math, they can’t take that out; looking at everything that’s about to go down in my opinion in the coming two to four quarters… things are about to get insane.”
— Preston Pysh

Preston Pysh is a co-founder of The Investor Podcast Network. In this interview, we discuss credit cycles depending on increasing debasement of the USD, accelerating inflation, and other signs of the long-term debt cycle ending. We also talk about Bitcoin changing the economic order.

- - - -

Every day we read new stories about economic turmoil: the UK's cost of living crisis resulting in people missing meals, Sri Lanka debt default resulting in an economic and social meltdown, raging inflation in Turkey, global food shortages, the slide of Japan’s Yen, bond funds bleeding billions etc. etc. etc. It is obvious these are not normal times.

So what is actually happening? Ray Dalio has spoken at length about the long-term debt cycle: how the economy goes through regular patterns of growth and recession that result in the build-up of sovereign debt, and how over a longer period of time that debt becomes unmanageable and a deleveraging occurs. Many believe we are going through that process now.

Preston Pysh is one such person, and he has the evidence to hand. The precipitous rise in the monetary base, capital becoming a liability, global credit cycles being dependent upon increasingly higher levels of USD debasement, the top-heavy state of equity markets - the data is all there; it’s happening. The question is how do governments respond?

Is it possible to unwind from these situations, or are global debt levels too high? Can nations wean themselves off quantitative easing, or are they locked into a death spiral? And what will be the response of citizens to rising inflation and material impacts on their quality of life? The answers to these questions will impact the direction of our civilisation for centuries to come.

The fear is that we repeat the past. The experience of an advanced country going through a hyperinflationary event still casts a shadow over our collective political culture. The destruction of a functioning society and its replacement by a machine of terror, recalibrated the global order for the next 75 years. But we have Bitcoin. Can that see us through?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD516 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Bitcoin is a Black Hole with Harry Sudock Jun 17, 2022

“The economy is not a combustion engine, where you change a fan belt, and it starts or stops. The economy is a large, complex multivariate emergent social phenomenon. And because of that, when you poke one side of the bear, you don’t know how it’s going to react. And it’s an incredibly volatile and incredibly complex place to try to play God. And so the best choice is not to do it.”
— Harry Sudock

Harry Sudock is a Vice President of Strategy at Griid. In this interview, we discuss whether Bitcoin’s real innovation is the fusion of Proof of Work and the difficulty adjustment. This enables it to exert a gravitational pull that’s disrupting money, assets, technologies and organising structures.

- - - -

Bitcoin's impact on society is far exceeding what anyone could have envisioned. While its properties as sound money are well established, the 2nd and 3rd order effects are still being discovered.

Bitcoin is unique. It's centred on the combination of proof of work and the difficulty adjustment. These two fundamental parts of the system incentivise trustless honesty whilst providing security. In today's digital world with encroaching authoritarianism, there is no substitute.

Bitcoin's power is having a gravitational pull on the settled cosmos of modern society, drawing more things into the singularity of its innovation. If money touches everything in society, and Bitcoin is the best form of money, it's seemingly inevitable that Bitcoin will change everything. Bitcoin is a black hole.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD515 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Crisis Across All Markets with Peter Doyle Jun 15, 2022

“You could see how inflation could spin out of control under certain environments. Now, I’m not saying that’s going to happen, it’s not going to happen probably in the next several weeks. But it doesn’t take a lot, where the numbers that we saw that we’ve experienced in the recent past, would basically look like nothing compared to what we experience in the future.”
— Peter Doyle

Peter Doyle is the Co-Founder and MD of Horizon Kinetics. In this interview, we discuss investment in an economic climate marked by accelerating inflation, a debt crisis, an energy crisis, war and the potential for Bitcoin to upend the monetary system.

- - - -

The world’s economic leaders are publicly admitting that inflation is not the transitory phenomenon they were claiming it to be only a few months ago. Some observers think that behind closed doors they never really believed inflation would pass; given the extreme levels of debt, rising inflation makes sense as an unofficial government policy.

Irrespective, inflation has to be controlled. But taming inflation is a delicate balancing act. The trick is to achieve a ‘soft landing’: reducing inflation without triggering a recession. This proved impossible during the 1970s and early 1980s when inflation last ravaged the US economy. The dilemma is the current economic and fiscal environment is much worse than during the 1970s.

Interest rates have been at unprecedented low levels for over a decade. These have enabled governments to take on increasingly precarious levels of debt to shore up economies during pandemic lockdowns. Even modest interest rate rises risk triggering both sovereign default and recession. Whilst reducing the size of the state is problematic given its oversized share of GDP.

At the same time, there is a limit to what governments can do to control inflation. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has resulted in a spike in energy prices. However, energy costs were already rising due to decades of underinvestment influenced by ESG mandates. This is a systemic issue affecting global markets. The expectation is for a prolonged period of inflation.

Investments need to now consider an environment where “cash is trash”. However, what is becoming increasingly clear is that investment managers are seeking more than just inflation-beating returns. In the face of possible scenarios where inflation can’t be controlled, Bitcoin is becoming part of portfolios designed to protect wealth.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD514 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Reality of Web3 with Lane Rettig Jun 13, 2022

“We have to get back to the original vision of Bitcoin and the cypherpunks, which is that in a sense, Bitcoin and crypto in general, is outside of any particular nation-state system.”
— Lane Rettig

Lane Rettig is a former Ethereum Core Developer who now works as a core developer for Spacemesh. In this interview, we discuss the Terra/Luna crash, trust and the discipline of Bitcoin; the history, theory and reality of current Web3 initiatives; and Bitcoin’s future.

- - - -

On Friday Jack Dorsey’s Block announced that it is building “Web5” on Bitcoin. It is purposefully bypassing Web3, which Jack has previously criticized. In fact, Jack stated in a tweet to launch the initiative “RIP web3 VCs”. So, why are Jack, and many other bitcoiners, so fiercely against what in theory is supposed to be a revolution of the internet enabling it to decentralise?

Maybe it is the same issue being raised about the crash of Terra/Luna, the issue raised about the much-critizsed ICOs and IPOs within the industry, and the issue raised about the motivation for VCs aligned with the “crypto” ecosystem. Rigged incentives and asymmetric risk where the VCs always win? Greed dressed as innovation and utility under the cynical rebranding of Web3?

The problem is, by the time these flaws have been realised, the VCs have already exited and made a tidy profit. And as always, it’s retail investors who get hurt. Maybe Web5 is just what is required, for the internet, for retail investors, and for Bitcoin.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD513 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Fed, Inflation and Bitcoin with Steven McClurg Jun 10, 2022

“You watch the Fed very carefully: you analyse every word; you try to see where interest rates are going; you try to see what the Fed’s doing. There’s an old adage, don’t fight the Fed.”
— Steven McClurg

Steven McClurg is a Co-Founder of Valkyrie Investments. In this interview, we discuss how Steven called Bitcoin’s top, watching the Fed for policy indications, protecting wealth against high inflation, how governments should fight inflation, supply chain issues, and inflation hedges.

- - - -

Today, US CPI data shows that rather than inflation slowing as had been expected, it continues to accelerate. Year-on-year inflation currently stands at 8.6% - the highest in 40 years. Prices in May alone rose by 1%. But maybe this wasn’t a surprise for everyone.

Janet Yellen, who previously characterised inflation as “transitory”, told Congress on Tuesday “inflation is really our top economic problem at this point and that it’s critical that we address it.” This is happening across the world: the ECB plans a “gradual but sustained” path of interest rate rises; India may need to dampen growth to control inflation; in Turkey inflation is out of control.

So, how bad could it get? The great inflationary period of the 1970s? Or could it be worse? Some commentators talk of extreme examples such as when hyperinflation tore the fabric of the Weimar republic apart. Most think this can’t be a rational possibility: surely politicians and policy wonks are students of history and they’ll stop spending.

But yet, there is talk another $5-10 trillion could be printed.

Whatever the outcome, we’re entering a new paradigm in respect of the cost of living. Whilst there are opportunities in every market, the focus is turning to wealth protection ahead of wealth creation. Is this the time for Bitcoin? It has long been regarded by advocates as an inflation hedge. Yet, its current price performance would suggest otherwise.

Maybe we need to recalibrate our understanding of what constitutes an inflationary emergency. Block’s recent survey has shown a strong correlation between inflation rates and viewing Bitcoin as a safe haven: Argentina came out top with nearly 50% of respondents stating they saw Bitcoin as protection against inflation. At the time inflation was north of 40%; it’s currently 58%.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD512 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Culture Wars with Michael Moynihan Jun 08, 2022

“You can convince people of these things much easier now because they believe that speech is violence and nobody likes violence…there’s a reason, a very specific reason that you recast words as violence because nobody wants to be opposed to free speech.”
— Michael Moynihan

Michael Moynihan is a correspondent for Vice News and co-host of The Fifth Column podcast. In this interview, we discuss identity politics and its effect on framing issues such as the Russia Ukraine conflict. We also cover culture wars, toxicity, mainstream media, and freedom of speech.

- - - -

US polarisation has turned society into isolated camps with defined ideologies and narrow cultural perspectives. Issues are expressed in binary terms: you’re expected to have a for or against a position. And the determination of which position to take is increasingly made as a reaction to what the other side believes. Politics is tribal.

There are obvious issues with this trend. People become increasingly deaf to consideration of opposing views. The Socratic method has been ditched in favour of blind alliance to a given group. Critical thinking is decreasing; vitriolic rhetoric is on the rise. Identity politics is resulting in a balkanisation of our communities, as like seeks like, reinforcing the divide.

The impacts are becoming increasingly disorientating, as both sides of the political divide align with beliefs that were previously antithetical to their respective ideologies. For example, the right and left have changed their relative positions in terms of support and distrust of government agencies.

And, instead of trying to break down these barriers, our representatives and media are increasingly fermenting and exploiting these culture wars for financial gain. Media is becoming beholden to audience capture, both in terms of the large mainstream media corporations, and the wave of independent voices rising from social media. Real journalism is on the wane.

The result is the true nature of life becomes clouded, including events of huge geopolitical significance such as the Ukraine Russian conflict. We’re unable now to distinguish fact and spin. The real problem is that people are unable to unite and coalesce around nationally vital policies. And as the world problems become more complex, how will this all play out?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD511 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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A Lesson in Bitcoin Volatility with Dan McArdle Jun 06, 2022

“Picking the highs and lows is an impossible game, so I think the best advice for people is: know what you own and why you own it.”
— Dan McArdle

Dan McArdle is co-founder of Messari Crypto and creator of casebitcoin.com. Dan has been in Bitcoin since 2011. In this interview, we discuss the history of Bitcoin cycles and events: Mt. Gox hack, rise of altcoins and stablecoins, Ethereum DAO Hack, and 2017 Bitcoin cycle.

- - - -

Bitcoin is volatile: its history has been dominated by large swings in both directions; albeit, Bitcoin is volatile to the upside: in 10 years it is up well over 500,000%! But, in each cycle, new adopters can be forgiven for thinking they’re in the cycle that finally breaks the pattern. It is easy to question the investment when seeing the value drop by 80% for the first time.

This is where experience is vital. Each cycle has seen events that have had the potential to destroy Bitcoin. Exchange hacks and exploits, the proliferation of competing coins with marketing buzz aimed at attacking Bitcoin, the realisation of altcoin failings, scams, bans, FUD. The most recent has been the UST and Luna crash. Each one destroys confidence and value.

Yet, the one thing the critiques fail to mention is that each of these events has been external to Bitcoin. Each event has highlighted weaknesses in innovations in the ecosystem that has developed around Bitcoin. But Bitcoin has remained secure - the protocol itself has not been hacked. In fact, the “move slow and build things” ethos has strengthened through each event.

This is why long term hodlers who have served one “tour of duty” (a four year Bitcoin cycle) are more inured to Bitcoin’s volatility. They have experienced Bitcoin being declared dead, only to reemerge stronger and more resilient. What hurts you can make you stronger.

To look forward and speculate about the future it is therefore important to look back and see where we’ve been. Many believe Bitcoin is a paradigm shift not just because of ideology, but because the technology has been repeatedly tested and passed. That’s why it is being considered as an emerging global macro asset.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Bitcasino - The Future of Gaming is here
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
Cake Wallet - Open-source privacy focused Bitcoin wallet
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD510 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Crisis of Inflation with Lyn Alden Jun 03, 2022

“I think we’re going through a quote-unquote ‘fourth turning,’ so a time period where we’re examining our existing institutions. We’re decreasing our level of trust in them, whether it’s governments, whether it’s media, whether it’s corporations… basically the things that have been built over the past 50-100 years, and wanting to build new institutions. And that transition is always very messy.”
— Lyn Alden

Lyn Alden is a macroeconomist and investment strategist. In this interview, we discuss the macro environment. We zero in on the current inflationary crisis, focusing on the demand/supply problems with energy, prospects for recession, and the impact on markets and countries.

- - - -

The last time inflationary pressures seriously concerned the US was the 1970s. The decade ended with inflation at nearly 15%. Many believe current inflation, real inflation, not the figures provided by the US Dept of Labor, is at least 15% if not higher. And yet, we are in a much more precarious position now than in the period of the 1970s referred to as the “The Great Inflation”.

Global debt is at an all-time high. US government debt is over 137% of GDP. Unprecedented money printing during the global financial crisis was followed by more extreme money printing during the pandemic. Most countries are now bloated with debt. Further, interest rates are still at abnormally low levels. Economies are precariously balanced. Recession is close at hand.

At the same time, there is an energy crisis. Decades of underinvestment in energy infrastructure, poor policy decisions, and geopolitical issues means we have insufficient energy supply and price spikes. In the UK 40% of households could be deemed to be in energy poverty soon. There is talk of oil reaching $300 a barrel.

Then there is an emerging food crisis. The war between Russia and Ukraine is affecting some of the biggest suppliers of wheat, sunflower oil, and fertilizer. According to the World Food Programme 276 million face famine. A cost of living crisis is hitting the most vulnerable in all corners of the globe.

We are in very uncertain times. History suggests such pressures fuel populism, protest, and conflict. How should we protect our investments in such times? What assets could weather these storms? Who can we trust?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD509 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Why Terra Luna Collapsed with Jonathan Wu Jun 01, 2022

“The larger these stable coins are, the more adoption there is, and the more stable they’re likely to be. But then the worse and more contagious the effect is if it fails. It’s almost like you have to be really big, in order for it to be stable. But once you get that big, the cost of failure is immense.”
— Jonathan Wu

Jonathan Wu is head of growth at Aztec network. In this interview, we pick over what happened when the stablecoin UST crashed, how it linked to the Terra blockchain and Luna governance token, the issues with recursive lending, and the need for financial disclosure in the industry.

- - - -

Stablecoins have provided financial sovereignty for millions who have been failed by their financial institutions and want predictable value in a currency. So, the failure of a stablecoin that had been financially backed by some of the biggest investors in DeFi has been particularly traumatic for many investors.

Unlike some stablecoins, UST, native stablecoin of the Terra Blockchain, was under collateralized i.e. it wasn’t backed by another asset. Maintaining its peg to the dollar was (theoretically) stabilized algorithmically: linkage of UST to a governance token, Luna, and a complex dance of creation and burning of both of these coins. In theory, this enabled UST to remain decentralized.

In practice, there were some inherent weaknesses in the process. Not only was the stablecoin designed to be a payments rail, but the governance token, Luna, could be staked to derive yield. It was accepted by lending protocols that allowed for recursive lending (rehypothecation), an activity raised as a significant risk to DeFi by many critics of yield farming (e.g. Allen Farrington).

Then the house of cards started to crumble. Or, as Jonathan describes it: the death spiral began. The result was a quick unravelling of an asset, which had had a market cap of over $18 billion. An asset that many investors believed, wrongly, was devoid of the risks associated with altcoins. An asset now with an effective value of zero.

The story involves large profits being made by major investors, a CEO who overplayed his hand and got some major calls wrong, some shady characters in the DeFi lending ecosystem, complex strategies not many understand, and a lot of people who could ill afford to lose their investments getting seriously burned.

The critical issue is this again places Bitcoin in a bind. Its price was directly affected, but its reputation suffers: retail investors are warier to adopt, and regulators are more empowered to pounce. There is a lot for the industry to learn, and learn quickly. The stakes are currently stacked unfairly, and it’s the same people who end up losing.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD508 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Can Bitcoin Help Tackle Human Trafficking with Victor Boutros May 30, 2022

“When you look at the giving trends of the Bitcoin community, what’s interesting is they’re not like the traditional philanthropic community, they’re not really interested in Symphony tickets, or the art. They’re looking at ‘where are there game-changing impacts that if they were scaled would have world-changing effects, and have world-changing effects for human freedom?’”
— Victor Boutros

Victor Boutros is CEO and co-founder of the Human Trafficking Institute. In this interview, we discuss the anger that drove him into tackling human trafficking in the US and then set out to prove it could be tackled across the globe. His work literally saves lives. He needs support.

- - - -

Human trafficking is a hidden scourge. Most of us would assume human slavery is a shameful historical relic. Yet, the market for trading humans is thriving. People are traded for labour and sex in huge numbers. It is estimated that there are at least 25 million victims of this brutal industry, but the true number could be much much higher. Both perpetrators and victims hide in the shadows.

Yet, statistics are just dry numbers. It is the stories of individual victims that evidence the evil that permeates human trafficking. Such stories display the cold heartless depravity that enables some to view others as tradable commodities to be exploited. It is these stories that have driven people such as Victor to dedicate themselves to trying to tackle this issue and save lives.

Victor learnt and honed the skills necessary to combat traffickers in the US. But, with the knowledge that the majority of human trafficking takes place across other countries, he set up the Human Trafficking Institute. This mission has successfully proved that through thorough investigation, and dedicated enforcement, it is possible to curtail this scourge anywhere it exists.

But, this work needs to be scaled, which needs funding. Bitcoiners have shown that they are a force for change, using their funds to help shape a better world in numerous ways. It is Victor's hope that the philanthropic zeal within the Bitcoin community could assist his mission.

Can Bitcoin become the driving force behind the effort to make trafficked people free at scale across the globe?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD507 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Censorship Resistant Social Media with Justin Rezvani May 27, 2022

“It’s the worst parts of us that sometimes are displayed on these centralised networks because it’s driven by these algorithms, and I do think that the algorithms don’t know the difference between love and hate because they’re not humans; they just know the difference between high engagement and low engagement and virality.”
— Justin Rezvani

Justin Rezvani is the founder and CEO of Zion. In this interview, we discuss completing Ironman, his near-death experience, recovery and perspectives, and motivations for building a new business. Justin explains his vision to enable creators to own distribution and the future of social media.

- - - -

Not many of us walk through life thinking any day could be our last. But most live as though we have unlimited tomorrows. We leave dreams unfulfilled, arguments unresolved, our attention diverted to the wrong priorities. For those who experience death, but live to tell the tale, it is a pivotal event that leads to a refocused life.

And for those who do get a second chance, they tend to grab opportunities as they arise. Justin came through a near-death experience and traumatic rehabilitation. Once recovered he seized the chance to use Bitcoin to remake social media. Better for creators, and users. Better for the curation and protection of online discussion. Better for the development of communities.

The issues with current centralised platforms are obvious to all at the moment. Business models are incentivised to capture attention, not to nurture civil debate. The digital town square has turned into a digital bear bit. And yet censorship has turned into a blunt instrument open to abuse. The rule book needs rewriting.

Bitcoin, decentralised identification and other technology offer an opportunity to provide creators ownership of the distribution. Communities will no longer be tied to a platform. There will always be aggregators of content, but creators and their audience will now have the flexibility to move across a decentralised internet if and when they choose or require.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD506 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Bitcoin in El Salvador - Part 2 with Nayib Bukele May 25, 2022

“I don’t think it’s going to work, I’m sure it’s going to work. Because the fundamentals are there. We can have some bumps in the road like everything… but, the fundamentals are the same. And it’s going to work because the philosophy of it is right. Just give it time. It’s going to work for El Salvador, it’s going to work for Bitcoin, it’s going to work for the world.”
— Nayib Bukele

The full interview with President Nayib Bukele, undertaken days after the Bitcoin Law became effective on September 7th 2021, sections of which were included in my film “Follow The Money #1 - Bitcoin in El Salvador”. In this interview, we discuss motivation, opposition and legacy.

- - - -

A few days following Bitcoin being given legal status, I was granted an exclusive access interview with President Bukele for the purposes of my film “Follow The Money #1 - Bitcoin in El Salvador”. Following the release of the film, it is time to publish the full interview.

It has been over 8 months since El Salvador became the first country in the world to make Bitcoin legal tender. A lot has been written about El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law, and a lot has happened since. But what was it like to be at the centre of this unprecedented event? An event that could change not just El Salvador’s future, but also Bitcoin’s and the rest of the world.

The discussion covers President Bukele’s enthusiasm for what Bitcoin can do for his country and his people; the incredible timescale within which the law was passed (it was a mere 3 months from being enacted to becoming law); the strategy behind the country’s purchases of Bitcoin; internal and external opposition; and the plan behind the articles of the Bitcoin Law.

As background noise to all these changes is vocal concerns about authoritarian actions Bukele is taking; he has removed judges, influenced a change in the constitution to enable a potential second term, had troops enter parliament, and implemented stern policies aimed at reducing gang violence. The term “dictator” is banded around.

