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Is crypto no longer moving in predictable four-year waves?Ā
From the rise of DATs and stablecoin-specific chains, to Hyperliquid challenging Binance itself, the industry is fracturing into segments withĀ winners and losers.Ā
In this episode, Hack VCās Peter Hans and DBAās Jon Charbonneau debate whether Solana is next in line for a TradFi pump, why ETH suddenly flipped from dead to indispensable, and how onchain exchanges could finally free projects from Binanceās grip.
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Guests:
Peter Hans, Partner and Global Head of Business Development at Hack VC
Jon Charbonneau, co-founder and general partner of DBA
Links:
Rob Hadickās tweet on the DAT trendĀ
Vinny Linghamās tweet on the locked SOL in DATs
Unchained:Ā
Hyperliquid Surpasses Robinhood in Trading Volume for Three Months Straight
Circle to Launch Layer 1 Blockchain āArcā
Stripe Is Building Its Own Layer 1 Blockchain
Timestamps:
š¬ 0:00 Intro
šÆ 2:44 Whether the DAT trend is peaking or just getting started
š§¾ 10:57 Whether SOL DATs include locked funds from the FTX estate
š
āāļø 11:52 Why Jon hasnāt touched any of these products
š 16:28 Why Peter still sees long-term value in these vehicles
š„ 20:24 Why ETH is suddenly hot in TradFi and how SOL could follow
š¦ 28:49 What makes a stablecoin-specific chain attractive
š¶āš«ļø 32:42 How crypto overlooked privacy for far too long
š 38:48 What itāll take for stablecoin chains to win the payments game
ā ļø 45:39 Whether stablechains could hurt Ethereum, Tron, or Solana
š 47:46 Which stablechain has the best shot at success
šø 52:07 Why Hyperliquid beat Robinhood in trading volume
š§Ø 56:00 How Hyperliquid could break Binanceās listing chokehold
šµļøāāļø 59:23 What makes anonymous, no-KYC products appealing
š 1:01:30 Whether the 4-year crypto cycle is officially dead
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Aug 27
1 hr 8 min

Altcoin froth meets real-asset rails. Vlad explains why Robinhood built an L2, how tokenized stocksāand even private shares like OpenAI/SpaceXācould trade on-chain, and what that means for accreditation, access, and the public/private wall. Plus: DATs, DTCC in a tokenized world, and AI that formally proves smart contracts.
Welcome to The Chopping Block ā where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. This week, Robinhood coāfounder/CEO Vlad Tenev joins to explain Robinhood Chain, why they chose a Layer 2 over a Layer 1, and the plan to bring tokenized stocks ā including private shares ā onāchain. We get into the OpenAI/SpaceX kerfuffle, accreditation rules, and whether permissionless tokenization erodes the public/private boundary. Then we zoom out to 24/7 trading, Digital Asset Treasuries, and how formal verification (Lean proofs) could make smart contracts safer.
Show highlights
š¹ Robinhood Chain L2 vs. L1 ā Why Vlad Tenev chose a Layer 2 over a Layer 1 for tokenized stocks and real-world assets.
š¹ Tokenized Stocks & Private Shares ā How Robinhood could put U.S. equities and private company equity (OpenAI, SpaceX) on-chain via SPVs and secondaries.
š¹ OpenAI/SpaceX Tokenization Debate ā Issuer consent vs. permissionless exposure: what the kerfuffle reveals about private markets on-chain.
š¹ Retail Access & Accreditation Reform ā Moving from wealth-gated accreditation to disclosure + self-certification so more investors can participate.
š¹ Ex-US Rollout for Tokenized Equities ā Stablecoin-style playbook with KYC/geofencing and permissionless assets where allowed.
š¹ 24/7 Trading for Stocks ā From 24/5 to 24/7 markets; what this means for DTCC, transfer agents, and market plumbing.
š¹ Wallet + Chain + Custody Stack ā Vertical integration advantages: pricing, UX, and liquidity when Robinhood owns more of the rails.
š¹ Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) ā Yield dynamics, mNAV compression, and how DATs stack up against staking ETFs.
š¹ Memecoins vs. Real Assets ā āYou can buy memes but not OpenAIā paradox and why investor-protection rules feel backward.
š¹ AI-Verified Smart Contracts ā Lean proofs, formal verification, and reducing smart-contract risk beyond manual audits.
š¹ Harmonicās āAristotleā ā Vladās AI hitting IMO gold-medal-level math performance and what that means for code safety.
š¹ Robinhoodās Next Decade ā Retail super app ā B2B/institutional rails and ex-US expansion for tokenized finance.
Hosts:
āļø Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly āļø Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstateāļø Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Venturesāļø Tom Schmidt, General Partner at DragonflyĀ
Guest:
āļø Vlad Tenev, CEO & Co-founder of Robinhood
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
01:52 L2 vs. L1 Trade-Offs
04:19 Tokenized Stocks on Robinhood ChainĀ
07:56 Private Markets Onchain
16:10 Accreditation Reform & ComplianceĀ
21:47 24/7 Trading for Equities
31:05 Public vs. Private Boundary
32:59 Memecoin Paradox vs. Real-Asset Tokenization
35:27 Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs)Ā
37:50 Robinhoodās Business MixĀ
41:38 Retail to Institutions: Global Expansion
46:44 Harmonic AI & Lean Proofs
54:48 Safer Smart Contracts Beyond Manual Audits
Disclosures
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Aug 22
56 min

