Unchained

Perpetual swap DEX Hyperliquid suffered a whale attack and was on the brink of losing $15 million. It promptly responded in a way that generated a fair amount of controversy. The founder and CEO of Ambient Finance Doug Colkitt joined the show to explain: How perp swaps work How a whale used the low-liquidity memecoin $JELLY to attack Hyperliquid’s vault How Hyperliquid’s response broke DeFi taboos around decentralization, oracles, etc. Criticisms of and justifications for the team’s decisions What can be done to prevent similar attacks in the future Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off FalconX Mantle Guest Doug Colkitt, Founder and CEO of Ambient Finance Links Accounts of the $JELLY whale attack on Hyperliquid and its response X: The story X: Nuking the vault X: How Hyperliquid responded Arguments for and against Hyperliquid’s solution: ZachXBT: ZachXBT calls out alleged hypocrisy Jordi Alexander: Shorting on a perp is not robust Jose Maria Macedo: How do they override the oracle price? Doug: Closing positions at an arbitrary price Gracy Chen: Casting doubts on integrity Steven.hl: In defense of HL Kam: Of course quorum was reached easily What precedent Hyperliquid’s actions set Kevin Zhou: Binance and OKX set a precedent Timestamps: 👋 0:00 Intro 🤔 02:59 What is Hyperliquid? 🐳 05:16 How a whale used $JELLY to attack ⛔ 09:19 How Hyperliquid responded 📈 11:59 Why did Binance and OKX suddenly list the memecoin? 🤔 16:32 How did Hyperliquid ‘change the rules’ to protect themselves? ⚖️ 19:25 ‘Losses for thee, but not for me’: Hyperliquid’s hypocrisy? 💡 24:39 Doug’s ‘cleaner’ solution 👀 28:35 Will this have positive or negative knock-on effects? 🧹 31:20 Tidying up illiquid markets 📰 32:46 Crypto News Recap Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Investors are still licking their wounds from this month’s corrections. But just as Trump’s tariffs are about to move into full-force, our experts are seeing silver linings and causes for optimism. With conflicting signals coming from all corners of the map, hosts Noelle Acheson, Ram Ahluwalia, Alex Kruger, and Felix Jauvin break down: What to expect from Trump on April 2nd Takeaways from last week’s FOMC meeting If the White House and Powell are actually on the same page Why tech stocks are taking off again Why BlackRock is bullish on bitcoin during bear markets If ether is about to get its groove back Sponsors: Bitwise Hosts: Alex Kruger, Founder of Asgard Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Noelle Acheson, Author of the “Crypto Is Macro Now” Newsletter Felix Jauvin, Director and Host - Forward Guidance Links Incoming Trump Tariffs Bloomberg: Trump Plans His Tariff ‘Liberation Day’ With More Targeted Push WSJ: White House Narrows April 2 Tariffs FOMC Meeting Unchained: Bitcoin Drops as Fed Leaves Rates Unchanged, as Expected NYTimes: Citing Tariffs and Uncertainty, Fed Sees Higher Inflation and Lower Growth Animal Spirits Return Barron’s: Don’t Count Out the Mag 7. They Could Lead a U.S. Stock Comeback. CNBC: ‘Magnificent 7’ has a notable up day after struggling for 3 months BlackRock Decrypt: BlackRock Digital Assets Head Criticizes Narrative of Bitcoin as a Risk-On Asset Bloomberg: BlackRock to List Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Product in Europe Fidelity Tokenization CoinDesk: Fidelity Files for Onchain U.S. Treasury Fund, Joining the Asset Tokenization Race Timestamps: 👋 0:00 Intro 📉 2:16 Why investors are nervous about April 2nd 🌎 4:40 Two ways to think about tariffs ☯️ 6:56 The difference between retail and professional traders 🏦 8:44 Why the Fed is predicting a worst-case scenario 📈 12:08 Why the correction is largely done 💰 19:20 How the Mag7 got its groove back 🏛️ 20:42 Are Bessent and Powell more aligned than thought? 🚀 22:54 BlackRock says a recession is good for bitcoin? 🥇 24:54 Altcoin ETF race about to start? 🎌 28:41 Why Japan is irrelevant right now 🐂 30:42 Why animal spirits are back ⛓️ 35:03 The great financial unshackling 📈 38:02 Is ether ready for a comeback? ✅ 42:09 Why Fidelity is tokenizing on Ethereum 📈📉 44:32 Are pump and dumps over? 🇪🇺 49:32 Dumb money coming to Europe? 🐙 52:35 Why Kraken made a smart buy this week Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Ethereum deploys Pectra, it faces stiff competition and community criticism. Ethereum Foundation Research co-leads Alex Stokes and Barnabe Monnot map out the chain’s direction. Ethereum is well on its way to some major upgrades, with Pectra and Fusaka introducing a number of performance improvements in the near future. But will it be enough to stay ahead of the competition? Ethereum Foundation Research co-leads Alex Stokes and Barnabe Monnot join the show to discuss: How Pectra and Fusaka will improve Ethereum’s performance What it means that its launch on two testnets failed Ethereum’s “north star” — decentralization Whether Ethereum can retain its top spot in the smart contract space As Ethereum adopts native rollups and data availability, does it create competition with existing L2s and DA providers? The new direction for the Ethereum Foundation leaders and whether Etherealize can bring Wall Street Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! Bitwise Guest: Alex Stokes, Co-Lead, Ethereum Foundation Research Barnabe Monnot, Co-Lead, Ethereum Foundation Research Previous appearances on Unchained: 5 Things to