Nevertheless, he is an extremely popular president: he has an approval rating of 85%. Many citizens, sick of the years of violence and corruption, are pleased to finally see a decisive Salvadoran President. Could he become a beacon for the wider region? Could he be the leader of the Bitcoin age?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD505 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Bitcoin Awakening with John Vallis May 23, 2022

“I think we’re at the precipice of really next-level civilizational change, and it’s probably going to be messy a little bit in the transitionary period. But on the other side of this, or as we move forward, I think more good is coming than bad, and that’s something to be hopeful for.”
— John Vallis

John Vallis is a Bitcoin podcaster who hosts Bitcoin Rapid Fire. In this interview, we discuss what freedom means, parallels between Bitcoin and religious values, living a meaningful life, psychedelics and their importance, and a new civilisation centred on truth.

- - - -

Bitcoin provides freedom. Financial freedom; freedom from coercion; freedom of movement. But how should those who benefit from Bitcoin use this freedom? Should they use it to fulfil their own desires? Or are there higher values that Bitcoiners should strive to attain? Should Bitcoiners draw back into their citadels? Or, should they actively engage in trying to shape a better world?

Such decisions will be influenced by the values such individuals hold. In our fiat economy, self-interest is deemed to be the principle that supports a functioning and prosperous society. Institutionally driven moral codes have been supplemented by the needs of the market. Religion has been replaced; prayer and faith have given way to data and patterns.

It is assumed that science and rejection of the divine have driven a more advanced society. And yet, ephemeral pursuits of money and power seem to be the root of a lot of the problems we face today. Some feel that more sophisticated behaviours were displayed by previous civilisations: humans have previously been more in tune with nature.

Psychedelics is thought to have played a part in this process. Many cultures throughout history used psychedelic practices to enable them to break away from their ego. This gave them a wider perspective - a more holistic view of the world around them.

Bitcoin shows that current values in a fiat world are misaligned: selfish short term pursuits are failing us; we have lost sight of the truth. Could psychedelics hold the key to helping more people to make that shift to see the fallacy of our current systems? Is the loss of ego needed to determine how best to mould this new world evolving around us?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD504 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Why are Bitcoin Forks Contentious with Adam Back May 19, 2022

“It’s a competition of ideas… and it’s a collaborative competition of ideas. So if you propose an organised set of ideas as a proposal, some parts of them might end up being good and used, and some parts might not. And you just have to be open to that.”
— Adam Back

Adam Back, an original cypherpunk, inventor of Hashcash and co-founder and CEO of Blockstream. We discuss the controversy around BIP 119: the soft fork proposal aiming to add “covenants” to Bitcoin. We also talk about the collapse of Luna.

- - - -

Flexible smart contracts are a USP of Ethereum and other blockchains. Currently, Bitcoin only enables basic smart contract functionality, such as a timelock that specifies when a transaction can be spent. BIP 119 proposes to add more flexibility for applying restrictions to transactions via a new programme operation code (opcode) called CheckTemplateVerify (CTV).

CTV would enable conditions on spending UTXOs that would limit, not when they are spent, but how. These are referred to as “covenants”. It is envisaged CTV could significantly enhance Bitcoin by enabling a raft of new and powerful applications to be developed; these could bring new security, privacy and scalability benefits.

The concern is that CTV is a significant change and could open up potential unknown security risks, or that if this functionality is desirable, it could be possible be better achieved with a different technical approach

BIP119 has been authored and enthusiastically promoted by Bitcoin developer, Jeremy Rubin. It has been around now for 2 years, and whilst Rubin has generated support for BIP119, he has also faced criticism from prominent Bitcoiners for his approach and so far there doesn’t seem to be consensus among the protocol development community on implementing the proposal.

The consideration, approval and activation of changes to Bitcoin are methodical and slow. Further, such changes normally involve the development of competing ideas, and a collaborative approach to combine the best elements from these efforts. Notable critics feel that BIP119 is being too forcefully promoted and that more time is needed to test and consider alternatives.

The pressure to innovate will always be there. The issue at hand is Bitcoin’s USP: it has never been hacked. This has been hard-won. So it seems BIP119 isn’t going to get a formal consensus at the moment. Rubin, however, could bypass the Core developers and implement a UASF. Could we again be about to test the limits of Bitcoin’s rough consensus process?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD503 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Texas is Bitcoin Country with Will Cole May 16, 2022

“What’s the end game? It is honestly to do less harm. Bitcoin doesn’t actually need politicians to make it succeed, it will succeed on its own merits; what would be helpful is to not have people actively attacking it and elongating the inevitable collapse of their own currencies, but also rise of Bitcoin as a global reserve currency.”
— Will Cole

Will Cole is Chief Product Officer at Unchained Capital. In this interview, we discuss Texas and Austin as ideological centres for Bitcoin, the undervalued importance of state sovereignty in the US, CBDCs being the greatest disaster for liberty and personal freedom, and toxicity on Twitter.

- - - -

Something is happening in Texas. It has always had an independent streak, rooted in its rich history. The state was born of revolution, and it was initially a republic in the mid 19th century before the Mexican-American War. That thirst for freedom is hard-wired into the Texan psyche. Now it is a beacon to Americans from other states seeking increasingly elusive sovereignty.

It is therefore not surprising then that Bitcoin has been adopted and fostered in Texas.

From very early in it’s history, a strong community of maximalists united and sought to safeguard Bitcoin in this part of the US. That effort is now starting to pay off. The strong affinity for Bitcoin by Texans has evolved such that the state is fast becoming the centre of groundbreaking efforts to integrate Bitcoin and energy grids.

The state is arguably spearheading a new adoption wave within the US that includes serious politicians. Could Texas take the next step and create the conditions to orange pill a nation?

Those Bitcoiners in the state aren’t waiting to find out. They’re moving at pace to help Texas and other states continue the outreach, policy drafting and technical buildout to realise the benefits of what is a keenly American innovation. They’re also keenly focused on the attack vectors on the horizon, be it CBDCs or divisions within the community.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD502 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The Risks of Hyperbitcoinisation with Rob Hamilton May 13, 2022

“The idea is that fix the money fix the world, the thing that’s often said, and that most of our problems in the world come from bad money. And I think my point is that malevolence in man is something that is so core to the human condition that fixing the money isn’t going to actually magically fix all these problems.”
— Rob Hamilton

Rob Hamilton is a programmer and data scientist. In this interview, we discuss the risks associated with a transition to hyperbitcoinisation, the limits to what Bitcoin fixes, the issues of a libertarian world run on a Bitcoin standard, the benefits to the energy grid, and Bitcoin’s eternal September.

- - - -

Hyperbitcoinization, the adoption of Bitcoin as global money, was once a theoretical pipe dream that all but the most hardened Bitcoiners thought would be an impossibility. But we have witnessed a number of unprecedented events in recent years that mean impossible scenarios have now shifted into the realm of the possible.

Does this create a new foundation for conversations regarding hyperbitcoinization? The abstract idea of hyperbitcoinization has been enthusiastically supported: it is a fresh new idea that provides hope for a better world. But where such discussions could afford to be utopian a few years ago, do discussions now need to mature as a Bitcoin standard becomes more real?

Are there limits to what Bitcoin can fix? Further, does hyperbitcoinization create new issues? Would we be replacing one elite for another? And, if this new world is shaped by a libertarian ideology, who will determine how to organise consensus, solve problems and resolve conflict? The reality of what may be possible certainly requires more sober consideration.

The flip side is that the tremendous benefits that Bitcoin has to offer could actually be realised. A better world may be within our reach. The excitement for proponents is that Bitcoin’s potential is more than just as a new currency; it has second-order effects such as its use as a payments rail and arguably more importantly, as a catalyst for a stronger and more sustainable energy grid.

And all the time, there are new users of Bitcoin who are seeing in it both novel opportunities, and also new risks to be mitigated. Wider adoption, therefore, means that what hyperbitcoinization will become is always evolving. The discussions on what this means have only just begun.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD501 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin is Truth with Jeff Booth & Austin Hill May 11, 2022

“Human rights don’t come easily, they actually have to be fought for; fought for with encryption, fought for with principled individuals, fought for with giving people other alternatives, and the best alternative is economic sovereignty.”
— Austin Hill

Jeff Booth is an Entrepreneur and Author of ‘The Price of Tomorrow’ and Austin Hill is a cypherpunk & former Blockstream CEO. In this interview, we discuss the unique sense of hope in El Salvador, the loss of freedom, Bitcoin as objective truth and hope, Elon Musk and Twitter.

- - - -

Show 500!!!

What a ride it's been since I recorded my first show in November 2017. I'm so grateful to all the listeners, particularly those who send their support. Thanks to all the fascinating people I've had the privilege to interview: so many great stories, opinions, and advice. Thanks to my amazing sponsors - you enable my team to make what we think is the best show in the market.

And finally, big up to the team, roll on the next 500!

This show is as good as it gets in terms of guests and subject matter. Two major figures within the industry who I'm now lucky enough to call friends. And I hope you enjoy listening to them as much as I did. They're as excited about Bitcoin's opportunities as they've ever been.

We speak about their recent visit to El Salvador and the unique and inspiring mood of hope within the country. The media are still dubious about Bukele's Bitcoin reforms, and the government is dealing with tough domestic and international challenges. However, it is infectious to hear how inspired two seasoned entrepreneurs are by what they witnessed in the country.

Jeff and Austin also talk about the societal issues that Bitcoin is perhaps uniquely placed to mitigate: threats to freedom, not just from authoritarian governments but also from traditionally liberal establishments; pervasive misinformation directed at citizens; and rapid technological changes that will upend society.

This is why Jeff and Austin are bullish that UX improvements have the potential to onboard hundreds of millions more to Bitcoin.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD500 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin & Absolute Freedom with Junseth May 09, 2022

“I don’t understand the moral position of absolute freedom, and the reason is because, when I hear people talk about it, it’s very obvious to me that absolutely everybody knows that there are limits to freedom, so absolute freedom is not something that anybody believes in.”
— Junseth

Junseth is a OG bitcoiner and the former co-host of Bitcoin Uncensored. In this interview, we discuss government being the logical extent of libertarianism, the evolution of news media, falling for conspiracies, admitting when you’re wrong, opinion versus fact, and the return of Trump.

- - - -

Our lives are full of examples of infective institutions, inefficient governance, waste, want, and an eagerness to wage war. It is hard to argue in defence of the state. Yet, any popular movements against the actions of the state are ignored. In these times, libertarian arguments are powerful and persuasive: the state, shielded by coercion, is ineffective so we need to tear it down.

However, we don’t need to be fans of the state to be worried about the alternatives. In a world of 8 billion people, with increasing complexity, specialisation, and disagreement, is it rational to think that we can organise ourselves into voluntary and agreeable groups? History lacks examples of such structures working to support advanced functioning societies.

So, why are we so ready to accept at face value vague promises that a better world can be achieved through radical means? Is it that uncertainty and nuance aren’t rewarded by today’s click-bait driven media? Like moths to a light, are we all drawn towards more exciting, adventurous, and confident narratives built on conspiracy and anarchy?

In a small way, podcasting is an attempt to provide airtime for the truth. Whilst it’s true that those who take extreme positions can build strong audiences, the biggest audiences are drawn to the more honest explorations of subjects. Despite attacks from MSM, the popularity of Joe Rogan shows there is a huge demand for authentic and reasoned debate. People want the truth.

The question is, as MSM becomes increasingly unwilling to provide such a service, are we going to have to rely on a community of independent content creators to meet this demand?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD499 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

I Was in a Cult with Tuur Demeester May 06, 2022

“The short of it is that I was involved in an online cult, I think it’s fair to call it that way…. and it’s not like I lived in a commune, but it was really involved. And a lot of my friends were involved with that too. And it was very, toxic and confusing. And it took me a long time to figure out what was going on and leave.”
— Tuur Demeester

Tuur Demeester is a Bitcoin investor and economist. In this interview, we discuss how he was drawn into a toxic online cult, his awakening and leaving, Twitter enabling cultist behaviours within Bitcoin and why it’s key to give air to all voices within Bitcoin.

- - - -

Wisdom is developed through experience: an individual's interaction with other people and events, and their personal reflections on the outcomes, enhance understanding of both the self and the world. Knowledge isn’t endowed genetically, and education provides limited direction. Perspective on exposure to our environment is what drives tangible learning and growth.

People can easily find themselves developing beliefs, and engaging in actions, with the benefit of hindsight they later deem antithetical to an evolved worldview. Submission to a cult, that is adherence to common belief systems and behaviours advocated by a charismatic leader, is an extreme example of this.

People will largely dismiss the idea that they could be susceptible to becoming a cultist. And yet, even the most infamous cults are full of highly educated, principled, and engaging people. People who have then made life decisions that are hard to objectively comprehend. The truth is that we’re all susceptible.

Commonly cults are cast as people in white robes; collectives holed up in fortified buildings; empty-eyed automatons following a messianic figure. But cults are less obvious and more pervasive than we’d imagine. Today, with easy access to powerful and toxic social media tools, building and energising and channelling an audience is available to anyone with a voice.

It’s never been easier to develop a cult.

So, where are the dividing lines? What’s the difference between impassioned rhetoric and dangerous invective? Should we try and conduct reasoned debate using tools that are structurally deficient for such tasks? How open can we be to divergent opinions in a world full of noise and pressure? Could we sleepwalk into a cult, or worse, become a corrupted cult leader?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD498 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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The Anarchist Lens with Michael Malice May 04, 2022

“There are certainly genuinely evil people who do not hesitate to sacrifice entire nations to further and maintain their hold on power, and that to have some kind of civil discussion about this is so missing the mark, it’s not even funny.”
— Michael Malice

Michael Malice is an anarchist, author, and podcaster. In this interview, we discuss declining versus flourishing US cities, transitioning away from the state, Ukraine and Putin, conspiracies to cancel, challenges to free speech, and the enfeeblement of the media and education system.

- - - -

Anarchism has quickly evolved from being an extreme ideology, which was at best a interesting thought experiment, to a political vision whose merits are being given increasingly serious consideration. Even those who believe in the power of collectivism are questioning the effectiveness of our current institutions.

But with power comes responsibility. Do anarchists truly believe that tearing down the state and its associated power structures will result in a better world? Or is there a more nuanced and pragmatic approach? Is retention of some collective organisation desirable? Would decreased centralization and dominance of the state be a sufficient victory for anarchists?

Whatever the end state envisioned by advocates of scholars such as Bakunin, Goldman, Berkman and Rothbard, there are plenty of power structures that anarchists believe require radical reconstruction. Mainstream media, universities, schools, and rent seeking businesses: they are all targets.

Even if some anarchists are changing to think that a better and fairer world does not mean starting again from the ground up, don’t think that their objective is anything short of an extensive reordering of society.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD497 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Why Bitcoin is the Best Money with Lyn Alden May 02, 2022

“All of these monetary transitions involve people that could think of the unthinkable. And that could look past how the system currently is and envision: if you just start with a blank sheet of paper, how could it be? What are the alternative kind of timelines we could be under?”
— Lyn Alden

Lyn Alden is a macroeconomist and investment strategist. In this interview, we discuss currency crises, the history of money, the properties of good money, and whether Bitcoin can usher in a new era of programmable, commodity money.

- - - -

What is money? We are taught to critically question and evaluate the world around us. Yet, most people never query the essence of what is perhaps civilisation’s most important tool. We readily accept the money we have and use it without examining its history, characteristics, or whether it could be improved and changed.

We are living through extraordinary times. The world around us is in flux: established norms are being upended. Yet, the most extraordinary change is occurring without, arguably, the fanfare it deserves. Money is changing. A viable alternative to fiat currency has taken hold. An open and free, censorship-resistant currency available to anyone with qualities that surpass previous forms of money is carving out its place as the future of money.

Coins and notes are examples of money we are all familiar with. Yet, shares, property, or in fact, any tradable item are also forms of money. We interact with various forms of money, and implicity utilise their attributes without proper examination. So, what are the qualities and features of money? Why do we use different forms of money? What is money?

It is only through proper consideration of these questions that the unique and revolutionary properties of Bitcoin become apparent. Bitcoin is much more than just a speculative digital asset. It seeks to be the best money ever invented, combining the benefits of gold, cash, and various contemporary stores of value.

More importantly, Bitcoin provides new features seeking to protect the individual in the digital age. Bitcoin may be much more than a useful tool, it could be a necessity.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD496 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Bitcoin Adoption Supercycle with Dan Held Apr 29, 2022

“We have a lot of things that make me extremely bullish on Bitcoin… did I wish this to happen on the world? Absolutely not, I wish we didn’t need to have Bitcoin because we could trust, but we can’t.”
— Dan Held

Dan Held is the Growth Lead at Kraken. In this interview, we discuss the splintering and factionalization of the Bitcoin community, trying to be honest in a toxic environment, update on the Bitcoin supercycle, and Bitcoin application (selling, hodling, lending, and collateralizing).

- - - -

Bitcoin is under almost constant attack, but despite significant pressures, efforts to ensure the technology remains truly decentralised and open have been successful, in a large part, thanks to the toxicity within the bitcoin community. But those who have worked at close quarters to the Bitcoin ecosystem have witnessed a rapid evolution and segmentation of beliefs, business proposals, and market for what is still a nascent innovation.

The original libertarian community that nurtured Bitcoin has been diluted by new groups. Conservatives and progressives have aligned themselves to Bitcoin with their own dogmas. In the wake of the maximalist victory in the Blocksize Wars new divisions have arisen based on divergent ideologies. Can we find a unifying narrative to coalesce these factions?

Equally, the industry that has developed around the unique monetary and payment characteristics of the technology has resulted in an explosion of new products and features. No longer is Bitcoin merely a static store of value: hodlers can now lend, short, and collateralize their asset. Should we fully embrace the investment opportunities this asset can provide?

Finally, the cyclical nature of the asset price has continued to evolve. Macro forces, game theory, and geo-political events are potentially aligning to create a supercycle: a new phase of adoption that could propel Bitcoin into becoming a global reserve currency to rival gold. Will those who have prevised such a future be proven right?

Are we finally about to enter a phase when Bitcoin matures and becomes money for all?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD495 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Bitcoin, The Greatest Money System with Darin Feinstein Apr 27, 2022

“The one thing that’s certain is it’s never going away because this is the best accounting technology, which is instrumental to run the world, that has ever been invented. And so the rest of it is just noise to me, it’s going to go up, it’s gonna go down, the daily price fluctuations are meaningless, we just keep building. ”
— Darin Feinstein

Darin Feinstein, an early investor in Bitcoin, co-founded Core Scientific, one of the largest Bitcoin mining operations. In this interview, we discuss the revolution of triple-entry accounting, providing 8 billion people property rights and banking, combating FUD, and rapid advances in mining chips.

- - - -

Bitcoin is causing tectonic shifts in global financial and political systems that have companies, authorities, and nations reeling. This creates a lot of noise. But, has this resulted in the community easing off on extolling Bitcoin’s principal revolutionary characteristic - the consensus protocol? And, does that open it up to attack?

Triple entry accounting, the trustless verification of peer to peer transactions, is an innovation that is arguably in the same league as the wheel or printing press. For Bitcoiners, this understanding is implicit; discussions have moved on to other more immediate concerns. However, because we’re still so early there is widespread ignorance of why Bitcoin has such transformative power.

Has this created a space for those wanting to undermine Bitcoin? The industry has had to contend with FUD since the early days. The constant risk is that those in positions of great power don’t have the necessary knowledge to separate fact from fiction. Is this why there are serious considerations being given at the highest levels to banning proof of work consensus?

The unavoidable issue is that challenging the status quo is hard. And, the status quo will always exploit weakness. As such, is it possible to have a decentralized community without a centralized voice? Would we fail without the efforts of the likes of the Bitcoin Mining Council and the Bitcoin Policy Institute?

These questions are becoming increasingly important: the greater the scale of adoption, the more severe the response. China banned Bitcoin because it was a great idea that threatened their top-down ideology. The US benefited from this, but there are still voices who would see a ban on this side of the Pacific. New York is already considering its own ban on mining.

Our enduring advantage is that we have truth on our side - Bitcoin is the greatest money system invented. Will that be enough?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD494 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Is There a Moral Case for Fossil Fuels? with Alex Epstein Apr 25, 2022

“If you have any influence on a situation, and you’re using that influence to prevent or discourage low cost, reliable energy, I think you’re contributing to the life catastrophe that is widespread poverty.”
— Alex Epstein

Alex Epstein is a philosopher and author of ‘The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels’ and ‘Fossil Future’. In this interview, we discuss how energy abundance has enabled humans to flourish, whether climate mastery has made us unnaturally safe, and the need for more low-cost reliable energy.

- - - -

According to a recent survey for the UN, 64% of people believe that climate change is a global emergency. News reports are dominated by stories of floods, heatwaves, droughts, hurricanes and other events, highlighted as potential signs of a warming world. The implicit assumption is that urgent reductions in the use of fossil fuels are required to minimise the potential impacts.

But increasingly, a growing collective is questioning these opinions. Exploitation of fossil fuels is linked to civilisations' rapid development in the 250 years since the industrial revolution. Yet, billions still lack access to adequate levels of energy. The concern is alternative energy sources won’t be able to meet current demands, let alone demands that aren’t currently being met.

Furthermore, there is scepticism regarding climate change projections and forecast impacts on societies. Those who hold such views are labelled as climate change ‘deniers’, a pejorative term meant to imply resistance to science and facts. This is emblematic of how combative and polarised the two sides of the debate have become. Some are now refusing to engage.