The drama is heating up in crypto M&A. LayerZero, the omnichain interoperability protocol, shocked the market with a $110 million bid to acquire Stargate DAO ā the very bridge it originally launched. Then Wormhole jumped in, asking the DAO to pause the vote so it could make a counter-offer.
This episode unpacks the first-ever so-called onchain bidding war: how to value DAOs like real businesses, why LayerZero and Wormhole are fighting over Stargate, and whether this deal marks the beginning of a consolidation wave across crypto.
Guests David Nage of Arca and M&A advisor Lawson Bae of Relayzero break down the numbers, the strategy, and what this turning point means for the industry.
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
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Xapo Bank
Guests:
David Nage, VC Portfolio Manager at Arca
Lawson Bae, Founder of Relayzero
Links:
Unchained:Ā
Wormhole Foundation to Counter LayerZeroās Bid for Stargate
LayerZero Foundation Proposes $110 Million Stargate Acquisition, Retiring STG for ZRO TokensĀ
Timestamps:
š¬ 0:00 Intro
š§± 2:57 Why LayerZero wants to buy Stargate, the bridge it launched
šø 8:36 Whether the $110 million offer from LayerZero was actually fair
šµļøāāļø 14:07 How Wormhole may be trying to make things difficult for its biggest rival
š 16:35 Why David thinks the $110 million number can be justified
š 21:07 How the number of daily active users factors into valuing crypto projects
š¢ 27:07 What a āreasonable multipleā for Stargate could look like
š³ļø 30:34 How the Stargate DAO should approach this pivotal decision
š¤ 34:49 Why this deal shows that crypto M&A is booming
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Aug 22
51 min

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Crypto is moving past speculation ā and into the battle for mass adoption.
In this episode, Phantom CEO Brandon Millman and Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz join Unchained to debate who will own the next hundred million users. Will it be product-led startups, Web2 giants like X and Meta, or crypto-native apps like Phantom? From payments to trading wars to the āeverything appā dream, they unpack where the real value will accrue ā and why the easy money era for entrepreneurs is over.
Thank you to the sponsors who make this show possible!
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Guests:
Brandon Millman, CEO and co-founder of Phantom
Luca Netz, CEO of Pudgy Penguins
Timestamps:
š¬ 0:00 Intro
š§ 3:34 Why Brandon still thinks itās a great time to build in crypto
ā” 5:55 How Luca sees this moment as an āinflection pointā for the industry
š„ 9:36 What Brandon and Lucaās personal journeys reveal about building in Web3
š 18:07 Whoās best positioned to onboard the next wave of users into crypto
šø 25:05 How distribution is key and why Luca desperately wants to invest in Phantom š
š³ 37:00 Who might win the payments race and what gives them the edge
š± 51:26 Whether Solanaās Seeker phone has any real shot at breaking through
š 58:32 How Robinhood might use Privy and Bridge to dominate the crypto stack
āļø 1:01:17 What the new crypto trading wars say about Robinhood, Coinbase, and Kraken
š¤ 1:06:05 Whether Coinbase lacks a good product team
š² 1:10:36 Whether the āeverything appā dream actually makes sense
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Aug 21
1 hr 16 min