Know About Coinbase’s 2021 Links Previous coverage on Unchained of: Etherealize advocates for Ethereum Why Ethereum’s New Marketing Arm Is Convinced Wall Street Will Adopt ETH Ethereum Foundation contemplates comeback Ethereum Is Lagging. Here’s How It Could Finally Shake Off Rival Solana 2025 Will Be a Year of Crypto Competition. Can Ethereum Make a Comeback? What Ethena means for Ethereum Ethena’s L1 Shows Fat Apps Are on the Rise. Can They Beat Fat Protocols? The Chopping Block w/ Guy Young: Lessons from USD0, Ethena’s Bold Vision, and DeFi’s Future The Pectra Upgrade Ethereum.org: Pectra Testnet Announcement | Ethereum Foundation Blog tim.mirror.xyz: AllCoreDevs Update 17 Ethereum.org: EIP-7691: Blob throughput increase Ethereum.org: Holesky and Hoodi Testnet Updates | Ethereum Foundation Blog Coindesk: Hello, Hoodi: Ethereum Welcomes a New Testnet Fusaka on the horizon Github: EIP-7805 proposed for Fusaka Native rollups versus non-native rollups Youtube: The Future of Ethereum Scaling: Native Rollups Explained Reddit: Native rollup debates L1 and L2 debates Vitalik.eth.limo: Reasons to have higher L1 gas limits even in an L2-heavy Ethereum Vitalik.eth.limo: Scaling Ethereum L1 and L2s in 2025 and beyond Ethereum Foundation Leadership changes X: Barnabe Monnot and Alex Stokes announcement X: New EF titles X: Fixing the Core Dev process Ethena’s Converge news John Wang’s tweet Camila Russo’s comment Timestamps: 👋 0:00 Intro 🪝 2:05 How Barnabe and Alex got hooked on Ethereum development ⚙️ 6:37 How Pectra will change Ethereum 🪴 10:35 How does increasing blobs boost Ethereum? 🪲 13:22 Pectra fork bugs on Holeski testnet 🔮 18:38 What’s in the upcoming Fusaka upgrade? 🤯 22:42 How decisions get made in Ethereum and which groups are involved 📈 30:34 Can Ethereum keep up with the competition? 🏁 39:16 Can Ethereum compete by scaling the L1? 🤓 44:02 What are native roll-ups and how do they help Ethereum compete? 🤺 49:26 Native rollups and expanded data availability on Ethereum vs. non-native options ⚰️ 52:22 Is Ethena building its own blockchain the “nail in the coffin” for Ethereum? 👬 1:00:05 Shaking up the EF’s leadership 🤔 1:06:14 Will Etherealize fix Ethereum’s problems? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Blockchains were supposed to capture the majority of the value in crypto. But what if that’s wrong? For years, the Fat Protocols Thesis argued that blockchains would be the biggest winners. But new data suggests that apps like Uniswap, Ethena, and others are now out-earning many networks. Are we watching the rise of “Fat Apps” instead? On this episode, Ryan Watkins, Co-founder at Syncracy Capital, talks about: Why the biggest apps are generating more revenue than many layer 1s Why Ethena is launching its own blockchain What this means for Ethereum, Solana & other L1s How blockchains can compete on value capture Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off FalconX Mantle Guest Ryan Watkins, Co-founder at Syncracy Capital Links Unchained: Ethena Labs and Securitize to Launch New EVM Blockchain for DeFi Syncracy Capital: Applications Capture Fees, Blockchains Store Value Hansolar’s tweet Pump.fun launches its own DEX Timestamps: 👋0:00 Intro 💰 2:12 Why apps are out-earning the blockchains they run on 🔗 5:44 Ethena’s move: why it’s launching its own chain 📈 8:33 The rise of “Fat Apps” and what it means for crypto 🚀 12:50 How today’s crypto founders think differently from past builders 🏆 15:51 The blockchain architectures that will dominate ⚖️ 22:32 Whether L1s can compete in this new environment 📊 241:27 How blockchains accrue value and why MEV isn’t the best metric 📰 31:00 News Recap Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to The Chopping Block – 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 unpacks Ethereum’s existential crisis and whether the rollup-centric roadmap is backfiring. Plus, AI is rapidly changing how crypto is built, traded, and secured—so what happens when blockchain and AI collide? We also dig into Solana’s controversial ad, Ethereum Foundation’s leadership shake-up, and why macro forces are still running the show. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights 🔹 AI’s Invasion of Software Engineering – Why AI is replacing developers & what it means for crypto startups 🔹 Ethereum’s Rollup Reckoning – The “rollup-centric roadmap” was supposed to save Ethereum, but is it actually weakening it? 🔹 The Solana Ad Disaster – How Solana’s political ad backfired & alienated both sides of the aisle 🔹 Is Ethereum Becoming IBM? – Why Ethereum risks getting stuck as the slow-moving corporate giant of crypto 🔹 The Great AI Pivot – Why top engineers are abandoning language models for robotics & what it means for the future 🔹 AI Trading Bots & Crypto Security Risks – How prompt injections could turn AI-powered wallets into honeypots 🔹 Ethereum’s New Leadership – Does the Ethereum Foundation finally have a plan to fix its credibility problem? 