Perhaps, such division is understandable given the stakes. If global warming has the capacity to be an existential threat this century, then delays in curtailing fossil fuels could be catastrophic. Equally, if such warnings turn out to be wrong then we could be constraining the empowerment of billions of people. In our view, this is why we should remain engaged in the debate.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD493 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin Energy Markets with Shaun Connell Apr 22, 2022

“You can put on this Bitcoin miner attached to your nuclear facility… and since your Bitcoin mining site can be dialled up and dialled down for how it’s dispatched, you’ve just put a supercharger on your nuclear plant; you can now actually provide flexibility to the grid because you have the ability to ramp your nuke through the Bitcoin mining.”
— Shaun Connell

Shaun Connell is Executive VP of Power at Lancium and an energy trading expert focused on incorporating Bitcoin mining into energy transition services. In this interview, we discuss the fundamentals of energy trading, the need to balance energy supply with demand, and the symbiotic relationship between Bitcoin mining, renewables and the energy grid.

- - - -

If climate change forecasts are to be believed, the implications for society are profound. Many believe that the sources of energy that enabled our society to thrive and prosper over the past 250 years need to be replaced by alternative types of energy deemed to be more sustainable. Others fear that such a transition risks millennia of civilisational advancement.

The debate around climate change and energy is therefore highly charged. And yet, there is a significant deficit in our general understanding of how the energy system works.

Wind and solar are now the cheapest sources of energy, so why aren’t we rapidly progressing to 100% renewable energy grids? If we need to decarbonise the grid, why do wind and solar producers have to curtail energy production? If Bitcoin mining is becoming an increasingly more significant user of energy, why are grid managers increasingly seeking to assimilate it?

Whatever the reasons for the ignorance of the energy system, and whether or not it has been or will be exploited by special interests, the obvious concern is that it will lead to bad policy being formulated at a critical time. Knowledge is power.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD492 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Power of Decentralisation with Adam Curry Apr 20, 2022

“When we say Bitcoin fixes this it’s now so clear, it is the only non-corruptible network… you see it right there on the blockchain, you can check it by your own rules everything. That’s really the only thing we have going for us because everything else is under someone else’s control.”
— Adam Curry

Adam Curry is a DJ, internet entrepreneur, and, along with Dave Winer, the creator of podcasting. In this interview, we discuss Texas and guns, how Bitcoin features in world events, food intelligence and smarter education, as well as the origins, ethos, and future of podcasting.

- - - -

The ubiquity of podcasts has masked how innovative and ground breaking the technology is. In only 2 decades an idea about using RSS feeds to distribute audio blogs has now arguably become the most effective media channel rivalling both main stream media and increasingly social media.

It is estimated that more than a third of Americans regularly listen to podcasts. Market forecasts suggest the industry will be worth over $2 billion in the next few years. The relative ease of production, lack of editing constraints, and its long form character, has resulted in an explosion of content.

At a time when trust is in short supply, clickbait is employed over honest reportage, and toxicity is increasingly infecting discussions, podcasting is providing a desirable alternative for those seeking truth and facts. As a result, podcasting has been important to disseminating knowledge across a range of subjects.

And yet, there are risks that podcasters could make the same mistakes of other media: audience capture and reliance on centralised distribution channels could undermine the effectiveness of the industry to continue to provide a valuable source of truth.

Adam Curry had a critical and central role in the genesis of podcastings. Yet, his passion for the medium is as fervent as ever. He’s at the forefront of both Podcasting 2.0 technical developments, whilst also being one of the industry's most industrious contributors. He was orange-pilled via podcasts, now he’s using his knowledge of Bitcoin to strengthen podcasting.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD491 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Freedom Technologies & Civil Disobedience with Austin Hill Apr 18, 2022

“There are so many opportunities to use freedom technologies to build civil disobedience, to put power into the hands of individuals, and Bitcoin’s a part of that.”
— Austin Hill

Austin Hill is a cypherpunk & former Blockstream CEO. In this interview, we discuss the dangers of absolutism within Bitcoin’s community, building consensus in promoting freedom money, and advancing the human condition.

- - - -

The development and adoption of Bitcoin is predicated upon a reaction to the manifest failures of current economic and political structures. The associated need to defend Bitcoin from multiple attack vectors resulted in a protective maximalist ideology. The end result is that the current Bitcoin community is dominated by big personalities with firm and unyielding convictions.

Yet, maintaining an adoption curve mirroring that of the internet means proving the benefits of this innovative technology to everyone: the wider public, companies, and state-level institutions. This will require building consensus: coalescing around positive characteristics of the technology whilst working to ensure divergent opinions don’t overwhelm the debate.

As Bitcoin enters a more nuanced phase of maturation, a pragmatic approach to furthering its adoption and effective development may be required. Do battle-hardened Bitcoiners now need to become more politically flexible? Is it possible to find agreement with those who hold contradictory views? Is compromise possible whilst protecting Bitcoin’s unique innovation?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD490 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Distortion of Money with Jeff Booth Apr 15, 2022

“These ideas of communism and free-market collide, and they’re both communism over time. And that sounds harsh, but it’s a control structure. There is no free market, if there’s a distortion of money, because everything else is on top of that distortion of money.”
— Jeff Booth

Jeff Booth is Entrepreneur and Author of ‘The Price of Tomorrow’. In this interview, we discuss the distortion of money, how Bitcoin can herald in a fairer system based on truth and a free market of ideas, and the transition from scarcity to abundance.

- - - -

Bitcoin is revolutionary. More than its cryptographic protocol, monetary policy, and decentralised technology, Bitcoin is built on promulgating truth. It is feasible that a new economic paradigm is being built that democratises knowledge and information.

The old ways of spin, exaggeration, false equivalence, hustle, denial, and outright lies served the fiat system well during the 20th century. Being ‘economical with the truth’ became a necessary tactic of the game, employed by leaders of companies, institutions, and countries alike.

The corrosive effects of increasingly systematic subterfuge were inevitably going to counter balance any fallacious societal benefits. This has become increasingly clear since the beginning of the new millennium: events and shocks have chipped away at the current economic edifice.

It’s not that a new system would be beneficial to society, it’s rather a new system is required to enable the major issues of today to be resolved. Can Bitcoin be the basis of this new system?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD489 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Moral Case for Bitcoin with Jimmy Song Apr 13, 2022

“The moral case for Bitcoin is that you don’t have this cesspool of theft, corruption and cronyism that you do with the US dollar. Fiat money is just straight up evil, it is an institution of corruption, of theft, of extracting value from people that can least afford it; and bitcoin is one that’s way fairer.”
— Jimmy Song

Jimmy Song is a Bitcoin educator, developer and entrepreneur. In this interview, we discuss Bitcoin’s growing political power, how Lightning has better privacy properties than Monero, why decentralisation is binary, and the moral case for Bitcoin.

- - - -

There is plenty to be concerned about in today’s world: economic, social, and political issues are compounding in severity. Solutions from governing elites are in short supply. And there seem to be bad faith actors at every turn. Imagine then a world without Bitcoin.

But whilst people may thank God (or blind serendipity) for Bitcoin, we also need to be cognizant of, and prepared for, the associated pitfalls and critical examinations.

A powerful and growing constituency of Bitcoiners, who cut across political divides, is seen as ripe for cultivating by ambitious and power-hungry politicians. How do we distinguish between genuine support for the community and exploitative manoeuvring?

Further, what about Bitcoin’s fixed monetary policy? In a time of rampant monetary and fiscal stimulus, where inevitable inflationary effects are beginning to bite, Bitcoin’s potential as an unrivalled store of value could see its adoption accelerate.

Those in the industry contend with these concerns at regular intervals. What is apparent is that Bitcoiners are kept energised by Bitcoin’s most unique utility: its strong moral underpinning. This is one of the attributes that give people faith that Bitcoin can be the basis for a better world.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD488 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

End of the Long-Term Debt Cycle with Dylan LeClair Apr 11, 2022

“There’s some pretty big stuff happening behind the scenes. I’m no commodities expert, I’m not in this every day, but I’ve been watching the charts and it’s like, my god, there’s something’s breaking. You see volatility across commodities, equities, credit markets, foreign exchange. I think it’s going to intensify, there’s no happy ending here over the short term.”
— Dylan LeClair

Dylan LeClair is a Bitcoin and macro analyst working for Bitcoin Magazine. In this interview, we discuss the playing out of the long term debt cycle, the coming commodity wars, how Bitcoin is a lifeboat, and transitionary investments.

- - - -

We are living through unprecedented times, where the old ways of order are expected to crumble. And yet, life seems comfortably familiar. This can lure people into a false sense of confidence that the political, economic, and monetary norms will continue undiminished into the future.

The same sense gripped German citizens during the 1920s. ‘When Money Dies’ documents how “Financially, for nearly four years, the ultimate cataclysm was always just around the corner. It always arrived, and there was always an even worse one on its way — again, and again, and again.” And we’re seeing the beginnings of such cataclysms affecting the price of living.

Inflation, shortages of goods, energy price spikes, and currency failures could be mischaracterized as isolated singular events. But are they in fact, signals of a wider connected pattern of seismic shocks as the global economy adjusts to the impact of the long-term debt cycle?

If Bitcoin is a lifeboat, why isn’t it reflected in the price? Bitcoin is still acting like a risk asset, but for how long?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD487 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Free Speech & Printed Guns with Cody Wilson Apr 08, 2022

“What’s a desperate decision that can actually start a symbolic chain reaction? And then how do I pursue that? How do I do something like an artistic act or a creative object that could be received by an audience as this kind of provocation to initiate some type of chain reaction?”
— Cody Wilson

Cody Wilson is the founder and director of Defence Distributed and the face of 3D guns, and Jessica Solce is an acclaimed film-maker currently documenting his story. In this interview, we discuss the intersection of the right to bear arms and the right to freedom of speech.

- - - -

The first and second amendments are as symbolic of American identity as the stars and stripes. Yet, despite being bedrocks of the constitution for over 230 years, they are arguably now as fiercely contested as they have ever been.

Many republicans believe that the right to bear arms is a vital check on state control, and ensures the protection of the first amendment. A strong progressive counter argument contends that gun violence in the US is at epidemic proportions, and controls are required. This debate is becoming more profound due to the effect of technology, particularly the internet.

Julian Assange laid the foundation for using the decentralized and distributed nature of the internet to bypass the established gatekeepers of information with the aim of democratising its availability. Others quickly followed, including Cody Wilson, who saw the opportunity to provide open access to the digital tools needed to make guns - ‘Wiki weapons’ was born.

Despite the backlash by government agencies, it is becoming increasingly apparent that governance is unable to keep up with both technology and Cody’s responses to legal constraints.

This is not a new or isolated phenomenon. But as technology continues to push the boundaries of what power a single person is able to wield, it is stretching the limits of the social contract between the state and individuals. As a result, the forces pushing for individual autonomy and centralized control are becoming harder and harder to reconcile.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD486 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Beyond Bitcoin Maximalism with Pete Rizzo Apr 06, 2022

“We’ve swung very heavily towards putting bitcoin’s asset on this pedestal, that Bitcoin is this asset that does not compete with anything, but it has these Invincible qualities. And I think that what we might find is that we’ve over-optimised for that.”
— Pete Rizzo

Pete Rizzo is the editor of Bitcoin Magazine, and one of the industries leading journalists. In this interview, we discuss the evolving narratives used by Bitcoin maximalists, fundamental questions of who Bitcoin is for and what it will be, and what lies beyond maximalism.

- - - -

The rise of Bitcoin, a new form of money, has been unprecedented. In just 13 years, Bitcoin has come from being another manifest innovation derived from ideas around cryptographic security, digital gold, and peer to peer cash, to an asset that is seriously being considered a new global reserve.

Despite the genius behind Satoshi’s design, this meteoric rise wasn’t inevitable. The nascent currency has had to organically forge a defensive infrastructure to counteract and overcome various attack vectors. This saw the rise of Bitcoin maximalism, a highly effective yet divisive ideology.

But, just as Bitcoin technology has evolved, so have the narratives that have been used to buttress the maximalist position. Bitcoin was once considered to be the best of a range of different blockchain technologies; now it is viewed as being distinct and unique. Some believe Bitcoin’s rise is invincible, whilst others are scanning for the next inevitable threat.

Maximalists' stories and beliefs have changed as Bitcoin’s strengths and weaknesses have been realised over time. What does this mean for the future of maximalism? Indeed, do rudimentary questions about Bitcoin's purpose, role, and utility need to be reassessed? Does Bitcoin need a paranoid community to continue to strengthen its defences?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD485 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Collectivism v Individualism with Robert Breedlove Apr 04, 2022

“What the fuck is society? Is it this group of people? Is it that group of people? It’s a useful fiction – we’re describing a group of people with a fictional term, like society, or collectivist, or communist, or whatever the term is, and you don’t know who’s included and excluded from that group so you can never have clarity of conversation; whereas if you focus on the individual, that’s very clear where the individual starts and ends.”
— Robert Breedlove

Robert Breedlove is a philosopher within the Bitcoin space. In this interview, we discuss useful fictions used for collective organisation, slavery as the violation of property rights, Bitcoin changing the logic of violence, and the reality of an anarcho-capitalist world.

- - - -

Cooperation across large groups is the basis for the rise and evolution of human civilisation. As the historian Yuval Noah Harari espouses, such cooperation has been enabled through the exploitation of useful fictions (i.e. religion, national identities) by elites throughout time. The rights of the individual were crushed under the weight of the demands and cohesiveness of the group.

A rebalancing of power between collectives and the individual occurred during the enlightenment. It began with the development of a theory of natural rights, where individuals were determined to deserve access to "life, liberty, and estate (property)". The French and American revolutions in the 18th Century were premised on this belief.

A modern theory of universal human rights has developed since WW2. And yet, many feel we still have a long way to go before we achieve true liberty for the individual. Even the most open democratic societies work under an implicit social contract, where certain rights are foregone in exchange for political order. Coercion and control are less explicit, but still apparent.

So, what is the extent of the libertarian ideal? Is it an anarcho (i.e. without a leader) capitalist state? Or, is a hierarchy of power a necessary evil to thwart the chaos of natural law, which Hobbes stated would result in human life being "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short"? The problem has been that states throughout history have tended to extend their control.

Maybe the question isn’t a binary choice between an inevitable creep of state control over anarchy, but a balance that aims to achieve the benefits of both approaches. In such a situation individuals would need the power to ‘dethrone’ the ruler(s) without resorting to violence. Does Bitcoin enable such a balance?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD484 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Innovating on Bitcoin with Steve Lee Apr 01, 2022

“If it’s too hard to manage your own keys, which even today it is too hard for people, that we wind up in a world in which just a few global custodians hold all the keys and that’s unlikely to result in the Bitcoin that we know and love and want to see for the world; so it’s very important that a sizable percentage of Bitcoin users are controlling their own keys.”
— Steve Lee

Steve Lee is Lead at Spiral, a subsidiary of Block. In this interview, we discuss how Spiral is enabling lightning integration, Block’s aim to create an open Bitcoin mining ecosystem, a vision of zero cost decentralized Bitcoin mining, and inspiring open-source Bitcoin projects.

- - - -

The orange pilling of Jack Dorsey was a hugely consequential event, affecting the evolution of his business plans and Bitcoin. Jack and his team believe Bitcoin is the best money, and they want to help it spread. As a result, Block has developed a symbiotic mission: it seeks to nurture Bitcoin, strengthen its development, and enable its wider adoption.

This is where Spiral comes in. It is a non-profit subsidiary of Block that builds and funds free, open-source projects. Amongst other important enterprises, Spiral has developed the Lightning Development Kit, which enables Lightning integration with Bitcoin wallets.

Block’s ethos is rooted in an appreciation of how unique this situation is: the creation of a new version of money that is free from centralized control may never be repeated. Protecting and enhancing Bitcoins decentralization and privacy are therefore core objectives.

That is why, for example, Block is developing a hardware wallet that combines security that doesn’t depend on trusted servers; decentralized user-friendly custody for the masses.

That is also why Block is planning to develop and make available for sale ASIC chips (with data sheets). Whilst Block is also developing Bitcoin mining rigs, the provision of dedicated chips opens up the whole mining rig industry for innovation and competition.

These efforts are crucial and enable all of the exciting expansions of Bitcoins utility to continue. This includes Steve Lee’s vision of zero cost decentralized Bitcoin mining. This is surely the most inspiring industry in the world.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD483 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Hyperbitcoinisation with Christian Keroles Mar 30, 2022

“I feel like so many people that have multiple Bitcoins, 100% of their focus is to get more Bitcoin, or they’re playing this trading game, and they just don’t appreciate how many Bitcoin they already have. I’m just saying, appreciate your Bitcoin man. If you have one Bitcoin, respect that, that is generational wealth, respect that one Bitcoin could mean such an enormous amount to your lineage, and treat it as such.”
— Christian Keroles

Christian Keroles is Managing Director of Bitcoin Magazine. In this interview, we discuss hyperbitcoinisation as a zero-sum game and how that could lead to $26 million bitcoin.

- - - -

Hyperbitcoinization is a scenario where Bitcoin has achieved mass adoption: it is widely used as a medium of exchange, it is a store of value held by individuals and businesses, and it has become a primary global reserve currency. Essentially, it is a ubiquitous and dominant form of global money.

Over the last few years, a series of unprecedented global events has helped accelerate the adoption of Bitcoin. The pandemic gave rise to unsustainable monetary and fiscal policies that made the economic case for adoption by major institutions and a nation-state.

Now, in the shadow of the Candian trucker protests, where fears regarding the curtailment of individual freedoms were realised, and a new conflict in Europe may signal a reordering of the global monetary system, the political case for wider adoption of Bitcoin has been made.

We now live in a time when rather than being viewed as a wild abstract theory, hyperbitcoinisation is being contemplated as being a plausible culmination of ongoing trends. But what does this mean? What will the transition to a Bitcoin standard look like?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD482 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin’s Clean Energy Revolution with Nic Carter & Troy Cross Mar 28, 2022

“The best new idea I’ve come across… it’s a market-based, voluntary, bottom-up mechanism to resolve individual qualms around sustainability relating to ownership of bitcoin.”
— Nic Carter

Nic Carter is a Partner at Castle Island Ventures, and Troy Cross is a Fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute. In this interview, we discuss Bitcoin mining as an ESG offset and how Bitcoin miners could be the frontier of energy development whilst helping nations attain energy sovereignty.

- - - -

The two extremes of the climate change debate are engaged in a zero-sum game.

For some, the existential threat of climate change requires humans to rapidly transition to energy production 100% derived from renewable sources. A particular contingent believes a transition is required by force: a carbon tax to dissuade investment in fossil fuels and a degrowth agenda to enable society to prioritise the use of more limited but sustainable energy sources.

The counterargument is that catastrophic climate change isn't inevitable. Therefore, whilst there are insufficient cost-effective and reliable renewable energy sources, constraining the use of fossil fuels is a dangerous dogma that risks preventing vast swathes of the world from being able to escape poverty.

Does the argument need to be this binary? Is there an alternative that uses the power of the market rather than relying on coercive measures?

If we assume that if energy sources were equally cost-effective and reliable, the obvious choice would be to invest in those that are renewable and that have the lowest negative impacts. The issue would then be how do you make renewable energy cost-effective and reliable. The answer is counterintuitive: meet what those who promote fossil fuels want - facilitate energy abundance.

Troy Cross thinks this is how Bitcoin can help bridge the divide, enable a rapid transition to renewable sources, whilst ensuring the world's population can flourish.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD481 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Truth, Energy, & Bitcoin with Marty Bent Mar 25, 2022

“Once you have international trade getting settled in Bitcoin instead of the dollar, I think that’s when you’ll know: alright, we’re under a Bitcoin standard. ”
— Marty Bent

Marty Bent is the founder of the Bitcoin focused media company TFTC.io, Venture Partner at Ten31, and Director of Cathedra Bitcoin. In this interview, we discuss resisting centralised narratives around the Ukraine/Russia conflict and the push for ESG and renewable energy.

- - - -

The fragmentation of modern media provides access to a limitless supply of analysis, interpretations, and opinions. But rather than bringing clarity, this cacophony of commentary more often results in confusion.

Into this mix, powerful centralised institutions mobilise significant resources to drive narratives. Over the past few generations, fearless investigative efforts have identified examples of deficient and deceptive institutions. This has resulted in such centralised messaging being treated with caution, if not explicit, cynicism.

But does that mean we should be sceptical of all messaging emanating from centralised bodies? What are the implications for society if there is widespread distrust of such communication?

The result is that there are different prisms through which to view events. The human misery caused by the Ukraine and Russia conflict is heartbreaking, but does that mean there are clear paths of action we can support? The forecasts of climate change impacts are worryingly bleak, but is there reasonable uncertainty, and what are the full implications of promoted mitigations?

The only thing we can do is to remain engaged, and, as Marty Bent states, “bring back civility to these types of conversations.”

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD480 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin Is for Anyone with David Zell Mar 23, 2022

“Most people are good, and have good ambitions for the world, and want things to be better, and so the goal is not to just scream at someone when you disagree with them, it’s to figure out what values you share; and, in the case of advocating for Bitcoin, for example, showing how Bitcoin leads to those values.”
— David Zell

David Zell is a co-founder of the Bitcoin Policy Institute and Director of Policy at BTC Inc. In this interview, we discuss echo chambers and groupthink, how Bitcoin being for everyone makes it stronger, the threat of Bitcoin to China, and political exploitation.

- - - -

Bitcoin’s survival and flourishing from the early days was down to having an impassioned and protective community. Some of this was defensive; resilience builds over years of criticism and ridicule. Some of this was offensive as various existential risks have had to be overcome.

What has evolved is a kind of ethical militancy, as Bitcoin maximalists have banded together to thwart anything that could damage Satoshi’s original vision. However, there is an obvious drawback to this approach in that some have become hardened to any idea or person deemed to be antithetical to the cause.

But what is the cause? Can there be divergent opinions on what Bitcoin is and who it should serve to assist? Can Bitcoin be for everyone? If the Bitcoin community doesn’t open itself to adoption by those from across the political spectrum does it risk stagnating or fragmenting? What about opposing views at the nation-state level?