Stablecoin-focused blockchains are popping up everywhere. Stripe, Circle, and more are betting they can dominate payments. But are these chains even needed? And will Ethereum ever be ready for real-world assets?Ā
Austin Campbell, NYU professor and founder of Zero Knowledge Consulting, joins Unchained to cut through the hype. From why āthe market eventually eats youā to how consumers, not companies, could be the real winners, Campbell unpacks the competitive landscape and warns that the ultimate champion might be someone who isnāt even on the field today.
Thank you to our sponsors!
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Guest:
Austin Campbell, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting
Links:
Unchained:Ā
Circle to Launch Layer 1 Blockchain āArcā
Stripe Is Building Its Own Layer 1 Blockchain: Report
Fortune: Top crypto VC Matt Huang to lead Stripe blockchain Tempo as CEO, stay at Paradigm
Timestamps:
š¬ 0:00 Intro
šø 4:23 Whether the world really needs stablecoin-specific blockchains
š§Ŗ 9:45 How Stripeās Tempo chain could gain an edge in the payments game
š 12:25 Why Circleās Arc might struggle to stand out
š 15:19 Who could emerge as the winner of the stablecoin payments race
šŗļø 20:35 What the broader stablecoin chain landscape looks like right now
š¦ 23:36 Whether crypto companies have a real shot at disrupting traditional finance
šā 27:51 Who could end up being the biggest winners
š§± 31:52 Why Ethereum may not be ready for the RWA moment
š® 34:52 Whoās best positioned to capitalize on the next wave of blockchain-based payments
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Aug 15
50 min

Altcoin season meets corporate blockchains as Circle and Stripe launch their own L1s, Monero suffers the biggest 51% attack in history (powered by an AI named āGarthā), and the crew debates whether the DAT boom is heading toward equilibrium or mania.
Welcome to The Chopping Block ā where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. In this episode, the crew dives into the surprising altcoin rally and asks whether ETH still counts as an alt. The big news: Circle unveils Arc, Stripe leaks Tempo ā and crypto Twitter is not impressed. We explore why major fintechs are launching their own chains instead of using Ethereum L2s, and whether stablecoin-centric blockchains are the future or just profit grabs.
Then: the wildest headline of the week ā Monero gets hit with a 51% attack by Qubic, a project training an AI called āGarth,ā in what might be the largest attack of its kind. We break down the game theory, the proof-of-work vs. proof-of-stake debate, and what this foreshadows for Bitcoinās security decades from now.
Also: Trumpās executive order opens the door for crypto in 401(k) plans, we speculate about a future GPU debt market crisis, and dissect the state of play in Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) ā including whether yield advantages over staking ETFs mean weāre only halfway to mania.
Show highlights
š¹ ETH vs. Alts ā Is Ethereum still an altcoin, or has it graduated to āmajorā status?
š¹ Circleās Arc & Stripeās Tempo ā Why are fintech giants launching their own L1s instead of using Ethereum L2s?
š¹ Crypto Twitter Backlash ā The ethos clash between āpublic goodsā culture and corporate profit motives.
š¹ Moneroās 51% Attack ā Qubicās AI Garth mines enough hash power to take over Monero as a āproof of concept.ā
š¹ Game Theory & Chain Security ā Why PoW is fun (and dangerous) to reason about, and how PoS differs.
š¹ Bitcoinās Future Risk ā How tail emissions (or lack thereof) could leave BTC open to similar attacks.
š¹ 401(k) Goes Crypto ā Trumpās executive order allows digital assets in retirement accounts.
š¹ GPU Debt Crisis Fanfic ā Tarunās prediction for a future financial meltdown.
š¹ DATs Debate ā Are Digital Asset Treasuries sustainable, or primed for a spectacular unwind?
š¹ Yield Edge over ETFs ā Why DATs may outperform staking ETFs in capturing on-chain yield.
āļøHaseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly
āļøRobert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate
āļøTarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures
āļøTom Schmidt, General Partner at DragonflyĀ
Democratizing Access To Alternative Assets For 401(K) InvestorsĀ
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/08/democratizing-access-to-alternative-assets-for-401k-investors/Ā
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
01:01 Crypto Market Sentiments
02:29 Circleās Arc & Stripe's Tempo
07:34 Corporate Chains vs. L2 Solutions
17:57 Monero's 51% Attack by Qubic
27:11Ā Real-World & Protocol Incentives
29:33 Monero's Tail Emission & Bitcoin's Future
34:39 Trumpās Executive Order: Crypto in 401(k)s
37:15 Next Financial Crisis? GPU Debt Crisis
41:15 DAT Mania Potential & mNAV Compression
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Aug 14
51 min