🔹 The XRP Bartender Index – The unexpected bar tab metric that tracks XRP market sentiment 🔹 Will AI Replace VCs? – The case for AI-led investment strategies & automated due diligence Hosts ⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate ⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures ⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly Disclosures Links Solana Ad repost by @basedkarbon: https://x.com/basedkarbon/status/1901809992514052319 Timestamps - 00:00 Intro 01:48 Solana's Controversial Ad Campaign 08:14 Memorable Crypto Ads 11:27 AI's Impact on Research & Crypto 18:33 Future of AI in Crypto and Beyond 29:29 Security Concerns with AI 36:49 EF's Leadership Changes 40:20 The Future of Ethereum and Rollups Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The financial market is getting wrecked, inflation is still a problem, and bitcoin isn’t acting like the hedge that it’s supposed to be. Is this a real economic shift, or just noise? With tariffs, stagflation fears, and fiscal dominance taking center stage, hosts James Seyffart, Joe McCann, Ram Ahluwalia and Noelle Acheson break down: Why markets are struggling—and whether a recession or stagflation is coming Whether the Fed has become irrelevant How the stablecoin bill could rescue sales of treasuries Why bitcoin isn’t following gold’s rally The factors that could kickstart the next crypto boom The latest on all the dozens of crypto ETFs in the works Sponsors: Bitwise Hosts: James Seyffart, Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence Joe McCann, Founder, CEO, and CIO of Asymmetric Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Noelle Acheson, Author of the “Crypto Is Macro Now” Newsletter Links The stagflation trade Bloomberg: Stagflation Trade Emerges as Rare Winner in US Stock Market Rout Reuters: Fed's Powell gets chance to address trade war, stagflation fears Tweet by Noah Smith Budget bill Wharton: The FY2025 House Budget reconciliation and Trump Administration Tax Proposals: Budgetary, Economic, and Distributional Effects Stablecoin bill: Unchained: Stablecoin Bills Could Squeeze Out $140 Billion Tether CoinDesk: U.S. Senate Takes First Big Step to Advance Stablecoin Bill Solana futures Cointelegraph: Solana futures finish first trading day on CME Solana ad Unchained: Solana Deletes ‘Cringe’ Ad After Crypto Community Backlash Timestamps: 👋 0:00 Intro 📉 1:39 Stagflation fears and which tariffs actually matter for the economy 🌎 6:11 Why the outlook for commodities is so uncertain 📊 10:49 Is the Trump administration sabotaging itself? 🐶 16:57 Why DOGE’s role in the market is bigger than you think 📉 23:51 Why the 10-year yield isn’t dropping as expected 💰 28:04 Will shrinking liquidity grind the market to a halt? 🏛️ 32:37 Why the Fed has become irrelevant 🔄 36:53 Is quantitative tightening (QT) ending? Plus, one key thing crypto investors don’t get ⚠️ 41:13 Why a recession is not a foregone conclusion 🥇 48:25 Gold is hitting all-time highs—so why isn’t bitcoin following? 🏦 51:24 How the stablecoin bill could save US government finances 🚀 1:01:47 How bitcoin gets its next rally 📉 1:07:16 The hidden benefit of CME SOL futures ✅ 1:12:15 The latest on pending crypto ETF approvals 📣 1:17:26 Reactions to the controversial Solana ad Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The memecoin trade might be over. And Joe McCann says that’s just the beginning. The founder of Asymmetric has been at the intersection of crypto, macro, and tech for years. He called the $BONK trade early, made moves before most saw the opportunity, and now? He’s shifting his focus. Meanwhile, the crypto markets are a bloodbath, with bitcoin, ether, and solana down 10%, 41%, and 35%, respectively, year-to-date. In this episode, Joe joins Unchained to discuss: Why memecoins won’t work the way they used to How institutions are approaching crypto in this cycle Why prices are down so much Why Bitcoin might be so hard to outperform Whether Solana is still the fastest horse Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! FalconX Bitwise Guest: Joe McCann, founder of Asymmetric Links Unchained: Solana Rejected Inflation Reduction—Here’s Why Are Memecoins Collapsing? These 8 Charts May Be Signaling Yes Bitcoin Has Declined 20%. How Soon Could the BTC Price Revive? Timestamps: 👋 0:00 Intro 🚀 2:19 How Joe’s background shaped his crypto investing approach 🐶 10:25 Spotting the $BONK opportunity before the crowd 📉 17:38 Why the memecoin trade might be over 💰 21:51 Why Joe believes Pump.fun is NOT extractive 📊 33:11 Why crypto prices have struggled despite a pro-crypto shift in Washington 🎯 42:34 The moment Joe “finally” gives credit to Arthur Hayes ⏳ 45:15 Could having no catalyst actually BE the catalyst? 🔥 49:22 Why Joe wasn’t convinced by the SOL inflation proposal ⚡ 56:45 Wait—no altcoin season? ⚙️ 1:01:34 What still excites Joe about Solana 🏦 1:04:57 Why Asymmetric is betting on Bitcoin DeFi 🤖 1:07:29 How AI is helping Joe’s team optimize its strategy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Solana ecosystem just completed a critical governance vote. SIMD-228, a proposal to tie Solana’s inflation rate to its staking participation rate, was put forward by Multicoin Capital and Anza, but despite a majority voting in favor, it failed to meet the required supermajority to pass. Tushar Jain, co-founder and managing partner at Multicoin Capital, who co-authored the proposal, joins the show to discuss: Why he believes the proposal was necessary Whether inflation is too high for Solana’s long-term health If some validators voted against their own interests The silver lining of the governance process Why a smaller proposal focused fee sharing did pass Whether Multicoin Capital will resubmit a revised proposal Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off Mantle Guest Tushar Jain, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Multicoin Capital Links Unchained: Proposal to Cut SOL Inflation by 80% Fails After ‘Close Call’ SIMD Vote Status Kayuza’s tweet Timestamps: 🤝 0:00 Intro 🗳️ 3:09 Why Solana’s inflation rate was initially an afterthought 💰5:20 Why inflation became untenable ⚙️ 6:23 What does it take to right-size inflation for Solana ⚙️ 7:18 How SIMD-228 would have worked 🤯 11:00 Why Tushar “does not want to bet on people being dumb” 💰 15:48 How this could have strengthened DeFi on Solana 😕 17:49 Why Tushar was disappointed with the outcome but sees a silver lining 📚 19:49 Could the vote have been fairer? ⚖️ 22:06 Whether smaller validators would be unfairly hurt by SIMD-228 🔐 27:37 Does Solana pay too much for security? 