These seem like positive discussions to be had: it is an obvious sign of maturation. It’s intuitive to think it is in Bitcoin’s interest to have a broad church. But will isolating its detractors make Bitcoin stronger, or energise the threats against it?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD479 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

A Progressive View of Bitcoin with Margot Paez Mar 21, 2022

“How do we get to the point where people can talk to each other? The only place where I’ve really seen that happen is in Bitcoin; so to me the social value of Bitcoin is massive because here we’re forced to talk to each other.”

— Margot Paez

Margot Paez is a Fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute specialising in Renewable Energy and Environmental Studies. In this interview, we discuss the Occupy movement, a broken capitalist system, and a pragmatic approach to our energy future.

- - - -

Bitcoin is often labelled as being a currency for libertarians. But, it is increasingly clear that Bitcoin appeals to a wide range of people with a myriad of political leanings. This includes a growing number of progressives who see in the protocol a means of enabling a fairer and less economically stratified society.

That Bitcoin appeals to such disparate communities speaks to both the strength of Bitcoin, but also the weakness of the current system. If those on both the right and left are disenchanted with the status quo, that is obviously a strong signal that a major societal change is warranted. Further, it means we have to assess why we’re so polarised if we fundamentally agree with each other.

There is a debate to be had regarding language, labels, unconscious bias, and manipulation of opinions. The issue is that these false divisions are affecting reasoned consideration of all the major issues affecting modern civilisation, particularly in relation to climate change.

The practical implication is that both sides of the climate change debate are resistant to effective and pragmatic measures. Is it possible to view these issues without a political lens?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD478 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Bitcoin & National Security with Matthew Pines Mar 18, 2022

“A legit Central Bank, with a material amount of capital moving into Bitcoin, it was entirely a theoretical proposition. I think what’s happened in the past two weeks has made that now plausible… you could see it in the next year or two – that is kind of a game-changer.”
— Matthew Pines

Matthew Pines is a Fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute specializing in national security. In this interview, we discuss modelling complex systems, current US national security priorities, and how Bitcoin can help maintain US hegemony.

- - - -

We live in unprecedented times. An emergent battle for hegemonic power is occurring during a period of unparalleled advances in technology that politicians are struggling to comprehend. What was previously deemed to be settled global economic and geopolitical strategy is now in flux. Up may be down. The unthinkable suddenly thinkable.

This is the environment in which Bitcoin, revolutionary money, is going through its puberty stage. It is to be expected that incumbent US (and other western) power structures are nervous about such an immature innovation, particularly in uncertain times. Yet, as counterintuitive as it may seem to them, Bitcoin offers significant strategic advantages for the US.

For Bitcoiners, the issue is not that a case needs to be made, but rather how that case should be presented and conveyed to politicians and bureaucrats. So far the message has been conveyed through grassroots advocacy: orange pilling individuals. But how do you orange pill the world's major power centre?

Bitcoiners are disrupters and predominantly work outside of the sphere of government. Bitcoin itself seeks to challenge the status quo. However, the government needs to hear the message in a language they understand, via channels they can trust.

This is the gap Matthew Pines is seeking to fill. And “Bitcoin and U.S. National Security” is the report that aims to orange pill the US government.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD477 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

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The End of the Dollar Hegemony with Nic Carter Mar 16, 2022

“Right now the integrity of the dollar is in question, people don’t trust US power, US is withdrawing from the international sphere, the international institutions we set up in 1944 are fraying; nobody really trusts them anymore.”
— Nic Carter

Nic Carter is a Partner at Castle Island Ventures and co-founder and Chairman of Coin Metrics. In this interview, we discuss the seizure of Russian Central Bank assets by the G7, the demise of US hegemony, and a multipolar multi-reserve world.

- - - -

Whilst it is arguable whether America’s geopolitical reach can be classed as an empire, the decline of its hegemonic power is compared to the passing of great empires of the past. Such analysis shows that there are no fixed dates to assign to the actual fall of empires; declines are marked by a prolonged unwinding of influence and cohesiveness.

Nevertheless, the atrophying of empires are signposted by critical dates: the sacking of Rome by the Visigoths in 410; the humiliation of Britain caused by the 1956 Suez Crisis; the symbolic impact on the USSR of the fall of the Berlin wall on November 9th 1989.

Currently, we are living through equally tumultuous times, and February 26th 2022 may be one such date for the history books. It was when the G7, led by the US, seized $630B of Russia’s foreign reserves.

With the grim humanitarian impacts of the Ukraine Russia conflict being witnessed on a daily basis, this seemed like an appropriate non-violent measure. However, its scale and likely impact is and will be unprecedented.

The role of the US dollar has been eroded over the past few decades as economic sanctions have been increasingly deployed as a coercive tool of power. Nevertheless, the G7 freezing Russian access to its foreign assets is a crossing the Rubicon moment. No longer will the US dollar be a unifying store of value across the world. The ramifications are huge.

This episode’s sponsors:
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Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
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LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
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-----

WBD476 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Economic Warfare in Russia & Ukraine with Lyn Alden Mar 14, 2022

“We’ve assumed global peace: no geopolitical issues, we’re all gonna kumbaya, get together; and as we enter a world where that’s not the case anymore, we have to put more resiliency into our supply chains, more duplication – so if you have to duplicate things, it’s inherently less efficient, and more inflationary, but more resilient.”
— Lyn Alden

Lyn Alden is a macroeconomist and investment strategist. In this interview, we discuss the economic impacts of the Ukraine Russia conflict, including the effect of sanctions on Russia, wider global impacts, and the responses of individuals, companies, and nations.

- - - -

As the Ukraine Russia conflict continues well into the third week, it is hard to think beyond the wretched humanitarian impacts. But, it is imperative the serious economic impacts are analysed, both in terms of the direct and indirect collateral costs of the physical war, and the unprecedented economic actions being applied as tools of warfare.

The main issue is that this conflict is occurring at a critical juncture for the world economy. The Covid pandemic compounded structural issues in the global economy precipitated a decade earlier by the global financial crisis. The conflict is having a detrimental effect on fragile markets, whilst exacerbating existing supply chain issues leading to further inflationary pressures.

However, the conflict is also creating new and potentially more important problems. The world economy since WW2 has been based on pillars that were thought to be unbreachable. The central pillar has been the use of the US dollar as a global reserve currency. As a direct consequence of actions taken in response to the conflict, this is now open to question.

This episode’s sponsors:
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Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
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-----

WBD475 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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The Background to the Russia-Ukraine War with Scott Horton Mar 12, 2022

“You hear this all the time: well, how come Ukraine doesn’t have the right to join whatever military alliance they want? You hear that every day, all day, well, just think about that. Is that really true? Is anyone thinking for a minute that Canada and Mexico have the right to join into a military alliance with Russia and China? Or is that absolutely preposterous?”
— Scott Horton

Scott Horton is an anti-war radio host, podcaster, and author. In this interview, we discuss whether there are any just wars, the Ukraine/Russia conflict, and how a chain reaction of misunderstood events going back to WW1 got us here.

- - - -

History is not necessarily objective: observers are usually partisan, and chroniclers of collected stories have their own subjective biases that can affect the evidence base. These issues are most pronounced in the records of wars. This is because history is written by the victors.

Mainstream presentation of the history of wars rarely credits divergent interpretations. The major conflicts that involve a given nation-state, particularly those that support politically advantageous mythologies, are treated as being self-evident. Opposing analysis is given the pejorative label of ‘conspiracy theory’.

Yet, could the history of our current civilization be open to new explanations? Is there sufficient evidence, maybe hidden in plain sight, that would cast a different light on events? Could the official version be wrong? Was the rationale and motivation for pivotal decisions, which have changed the trajectory of life on earth, different to the commonly accepted understanding?

This episode’s sponsors:
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Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
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LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
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-----

WBD474 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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The Growth of Decentralisation with Travis Kling Mar 10, 2022

“I think the digital world is going to continue to eat the analogue world and how dystopian or not that ends up being will be entirely a function of the individuals that are working towards one eventual outcome or the other, which is what makes doing this type of work to me so worth doing.”
— Travis Kling

- - - -

Travis Kling is the Chief Investment Officer and Ikigai. In this interview, we discuss the need for decentralization, Bitcoin as pristine collateral and whether we’re living in a simulation.

- - - -

Google, Facebook and Amazon are still relatively young companies, formed in the slipstream of the internet. They rose from a mass of competition to dominate not just the internet, but to become some of the most powerful organisations in the world. Such is their power that they are changing society in profound and concerning ways.

At the same time, there has been significant erosion in trust. The Iraq War and the sub-prime mortgage crisis combined to generate widespread disillusionment with the status quo. This was funnelled into social media’s new echo chambers with algorithms that stoked fear and anger. We are still struggling to deal with the results.

A major issue of concern is that the next wave of technological innovation is expected to be overwhelmingly disruptive: AI and robotics in particular have potentially unlimited capacity to revolutionise society. If we don’t resolve the issues caused by centralization now, the future for democratic governance looks bleak.

This episode’s sponsors:
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BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD473 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Make a tip:
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The Future of Bitcoin Banking with Bill Barhydt Mar 08, 2022

“All those bankers we just talked about would laugh at this conversation because they would say, ‘what the fuck are you talking about? Bitcoin standard? Bitcoin is a joke.’… It’s like buying Facebook stock 15 years ago, you know, it’s going up in price. ‘I’m going to make some money. What are you guys talking about, Bitcoin banking?’”
— Bill Barhydt

- - - -

Bill Barhydt is the CEO and Founder of Abra. In this interview, we discuss institutional investment, the long term debt cycle, the end of fractional reserve banking and how Bill gave away thousands of Bitcoin.

- - - -

The current banking system is broken. Millions of people around the world still don't have access to proper banking services, the payment rails that facilitate transactions are old and costly, and trust in financial institutions is low.

To add to this, currencies around the world are being debased at a rapid pace. Over the last few years, central banks have printed huge amounts of money that is now showing up in inflation, which has a disproportionate impact on the poorest in society. 50% of Americans now have more credit card debt than savings.

Bitcoin started as a cypherpunk experiment, but its sound monetary properties have led to it becoming a real lifeboat for those who are economically adrift. With the banks losing momentum, is Bitcoin mature enough to take up the slack?

However, you see the future of money and banking - one thing is clear Bitcoin will play a role. The question is, how big will that role be?

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD472 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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A Bitcoin Civilization with Ragnar Lifthrasir Mar 06, 2022

“You have a right to free speech and a right to religion, but I think the first right is a right to survive; your first human right is the right to live, your first human right is a right to defend yourself, and so when you don’t have a gun you simply can’t effectively do that.”
— Ragnar Lifthrasir

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Saturday 5th February
Company: Guns N’ Bitcoin
Role: Chief Range Officer

Pro-freedom principles are deep rooted in the Amercian psyche. Liberty is a cornerstone of the US Constitution, which seeks to protect individuals from arbitrary and unreasonable restraint. The Constituion codifying what freedom means for the individual and the state, yet debate on the surface level extents of freedom in modern America mean deeper reasoning is lost.

Polarised discourse misses that freedom expects from the individual as much as it provides. An individual must hold and display certain values within a working pro-freedom society. This ideal comes from the ancient Greeks philosophy of stoicism: citizens should apply the virtues of wisdom, courage, justice, and temperance. As Aurelius would put it “be a good person”.

If the citizens and the state can both respect each other and act with values that are in concert with each other, then a pro-freedom civilisation is possible with all the benefits that this brings. But if the state is oppressive, the rationale actions of the affect individuals, and the long term consequences for their civilisation, are obviously going to be antithetical to progress.

In our fast-paced ‘fiat’ system where debate is dominated by short form communication, we are too quick to prejudge and pigeonhole people. Pro-freedom advocates are associated with far right politics. Yet, any long-form conversation with pro-freedom advocates indicates this ideology appeals to a wide political spectrum as it is predicated on sound and sustainable principles.

In short, slowing down and spending time with people we find our commonality exceeds our differences. That is the Bitcoin way.

In this interview, I talk to Ragnar Lifthrasir from Guns N’ Bitcoin. We discuss what it means to be pro-freedom, the role of the state, the importance of values to build good civilisations, Bitcoin groupthink, printed guns and the safe gun culture.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD471 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Don’t Get Bitcoin Rekt with Andy Edstrom Mar 04, 2022

“Bitcoin is this unbelievably unparalleled asset, that respects your time spent, and your labour, and it puts it into this safe and growing in value bank in cyberspace as Saylor says. But you can screw it up if you lever it... levering Bitcoin literally inverts 180 degrees the way that Bitcoin otherwise respects your time.”
— Andy Edstrom

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Friday 4th February
Company: Swan Bitcoin
Role: Head of Institutional Investment

As with all assets and commodities, a myriad of financial instruments have been developed around Bitcoin. The riskier end of the spectrum are opportunities to take levered positions. These positions can produce stellar returns, providing opportunities for those who feel like they’ve missed out on previous bull runs, or have the appetite to try and continue to outplay the market.

If only it were that simple. Stating leverage involves risk is a massive understatement. You. Can. Lose. Everything. Liquidation is a brutal experience. The issue regarding Bitcoin is that liquidation of open levered positions is inevitable and rapid due to the volatility.

There are numerous stories of markets turning suddenly in unexpected directions, and exchanges being unable to deal with the associated demand to add collateral to open positions. Then there are flash crashes which occur too quickly for anyone to be able to respond. Fairness doesn’t come into the algorithms used to close positions and action liquidations.

Rekt is a term used too often. A simple mistake can undo years of hard work. Staking sats, hodling, and staying humble are the tried and tested ways of maximizing the opportunities provided by Bitcoin. Developing the discipline of having a long time preference is a cathartic experience.

In this interview, I talk to Andy Edstrom, author of Why Buy Bitcoin and Head of Institutional Investment at Swan Bitcoin. We discuss experiences of getting rekt, applying good leverage, the waves of Bitcoin adoption, playing offence on Bitcoin’s ESG credentials, and investing in Bitcoin for time and freedom.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD470 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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CBDCs: the Good, the Bad & the Totalitarian with Nik Bhatia Mar 02, 2022

“You’ll have Fed coin, JPMorgan coin, Bitcoin, Tether… you have the right to choose how to denominate your labour, your earnings, your savings; and I think that’s the future that we’re in for is this era of currency choice. And thank God for Bitcoin.”
— Nik Bhatia

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Friday 4th February
Company: USC Marshall School of Business
Role: Author and Adjunct Professor of Finance

Bitcoin empowers individuals, the threat to the state is clear. As the New German Chancellor Olaf Scholz asserted in December 2020: “We must do everything possible to make sure the currency monopoly remains in the hands of states.”

As a response to Bitcoin, the major world economies are pilot testing CBDCs, and pressure is being applied to low and middle-income countries. In October 2021 the IMF stated in its Global Financial Stability Report that “Emerging markets faced with cryptoization risks should strengthen macroeconomic policies and consider the benefits of issuing central bank digital currencies.”

The privacy concerns emanating from CBDCs are being exacerbated by the same organisations promoting them; in another IMF statement in late 2020 they stated a person's online search and purchase history is a suitable data source for undertaking a credit assessment. In addition, the anonymity of cash is known to be an issue for governments around the world.

Whilst there are obvious benefits to enabling better payments processes to citizens, CBDCs could also facilitate state controls on how and when people spend money. The Bank of England is considering using smart contracts within a CBDC; the FT raised concerns about the potential for severe restrictions on personal freedom mirroring China’s “social credit” system.

As we have seen, these fears are no longer being seen as theoretical threats that don’t apply to those living in western democracies. What is currently happening in Canada is giving even the most centred observers pause for thought. Bitcoin is the only obvious tool to provide freedom of currency denomination in a secure, trustless way, outside of the purview of Governments.

In this interview, I talk to the Author and Professor of Finance Nik Bhatia. We discuss the rationale for CBDCs and their limitations, a new form of heavily surveilled ‘free’ banking, Bitcoin as a discovery and a right, and how the Lightning Network makes Bitcoin a currency.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD469 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Economics of War with Alex Gladstein Feb 28, 2022

“Bitcoin stands alone in the world as the only currency that’s non-political. And that’s why I think it’s the only one that has a shot to be this neutral reserve asset that would be globally restraining equally among all players.”
— Alex Gladstein

Location: San Francisco
Date: Monday 7th February
Project: Human Rights Foundation
Role: Chief Strategy Officer

The majority of citizens of developed countries are blind to the true cost of modern warfare. Wars are fought in far off lands by technically advanced and voluntary armies; few people have direct or indirect exposure to first-hand experiences. Media coverage is sanitized of the associated brutality. And politicians willfully talk up the benefits of such wars with patriotic vigour.

Yet, the cold hard truth is extensive and vicious wars are being fought in our name. The costs of such wars are counted in thousands of faceless lives, and trillions of dollars of debt to be paid by future generations. That such wars have vague and shifting missions, or, are predicated on falsehoods, seems to be of little consequence. Citizens mostly tend to shrug their shoulders.

Large anti-war protests are still evident on occasions, most obviously at the moment in relation to the Russia-Ukrainian conflict, and previously in the lead up to the Iraq war. But, such protests are peaceful, sporadic, and ineffective. Wars still get fought. Aside from ethical discomfort, the costs to the majority not fighting the wars are limited.

That citizens don’t personally shoulder the costs of war is why politicians still feel empowered to engage in such actions, or, more importantly, to stay engaged in wars they did not start. It is why democratic peace theory has broken. There are multiple causes, but the fiat monetary system is a principal area of concern, enabling the financial burden to be offloaded to future generations.

Bitcoin doesn’t fix war. But, in a Bitcoin standard world, it would certainly make it harder to fight wars without citizens feeling the fiscal impacts. Ergo, citizens would have a greater interest in demanding a say.

In this interview, I talk to Alex Gladstein, Chief Strategy Officer at the Human Rights Foundation. We discuss how the fiat monetary system has broken democratic peace theory, why MMT enables forever wars, how Bitcoin could reduce unnecessary wars, and the need to discuss this more honestly within society.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD468 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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What Drives Wealth Inequality? with Lyn Alden Feb 25, 2022

“And you can even consider Bitcoin as a type of populism, but I would just describe it as one of the better types of populism; basically, it’s people rallying behind a new network effect technology, and saying that this is the solution.”
— Lyn Alden

Location: Remote
Date: Tuesday 22nd February
Project: lynalden.com
Role: Macroeconomist

Wealth inequality is as an emotive subject as any. At a minimum it can divide societies, pitting citizens against each other. If left to deteriorate and fester it can lead to populist uprisings.

Both sides of the political divide put forward causes and propose solutions. And yet, despite the arguments being well worn, most of the assumptions underpinning these opinions don’t stand up to scrutiny.

Quantitative easing results in increased inequality - well, not necessarily. Globalisation leads to a hollowing out of the working class in developed nations - only in certain parts of the world. Governments enable cronyism to exacerbate wealth disparities - lobbying can constrain competition, but it is unclear whether libertarianism would halt monopolistic practices.

Those vying to shape opinion would have us believe in binary arguments. The problem, as ever, is that this subject is complex with many dynamic variables. It isn’t a question of making targeted policy interventions. A much more holistic and flexible approach is required.

In this interview, I talk to macroeconomist and investment strategist Lyn Alden. We discuss the multi-faceted drivers of wealth inequality, the societal impacts of such disparities, whether we’re on the cusp of another great depression, state-led policies, and whether Bitcoin is a mitigation.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD467 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Bitcoin & the Culture Wars with Eric Weinstein Feb 23, 2022

“There’s something about the way in which money, and China, and law, and the US government, and technology interact…every institutional player, at some level it seems of any size, capitulates; everybody’s recording a hostage video at the institutional level.”
— Eric Weinstein

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Friday 4th February
Company: Thiel Capital
Role: MD

Culture wars, identity politics, the intellectual dark web, audience capture: this is the well-worn nomenclature used to define the battles of open discourse that have been raging over the past few years. Retaining an authentic and honest voice in today’s polarised and intolerant society has required fortitude and resilience.

But, trying to engage with those who refuse to have (or are incapable of having) an open mind takes its toll. In addition, it is equally waring to engage with those who have a firm opinion on all matters. People generally refrain from admitting they don’t know, or that they are open to changing their views, as though indecision or uncertainty are damning frailties.

Having a society that is blinkered and entrenched and toxic is obviously counterproductive. In a political context, pluralism is the bedrock of a functioning democracy. In science, openness to new ways of thinking and new ideas allows for the paradigm shifts that propel the advancement of our civilisation.

That some of our generation’s greatest thought leaders are having to waste their time defending their right to have views, instead of actually developing and sharing their views, is the behaviour of an inward-looking society starting to wither. The people within Bitcoin must help fix this.

In this interview, I talk to the managing director of Thiel Capital and podcaster Eric Weinstein. We discuss media fact-checking, colonising other worlds, physics beyond Einstein, intelligent design, narrative wars, modern fascism, and economic deception amidst the rise of Bitcoin.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD466 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Threat of Peak Centralisation with Mark Moss Feb 21, 2022

“When I turned 18 and I could vote my dad told me just always remember one thing: every new law whether it’s good or bad is less freedom… I would always err to the side of allowing other people to make decisions for themselves, because what I see today is these leaders think – and they’ve openly said it – that you’re not smart enough to make decisions on your own, and I think that’s wrong.”
— Mark Moss

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Thursday 3rd February
Project: Market Disrupters Live
Role: Market Analyst

In the last show with Mark Moss, we discussed how society is currently at a rare confluence of 3 revolutionary cycles: political/social/cultural, technological, and financial. In this show, we expand on that thesis by discussing the ramifications of living in an age of great disruption. An age when the previous solid principles underpinning the organisation of operation of society are in flux.