Ethereumās rally has captivated the market, but is it really about the GENIUS Act and stablecoins, or just raw flows?Ā
In this episode of Bits + Bips, Alex Kruger, Ram Ahluwalia, Steven Ehrlich, and special guest Sid Powell of Maple Finance, dive deep into whatās driving ETH, the macro forces shaping cryptoās next leg up, and whether traders are completely wrong about the Fedās next moves.
From the potential flood of TradFi capital onto the blockchain, to the battle for stablecoin dominance, to whether Solana is about to get a major boost, the conversation dissects the signals in todayās market.
Hosts:
Alex Kruger, Founder of Asgard
Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida
Steven Ehrlich, Executive Editor at Unchained
Guest:
Sid Powell, CEO & Co-Founder of Maple Finance
Links:
Unchained: Custodia Patent for Bank Stablecoin Challenges Big Banks Entering the Field
CBS News: CPI rose in July by 2.7% on an annual basis. Here's what that means.
CNBC:Ā
Circle shares rise as second-quarter revenue jumps 53% on strong stablecoin growth
Fed board contenders Miran, Bullard say Trump's tariffs are not causing inflation
CoinDesk.Ā
ETH Transaction Volume C Much as $20limbs on Price Rally, Cheaper DeFi Costs
Tom Lee's BitMine Immersion Aims to Raise asB for More ETH Buys
Cointelegraph: SharpLink Gaming shares dip after $400M deal to boost Ether holdings
Bloomberg: Godfather of the Mar-a-Lago Accord Goes to the Fed
Timestamps:
š¬ 0:00 Intro
š 2:52 Why ETH has been rallying so aggressively
šŖ 10:14 Why Alex says the ETH rally will continue
š 12:53 How BitMine and SBET ended up with such wildly different mNAVs
š§¾ 14:07 How treasury companies are planning to deploy their crypto onchain
šļø 18:45 What TradFi institutions are looking for in Maple and other onchain finance apps
š 28:07 What Alex is watching to signal the next breakout in crypto prices
āļø 32:57 Who really makes money during this new gold rush?
š„ 42:15 Why SOL could be on the verge of a big announcement
š§ 44:58 What Ethereumās core purpose is in this new market cycle
š 47:34 How macro indicators are sending mixed signals
š¤ 54:31 What the NVDA and AMD revenue shares with the U.S. government mean for the future of capitalism could mean for the broader market
š 58:13 Who stands to win big in crypto if the Fed cuts rates
šµ 1:03:26 What Circleās earnings reveal about its business model right now
š”ļø 1:04:33 Whether Custodia Bankās patent could block big banks from launching stablecoins
š 1:11:35 Why markets might be totally mispricing the Fedās next moves
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Aug 13
1 hr 15 min

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š§ Podcast ā Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, Fountainš¦ X / TwitterĀ
In this episode of Unchained, Guy Young, founder of Ethena Labs, and Rob Hadick, general partner at Dragonfly, unpack the emerging wave of Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) and why altcoins may be the next to follow Bitcoin and Ethereum onto public markets.
They explain why StablecoinX, a new infrastructure company within the Ethena ecosystem, is merging with a SPAC to go public on Nasdaq under the ticker āUSDE,ā anchoring its treasury with Ethenaās ENA token.Ā
With $360 million in backing from investors like Dragonfly, Ribbit, Galaxy, and Polychain, the deal is testing whether public equity markets are ready for altcoin-native treasuries.
Guy and Rob also discuss why some crypto wrapper stocks are trading at massive premiums, how capital gets misallocated in crypto, and whether ETH staking rewards represent real yield or just inflation.Ā
They debate whether this trend is creating lasting infrastructure or just new packaging for old narratives.
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
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Re
Guests:
Guy Young, founder of Ethena Labs
Rob Hadick, General Partner at Dragonfly
Timestamps:
š¬ 0:00 Intro
š§ 3:29 Why Ethena worked with a team launching an ENAĀ corporate treasury company
š° 10:38 Ways to structure public crypto treasury vehicles
šµļøāāļø 16:53 Whether treasury vehicles are just a flashy wrapper for vaporware
š 22:28 Why Guy says thereās way more VC capital than good ideas in crypto right now
š 31:20 How some DATs are trading at eye-popping premiums
š¤ 37:15 Why Dragonfly backed TLGY but skipped other Bitcoin, ETH, or SOL plays
šļø 40:24 How the structure of these public vehicles shapes their value
š 47:39 What makes convertible debt different from SPACs or PIPEs
š§¾ 49:20 How investors should think about these new crypto treasury companies
š 55:43 How Wall Street is being pitched on Ethena and USDE
š„ 59:16 Whether this trend is legit or just another bubble waiting to pop
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Aug 12
1 hr 3 min