📈 27:55 Would this have boosted the price of SOL? ✔️28:19 Whether validators should ask stakers how to vote ✅ 30:13 What the passing of SIMD-123 means for the network 🔄 32:40 Will Multicoin resubmit the proposal? 📰 34:50 News Recap Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week, we’re joined by special guest Quinn Thompson, Master of Macro at Lekker Capital, to dissect Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve. The US government is now officially hodling Bitcoin —Trump’s executive order creates a BTC reserve using seized funds. But markets didn’t buy the hype. Bitcoin tanked, and traders are still questioning what this means for crypto’s future. Meanwhile, the global macro picture is a disaster—stocks are down, trade wars are escalating, and recession fears are mounting.Is this controlled demolition of the economy, or just a side effect of Trump’s economic agenda? And most importantly, what does this mean for crypto? Let’s dive in. Show highlights 🔹 Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve Announcement – The US government officially holds BTC, but it’s not buying more. No new demand—just a change in optics. 🔹 Digital Asset Stockpile – XRP, ADA, SOL? Treasury isn’t sure what it owns, and no guarantee these altcoins stay on the balance sheet. 🔹 Market Reactions – Bitcoin pumped, then crashed. No net buying pressure, just an end to government auctions of seized BTC. 🔹 Trade War Fallout – Tariffs hit Mexico, Canada, EU, and China—S&P 500 posts worst day since 2022, losing $1.4T in market cap. 🔹 Trump’s Endgame? – Is this a controlled demolition of asset prices, or just chaos in motion? 🔹 Crypto’s Liquidity Crunch – The Fed isn’t stepping in (yet), but the macro backdrop is grim. Rate cuts may be the only way out. Hosts ⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures ⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate Guest ⭐️Quinn Thompson, Founder & CIO at Lekker Capital Disclosures Timestamps 00:00 Intro 02:36 Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve 05:17 Bitcoin Tanks 14:30 How This Affects Crypto & Traditional Finance 19:36 Trade Wars Escalate 31:30 Corn Twitter Is Mad 35:16 Why Stocks & Crypto Are Dumping in Sync 41:39 Trump's Historical Stance on Tariffs 54:57 Government Spending and Crypto Market Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The markets are a bloodbath. If you’re feeling lost in the markets right now, you’re not alone. Stocks are getting crushed, bonds are sliding, and crypto isn’t escaping the carnage. The question is: why is everything selling off—and where does it go from here? One thing is clear: the next market move is extremely hard to predict. Between Trump’s economic policies, inflation worries, and DOGE’s cuts, there’s a storm of conflicting signals. So, is this pain temporary? Or are we looking at a long trend downward? Sponsors: Bitwise Hosts: James Seyffart, Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence Alex Kruger, Founder of Asgard Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Guest: Travis Kling, CIO of Ikigai Asset Management Links Recession? Bloomberg: Trump Says US Economy Faces ‘Transition,’ Avoids Recession Call Inflation Bloomberg: Inflation-Linked Bonds Rebound on Trump Tariffs: Credit Weekly DXY FX Empire: US Dollar Forecast: DXY Sinks as Weak Jobs Data Fuels Rate Cut Bets, EUR/USD Surges Powell’s comments: CNN: Fed Chair Powell says he’s not worried about the economy amid Trump’s tariff chaos FT: Federal Reserve chief Jay Powell plays down growth worries after jobs report disappoints Bonds: Bloomberg: The Bond Market’s Trump Trade Is Looking Like a Recession Trade CNBC: 10-year Treasury yield rises after weaker-than-expected jobs growth Bond yields in Europe and elsewhere are rising Tariffs: Bloomberg: Lutnick Says Trump Sticking to US Aluminum-Steel Tariff Timeline Japan and the carry trade: Japan's 20-Year Government Bond Yield rises to its highest level since 2008. Jeff Park tweeted “Bitcoin is Japan’s game now whether you like it or not” - thoughts? FT: Japan seeks tariff reprieve after Donald Trump questions long-standing defence pact China’s deflation: Bloomberg: China’s Inflation Declines Below Zero for First Time in Year Ukraine War talks: FT: Ukraine seeks to persuade US to resume aid in high-stakes talks Timestamps: 👋 0:00 Intro 📉 3:05 What’s behind this brutal market selloff 🤔 7:26 Why making a market prediction right now is nearly impossible 🇺🇸 13:41 How Trump’s economic moves drive uncertainty ⚠️ 19:37 Is the Trump administration intentionally triggering a recession? 