Truly revolutionary questions that were assumed until recently to have been settled are now being seriously considered as being up for debate. What role, if any, should the state have? How should rules and regulations be determined, implemented, and policed? How can individuals act against the forces of centralization? Can we find truth in this post-fact world?

These questions are being debated as some believe monumental change within society is around the corner: we’re at peak centralisation and could be approaching a ‘Blow-Off Top’. Discordant forces will stretch and meld society into new shapes. Those not prepared will have their futures mapped out for them by others who are.

Those who are self-sufficient will be best placed to react to this changing world; Bitcoin is the means by which people will be able to have geographic freedom so they can escape coercion. Bitcoin is also the basis for helping like-minded groups to mould a new future.

In this interview, I talk to the serial entrepreneur and market analyst Mark Moss. We discuss peak centralization, the role of a state, the balkanization of society, the need for transparency and truth, and how Bitcoin enables people to free themselves from the tyranny of place.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD465 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Can Bitcoin Save The American Dream? with Natalie Brunell Feb 19, 2022

“Our system is so broken and messed up… and I want to fix it because people don’t deserve to live like this. They deserve to just be able to make money and keep it without losing value.”
— Natalie Brunell

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Thursday 3rd February
Project: Coin Stories podcast
Role: Journalist

The American Dream has enabled the US to act as a beacon to the world: freedom and opportunity are available to all who are willing to strive, sacrifice, and work hard. This ethos was a powerful soft weapon during the cold war, but it still resonates with people all around the world today. That’s why the Green Card is the most sought-after immigrant visa in the world.

And yet, those living in the US today are struggling to experience the same chances and sense of fairness previous generations took for granted. Risk-taking, endeavour, playing by the rules - displaying these character traits is no longer a gateway to success; some are even starting to believe that those living by these standards are chumps.

The system seems just unjust; life is full of contradictions and hypocrisy. There are increasing restrictions on people’s sovereignty, whilst those in power aren’t playing by the same rules. At the same time, the rights of individuals are upheld in situations where their actions impact the wider society and where interventions and restrictions have sound justification.

Will Bitcoin help right the current economic wrongs?

In this interview, I talk to Natalie Brunell, a fellow podcaster who hosts Coin Stories. We discuss coming to America, uncovering a failing system through journalism, finding Bitcoin and hope, and developing a mission to fix things.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD464 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Can Bitcoin Mining Save the Environment? with Troy Cross Feb 17, 2022

“Bitcoin is a perfect match for renewable energy, it helps monetize the build-out of renewable energy, it helps monetize the operation of renewable energy, it helps to stabilise the grid; and we need it to happen at a massive scale, a massive scale.”
— Troy Cross

Location: San Francisco
Date: Tuesday 8th February
Project: Bitcoin Policy Institute
Role: Fellow

On both sides of the Atlantic, politicians and regulators are questioning the sustainability of Bitcoin mining. These positions knowingly or unknowingly use narratives and statistics that have been widely dispelled by authorities within our industry.

Bitcoin is cited as a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, ignoring the detrimental impact of the petrodollar and other institutionally accepted activities. Bitcoin transactions are disingenuously portrayed as being incredibly polluting; as Nic Carter stated “The question of Bitcoin’s energy footprint is riven with misconceptions.”

Usage of renewable power for Bitcoin mining is portrayed as being wasteful as though energy use is a zero-sum game, instead of Bitcoin being a flexible load facilitating increased investment and energy production.

Satoshi Nakamoto even foresaw energy use as being an issue. In August 2010 Satoshi posted “The utility of the exchanges made possible by Bitcoin will far exceed the cost of electricity used. Therefore, not having Bitcoin is a net waste.”

But, despite the obvious attributes of Bitcoin that mitigates its impacts, powerful stakeholders still use environmental FUD to undermine the industry. What if there was a way to explicitly make Bitcoin mining part of the ESG framework rather than having ESG weaponised against the industry? Such an idea would kick away the ladder for Bitcoin mining detractors. Meet Troy Cross.

In this interview, I talk to Troy Cross, a Fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute. We discuss his personal journey of reconciling Bitcoin’s energy footprint, the environmental FUD used against Bitcoin, how Bitcoin mining mitigates climate change, and the game-changing idea to incentivise sustainable Bitcoin mining.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD463 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Will Bitcoin End Central Banking? with Eric Yakes Feb 15, 2022

“Now that we’ve got a technology that actually is not only immutable, but it’s better in terms of every other category for money; it’s a true innovation and the strongest sense of the word we can prioritise that as something that we should value as part of money now and we can say: ‘okay, we don’t even need this trade-off anymore,’ we’ve literally just innovated that away.”
— Eric Yakes

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Wednesday 2nd February
Company: Independent
Role: Author

The Bitcoin rabbit hole is a confusing, perplexing, and thoroughly exhilarating experience. It involves the dissolving of previous certainties and the discovery of a labyrinthine mass of revolutionary knowledge. It is a life-changing experience.

This journey necessitates one to consider profound and fundamental concepts that society has almost uniformly forgotten to question: what is the purpose of money, what is the best money, who decides this for us, what is money backed by? The process is like an awakening from a long and childish dream. The result is a realisation that the status quo should and can be changed.

Bitcoin is now ubiquitous; it is easy to forget that it is a nascent and rapidly evolving technology. Despite there being a growing library of valuable information by an illustrious collection of authors, those new to the subject often feel swamped. Particularly as there are factions within the community with sometimes conflicting views and opinions.

That is why it is valuable to have material written by people who have been on that journey of discovery, those who have had to unravel the twisted knot of diverse subjects that underpin Bitcoin: computer science, cryptography, economics, finance, banking, philosophy, civics, geopolitics, law. And perhaps most vitally, those able to provide a neutral position on Bitcoin.

In this interview, I talk to Eric Yakes, author of The 7th Property. We discuss the genesis of the book, the Federal Reserve, the role of libertarianism in our future, and the foundational and unique strengths of Bitcoin.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD462 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Web3 Does Not Exist with American HODL & Junseth Feb 12, 2022

“Every time this thing pumps a million billion new people coming in and all of them run through the exact same fucking scams again and again and again, and they get here and they pretend like they know what they’re talking about and it’s literally a manifestation of… I just heard about Bitcoin and I’m here to fix it.”
— Junseth

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Wednesday 2nd February
Company: N/A
Role: N/A

Web3 is a co-opted term that was originally used to describe an internet that gives users greater control over their privacy and data. It is now commonly referred to as the metaverse.

The metaverse, originally described in Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash, was a dystopian future that envisions a virtual reality-based successor to the internet. The metaverse has been picked up on by VCs and Silicon Valley and is now promising to revolutionise the way we interact with the internet taking advantage of NFTs and 'crypto'.

However, bitcoiners remain sceptical. Over the last 13 years, thousands of projects have come and gone, promising huge innovation with little to back it up, from altcoins that promise to be 'the new bitcoin' to narratives like 'blockchain, not bitcoin' and the ICO boom, and bust.

In this interview, American HODL and Junseth take aim at Web3, NFTs and the metaverse and discuss why they believe that it will not only fail but that it doesn't even exist in the first place.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD461 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Orange Pilling the IMF with Jack Mallers Feb 09, 2022

“Western Union can’t allow me to pay for my coffee, Visa won’t allow me to remit money? Lightning does both and better and open and global, and so you guys come play on my court, and let’s see who can develop the best experience for the consumer, because I bet all my life I can build a better experience on the Lightning Network than Jamie Dimon.”
— Jack Mallers

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Tuesday 1st February
Project: Strike
Role: CEO

Over the past few years, Jack Mallers has made your “bank account speak bitcoin” with Strike, started the “pay me in Bitcoin” campaign, and was instrumental in onboarding an entire country on to Bitcoin, but he’s only just getting started.

Bitcoin is an open monetary network that enables a free market for payments and unprecedented interoperability. With money moving at the speed of lightning on a level playing field, the money and payments industries are being disrupted at a staggering pace.

Now, calls are pouring in from massive players trying to understand how the world is changing. So who will Jack orange pill next?

In this interview, I talk to Jack Mallers, CEO of Strike. We discuss his interactions with the IMF, Facebook, Jeff Bezos, and Argentina, and the global implications of the Bitcoin network.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD460 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin & The Canadian Truckers with Greg Foss & NobodyCaribou Feb 07, 2022

“Here’s the why, why are people gathered in Ottawa and why are people congregating in major cities in Canada, and the why is Canadians are tired of being lied to and now they’re taking responsibility to claim their freedom; it doesn’t matter if you’re black, white, Hispanic, Indian, Chinese, indigenous, vaccinated, unvaccinated, Canada’s a very diverse melting pot…and everyone is coming together to say no.”
— NobodyCaribou

Location: Remote
Date: Friday 4th February
Project: @HonkHonkHodl

Covid-19 mandates have evolved across the world over the past few years. Such mandates involve limitations on what many previously assumed to be universal freedoms. Whilst restrictions were widely and voluntarily accepted in the early phases of the pandemic, people across the world are now starting to question their efficacy and fairness.

Rules imposed by bureaucrats are increasingly being viewed as myopic to wider societal impacts and seemingly slow to account for the latest science. This is resulting in growing dissent. The rejection of government-directed coronavirus measures is arguably most ardent when it affects people's livelihoods.

Canada in January imposed a new rule requiring that truckers must be vaccinated to cross the US-Canadian border. Given the geography in Canada, trucking invariably requires trips to and from the US. So, for unvaccinated truckers, this rule would effectively mean they couldn't work.

A resultant protest lit the flame for wider discontent about Covid-19 health restrictions. This rapidly spread such that a nationwide protest movement has been ignited, centred on the nation's capital Ottawa.

The two sides are becoming increasingly entrenched: truckers are preparing for a long period of resistance, whilst the government is increasingly using more draconian measures to break up the protest. The most contentious action, though, has been GoFundMe withholding millions of dollars raised for the truckers.

Bitcoin is now being used to support the truckers: the utility of uncensorable money has perhaps found its most important use case yet in a democratic state.

In this interview, I talk to Bitcoin Strategist Greg Foss, and NobodyCaribou who is documenting the growing trucker protest movement. We discuss the genesis of the protest, Canadian rights and freedoms, the importance of non-violent resistance, the scale of the movement, and how Bitcoin is a vital tool in this fight for freedom.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD459 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin & Personal Proof of Work with Sean Culkin Feb 05, 2022

“There’s balance in life, you only get one life, you just want to be so detailed, act like a robot… no, no, live; just moderation, you’ve got to find out what works for you. But when you aren’t happy and satisfied with your current situation you have to make changes, and you’ve got to be intentional, proactive, develop a plan, and stick to it.”
— Sean Culkin

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Wednesday 2nd February
Company/project: TBA
Role: Retired Tight End

Sean Culkin has lived the dream. An all-round sportsman, he was identified as an American football talent at high school gaining national acclaim in his senior year. There then followed a prodigious college career playing for the Missouri Tigers, which lead to him securing a much sort after professional contract with the LA Chargers.

Professional football careers are unnaturally short: injury and commercial pressures mean most players are lucky to experience more than 2 and a half seasons. Sean Culkin had 4 seasons at three teams, albeit his career was effectively curtailed after he tore his Achilles early into his 3rd season.

Sean didn’t walk for 5 months, and there then followed the harsh realities of having to seek opportunities away from LA to prove himself again in practice and reserve squads. Then, in May of last year, Sean was released, and he decided to make the fateful decision to retire.

The thing is, the dream only manifests as a result of hard work, discipline and sacrifice. Nobody prepares for fate to cruelly cut short a sports career. Then there’s the compounding effect of having to not only find a new path but to replace a life that had been dictated up to that point by routine and teamwork. And do this largely on your own.

Sean, by his own admission, struggled with this transition. He went off-grid, and faced some demons. The measure of a person is how they deal with adversity. And Sean has shown that he has fortitude: he’s turned his life around by developing a Proof of Work mindset.

In this interview, I talk to the former American football player and aspiring entrepreneur Sean Culkin. We discuss sacrifice and hard work, the rigours and harsh realities of American football, the trap of the fiat lifestyle, learning to live in the present, and the next steps.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD458 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Is There Life After Democracy? with Vijay Boyapati Feb 03, 2022

“I think we are very close to a catastrophic end for our civilisation… the earth is our womb, we were born and grew in the womb, but eventually, we have to escape; if we don’t escape that’s it - we’re never going to answer the big questions, we’re never going to survive as a species, we have to escape the earth.”
— Vijay Boyapati

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Tuesday 1st February
Company: Independent
Role: Software Engineer and Author

In 2005 Ray Kurzweil introduced the idea of the singularity: a point in the near future when artificial superintelligence surpasses human intelligence. In his book “The Singularity is Near”, Kurzweil embraced the benefits such a future presented humans: “Our sole responsibility is to produce something smarter than we are; any problems beyond that are not ours to solve.”

Yet, less than 2 decades later, technologists, futurists, and philosophers are now envisaging potentially catastrophic futures for our species. The conversion from the utopian to a dystopian view of the future has roots in the development of the Fermi paradox, i.e. why, despite high estimates for the existence of extraterrestrial life, is there no clear and obvious evidence for it?

One theory gaining wider acceptance is that there could be a Great Filter: a barrier preventing intelligent colonisation of the universe. Life may be unable to evolve into advanced civilisations through being unable to manage technologies that manifest existential risks. This is evident with existing innovations: nuclear weapons, biotechnology, nanotechnology, poorly designed AI etc.

The risks proliferate when such technology becomes cheap and ubiquitous such that we can all harness great power: it is the democratisation of mass destruction. A range of technologies that can do irreparable harm could be within each individual’s grasp, and our society has enough individuals willing to inflict such harm.

So, technology has the potential to destroy us rather than liberate us. How should we mitigate this potential future if it is enabled by continued advances, decentralisation, and increased freedoms?

In this interview, I talk to Software Engineer and Author Vijay Boyapati. We discuss the Fermi paradox and the Great Filter, whether solutions involve centralisation and reducing freedoms, if society is best served by democracy, and the inevitable need for humans to escape the earth.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD457 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Is the Bitcoin Bottom in? with Willy Woo Jan 29, 2022

“Structurally on-chain it’s not a bear market set up; even though I would say we’re at peak fear, no doubt about it, people are really scared - which is typically…it’s an opportunity to buy.”
— Willy Woo

Location: Remote
Date: Thursday 27th January
Company: Hypersheet
Role: Co-Founder

Given the unprecedented combination of events that impacted Bitcoin in 2021, it is perhaps not surprising that the market currently feels like it’s in uncharted territory. Patterns of trading behaviour have changed, new investors and trading instruments are influencing the price, and the old cycles no longer seem to apply.

This wasn’t forecasted. The rally into the back end of 2021 was expected to be sustained: institutional adoption ramped up. Yet, despite the influx of capital, whales hodling, and even miners keeping hold of their bitcoin, the price has seen a 50% correction since the ATH in early November.

However, shorting Bitcoin from this position would be a bold trade. The old coins are still not selling. Further, positive regulatory clarity could kickstart a rush of institutional capital.

In this interview, I talk to Willy Woo, on-chain analyst and Co-Founder of Hypersheet. We discuss the current Bitcoin price, why it doesn’t look like a bear market, the breaking of the 4-year cycles, and how he’s positioning his portfolio.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD456 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Is the US Equity Bullrun Over? With Lyn Alden Jan 27, 2022

“The challenge that central banks face around the world is death by ice or fire; do you want things to unravel in a deflationary collapse, or do you want to keep stoking the fire of inflation… in history, the vast majority of fiat currency regimes die by fire, not by ice - when push comes to shove, they print.”
— Lyn Alden

Location: Remote
Date: Wednesday 26th January
Company: lynalden.com
Role: Macroeconomist

January 2022 has been tough for Bitcoiners, a lacklustre end to 2021 has been followed by a drawdown. However, the stagnation of Bitcoin’s price has mirrored wider macroeconomic issues as both bond and equity markets react to inflationary pressures. This has resulted in a flurry of criticisms that Bitcoin is not the inflationary hedge it has been purported to be.

Yet, the economic rationale that drove Satoshi’s development of Bitcoin is manifest. Decades of relaxed monetary policy, an era of cheap money, has resulted in significant excess capital being generated. A lot of this has been ploughed into US equities. Lyn Alden’s latest newsletter likens the stock market performance over the last 40 years to a sponge soaking up water.

Well, that sponge seems to be saturated. The US equities now represent over 61% of the market capitalization of all global stocks. At the same time, inflationary pressures are forcing the hands of governments around to world to raise interest rates. Fears of stagflation abound. The sponge is about to get wrung out.

Economic history shows these are the periods when hard money becomes dominant. That’s why hodlers continue to hodl.

In this interview, I talk to macroeconomist and investment strategist Lyn Alden. We discuss the signals pointing to the end of the equities supercycle, the risks of energy prices continuing to drive inflation, the IMF and El Salvador, central banks being at an impasse, and Bitcoin’s next play.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD455 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Breakdown of Trust with Balaji Srinivasan & Glenn Greenwald Jan 25, 2022

“What I ultimately want to do with this Bitcoin discourse is try and bring as many people as possible to talk about it in a way that ceases to alienate particular ideological camps who for whatever reason have been trained quite effectively to be hostile to a technology that can actually empower them.”
— Glenn Greenwald

Location: Remote
Date: Monday 24th January
Project: balajis.com, glenngreenwald.com.br
Role: Angel Investor & Entrepreneur, Journalist and Author

US exceptionalism and continuance of its role as the world's leading power is under threat. Whilst it is arguable whether America has truly lived up to being that ‘Shining City on a Hill’, it’s potential demise and a resultant shifting balance of power eastwards should give those who believe in freedom and privacy pause for thought.

The reasons for the current predicament are varied and complex. Whilst there are powerful external forces seeking to damage the US, the most critical wounds are those that have been self-inflicted. Of these, a breakdown of public trust in government and the media are perhaps the most consequential.

The impacts are apparent to all: polarisation, ineffective governance, paranoia, stasis. All the while, China continues to make bold and aggressive moves aimed at supplanting the US.

All of this has occurred in a relatively short period of time. Just 30 years ago the Soviet Union fell, whilst Chinese nominal GDP was 6% of the US’s. Complacency and a focus on fighting imaginary enemies allowed rot to set in. Does Bitcoin offer an opportunity for the US to regain it’s discipline whilst also living up to the mantle of being the land of the free?

In this interview, I talk to angel investor Balaji Srinivasan and journalist Glenn Greenwald. We compare American incompetence to Chinese competence, how Bitcoin offers hope, why the US establishment has struggled to assimilate new technology and the damaging conflict between tech and media over the past 20 years.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD454 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin: A View From The Left with Ben Arc Jan 21, 2022

“Bitcoin is a commons, a monetary commons… a shared resource which people can use and then it’s within their interests to keep that resource going and nurture that resource and help it to grow - and that’s what Bitcoin is; and if any private interests try to co-opt Bitcoin…then ‘Bitcoiners’ attack it.”
— Ben Arc

Location: London
Date: Thursday 13th January
Project: LNbits, NOSTR
Role: Bitcoin and free open source software advocate

What are the politics of Bitcoin? Satoshi in a post in 2008 said “It's very attractive to the libertarian viewpoint if we can explain it properly.” And, it certainly has garnered a strong libertarian following, principally because of its unique utility to undermine governments’ control of money.

However, Bitcoiners are a broad church. The original cypherpunks philosophy was predicated on anarchist ideals, to work outside of government controls. This attitude is analogous to a wide variety of political philosophies, including those on the left who feel disenfranchised by the current global capitalist hegemony.

There is a strong and growing group of left-leaning Bitcoiners, who see the protocol as a radical means of achieving a fairer society where the levers of power and organisation are controlled by a community rather than elites.

This may trigger a powerful section in Bitcoin whose views are antithetical to those on the left. And yet, this broad range of communities with divergent dogmas have all enabled Bitcoin to develop its critical mass. This is because early adopters viewing Bitcoin as a philosophy, whatever that philosophy may be, has inspired ardent advocacy and robust hodling behaviour.

It surely underlines the genius of Bitcoin’s protocol if those with seemingly divergent opinions can all lay claim to the benefits of the technology. Furthermore, history has shown that robust societies are ones where ideas are debated, tested, and then synthesized. If we can do this as a community we have a real opportunity to lay the foundations for a more open and fair society.

In this interview, I talk to Ben Arc, an industrious Bitcoin and free open source software advocate. We discuss the attraction of Bitcoin to those on the left, Bitcoin as a commons for society, developing open source applications to take on big tech, and Marxism.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD453 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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The Bitcoin Football Club with Peter McCormack & Dominic Frisby Jan 19, 2022

“Most football clubs stand for one thing, which is winning... we stand for a little bit more, we stand for financial literacy. Which I think is super important in the world of football because most clubs operate like they haven’t got any fucking idea about financial literacy.”
— Peter McCormack

Location: London
Date: Thursday 13th January
Company: Real Bedford
Role: Chairman

For years I have wanted to buy a football club in Bedford and get them in the football league. Now it’s a reality as I have agreed to acquire Bedford FC and set up the first Bitcoin standard football club: Real Bedford. And, it’s thanks to Bitcoin and its amazing community.

There are two prime motivations. Firstly I want an opportunity to play my part and help spread the wider exposure, education, and adoption of Bitcoin. There are many great people I’ve been fortunate to interview over these past few years who have provided real value to the ecosystem.

Secondly, I want to give something back to my hometown where I still live: Bedford. Like many small towns throughout the UK and around the world, it has gone through various waves of growth and contraction that have tested its identity. A football club that’s able to compete at the highest levels could provide a positive focal point for the town and put it firmly back on the map.