Welcome to The Chopping Block ā where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. With special guests: Avichal Garg, Managing Partner at Electric Capital, and Tomasz K. StaÅczak, Co-Executive Director at the Ethereum Foundation. This week we get into one of the most pivotal moments in Ethereumās history ā from the Tornado Cash verdict and its chilling implications for developers, to Wall Streetās growing embrace of ETH through the launch of ETHZilla. The crew unpacks how this trial could redefine developer liability, why Ethereumās narrative is shifting toward institutional adoption, and what the next decade could look like for the worldās most versatile blockchain. Whether youāre here for the legal drama, the market moves, or the inside scoop from Ethereumās top builders and investors, this episode delivers the sharp analysis, big-picture context, and unfiltered hot takes youāve come to expect from The Chopping Block.
Show highlights
š¹ Tornado Cash Verdict Breakdown ā Haseeb explains the mixed outcome: a conviction on one count, hung jury on the most serious charges, and what it means for Roman Stormās future.
š¹ Developer Liability in the Spotlight ā Why the case sends a chilling signal to open-source and privacy protocol builders across the U.S.
š¹ Inside the Appeal Strategy ā How contradictions between DOJ arguments and FinCEN guidance could shape Romanās path forward.
š¹ Avichalās Optimistic Take ā Why he believes the American legal and political system will ultimately land on the right side of crypto innovation.
š¹ Historical Parallels ā Comparing todayās battles over smart contracts and AI to the legal fights over corporations and cryptography in centuries past.
š¹ ETHZilla Unveiled ā Avichal introduces Electric Capitalās new Ethereum treasury vehicle, how itās designed to work, and its potential impact on DeFi.
š¹ Wall Street Meets Ethereum ā The crew explores how institutional capital could become a massive āsupply sinkā for ETH.
š¹ Potential Shakeouts Ahead ā Why some public ETH vehicles may face activist investor pressure, M&A, or liquidation if they stay subscale.
š¹ Ethereum Foundationās Vibe Shift ā Tomasz shares how the EF is engaging more openly with the community, leaning into finance, and guiding ecosystem coordination.
š¹ Ethereumās Resurgence ā From legal fights to market dominance, why ETH feels unstoppable heading into its next decade.
Hosts
āļøHaseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly
āļøTom Schmidt, General Partner at DragonflyĀ
Guests
āļø Avichal Garg, Managing Partner at Electric Capital
āļø Tomasz K. StaÅczak, Co-Executive Director at the Ethereum Foundation
ā Disclosuresā
Links
Beyond Stablecoins: The Case for Ethereum by Maria Shen and Sanjay Shah (Electric Capital)
https://electriccapital.substack.com/p/beyond-stablecoins-the-case-for-ethereumĀ
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
01:36 Tornado Cash Trial Verdict
06:16 Legal and Industry Reactions
09:25 Future of Crypto Legislation
21:13 Smart Contracts & AI Legislation
27:58 Introduction to ETHZilla
31:47 Community-Oriented Ethereum Initiatives
32:38 Wall Street Money in DeFi
35:08 Activist Investors & Market Dynamics
39:25 TradFi vs. DeFi
44:12 Ethereum Foundation's Cultural Shift
54:13 The Role of Ethereum Foundation
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Aug 8
1 hr 3 min

Solana Mobileās Emmett Hollyer joins to talk about the Seeker phone, and former prosecutor Sam Enzer breaks down the partial Roman Storm conviction.
This weekās episode features two big stories.
š± First, Solana Mobile has begun shipping the Seeker, its second-generation crypto smartphone. Emmett Hollyer, GM of Solana Mobile, joins to explain:
Whatās new in the Seeker and how it compares to the Saga
Why he says itās the most secure phone for crypto
How Seed Vault, Seeker ID, and the SKR token could reshape crypto identity, incentives, and adoption
āļø Then, we unpack the Roman Storm verdict. The Tornado Cash co-founder was found guilty on just one of three charges. Former prosecutor Sam Enzer explains:
Why the outcome is seen as a partial win for crypto
Why Storm has strong grounds to fight the verdict
What this means for developers building privacy tools and open-source software
And whether the remaining conviction might be overturned
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
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Focal by FalconX
Guests:
Emmett Hollyer, General Manager of Solana Mobile
Sam Enzer, partner at Cahill Gordon & Reindel
Links:
Solana Begins Shipping Seeker Phone
Tornado Cash Co-founder Roman Storm Found Guilty on One Count
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Aug 8
1 hr 28 min
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