💰 20:30 The real impact of “austerity” on the economy 📉 22:59 What must happen before the market bottoms out 🔥 26:52 Where inflation might head next 📊 36:21 What the VIX is saying about the market 📉 39:00 How markets will react to today’s CPI numbers 🚀 43:40 When might Trump push for tax cuts? 🏦 49:19 Will ETF buyers create a bitcoin floor? 💴 55:12 What a declining Japanese yen reveals about demand for risky assets ₿ 1:00:35 Why BTC is the furthest that it has ever been from altcoins 🛍️ 1:11:00 What new groups might step in and buy bitcoin?📉 🤦‍♂️ 1:20:25 Whether the Trump administration “fucked up” the economy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The election of Donald Trump marked a sea change for U.S. crypto policy. The symbolism of that transformation was on full display at the White House’s first-ever Crypto Summit, at which President Trump met with several crypto business leaders. But what was actually said behind closed doors? And does this mark the beginning of a truly pro-crypto shift—or just another short-lived political move? In this episode, BitGo CEO Mike Belshe and former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo break down what really happened at the summit, whether the proposed Bitcoin reserve is a smart idea or a political gimmick, and why some believe the U.S. dollar could one day be backed by BTC. Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! Bitwise Guests: Mike Belshe, CEO at BitGo Chris Giancarlo, Senior counsel at Willkie Farr & Gallagher and former CFTC chairman Links Recent coverage of Unchained on the Bitcoin Reserve and the White House Crypto Summit : Trump Says He Is Ending Operation Choke Point 2.0 Trump Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile Trump's Surprise Crypto Reserve Announcement Iced Out D.C. Insiders How Did Ripple Sell Trump on XRP in a Crypto Reserve? By Pushing for Solana Why Trump May Have Chosen This Week to Announce a Strategic Crypto Reserve Which Crypto Assets Belong in a Reserve? This VC Says Not XRP and ADA Chris’s article: Crypto neo-privateers could be the solution to hacks Nic Carter’s tweet on Trump’s crypto endeavours Omid Malekan’s analogy of the SBR with buying a shirt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump’s latest crypto moves have sent the market on a rollercoaster. First, he posted on Truth Social that a U.S. crypto reserve would include XRP, Solana, and Cardano. A couple hours later, he had to clarify that Bitcoin and Ethereum would also be included. The market jumped 12%—only to crash the next day. Meanwhile, the White House crypto summit is happening Friday, and not everyone is happy with the guest list. Some say it’s a step toward real regulation, while others argue that without DeFi voices, it’s just a meeting of centralized players. So what does it all mean? David Nage, VC at Arca, joins Unchained to talk about: 4:55 Why David is unfazed by crypto’s swings around Trump’s reserve posts 9:03 David’s take on Cardano and XRP being named for the crypto reserve list 18:11 Why he thinks Bitcoin is a strong candidate for a national reserve asset 22:52 Why David isn’t impressed with the guest list at the White House Crypto Summit 26:26 Why the markets have been struggling—and what could finally turn things around 28:52 News Recap Will real crypto policy changes emerge from this? Or is this just another distraction in a year full of big promises? Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off Mantle Guest David Nage, VC Portfolio Manager at Arca Links Unchained: Why Trump May Have Chosen This Week to Announce a Strategic Crypto Reserve Cardano Founder Charles Hoskinson Is Not Invited to White House Crypto Summit How Did Ripple Sell Trump on XRP in a Crypto Reserve? By Pushing for Solana Trump Is Having Second Thoughts About His Crypto Council David’s tweet on Cardano and Ripple Eleanor Terrett’s tweet with the Crypto Summit guest list David Sacks’ tweet saying that the government lost almost $17 billion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week, we’re joined by special guest Laura Shin to dissect Trump’s Strategic Crypto Reserve fiasco. Why did he name-drop XRP and Cardano first? Was this real policy or just a market pump? Meanwhile, Crypto Twitter is melting down over Trump’s crypto summit guest list—who made the cut, and who got snubbed? Plus, another SEC lawsuit bites the dust, and memecoins look deader than ever. Let’s get into it. Show highlights 🔹 Trump’s Crypto Reserve Announcement – Trump proposes a U.S. Crypto Strategic Reserve, initially boosting XRP, ADA, SOL, BTC, and ETH—only for markets to fully reverse in 48 hours. 🔹 Who Picked These Coins? – XRP & ADA make the list despite having lower adoption than SOL or ETH. Was this a serious policy move or just pay-to-play politics? 🔹 Trump’s 5D Chess or Just a Meme? – Did the Trump team just pick random coins off CoinMarketCap? Or was this an orchestrated move to pay back donors? 🔹 The Crypto Council Drama – Trump’s Crypto Council implodes before launch due to infighting over seats. First summit features Ripple’s Garlinghouse, Michael Saylor, Chainlink’s Nazarov, Brian Armstrong, and Jesse Powell—but no actual protocol founders. 🔹 Is Crypto Being Used for Politics? – Nic Carter calls the plan a grift, saying the U.S. government should not buy altcoins with taxpayer money. Even Bitcoin maxis are skeptical. 