Don’t be fooled into thinking this isn’t without major challenges. I have never run a football club before, we’re 9 leagues below the Premier League, I have other significant commitments, and there’s widespread incredulity about my ambitions. But, this is a boys’ own dream, and I want to take you along for the ride.

In this interview, Bitcoin advocate and good friend of What Bitcoin Did Dominic Frisby talks to Peter McCormack, Chairman of Real Bedford. We discuss the dream to help Bitcoin and Bedford, learning to run a football club, and documenting the adventure.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD452 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The Importance of Self Sovereignty with Nick Neuman Jan 17, 2022

“The very first sentence of the White Paper says that Bitcoin is a peer to peer electronic cash system that can allow people to send payments without going through financial institutions. That’s the first sentence: built around self custody, not around inflation protection, not around digital gold.”
— Nick Neuman

Location: New York
Date: Thursday 9th December
Company: Casa
Role: CEO

Not your keys, not your coins.

Despite being a central mantra of Bitcoiners, self-custody is still an issue for the ecosystem. Whether it be major institutional investors or new small volume retail buyers, there are material concerns over the risks and technical skills required with being responsible for Bitcoin keys.

Whilst delegating custody removes perceived barriers to entry, they present new risks to individuals and the wider network. These new risks may be nebulous and abstract to many. But they are real and significant issues that contravene Satoshi’s central mission for a decentralized self-sovereign system of peer to peer cash.

The paradox is that rather than requiring specialist technical skills, modern hardware wallets are both significantly more user friendly and intuitive than their recent predecessors. This is both in terms of the products themselves and the support infrastructure (i.e. helplines etc.) provided by manufacturers.

Whilst it may be easy to have someone else store your bitcoin, it is still the case that if you don’t own the keys, you don’t control the coins. The irony is you may only discover this at the time you are in most need of your bitcoin.

In this interview, I talk to Nick Neuman, CEO of Casa. We discuss the scale of third-party custodying of bitcoin, the inherent risks of delegating bitcoin custody, the security and support provided to users of hardware wallets, and the latest innovations.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD451 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin vs Crypto & Web3 with Ryan Selkis Jan 15, 2022

“A lot of us when we talk about Bitcoin we’d say look it’s schmuck insurance, or it’s a digital gold analogue or replacement. But because it can also be used as money, yes it’s very volatile, but it also has upward volatility, not a persistent depreciation of value over time like you have with some of these other currencies you’re going to hold your assets in.”
— Ryan Selkis

Location: New York
Date: Tuesday 6th December
Company: Messari
Role: Founder & CEO

Bitcoin’s architecture uses decentralisation to achieve censorship-resistance and permissionless access to a revolutionary monetary protocol. And despite thousands of altcoins that claimed to be better or faster over the years, Bitcoin reigns as the non-sovereign store of value in the digital world.

However, what is not yet clear is if the wider world of ‘crypto’ can achieve similarly permissionless innovation outside of money, or if they are instead ‘decentralised in name only’.

Can these protocols resist influence by powerful actors? What is ‘enough’ decentralisation? Will the fundraising-via-token model survive the SEC? Will they adapt to increasing pressure? Is there real innovation, or is it all just a house of cards of venture capital and marketing? Many questions remain.

As Bitcoiners it is important to engage those with broader outlooks, even if we have seemingly incompatible ideologies. The battle of ideas involves free, open, and respectful discussion.

In this interview, I talk to the founder and CEO of the research and data firm Messari, Ryan Selkis. We discuss Messari’s industry-leading opus on the state of the ecosystem, Bitcoin and gold, regulation, both sides of the Web3 debate and the differentiation of Bitcoin and ‘crypto’.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD450 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Chaos in the Bond Market with Greg Foss & Lawrence Lepard Jan 13, 2022

“There comes a point where everybody knows holy cannoli these currencies have no value, none, zero. Get me out of here, get me something else… get me something that doesn’t represent a claim that is run by a government that is completely, utterly, devoid of morals and out of control.”
— Lawrence Lepard

Location: Remote
Date: Wednesday 12th January
Company: Validus Power Corp; Equity Management Associates
Role: Bitcoin Strategist; Investment Manager

For an extended period of time, a working career for many, the economic system has been going in one direction: interest rates have been declining, whilst bonds have been on an extended bull market. Since the economic chaos of the 1970s, a globalizing world has been aligning around a reasonably stable and predictable financial paradigm.

That all changed in 2007 when the global financial crisis turned traditional financial markets upside down. The crisis normalised extraordinary measures like open market operations and quantitative easing.

Little did we know that the turmoil of the global financial crisis was setting the stage for even more anomalous actions by central banks. In response to the pandemic, the US treasury in 2020 increased the money supply by 20%. This stimulus was mirrored by governments across the world.

In a collective state of denial, the world's leaders all seem to have believed that this sudden massive injection of money will not have a systemic impact on world economies. The velocity of money would keep pace, that deflationary pressures would balance out, or that these massive sums of new money somehow wouldn’t seep into the ‘real’ economy.

Herbert Stein was an American economist, who amongst other things was chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. In 1986 he presented Stein's Law: "If something cannot go on forever, it will stop." Unprecedented activity on the bond markets last week suggest that the can being kicked has run out of road; the state of denial may be over.

In this interview, I talk to Bitcoin Strategist Greg Foss and Investment Manager Lawrence Lepard about last week's extraordinary activity in the bond markets. We discuss the convergence of economic constraints boxing in the Fed, the pretence of bond value, contagion risks, and using Bitcoin for capital protection at the individual and national level.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD449- Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The Broken Political System with Morgan Harper Jan 11, 2022

“This decentralized power concept is very important… the reason why we have the democracy issues, the reason why we haven’t seen broader economic opportunity is because we do have this concentration of economic power.”
— Morgan Harper

Location: New York
Date: Friday 10th December
Project: Democratic primary for 2022 US Senate election in Ohio
Role: Democratic candidate

It is a common refrain that US politics is broken: a two-party system limiting serious debate, corporations corrupting politics via PACs and lobbyists, media monetizing rage, a polarised electorate demonizing the opposition. The themes are well worn, but nothing seems to change.

At the same time, society is beset by a growing list of material issues: rising inequality, a squeezed middle class, unprecedented levels of debt, impacts of technology on jobs, climate change, the rise of China, etc. etc. etc.

There are strong grounds to suggest that such issues can only be only mitigated or solved through coordinated action managed by the government. There are equally persuasive arguments that rather than fix things, the government actually exacerbates problems.

If we are to start to repair society, we need to fix politics. This starts with having politicians citizens can trust, politicians that are informed, politicians not beholden to corporations, politicians that make decisions based firmly on the merit of an argument.

Cynicism is justified, but it does seem there is a new cohort of budding representatives on both sides of the political spectrum who want to bring such change.

In this interview, I talk to former senior advisor at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and prospective Democratic candidate for the 2022 US Senate election in Ohio, Morgan Harper. We discuss her political motivations, removing corporate money from politics, how Bitcoin can help level the playing field, and taking politics out of policy.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD448 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin: The Financial Singularity with Austin Hill Jan 09, 2022

“The singularity is a point on an exponential curve whereby change starts to happen at exponential rates that you just can’t predict and you can’t understand. If we don’t figure out how to use Bitcoin to lift everyone’s economic ladder up… then the risk factors to the future are just too high.”
— Austin Hill

Location: New York
Date: Wednesday 8th December
Company: Former CEO of Blockstream
Role: Entrepreneur, VC & Cypherpunk

It is a common refrain that we are living in unprecedented times. Yet, the most inconceivable changes to society are ahead of us. A confluence of exponential forces could see our species either flourish or wither. The changes that these forces will bring are fast approaching.

A technological singularity is predicted to occur in a generation: innovations will bring rapid change that is both bewildering and uncontrollable. These technologies will become increasingly cheaper and ubiquitous such that the risk profiles associated with misuse will grow significantly.

At the same time, we risk seeing the traditional financial systems shatter as exponential growth in debt finally becomes unsustainable and deflationary pressures finally dominate to destroy traditional credit systems.

Bitcoin can’t solve all these problems, but it is a central part of the toolbox of solutions.

In the second of two interviews, I talk to Austin Hill, the entrepreneur, cypherpunk & venture capitalist. We discuss the singularity and vulnerable world hypothesis, how technology can strengthen totalitarianism and the role of Bitcoin in harm reduction.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD447 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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The Cypherpunk Revolution with Austin Hill Jan 06, 2022

“Everyone thought we had this masterplan for Blockstream… I literally went to our investors and I said ‘You need to look at Bitcoin as the Manhattan Project of the financial singularity. The world of finance will be completely remade with Bitcoin at the core. It is literally like creating atomic fusion that Feynman and Teller and Oppenheimer did…we’re going to need a shit load of money, and I have no idea how we’re going to make money, but we’ll figure it out.’”
— Austin Hill

Location: New York
Date: Tuesday 7th December
Company: Former CEO of Blockstream
Role: Entrepreneur, VC & Cypherpunk

Many are still ignorant of the cypherpunk movement. Yet, it is arguably one of the most consequential enterprises in the history of man.

The rise of civilization has been marked by a slow shift from centralized control to increasing levels of individual sovereignty. This was accelerated by the industrial revolution, with political institutions adapting to facilitate increasing levels of democracy.

Democracy peaked in 1990's: Francis Fukuyama predicted in 1992 universalization of liberal democracy would lead to 'The End of History'. But in only a generation, this certainty of the future has been lost. We are now at a critical junction, where many fear technology could allow for a permanent totalitarian structuring of society.

Cypherpunks seek to ensure the balance of power is in the hands of the individual. Foreseeing the inherent danger to maintaining an open society in the electronic age, they have and continue to devise privacy-enhancing technologies. "We know that someone has to write software to defend privacy, and... we're going to write it." A Cypherpunk's Manifesto (Eric Hughes, 1993).

The future role of the individual, and the essence of civilization, is in the hands of an informal, diligent, dispersed, and largely unheralded cohort of computer and cryptography experts.

I sat down with Austin Hill, one of the original converts to the cypherpunk movement, and more lately, a pivotal safeguarding figure for Bitcoin. In the first of two successive interviews to be released, we discuss how he discovered the cypherpunks, his challenging early endeavours, a reawakening through Bitcoin, and the risks and opportunities for the future.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD446 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Do We Really Understand Inflation? with Cullen Roche Jan 04, 2022

“If you could pick one variable in the whole world that you had to understand that would be your go to indicator, inflation would be the thing to me; you tell me what the rate of inflation is in twenty years, I’ll tell you pretty much what most financial assets have done, whether it’s bitcoin, bonds, stocks, whatever.”
— Cullen Roche

Location: New York
Date: Saturday 5th December
Project/company: Pragmatic Capitalism, Orcam Financial Group
Role: Chief Investment Officer

In the 1980’s, Harry Browne devised an investment strategy designed to perform well in all economic conditions. It is referred to as the Permanent Portfolio. Investments are equally allocated to stocks, bonds, gold, and cash. The objective is for the portfolio to perform well in all economic conditions.

But Harry Browne’s strategy was developed in a period when short term boom and bust debt cycles were still a feature of economic systems. Since the global financial crisis of 2007, the debt cycle hasn’t been allowed to function properly: recessions have been mitigated through unprecedented governmental monetary and fiscal stimulus programmes.

In this new paradigm, where inflationary pressures cast a large shadow, what are the best investment strategies to take? Certain Bitcoiners are all in on the new form of money designed for these times. This does not fit everyone's risk appetite. But, having a portfolio that lacks exposure to Bitcoin risks missing out in a market that could otherwise be devoid of alpha.

Then there is also a geographical variable at play: the US has certain inherent strengths that are not available to citizens of other countries, significantly affecting investment decisions.

In this interview, I talk to investment strategist and founder of the educational website Pragmatic Capitalism, Cullen Roche. We discuss the drivers for inflation, the role of government, investment strategies during uncertain times, and the place for Bitcoin in asset portfolios.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

-----

WBD445 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

2021 Bitcoin Review with Matt Odell Dec 31, 2021

“Bitcoin was a hacked together project run by a nym…why don’t we see web3 projects done the same way? Because they can’t raise a shit ton of fucking money from American venture funds, and those American venture funds are the vulnerability because they will get pressured and they will censor things.”
— Matt Odell

Location: Remote
Date: Tuesday 28th December
Project: Tales from the Crypt, the Rabbit Hole Recap
Role: Co-host, host

Twelve months ago, we felt 2020 had been a defining year for Bitcoin, yet it pales into insignificance compared to what bitcoin has done in 2021. Microstrategy, Elon Musk, El Salvador, China, the list goes on. And now we have a football club run on the Bitcoin standard!

Each event was surprising and seismic. And yet, we end the year feeling like the price has tracked sideways (albeit with the characteristic volatility). Now, the year ends with some red lines being drawn by powerful players on either side of the Web3 debate.

It’s time to take stock, review what just happened and what is in store for 2022.

To round off 2021, I talk to Matt Odell, co-host of Tales From the Crypt and host of the Citadel Dispatch. We discuss everything in Bitcoin in 2021, from the Bitcoin podcast space, price action, Elon Musk, El Salvador, Web3 and a Bitcoin Football Club.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting
LVL - Bank on Bitcoin
BCB Group - Global digital financial Services

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WBD444 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Bitcoin & the Currency Wars with Lyn Alden Dec 29, 2021

“A lot of people take for granted that the current system benefits the US… it basically extends our hegemonic reach, but at the cost of our own domestic vibrancy. There’s a knee jerk reaction for politicians to defend the dollar system, when if they go down the rabbit hole they realise that for maybe 90% of Americans the dollar system is not really working for them anymore.”
— Lyn Alden

Location: New York
Date: Wednesday 8th December
Project: lynalden.com
Role: Macroeconomist

These are strange times. The US Dollar’s established role as the global reserve currency is under threat from competing powers, most notably China. However, at the same time, Bitcoin, a nascent and denigrated decentralized digital asset, has grown so rapidly it is now being seriously considered as a potential competitor to all nation-state currencies.

The dominant international role of the US Dollar wasn’t inevitable; it was the result of deliberate and coordinated efforts to ensure it replaced gold as the backstop for global economic activity. These measures have had relatively short term benefits for some powerful groups within society but at the expense of the cohesion of the US nation-state and geopolitical freedoms.

Inevitably “all pegs break”, and thus, due to various factors, the US dollar is coming under increasing pressure: declining international interest in taking on US debt; increasing geopolitical competition; and domestic fatigue with the unequal societal consequences of having monetary dominance.

Yet, instead of a new nation-state currency replacing the US Dollar, Bitcoin has the potential to be a viable hard money replacement.

The currencies of the world are in flux.

In this interview, I talk to macroeconomist and investment strategist Lyn Alden. We discuss currency wars, positive and negative consequences for the US having a global reserve currency, the consolidation of global currencies and whether Bitcoin can become an alternative reserve currency.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD443 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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2021 Trading & On-Chain Review with Willy Woo Dec 27, 2021

“If we break the all time high properly, we run through the fibs and let’s face it $69k to $100k is nothing.”
— Willy Woo

Location: Remote
Date: Thursday 23rd December
Companies: Hypersheet
Role: Co-Founder

2021 has been a year like no other in Bitcoin. The market has matured dramatically with increased institutional interest following the Michael Saylor and MicroStrategy playbook, El Salvador driving nation-state adoption and more sophisticated market instruments with the launch of two US-based Bitcoin futures ETFs.

The maturing of the market seems to have broken the typical 4-year cycle around the halving. No longer are we seeing huge parabolic run ups and massive +80% sell-offs. Instead, we have had much more complex price action throughout the year. After hitting mid-$60,000s in May, we had a 50% correction followed by months of consolidation before another run-up and a new all-time high in November.

Now, at the end of 2021, the bitcoin price is ~$50,000, and while it is still the same price as it was in February, so much has changed. So if the traditional market cycles are broken and we are entering a new, more mature period for Bitcoin, what will 2022 bring?

In this interview, I talk to Willy Woo, an on-chain analyst and Co-Founder of Hypersheet. We discuss how the price action in 2021, what to expect in 2022 & beyond and how the market has matured.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD442 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The State of Bitcoin Mining with Amanda Fabiano & Jaime Leverton Dec 22, 2021

“It’s really only been this calendar year that all public miners started to hold almost all of their output… miners used to be the source of incremental liquidity of bitcoin into the system, but now that so many miners are holding, it is restricting supply.”
— Jaime Leverton

Location: New York
Date: Thursday 9th December
Companies: Galaxy Digital; Hut 8 Mining
Role: Head of Mining; CEO

Satoshi’s white paper introduced the principle of bitcoin mining as both an incentive for creating new blocks, as a means to distribute coins into circulation, and as a means of encouraging nodes to remain honest. Mining is, therefore, the bedrock for Bitcoin. Yet, it is poorly understood even by the most experienced Bitcoiners.

The manufacturing of mining hardware is currently dominated by a Chinese duopoly, which in turn depend upon just two Asian semiconductor companies. Whilst the market for mining hardware is more decentralised, a sizable proportion of ownership is in private hands. Thus, it is hard to get reliable data on the size of the market in terms of hashpower, machine units, and mining costs.

Combined with bitcoins volatility, this significant uncertainty makes the financing of Bitcoin mining a complex market. Added to this are the difficulties caused by trade tariffs on Chinese goods and the current drama of ubiquitous supply chain issues affecting chip supplies and freight logistics. Finally, mining companies are in the firing line over perceived environmental impacts.

Yet, despite all of these headwinds, Bitcoin mining is a thriving business in both the United States and Canada. Investment is at an all-time high, innovation is driving operations to maximise the hash rate, and the wider world is waking up to how it supports the energy grid and rural communities.

In this interview, I talk to Amanda Fabiano, Head of Mining at Galaxy Digital and Jaime Leverton, CEO Hut 8 Mining. We discuss the current ASIC and mining markets, running operations in an uncertain industry during uncertain times, ESG FUD and the future of mining.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD441 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Why Proof of Stake is Flawed with Lane Rettig Dec 20, 2021

“When you make this change that we just talked about going from Proof of Work to Proof of Stake you break a lot of the really cool stuff…I don’t think any of us appreciated the complexity and how much fixing we’d have to do after breaking Nakamoto consensus.”
— Lane Rettig

Location: New York
Date: Sunday 5th December
Project: Ethereum
Role: Core Developer

The Proof of Work (PoW) consensus protocol is under relentless attack.

Earlier this month The House of Representatives held a hearing on digital assets. Rashida Tlaib dismissively questioned PoW, quoting erroneous Bitcoin transaction energy cost data. In response Stellar’s CEO Denelle Dixon implicitly agreed PoW was energy intensive, and that “we all need to focus on minimizing the energy consumption as much as possible”.

The next day Ripple’s co-founder Chairman Chris Larsen published a medium article that stated “Bitcoin’s code needs to be changed to a low energy consensus algorithm like those used by nearly all other major crypto protocols.”

Last week CNBC interviewed the CEOs of 2 wealth management firms. One stated the following:

“Bitcoin operates on PoW: that’s the older technology, it’s slower, it’s really a drain on energy. Proof of Stake (PoS) is the newer system, it’s where I’d want my money going. It’s less energy intensive. It’s faster. It’s more secure."

In potentially the biggest change to any blockchain ever implemented, Ethereum is planning to move from PoW to PoS. PoS has been argued by its proponents (most notably Vitalik Buterin) to not only be less energy intensive than PoW, but to also provide significantly much cheaper security, and greater decentralization.

But, the arguments dismissing PoW and recommending PoS are fundamentally flawed.

In this interview, I talk to the former Ethereum Core Developer Lane Rettig, who now works as a core developer for Spacemesh. We discuss the history and logic behind PoW, the drivers for developing new consensus protocols, how PoS is set to work within Ethereum, and the significant flaws and risks this proposed change entails.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD440 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Footballer Turned Bitcoiner with Kieran Gibbs Dec 19, 2021

“You quickly learn that [bitcoin] is an extremely robust system that is designed to only go up.”
— Kieran Gibbs

Location: Washington D.C.
Date: Wednesday 1st December
Project: Inter Miami
Role: Professional Footballer

Ever since Russell Okung's famous “Pay me in Bitcoin” tweet, the trend for professional athletes taking their salary in Bitcoin has been on the rise.

Russell teamed up with Strike to take payment in Bitcoin. Earlier this year, Odell Beckham Jr revealed he would take his salary in Bitcoin thanks to Cash App, and most recently, Kieran Gibbs announced his intention to take half his salary in Bitcoin with the help of XBTO.

Kieran Gibbs is an ex-England international who built his career playing for Arsenal. He now plays in the MLS with David Beckham's new franchise Inter Miami.

In this interview, I talk to Kieran Gibbs, and we discuss his journey down the Bitcoin rabbit hole, his decision to take his paycheque in Bitcoin, as well as his playing career and move to the MLS.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD439 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Separation of Money & State with Matt Stoller & Peter Van Valkenburgh Dec 17, 2021

“People are running from a system that’s clearly organised by cynical malevolent types in the financial system and they’re running straight into the arms of a system which is organised by a different group of predators… that’s the fear I have with crypto.”
— Matt Stoller

Location: Washington D.C.
Date: Saturday 4th December
Project: American Economic Liberties Project & Coin Center
Role: Director of Research & Research Director

2021 has been a monumental year for Bitcoin for many reasons. As a result, Bitcoin has matured in the minds of casual observers: it is now seriously viewed as a viable alternative to other forms of money. Whilst this is a validation for proponents, such a situation is like a fever dream for those who believe in the primacy of the state.