🔹 Trump’s Obsession With Bitcoin Prices – Reports claim Trump personally tracks Bitcoin price movements and wants BTC to hit $150K during his presidency—is he manipulating markets? 🔹 The SEC Softens on Crypto? – Enforcement pivots as the SEC drops cases against Cumberland and Kraken. Will the Coinbase lawsuit be next? 🔹 Market Exhaustion Sets In – Despite the noise, traders are tired. The market isn’t buying into Trump’s crypto plans—was this just another empty promise? Hosts ⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures ⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Laura Shin, Journalist, Author of ‘The Cryptopians,’ Founder and CEO of Unchained Disclosures Timestamps 00:00 Intro 01:05 Market Reactions to Trump's Announcement 03:25 Skepticism of the Crypto Reserve 07:02 Strategic Value of Crypto Reserve 11:11 Political and Market Implications 18:52 Security Concerns & Future Speculations 31:30 Government Control of Crypto 39:50 Potential Forks & Government Influence 45:37 Crypto Summit & Council Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A strategic crypto reserve for the U.S. economy? That’s Trump’s latest proposal (or directive?)—and the reaction from the industry has been… let’s just say, mixed. Would it even work? And does it create more problems than it solves? Meanwhile, the White House is hosting a crypto roundtable—but not everyone is convinced it’s going to be productive. Who will be in the room, what will actually be discussed, and will it help or hurt the industry? On this episode of Bits + Bips, hosts James Seyffart and Noelle Acheson together with guests Steve Hou and Steven Ehrlich break it all down. Will tariffs and macro factors keep weighing on crypto? What’s driving the explosion in new ETFs? And what happens if banks start issuing their own stablecoins? Plus: What could be the real next catalyst for the crypto market. Show highlights: 6:13 - Whether a strategic crypto reserve makes sense for the U.S. 14:50 - How this reserve could actually give people outside of crypto second thoughts 24:37 - What the Crypto Roundtable will be about and whether it’s what the industry wanted 27:32 - Whether David Sacks is directing the reserve allocations so as to personally benefit 32:07 - Why Noelle was surprised after the SEC stated memecoins are not securities 42:22 - James’ insights into the avalanche of altcoin ETFs 47:10 - The significance of BlackRock adding IBIT to its model portfolio 54:02 - How macro news drove risk assets to such a selloff on Monday 58:12 - Why the 10YT is such a significant chart to watch 1:10:21 - Whether the war in Ukraine is coming to an end 1:16:20 - What the next catalyst for crypto is 1:19:07 - Whether stablecoins are a good business for banks Thank you to our sponsors! RockWallet Bitwise Hosts: James Seyffart, Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence Noelle Acheson, Author of the “Crypto Is Macro Now” Newsletter Guests: Steve Hou, Quantitative Researcher at Bloomberg LP Steven Ehrlich, Executive Editor at Unchained Links Crypto reserve: Unchained: Why Trump May Have Chosen This Week to Announce a Strategic Crypto Reserve Bloomberg: Bitcoin Reserve Is Likely to Come First From States, Senator Lummis Says Crypto roundtable: CoinDesk: Trump to Host First Crypto Roundtable at White House Next Week Crypto Czar David Sacks says he sold crypto holdings before administration began Memecoins: SEC: Staff Statement on Meme Coins ETFs: SOL: CME Group to launch Solana futures on March 17 as ETF momentum builds BlackRock Adds Its Bitcoin ETF to Model Portfolio for First Time Macro: Trump’s tariff post on Truth Social ​​Atlanta’s negative 2.8% GDP projection CNBC: 10-year Treasury yield falls to lowest since December on latest signs of slowing economy Reuters: Inflation, growth may be in conflict but Fed seen restarting cuts in June US weekly jobless claims post largest gain in five months; weather blamed Stablecoins: CoinDesk: Bank of America CEO Says Bank Will Likely Launch Its Own Stablecoin Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new consensus model. A bear-themed brand. And one of the most debated token launches in recent memory. Berachain is trying something radically different. Instead of just rewarding validators, it pays liquidity providers—turning the traditional blockchain incentive model on its head. But not everyone is convinced. Some critics say too much of the token supply went to VCs. Others question whether “proof of liquidity” can actually work at scale. In this episode, Smokey, Chief Smokey Officer at Berachain, joins Unchained to break it all down. Why did Berachain choose to make itself EVM-identical? What really happened with the token launch? And what’s next? Show highlights: 1:47 How Smokey got into crypto and how that led to the founding of Berachain 7:24 What proof of liquidity is and what problems it solves 12:06 Whether there’s an incentive problem in how BGT and BERA are designed 16:03 Why Smokey believes the EVM has the “largest capital base” 21:12 How Berachain leveraged culture to accrue network effects 26:23 How Berachain achieved so much TVL growth 30:01 What Smokey thinks about the big allocation of BERA to VCs 35:38 How the bear-themed NFTs were born 39:26 How the project was able to buy back a portion of the tokens sold to VCs 40:58 Whether Smokey should have done things differently when launching the token 43:21 Smokey’s response to the criticism of private participants staking BERA 46:57 Why Smokey believes that the inflation will be useful for ecosystem growth 52:23 What’s next in Berachain’s roadmap Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! Bitwise Guest: Smokey the Bera, Chief Smokey Officer at Berachain Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week: Recapping how Bybit lost $1.5B to North Korea’s Lazarus Group—how did it happen, and why did they use THORChain to launder the money? Meanwhile, Ethereum is facing an identity crisis at ETH Denver, with the Foundation’s bizarre “Silviculture Society” raising eyebrows across the ecosystem. And if that wasn’t enough, memecoins are in freefall, with Hayden Adams admitting the game was rigged all along. It’s a wild week—let’s break it all down. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights 🔹 Bybit’s $1.5B Hack – Largest crypto heist ever, pulled off by North Korea’s Lazarus Group. Attack exploited Gnosis Safe’s front end, not Bybit itself. 🔹 THORChain: The New Laundromat? – Lazarus Group uses THORChain to launder stolen funds, sparking backlash. Some THORChain members celebrated the volume spike. 🔹 Memecoins Declared ‘Collectibles’ – SEC says memecoins aren’t securities—right as the bubble bursts. New token launches are down 60%, and pump.fun is drying up. 🔹 InfoWars Bought With a Memecoin?! – Alex Jones supporters use Wars token to outbid The Onion for InfoWars.com in a bankruptcy auction. 🔹 Ethereum’s Cultural Crisis – EF’s ‘Silviculture Society’ announcement triggers community backlash. Hayden Adams calls it “peak Ethereum dysfunction.” 🔹 SEC’s Crypto Pivot – Enforcement shift: Uniswap, OpenSea, and Consensys investigations dropped. Is the SEC losing its war on crypto? 🔹 Richard Heart’s Case Dismissed – The SEC’s lawsuit against the HEX founder gets tossed on procedural grounds, but the agency has a chance to refile. 🔹 The Hyperliquid Question – Is Hyperliquid the next frontier for crypto liquidity, or a regulatory time bomb waiting to go off? Hosts ⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate ⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures ⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly Disclosures Timestamps 00:00 Intro 00:48 ETH Denver 06:16 Bybit Hack & Its Aftermath 14:52 Lazarus Group Has Skills 16:52 THORChain and Ethics of Decentralization 24:49 Role of KYT Services in Crypto Security 28:40 SEC's Stance on Memecoins 37:19 EF Silviculture Society 46:43 Ethereum Scaling Bet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crypto derivatives exchange Bybit just became the latest victim of North Korea’s elite hacking unit, the Lazarus Group. They didn’t brute-force their way in. They didn’t exploit some obscure vulnerability. Instead, they tricked a trusted developer, slipped in malicious code, and took off with a fortune. How did this happen? Why was $1.5 billion sitting in a single wallet? What mistakes did Bybit and Safe make? And, more importantly, what needs to change to stop this from happening again? This week, Mudit Gupta, chief information security officer at Polygon, joins Unchained to expose the security failures, the sophisticated tactics Lazarus used, and why crypto still hasn’t learned its lesson. Show highlights: 2:11 Mudit’s experience with North Korea’s Lazarus 3:24 How Lazarus perpetrated the $1.5 billion hack 5:55 Why Lazarus relies on social engineering over technical exploits 7:34 Why Bybit was so specifically targeted by the hackers 10:02 What Bybit should have done to prevent the exploit 13:12 Why Mudit believes there was “no reason” to hold so much ETH in one single wallet 15:57 Who should be a signer in multisigs 17:46 How to prevent using a malicious website 19:13 Why Safe should have done things differently, according to Mudit 19:55 How Bybit and Safe handled crisis communication 24:20 Mudit’s must-know security tips for protecting your crypto Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! Mantle Guest Mudit Gupta, Chief Information Security Officer at Polygon Links Recent coverage of Unchained on the Bybit hack: North Korean Hackers Are Winning. Is the Crypto Industry Ready to Stop Them? The Chopping Block: Crypto’s Worst Week? Bybit Hack, Libra Scandal, & The Memecoin Reckoning Bits + Bips: Markets Are Down Bad. When Will Crypto Recover? Unchained: Bybit Flows Return to ‘Normal’ After Biggest-Ever Crypto Hack Bybit Hack Forensics Report "Safe{Wallet} Statement on Targeted Attack on Bybit " Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crypto markets are down bad—but is this just a rough patch, or are we looking at something bigger? After a brutal sell-off in Solana, the $1.5 billion Bybit hack, and macro uncertainty weighing on Bitcoin, investors are searching for answers. Some think the worst is over, while others believe more pain is coming before the market turns around. In this episode of Bits + Bips, Noelle Acheson, Alex Kruger, and Ram Ahluwalia are joined by Eliézer Ndinga of 21Shares to break it all down. They discuss how institutions are approaching this downturn, why Solana has been hit harder than the rest, and what catalysts could bring crypto back to life. Is this the start of a new accumulation phase, or are we in for another leg down? Show highlights: 2:36 How the ByBit team responded so well to the hack 17:43 Why the market selloff was not specific to crypto 29:09 How institutions have become