China has banned private digital assets. The IMF is concerned about the impact of digital assets on financial stability. On Wednesday, the lead economist at the IMF stated that urgent international coordination is required to implement regulation. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has echoed these comments.

There are also concerns from more vocal advocates for democracy. Such people argue there is no such thing as deregulation: someone is always making the rules. The decision is whether such rules are made within the purview of collective agreement, or by unelected and unaccountable powers. This community thinks Bitcoin undermines the state and thereby democracy.

Bitcoin is rightly or wrongly associated with an anarcho capitalist ideology. Yet, the Bitcoin community is a broad church. There is a growing sense that a silent majority who still believe in government, but also see Bitcoin as a powerful check on centralised control. They view Bitcoin as second amendment rights for money.

In this interview, I talk to Matt Stoller: author of ‘Goliath: The 100-Year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy’, about his recent newsletter post ‘Cryptocurrencies: A Necessary Scam?’. To make the case for Bitcoin I am joined by Coin Center’s Peter Van Valkenburgh. We discuss the issue of power consolidation, the current crisis with democracy, and the monopoly of money.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD438 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin and The American Dream with CJ Wilson & Amanda Cavaleri Dec 15, 2021

“Bitcoin’s one of the most American innovations, maybe even since the constitution. It levels the playing fields completely. It’s ruled by rules not rulers… I think it really can be this glue that brings this divided country back together.”
— Amanda Cavaleri

Location: Washington D.C.
Date: Sunday 5th December
Project: Bitcoin Today Coalition
Role: Leadership & Advisory Board

Studies have shown that education improves decision-making ability, that’s not a great surprise. The real breakthrough in the latter part of the 20th century was the identification that educational efforts in adults are best directed at correcting for cognitive bias: our subconscious subjective version of reality that can lead us to making irrational decisions.

This issue is widely apparent in the modern world dominated by disruptive technology seeking to undo long established but ineffective human developed systems. That such systems are controlled by power structures dominated by an older generation makes this issue more acute.

This is perhaps the greatest risk for Bitcoin: blind or willful ignorance leads to irrational decision making at the level of the state. That is where organisations such as the ‘Bitcoin Today Coalition’ come in. It is an interest group representing Bitcoin holders and the wider Bitcoin industry. One of its core aims is to increase Bitcoin literacy within America’s legislative and regulatory bodies.

In this interview, I talk to 2 leaders of the Bitcoin Today Coalition: CJ Wilson and Amanda Cavaleri. We discuss educating the political class on Bitcoin and how it can make a strong America through strengthening energy grids, revitalizing rural economies, and giving those on the bottom economic rung equal access to a financial system.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD437 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Miami: The Bitcoin City with Mayor Francis Suarez Dec 13, 2021

“Often times those people who portend to care the most about the impoverished in our community are the ones in many ways that are the most hostile to Bitcoin, which is wrong; it’s absolutely wrong.”
— Mayor Francis Suarez

Location: Miami
Date: Wednesday 1st December
Organization: City of Miami
Role: Mayor of Miami

It is a common refrain that politics is in crisis. Polarization is producing deadlock. Election cycles mean big decisions are kicked down the road. A lack of term limits in congress results in a generation of out of touch leaders.

But there is hope. A new cohort of energised and informed political leaders willing to tackle systemic issues are coming to the fore. Emblematic of this shift is the Mayor for the City of Miami Francis X. Suarez.

Galvanised by dealing with the impact of the 2007 financial crisis on municipal government, Mayor Suarez recognized that executive power means creating the conditions for prosperity: sound fiscal discipline, attractive tax codes, and a government that supports entrepreneurship.

Mayor Suarez also knows that leadership is key in an uncertain and changing world. He understands how Bitcoin is leading a change to resolve broken human systems through code. Providing a vision of a Bitcoin led future aims to give Miami’s citizens a new sense of economic hope and trust, both for themselves and the generations to follow.

In this interview, I talk with Mayor Francis Suarez about leading the City of Miami. We discuss the political system, the role of a Mayor, and running a successful city. Further we talk about how Bitcoin re-energises capitalist systems, the benefits of Bitcoin mining, and MiamiCoin.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD436 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin & the Future of Bonds with Greg Foss Dec 10, 2021

“Bonds have been in a 40 year favourable market to own. That’s now changed. Anybody managing a bond fund now has only experienced the positive about being a bond fund manager. This is a new paradigm for them, and old habits die hard.”
— Greg Foss

Location: Miami
Date: Thursday 2nd December
Company: Validus Power Corp
Role: Bitcoin Strategist

Credit is central to the modern capitalist system. This makes bonds the most important financial contract in the world, significantly more important than equities. So, when credit markets get sick, all other markets suffer.

Bonds have performed well for nearly two generations. However, the market looks like it’s about to turn. Yields are being suppressed by unprecedented government purchase schemes. This has to end, and when it does, yields will increase, prices will drop, and debt will become more costly for governments.

The demand side effects are just as damaging. Pension funds are mandated to make significant bond purchases (usually representing 40% of a portfolio). Low bond yields in a high inflation environment result in increased liabilities for pension funds. Rising yields are obviously better, but not for those holding bonds dropping in value.

Is it time for pension funds to be allowed to add bitcoin to their portfolios?

In this interview, I talk with Bitcoin Strategist Greg Foss about how government bond markets are being manipulated through quantitative easing and how this will soon have to end. We further discuss what this means for equities and pensions and the potential for investors to seek refuge in bitcoin.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD435 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin & The Battle For The Fate Of Humanity with Mark Moss Dec 08, 2021

“From the beginning of time it’s been oppression, revolution, freedom, oppression, revolution, freedom; and I think the cycle that’s happened since the beginning of time is about to be broken, I think the battle that we’re facing right now is for the battle of humanity.”
— Mark Moss

Location: Miami
Date: Wednesday 1st December
Role: Market Analyst

Studying history helps us paint a detailed picture of where we stand today. But, our modern society is complex; it is shaped by the interplay between political, social, cultural, technological, and financial spheres. So, understanding our world requires gaining a knowledge of a range of histories.

When one gains a full appreciation of the past, patterns can be identified. Sometimes, extraordinary patterns in society can emerge.

We’re on the cusp of a cyclical convergence that happens only once every 250 years. The last time this happened democracy was born and the world changed forever.

We’re again at such a moment, where momentous change is upon us. But the future is unclear, and this time the cycles could break. We could be on a path to an authoritarian future it may be impossible to return from.

So could Bitcoin be the innovation upon which the fate of humanity depends?

In this interview, I talk to the serial entrepreneur and market analyst Mark Moss. We discuss the rare confluence of multiple societal cycles, the pendulum of individualism and collectivism, and how Bitcoin could disrupt it all.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD434 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The Fourth Turning Revisited with Brandon Quittem Dec 06, 2021

“Theoretically Bitcoin is a monetary system to last 1,000 year instead of 50 years, what does that do to society? What if this institution doesn’t decay, what if it lasts, what if we can build on top of it a greater, more collaborative society? That’s entirely possible.”
— Brandon Quittem

Location: Miami
Date: Tuesday 30th November
Company: Swan Bitcoin
Role: Director of Marketing

“History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” This quote, credited to Mark Twain, is a good TD;LR for The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy by William Strauss and Neil Howe. In this seminal book, they theorize that American history can be subdivided into four recurring generational periods, which culminate in a crisis at the end of 80-90 year cycles.

It is argued that we’re in the middle of a fourth turning crisis, an era of destruction when institutions are dismantled and rebuilt. In the year since I first spoke to Brandon Quittem about The Fourth Turning, economic and geopolitical events have further fuelled this belief.

US global hegemony is waning, concern is growing that factional tensions in the US could escalate, there is increasing grass-root tension across the world countries over state-mandated pandemic controls. In the meantime, as economic indicators flash red, trust in politicians and central bankers is rapidly eroding.

So are we witnessing the evolution of the fourth turning amidst the rise of Bitcoin?

In this interview, I talk to Brandon Quittem, a writer and advisor for Swan Bitcoin. We discuss what we can learn from previous turnings, Bitcoin’s role as a life raft in these uncertain times, and whether Bitcoin could fundamentally end these cycles.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD433 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Future of Bitcoin with Nic Carter Dec 04, 2021

“Satoshi had to do so much to win our trust. Everything open source. Everything with fair warning; full disclosure. Create the most auditable monetary system ever, and then leave the project. What other digital asset or cryptocurrency has done even 1/10th of the things Satoshi did to convince us that this was a legitimate and fair thing. I mean I haven’t seen anything even remotely approximating that.”
— Nic Carter

Location: Miami
Date: Tuesday 30th November
Company: Castle Island Ventures
Role: Partner

What to some may have seemed wild conjecture last year, has now become real. A major public company and a nation state are now operating under a Bitcoin Standard. But, as the digital asset matures, so do the discussions and consideration of Bitcoin in terms of its role within society.

With growing regulatory scrutiny in the US, what are the specific regulatory risks for Bitcoin? How should we acknowledge US political support and opposition? What is Bitcoin’s role as competition to the state’s monopoly on money? How does it facilitate alternatives to sovereign currencies, and how will currency failures in a world with Bitcoin manifest themselves?

All these questions feed into the fundamental debate now manifesting itself within the Bitcoin community: will hyperbitcoinisation occur? Does it need to occur? Can Bitcoin successfully thrive as a societal good in tandem with Fiat currencies and central banks?

In this interview, I talk to Nic Carter, Partner at Castle Island Ventures and co-founder and Chairman of Coin Metrics. We discuss Bitcoin’s maturing role within the evolving US and global economy, and it’s role in relationship to stable coins, gold, and the US dollar.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD432 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Bitcoin is Digital Energy with Michael Saylor Dec 02, 2021

“People joke like, ‘are you going to be 5% exposed, or 100% exposed,’ I’m 500% exposed. I’m not 5%, 50%, we started with $250 million of capital, we bought $3.5 billion of bitcoin.”
— Michael Saylor

Location: Miami
Date: Monday 29th November
Company: Microstrategy
Role: CEO

In August 2020, MicroStrategy commenced with the bold defensive move to invest significant treasury assets in Bitcoin in response to inflationary pressures. Since then, MicroStrategy has strategically enhanced their holdings to become the largest corporate owner of Bitcoin and just last week announced an additional $414 million purchase.

The strategy has been led by CEO Michael Saylor. As a developer of enterprise software, Saylor has long espoused digital transformation. Bitcoin is part of that process, digitising the last major building blocks of the analogue society: property, energy, and money.

Whilst this first wave of corporate adoption is entrepreneurial in spirit, the advantages of corporate adoption are clear. Yet, despite a glut of Bitcoin miners maximising their Bitcoin hodling, MicroStrategy hasn't been followed by a wave of institutions following suit. Such inertia is predicated on a range of impediments that may fall away in the next few years.

In this interview, I talk to Michael Saylor, the CEO of MicroStrategy. We discuss the evolution of their Bitcoin strategy, technological disintermediation, and Bitcoin as a foundational societal technology.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD431 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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The Bitcoin Brain with Tomer Strolight Nov 30, 2021

“Everything in the system is self-regulating and self-adjusting, and it’s decentralised and autonomous, and we can see these phenomena much better in nature than we can in human-made entities; Bitcoin is a lot more like an organism than it is like a company or a government.”
— Tomer Strolight

Location: Remote
Date: Sunday 28th November
Project: tomerstrolight.medium.com
Role: Writer

The modern capitalist system is based on centralised and hierarchical structures of control. Bitcoin is a divergent innovation, structured to be decentralised. Progress is made through consensus, which forgoes the need to know or trust any of the parties involved.

This can be an anathema to some people who are introduced to Bitcoin. They can not conceptualise how such a system can operate. This is partly because there has not been a great history of decentralised governance systems in modern societies.

Part of the issue may also be how people conceptualise Bitcoin. Trying to frame it around man-made systems may be a fool's errand.

Is it better to compare it to less understood yet ubiquitous biological systems, specifically the human brain?

In this interview, I talk to Bitcoin writer Tomer Strolight. We discuss how Bitcoin is analogous to the human brain, the organisation of decentralised systems, and the emergent nature of consciousness.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD430 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Buy the Fucking Dip with Willy Woo Nov 27, 2021

“It’s a different game now, it’s more measured, a little bit slower, much more capital involved...Bitcoin has really crossed that chasm now to impact traditional finance very clearly in this year.”
— Willy Woo

Location: Remote
Date: Thursday 25th November
Project: Hypersheet
Role: Co-Founder

Comparisons between the 2017 & 2020/2021 bull markets are commonplace, and for a good reason. The 2016 halving kicked off a huge run and the first instance of wider retail getting involved in the Bitcoin market. 2020's halving was one catalyst for the current bull run. However, this time, the market participants are very different.

Michael Saylor helped change the way institutions approach bitcoin, and a slew of other companies followed in his footsteps. Then, most notably, El Salvador became the first nation-state to make Bitcoin legal tender. Mainstream bitcoin investment has been a defining event of 2021.

Further, this year has witnessed much more complex market activity: ETFs, shorting, and debt leveraged long positions. As a result, stakeholders have also had to assimilate a rapid increase in market-shifting news. This past month has been no exception, culminating in Nayib Bukele, El Salvador's president, announcing his country's 'Bitcoin Bond'.

In this interview, I talk to on-chain analyst and long-time friend of the show, Willy Woo. We discuss price forecasts, El Salvador's 'Bitcoin Bond', political attacks on Bitcoin, macro events, and comparisons to Ethereum.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD429 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin Rehab: Running Plebnet with American HODL, P & D++ Nov 25, 2021

“We have Lightning, and Lightning is Bitcoin. And Lightning does millions of transactions per second, instantaneously, with finality of settlement. They’re irreversible; there’s no mining, there’s no blockchain. And if this sounds like magic, it absolutely is… so it obliterates the use case of every shitcoin in the world, and it kind of obliterates the legacy financial rails as well.”
— D++

Location: Remote
Date: Wednesday 25th November
Project: Plebnet

The benefits of the Lightning Network are clear for all to see. By taking transactions off-chain, you can settle almost instantly for a tiny fee while retaining better privacy than with an on-chain transaction.

The Lightning Network is paramount to Bitcoin's scaling, and it is growing at a rapid pace, but while the Lightning Network is thriving, for new users it can still be a daunting experience. When running a Lightning node, you need to consider things like opening and closing channels, channel size, rebalancing and liquidity.

Luckily, Plebnet is here to help. Starting out as a small group of people looking to educate and onboard Bitcoiners to Lightning, they have grown into a community of over 5,000 members and over 1,100 nodes.

In this interview, I talk to American HODL, P, and D++. We discuss the importance of the Lightning Network, the challenges of onboarding people and the growth of Plebnet.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD428 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

El Salvador’s Bitcoin Bond with Lyn Alden Nov 23, 2021

“Why don’t some large countries just print a little bit of money and buy bitcoin and stick it on their reserves for example; and if you were to see those cracks in the dam start to appear, and you were to start to see that happening, that’s potentially a really explosive moment.”
— Lyn Alden

Location: Remote
Date: Monday 22nd November
Project: lynalden.com
Role: Macroeconomist

In the last month alone, Bitcoin has hit all-time high prices, Bitcoin on exchanges has hit multi-year lows, and El Salvador announced a $1 billion Bitcoin bond to fund the development of a Bitcoin city.

At the same time, economic signals have started to flash red. Inflation is on the rise: it's hit 6.2% in the US and is rising at the fastest rate in decades. Traditionally strong bond markets are under pressure and currencies in some parts of the world show signs of distress. The dichotomy is that whilst some search for safe havens, with the lack of a positive yielding bond market, many are looking to riskier assets.

The economic conditions for bitcoin to become a recognised international gold-like reserve asset are upon us. The scope and scale of bitcoin adoption suggest that major players are literally buying into this narrative.

In this interview, I talk to macroeconomist and investment strategist Lyn Alden. We discuss the lack of yield in bond markets, El Salvador's bitcoin bonds, inflation and the direction and role of the Fed.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD427 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Decentralising Bitcoin Mining with Whit Gibbs Nov 21, 2021

“We believe that the strongest thing for Bitcoin’s network is to have millions of miners as opposed to 12 or 15 miners with millions of ASICs.”
— Whit Gibbs

Location: London
Date: Friday 19th November
Project: Compass Mining
Role: Founder & CEO

Proof of Work is the bedrock of Bitcoin. It provides the network security but is not immune to attack. One attack vector is a collusion of miners who gain a significant amount of the hashrate could theoretically block transactions and reorganise the blockchain. This is known as a 51% attack.

While this is known as a 51% attack, it would likely require significantly more than 51% of hashpower to pull off this attack. However, in 2014 GHash.io were able to attain 55% of the hashrate, but fortunately, they were willing to assist the community in overcoming this potential weakness.

For a number of years, China housed a large amount of the hashpower, but their seemingly reckless geopolitical decision to willingly allow for ‘the great mining migration’ to occur earlier this year, saved the community from another dangerous consolidation of mining power.

Compass Mining recognised this fragility, but also a business opportunity in being able to become a recognised and trusted facilitator of retail mining, with the mission to “support the decentralised growth of hashrate and strengthen network security by helping more people, learn, explore and mine bitcoin.” To that end, they provide and support retail access to mining infrastructure while hardware ownership remains in the hands of individuals.

In this interview, I talk to the Founder and CEO of Compass Mining, Whit Gibbs, about their rapid success, the associated growing pains they’re overcoming, and the technical details of connecting retail mining with physical hardware and power markets.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD426 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin Vs Altcoins 2 with Alex Gladstein & Erik Voorhees Nov 18, 2021

“What I care about isn’t that Bitcoin succeeds, or that Ethereum succeeds, or that any specific project succeeds. What I care about is separating money from state; the entire financial system being built on market principles instead of coercion.”
— Erik Voorhees

Location: Remotely
Date: Tuesday 16th November
Project: Human Rights Foundation & ShapeShift
Role: Chief Strategy Officer & CEO, Founder

The schism between Bitcoin maximalists, and those who champion altcoins, is a feature of the ecosystem. The arguments are well worn. However, the history of the debate has largely been regarded as toxic.

Maximalists tend to believe that, at best, ‘altcoins’ are inferior iterations of Bitcoin that involve a compromise, usually greater centralization in favour of larger transaction capacity. The compounding issue is that the majority of these tokens are scams, efforts to rug pull ignorant retail investors. Either way, altcoins are neither aligned to, nor on a trajectory to align with, Bitcoin.

Altcoin advocates point to the rapid innovation happening in the space, where the TradFi is being disrupted in real-time. This is whilst the promise of Bitcoin being a foundational layer for DeFi remains just that, a promise.

In this interview, I discuss the ideological differences between Bitcoin and altcoins with Erik Voorhees & Alex Gladstein. We discuss the importance of Bitcoin, monetary policies, the political science of blockchains, and consensus & coercion.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD425 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

El Salvador’s Bitcoin Report Card with Aaron Van Wirdum Nov 16, 2021

“The only reason gold has the monetary value that it does have is because there’s this small chance that one day it will be the reserve currency again...and Bitcoin is making the exact same bet. ”
— Aaron Van Wirdum

Location: London
Date: Tuesday 9th November
Project: Bitcoin Magazine
Role: Print Editor-In-Chief

When I first visited El Salvador, towards the end of 2019, Michael Petersen was in the early stages of implementing his vision of a local bitcoin economy in the coastal village of El Zonte. What started as a small-scale experiment has become a transformative initiative and a key driver in the country's adoption of Bitcoin as legal tender.

On 7th June 2021, El Salvador passed the Bitcoin Law, with an ambitious plan to replicate El Zonte nationwide and make Bitcoin a central part of El Salvador’s economy. Nayib Bukele, the Salvadoran President, mandated an ambitious 3-month deadline to implement the Law. And, despite the complete lack of both public and private infrastructure, on 7th September 2021, El Salvador became the first country in the world to make Bitcoin legal tender.

In this interview, I talk to journalist and Print Editor-In-Chief at Bitcoin Magazine, Aaron Van Wirdum. We discuss the implementation of the Bitcoin law, what has changed in El Salvador and which nation-states might follow in their footsteps.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD424 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Emancipation From Financial Patriarchy with Anita Posch Nov 12, 2021

“Everybody says ‘yeah, it’s great for people in Kenya, or Zimbabwe’, but then everybody’s just interested in the price, and what Elon Musk is saying again.”
— Anita Posch

Location: Remotely
Date: Thursday 11th November
Project: anitaposch.com
Role: Author, Podcaster, Educator

It’s easy to forget that those who have acquired Bitcoin are still early adopters, with the enthusiasm and courage to have found the appropriate resources needed to investigate this still nascent and mysterious creation.

However, the key to the next wave of Bitcoin adoption, encompassing a wider cross section of society, is education specifically tailored to the needs of later adopters. For these people Bitcoin is surrounded in myths and impenetrable concepts.

This is precisely the goal of Anita Posch’s new book (L)earn Bitcoin. It provides both the why, and the how, and is written for those to whom Bitcoin is a vague alien technology. Most importantly, the book provides guidance on how to take those initial steps to build confidence, and critically, safely buy and store bitcoin.

Anita is also well known for being a leading Bitcoin educator in parts of the world for which sovereign wealth is literally life changing. In particular, Anita has travelled throughout Africa, teaching people with limited resources how to acquire and use Bitcoin. She is particularly focused on supporting vulnerable groups of women around the world for whom denial of sovereign wealth is culturally or even legally condoned.

In this interview I talk to fellow Bitcoin podcaster, author, advocate, and educator Anita Posch. Anita explains how Bitcoin provides emancipation from financial patriarchy at both the individual level and nation state level. We also talked about Anita’s educational work in Africa, the importance of building bridges and trust with communities in developing nations.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD423 - Sh ow Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Deplatforming vs Free Speech with Laura Loomer Nov 10, 2021

“It’s not just about me, it’s about the millions of people not only in America but around the world who are being completely silenced...and I just find that to be unacceptable.”

— Laura Loomer

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Location: New York
Date: Friday 29th October
Project: loomered.com

This year’s Bitcoin 2021 conference was the biggest event in Bitcoin’s history, with over 12,000 people coming together in Miami.

I was there to host one of the most hotly anticipated events called ‘Banking the Unbanked’ which saw my friend Alex Gladstein interview Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Jack didn't disappoint when he began by stating “Bitcoin changes everything… I don't think there's anything more important to work on in my lifetime.”

Yet, the session is perhaps best known for the fact that activist Laura Loomer came to the stage and heckled Jack. Laura wanted a conversation with Jack about censorship, in light of the fact she has been banned from Twitter (amongst other platforms and services such as Facebook, Uber and PayPal).

She was encouraged to leave, but before she did I promised to hear her out at a more appropriate time, so here we are.

Whatever you think of Laura, ‘deplatforming’ is one of the most contentious issues in society today. It cuts to the heart of the debate around free speech and American’s first amendment rights. Should we have limits on speech?

Or is ‘hate speech’ misapplied to muzzle acceptable discourse? Who decides on what is acceptable or not? And can private organisations remove voices from their platforms when they have become the world’s town square?

Laura has tested these arguments in the courts by suing Twitter, Apple, Facebook, and Twitter.

In this interview I talk to far-right political activist Laura Loomer. We discuss racism and religious discrimination, debanking and deplatforming, and the limits of free speech.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD422 - Show Notes
-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

Leave a review on iTunes

Share the show and episodes with your friends and family
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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

The Future of Politics & Bitcoin with Andrew Yang Nov 08, 2021

“Politicians are creatures of the market. What market are they responding to? There are political incentives, donors, the media...we have to create our own political incentives, the donors, and the media to stand up for Bitcoin and progress, otherwise we’re going to end up on the cutting room floor.”
— Andrew Yang

Location: New York
Date: Friday 29th October
Project: Forward Party
Role: Leader

Nearly two-thirds of Americans want to vote for someone outside of the current two main parties. The current duopoly is limiting competition in the space for ideas, and worse, it’s actively promoting the polarisation of society. Yet, voting for a third-party candidate isn’t a choice most voters get, and even when they do, it risks being deemed a wasted vote by a media that frames election results as an existential risk to the nation.

The underlying concern is that the current political system is getting in the way of solving the biggest problems at a time when the economy and society is changing in fundamental ways. But whilst most people can see that our politics and media are dysfunctional, they also feel impotent.

Andrew Yang is one of those rare individuals who has decided to actively try and change the system, despite the odds being stacked against change being driven by an outsider. However, he’s already shown he can do the heavy lifting: he made a meaningful mark on the 2020 Presidential election despite not being part of the political establishment or having had a celebrity platform.

In this interview, I talk to Andrew, author of ‘The War on Normal People’ (2018), ‘Forward’ (2021), and leader of the Forward Party, about his 2020 Presidential run and his current mission to bring about genuine political competition. We then discuss what such competition would enable: reasoned debate about big ideas such as Universal Basic Income, health reform, and Bitcoin.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD421 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Censorship & Cancel Culture with Katherine Brodsky Nov 06, 2021

“What I think you’re seeing is a really rather small group of people but a very dominant and loud group of people dominating the narratives and shutting everyone else down because people are kind of scared.”
— Katherine Brodsky

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Sunday 17th October
Company: Freelance
Role: Writer

The internet democratised the dissemination of information. From news to social discourse, anyone with access to the internet can broadcast their thoughts to the world.

With the growth of the internet and social media, the news business model entirely shifted. No longer could newspapers rely on physical sales. Instead, ad revenue and clicks became the meaningful metric.

Social media and clickbait articles, along with partisan organisations, have created a massively polarising media landscape. The news is now more politicised than ever.

This has led to social media becoming a feed of unverified news, and tech companies have taken it upon themselves to curate that news and decide what you should and shouldn't see.

In this interview, I talk to freelance writer Katherine Brodsky. We discuss free speech and censorship, the politicisation of news and the problems with banning misinformation.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD420 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Ethics of Bitcoin Maximalism with Pete Rizzo Nov 04, 2021

“Humanity has generally progressed by moving through shifts in thought, there was the renaissance, there was the enlightenment, there was the dark ages, and now we live in fiat land...Bitcoin is the reaction to that, bitcoin will fix that problem.”
— Pete Rizzo

Location: New York
Date: Wednesday 27th October
Company: Kraken & Bitcoin Magazine
Role: Editor

The role of Bitcoin maximalism is a hugely divisive topic. As a decentralised network, Bitcoin has no leaders or spokespeople to counter false information or fend off an attack.

In the absence of leaders, bitcoiners from all over have become an important immune system for the network. They protect the protocol from bad actors, false narratives and prevent anyone from gaining too much influence over the network.

This has proved highly effective and has been key throughout the history of Bitcoin. Most notably during the scaling wars that culminated in 2017.

However, for all the good toxic maximalism has done, it can, at times, go too far. But in a world headed to hyperbitcoinisation, is Bitcoin maximalism an important ethical stand to take?

In this interview, I talk to Pete Rizzo, the Editor at Kraken & Bitcoin Magazine. We discuss the ethics of bitcoin maximalism, its role in protecting bitcoin, and the path to hyperbitcoinisation.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD419 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Make a tip:
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Fix the Money Fix The World with Lawrence Lepard Nov 02, 2021

“I think it’s over… it’s changed, we are now in an inflationary environment, get used to it, get ready for it, prepare for it, protect yourself against it.”
— Lawrence Lepard

Location: New York
Date: Wednesday 27th October
Company: Equity Management Associates
Role: Investment Manager

Bitcoin is decentralised sound money whose supply cannot be arbitrarily expanded. It’s a system where no one has an advantage or disproportionate control.

The ability to increase the supply of money is a very powerful tool to wield. Through monetary policy, orthodox economists aim to promote growth and mitigate crises.

However, the Austrian school of economics explains instead that central banks create the environment for crises in the first place.

In the Great Financial Crisis, trillions of dollars were printed to bail out failing banking institutions and stimulate the economy. Instead of repercussions, many bankers received millions in bonuses. While credit markets rebounded, many average Americans lost their homes, their jobs and received no bailouts.

So can Bitcoin help by aligning incentives in society? And what will happen to gold?

In this interview, I talk to Investment Manager and Austrian Economist Lawrence Lepard. We discuss sound money as a moral issue, the monetary role of gold, and why bitcoin is the most important invention in history.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD418 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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How Bitcoin Helps Palestinians with Alex Gladstein & Fadi Elsalameen Oct 31, 2021

“The only sign of hope when I’m looking at this is actually looking at something like bitcoin because you are able to circumvent all these different levels of restrictions, whether it’s the Isralis or the Palestinian Authority, or even Hamas.”
— Fadi Elsalameen

Location: Remotely
Date: Wednesday 20th October
Project: Human Rights Foundation, American Security Project
Role: Chief Strategy Officer, Adjunct Senior Fellow

Palestine is a country ravaged by 4 wars in 15 years. However, military conflict is only part of the economic challenges the country faces. There is monetary warfare being waged against its citizens.

Crucial services that people in most developing countries take for granted, like simply transferring money, are almost impossible. It’s exacerbated by economic policies that have left Palestinians dependent on the outside world.

Can Bitcoin allow the people to peacefully fight back against arduous barriers and capital controls?

In this interview, I talk to Alex Gladstein and Fadi Elsalamaeen. We discuss declining economic conditions in Palestine, the underlying monetary problems, and how Bitcoin can help.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD417 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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Make a tip:
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The Bitcoin Bull Market Phase 2 with Willy Woo Oct 29, 2021

“That cycle has repeated for the good part of the decade, you’ve seen many of these cycles, and we’ve just reloaded, the shotgun has just reloaded with new ammo, and these guys are at peak, and we’re ready for another run.”
— Willy Woo

Location: Remotely
Date: Thursday 28th October
Company: Hypersheet
Role: Co-Founder

In June, with the Bitcoin price in the low $30 thousands following a 50% drop, a number of technical analysts believed the top was in and that we were entering another prolonged bear market. However, the on-chain data told a different story and Willy Woo, amongst others, believed the bull market was still alive.

The past few months have proved the case for the on-chain analysts. In October alone, the price of Bitcoin is up over 40%, and on the 20th, it broke over $66k, a new all-time high.

The launch of the first US Bitcoin futures ETFs was a significant driver of this price rally, with futures ETFs facilitating access to deep pools of capital liquidity and risk-neutral trades.

How will this impact the market, and what can we expect from phase 2 of the bull run?

In this interview, I talk to an on-chain analyst and the co-founder of Hypersheet, Willy Woo. We discuss the impact of Bitcoin ETFs, the next stage of the bull market and the role of toxic maximalism.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD416 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Is Hyperinflation Coming? with Lyn Alden Oct 27, 2021

“I expect the 2020s to be a pretty inflationary decade. Now hyperinflation has not been my base case in developed markets, but I don’t rule it out as a possibility.”
— Lyn Alden

Location: Remotely
Date: Monday 25th October
Company: lynalden.com
Role: Macroeconomist

Over the last 18 months, Bitcoin has had an astronomical rise, not just in price. It has gone from a niche asset driven by retail to being held on the balance sheet of some of the most forward-thinking corporations in the world. Not only that, El Salvador's groundbreaking legislation made Bitcoin legal tender.

During this time, the fiat currency experiment looks to be coming apart at the seams. Over the last 18 months, more than $5 trillion dollars have been created in the US alone. This increasing supply of money is driving prices higher. CPI in the US is now at 5.4%, and while the FED continues to claim inflation will be transitory, this looks highly doubtful.

How high will inflation go, and is bitcoin truly a hedge?

In this interview, I talk to macroeconomist and investment strategist Lyn Alden. We discuss the rising commodities markets, if we are likely to see wide-scale hyperinflation and the pros & cons of Bitcoin futures ETFs.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD415 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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The Resiliency of the Bitcoin Network with Nick Hansen Oct 25, 2021

“The China ban also demonstrates the resiliency of the bitcoin network and the bitcoin mining network. As long as there’s one computer running bitcoin, bitcoin won’t die, so we’ve effectively created this new lifeform that’s going to far outlast all of us, and probably humanity.”
— Nick Hansen

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Sunday 17th October
Company: Luxor Technologies
Role: CEO

Proof-of-work mining is at the heart of the bitcoin network consensus, ordering transactions into blocks and providing security. Without a healthy mining ecosystem, the Bitcoin network is vulnerable.

Earlier this year, China banned Bitcoin mining within the country. At that time, over 50% of the hashrate was said to be located in China. What followed was a huge drop in the hashrate as miners migrated out of the country.

While, on the face of it, this could be seen as a negative, the outcome was a more decentralised hashrate and a smaller concentration of miners operating within an authoritarian country.

In addition, stressed economic conditions have led to increasing uncertainty in the supply chains surrounding the fabrication of new ASIC mining equipment.

So what is the state of the Bitcoin mining industry today?

In this interview, I talk to Nick Hansen, CEO of Luxor Technologies. We discuss the resilience of the bitcoin network, mining pools and the global economics of ASIC supply chains.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD414 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Fighting for Bitcoin in Congress with Aarika Rhodes Oct 22, 2021

“I would do a great job in Washington and I would serve my constituents well, but I’m also at a disadvantage in Washington because I’m not corrupt. ”
— Aarika Rhodes

Location: Los Angeles
Date: Sunday 17th October
Role: Teacher & Congressional Candidate

Aarika Rhodes is an elementary school science teacher who is running for CA 30th Congressional District in 2022 for the Democratic Party. She is up against the anti-bitcoin and 12 term veteran Brad Sherman.

Unlike Sherman, Aarika is pro-bitcoin whilst also remaining a proponent for more left-wing policies like universal basic income.

While some believe that Bitcoin's conservative monetary policy leads to it being a more right-wing idea, Aarika is proving that it is an apolitical tool that does not discriminate.

Bitcoin is not going away, and those that embrace it early will be the ones who benefit the most, no matter which side of the political aisle they fall on.

In this interview, I talk to Democratic congressional candidate Aarika Rhodes. We discuss financial literacy and education, universal basic income, and broken incentives in our political system.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD413 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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Turning Bitcoin into Clean Water with Scott Harrison Oct 20, 2021

“People would say I’m never giving you bitcoin if you’re going to turn it into this cash trash, but if you’re willing to hold it, I’d give it to you now… we said we’re going to call it the Bitcoin Water Trust... and we’re going to hold it all until at least 2025.”
— Scott Harrison

Location: Remotely
Date: Monday 18th October
Project: Charity: Water
Role: Founder & CEO

Non-profit organisations have used Bitcoin to accept donations for a long time. One of the most notable examples of this was Wikileaks in 2011. When Paypal, Mastercard and Visa, refused to accept donations due to political pressure, Wikileaks looked to Bitcoin as a permissionless and censorship-resistant alternative.

Not only did this allow them to continue accepting donations, but they gained immensely from Bitcoin's astronomical price rise since then.

Charity: Water is a charity battling the global water crisis with the mission to bring clean water to every person living without it. They have accepted Bitcoin donations since 2014, but until now, they have almost instantly converted to fiat currencies, missing out on the price appreciation.

However, they have now set up a Bitcoin trust with the goal of collecting as many Bitcoin donations as possible. Ideally, this allows the trust to appreciate in value and in 2025, when they start putting the Bitcoin to work; they can hopefully help a much larger number of people.

In this interview, I talk to the Founder and CEO of Charity: Water, Scott Harrison. We discuss his journey from nightclub promoter to founding the charity, their goal to bring clean water to every person living without it, and the role Bitcoin plays in this.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD412 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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From Bars to Bitcoin with Justin Rhedrick Oct 18, 2021

“When I had gone to prison...I was still looking for a way to win, it didn’t matter where I was at, I’m always focused on how do I win.”

— Justin Rhedrick

SHOW DESCRIPTION

Location: Austin
Date: Thursday 7th October
Project: From Bars to Bitcoin
Role: Author

The power of a permissionless network means that people are able to participate from all walks of life by removing the ability for any individual to control your money. From billionaires on Wall Street, to street vendors in El Salvador, it is the fairest money the world has ever known. Bitcoin is for anyone.

The path to bitcoin is different for everyone. While many of the early bitcoiners found it through libertarianism, now most come to Bitcoin, at least initially, to speculate. Justin Rhedrick's story, however, is not like most.

After being released from prison for his role in a home invasion, longtime friend and author of Bitcoin & Black America, Isaiah Jackson, introduced Justin to Bitcoin.

So how did he go from prisoner to bitcoiner?

In this interview, I talk to Justin Rhedrick, the author of From Bars to Bitcoin. We discuss his imprisonment, the power of discipline, and how bitcoin helped him unlock success.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD411 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Inflation & the Role of Bitcoin with Steven McClurg Oct 15, 2021

“If the government is printing 5% more dollars and they’re using that money to do things, they have essentially taxed you with the money that you already have without you knowing it.”
— Steven McClurg

Location: Nashville
Date: Wednesday 29th September
Company: Valkyrie Investments Inc
Role: Co-Founder

Mainstream economists consider a benchmark rate of 1-3% price inflation optimal to promote consumption and economic growth. However, as prices rise, savers lose purchasing power, and asset holders increase their net worth.

Over the last 18 months, more than $5 trillion dollars have been created in the US alone, and legislation that would spend over $3 trillion more is under consideration. This increasing supply of money is driving prices higher.

Today, Consumer Price Inflation has sustained a 30-year high of over 5%, and it may be threatening to go higher.

So what happens next, and how does Bitcoin fit in?

In this interview I talk to Steven McClurg, Co-Founder of Valkyrie Investments. We discuss the problems of rising inflation, fragility in equities and bonds, and if Bitcoin can serve as a hedge.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD410 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin and the U.S. Fiscal Reckoning with Avik Roy Oct 13, 2021

“If Bitcoin ever does compete with Treasury bonds as the premier store of wealth in the world that’s a really really big deal, that transforms the entire way the world economy works.”
— Avik Roy

Location: Austin, TX
Date: Thursday 7th October
Company: Forbes
Role: Editor

In 1971, Richard Nixon ended Bretton Woods, severing the entire global monetary system from its anchor, gold. Governments around the world have since been able to create new money and increase debt virtually without restriction.

Fifty years later, and there’s no political will to slow down spending. Instead, new money is created to pay for new spending, and the numbers involved get larger and larger.

Governments can issue new currency to service their own debt, but the cycle of increasing deficit spending and monetary inflation may already be leading to spiralling debt and runaway prices with no obvious way out.

In this interview, I talk to Avik Roy, Editor at Forbes. We discuss the growing problems with debt and inflation, healthcare, and central bank digital currencies.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD409 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
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If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Hidden Danger in the Infrastructure Bill with Abraham Sutherland & Greg Xethalis Oct 11, 2021

“This is an amendment to the tax code but it’s really a new criminal prohibition on peer-to-peer transfers and it’s been overlooked.”
— Abraham Sutherland

Location: Austin, TX
Date: Friday 8th October
Company: Independent, Multicoin Capital
Role: Independent, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer

In August, a bipartisan group of 69 senators passed a $1 trillion infrastructure package, including around $550 billion projected federal spending on roads, bridges, expanded broadband access and more.

While this may seem irrelevant to Bitcoin, this 2000+ page document outlined how the government plans to fund the bill. Under the 'Other Provisions' section, the bill focused on the reporting requirement for "brokers" of digital assets and their definition. These reporting requirements are designed to extract a tax from users who misreport or underreport their taxes.

This bill section caused a considerable backlash from bitcoiners as the proposed language is extensive and seems almost impossible to comply with.

While bitcoiners were up in arms about the broker definition, lawyer Abe Sutherland says that the bill contains an overlooked "digital assets" provision that could become a far bigger issue, affecting almost every bitcoin user if it becomes law.

In this interview, I talk to independent lawyer Abe Sutherland and Greg Xethalis, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer at Multicoin Capital, to discuss the onerous new reporting requirements hidden within the Infrastructure Bill.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

-----

WBD408 - Show Notes

-----
If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
Become a Patronand get access to shows early or help contribute
Make a tip:
Bitcoin: 3FiC6w7eb3dkcaNHMAnj39ANTAkv8Ufi2S
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WBD: Live in Nashville with Preston Pysh & Marty Bent Oct 08, 2021

“The price appreciation on bitcoin is not coming from an ETF, the price appreciation that’s going to make bitcoin scream over $1 million a coin, is going to be when the fixed income market comes to the realization that the 5% inflation is not going away.”
— Preston Pysh

Location: Nashville, TN
Date: Thursday 30th September
Company/project: The Investors Podcast & Great American Mining & TFTC
Role: Host & Director of Business Development & Host

2021 has been a year of significant disruption. Trillions in deficit spending are ongoing. Many countries are experiencing the highest consumer inflation seen in decades, while assets and commodities prices have soared at a phenomenal rate.

Meanwhile, China kicked half of Bitcoin’s hashrate offline by instituting a country-wide ban on mining. However, the Bitcoin network has demonstrated its antifragility as thousands of ASIC machines migrate to other countries and come back online.

While many Bitcoin naysayers have lambasted the energy use of Bitcoin’s mining industry as being environmentally unfriendly, mining is driving more efficient use of low-cost, renewable, and otherwise wasted energy sources.

In a world that is full of distortions, is Bitcoin the answer to society’s problems?

In this live interview, I talk to Preston Pysh, the host of The Investor Podcast, and Marty Bent from Tales From the Crypt and Great American Mining. We discuss rising inflation, why bitcoin mining is good for global energy use, and why bitcoin is this answer to many problems.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

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WBD407 - Show Notes

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QR Codes: Bitcoin
If you do send a tip then please email me so that I can say thank you
Subscribe on iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | YouTube | Deezer| TuneIn | RSS Feed

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Follow me on Twitter Personal | Twitter Podcast | Instagram | Medium|YouTube

If you are interested in sponsoring the show, you can read more about that here or please feel free to drop me an email to discuss options.

Bitcoin & the Financial Transformation with Greg Carson Oct 06, 2021

“Move glacially slow and design for inevitability, that’s the bitcoin thesis...I think that thesis makes bitcoin hard to beat, it’s hard to beat someone that never gives up, and bitcoin is never going to give up. ”
— Greg Carson

Location: New York
Date: Monday 20th September
Company: XBTO Humla Ventures
Role: Managing Partner

For millennia, technology has shaped society, and sometimes in giant leaps. Whether it’s the invention of gunpowder or connecting our world with the internet, the result is civilisational transformation.

Today, Bitcoin is still a nascent technology, yet it may already be a revolution of value in the digital age. Multiple industries that comprise tens of trillions of dollars may be on the precipice of massive disruption.

So how will this financial transformation play out?

In this interview, I talk to Greg Carson, a Managing Partner at XBTO Humla Ventures. We discuss how technology can reshape society, $20 trillion market disruptions, and Bitcoin’s inevitable design.

This episode’s sponsors:
Gemini - Buy Bitcoin instantly
BlockFi - The future of Bitcoin financial services
Sportsbet.io - Online sportsbook & casino that accepts Bitcoin
Casa - The leading provider of Bitcoin multisig key security.
Exodus- The world's leading Desktop, Mobile and Hardware crypto wallets.
Ledger- State of the art Bitcoin hardware wallet
Compass Mining - Bitcoin mining & hosting

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WBD406 - Show Notes

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If you enjoy The What Bitcoin Did Podcast you can help support the show by doing the following:
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