more sophisticated about crypto 31:10 Why SOL has been down so much and whether it has bottomed 34:37 Whether tariffs keep having an effect on the markets 37:23 Why the state of the markets makes Eliézer think the crypto asset class has matured 41:27 Whether bitcoin can be a safe haven and the role of diversification 45:26 What the next catalysts for crypto are 49:33 Why Eliézer is so optimistic about the long-term outlook of crypto 53:33 Alex’s spicy opinion on DOGE and Elon Musk Sponsors: Somnia Network RockWallet Bitwise Hosts: Noelle Acheson, Author of the “Crypto Is Macro Now” Newsletter Alex Kruger, Founder of Asgard Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida Guest: Eliézer Ndinga, Head of Strategy and Business Development at 21.co; the parent company of 21Shares Links Unchained: North Korean Hackers Are Winning. Is the Crypto Industry Ready to Stop Them? Reuters: Trump says Canada, Mexico tariffs on schedule despite border, fentanyl efforts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

$1.5 billion gone in an instant. And what’s worse, to fund a nuclear weapons program. The largest crypto hack in history just hit Bybit, and the culprit is the infamous North Korean hacking group, Lazarus. Known for some of the most sophisticated cyber heists ever, they often use social engineering tactics and start by tricking low level employees. Although they can often wait to launder funds, in the case of Bybit they started right away. How did this happen? Could it have been prevented? And what does this mean for the security of the entire crypto industry? Taylor Monahan, security at MetaMask, and Jonty, a senior investigator at zeroShadow, talk all about it. Show highlights: 2:53 Taylor’s and Jonty’s backgrounds and why they are relevant to this discussion 6:06 What the mechanics of the hack were 13:03 How Lazarus usually operates and the tactic of blind signing 17:11 Jonty’s important tips for people handling large amounts of crypto 23:45 How Bybit was able to say almost immediately that their other assets were secure 29:02 How much exchanges typically hold in each cold wallet 32:00 Why the evidence of the hack points to North Korean group Lazarus 41:01 Why North Korean hackers don’t care if their attack is linked to them 49:30 How Lazarus typically social engineers its hacks 53:48 Why Jonty thinks the industry needs a serious upgrade in terms of security 58:08 How the funds get laundered in such cases and what the industry can do 1:09:54 The chances Lazarus actually makes money from the hack 1:15:34 How DeFi protocols should approach this problem Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! Mantle Bitwise Guests: Taylor Monahan, Security at MetaMask Jonty, a senior investigator at zeroShadow Links Previous coverage on Unchained about North Korean hackers: How North Koreans Infiltrated the Crypto Industry to Fund the Regime Why North Korea Is Interested in Cryptocurrency Yeonmi Park on Why Doing Business With North Korea Is Like Buying a Ticket to a Concentration Camp GitHub - pcaversaccio/safe-tx-hashes-util: bash script that checks that the Safe transaction that you are signing is the one that you intend to sign Cointelegraph: Crypto exchange eXch denies laundering Bybit’s hacked funds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week: Bybit’s $1.5B hack, likely by North Korea’s Lazarus Group, and the Libra scandal, where Hayden Davis exposes the memecoin playbook. Meanwhile, Dave Portnoy rugs Greed and Greed 2, Kanye’s YZY token leaks, and the LA Vape Cabal collapses. But crypto markets hold strong, and the SEC just dropped its lawsuit against Coinbase. Is this the end of the memecoin era? We break it all down. Show highlights 🔹 Bybit’s $1.5B Hack – Largest crypto hack in history, linked to North Korea’s Lazarus Group. CEO Ben Zhou handled it masterfully, securing a bridge loan to cover outflows. 🔹 Hayden Davis & the Memecoin Playbook – Argentina’s Libra token scandal exposed the insider trading behind celeb-backed coins. Hayden Davis spills the playbook on Coffeezilla. 🔹 Portnoy’s Pump & Dump – Barstool’s Dave Portnoy rugs his own followers with Greed and Greed 2, then mocks them. 🔹 The Memecoin Bubble is Popping – Sentiment shift: retail realizes the game is rigged. Memecoins may finally be out of steam. 🔹 Kanye’s YZY Coin? – West’s team accidentally leaks a memecoin plan. Will it even launch, or is it DOA after the Libra scandal? 🔹 The LA Vape Cabal Collapses – Once a driving force in memecoins, this underground group falls apart after links to Kelsier Ventures are exposed. 🔹 Regulatory Winds Shift – SEC drops its lawsuit against Coinbase. Crypto enforcement pivots from good actors to actual fraud. 🔹 Crypto Holds Up – Despite chaos, the market remains resilient. Infrastructure tokens are seeing renewed interest. Hosts ⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate ⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures ⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly Disclosures Timestamps 00:00 Intro 01:41 The Largest Crypto Hack in History 03:03 Bybit's Response and Industry Reactions 04:51 North Korea's Involvement and the Aftermath 18:06 Hayden Davis & LIBRA 30:50 Meteora & the Solana Universe 33:34 Downfall of Memecoins 39:58 Hypocrisy of Celeb Coins 47:00 Regulatory Changes and the Future of Crypto Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices