Why Crypto Funds Shut Down | Weekly Roundup
In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Santi discuss this week's biggest stories. CeFi continues to implode, funds are facing redemptions and Bitcoin miners are in trouble. What could be the catalyst out of this mess? How has Santi changed his mind about DeFi? Tune in to find out! Highlights include: - Why Santi changed his mind on undercollateralized loans in DeFi - What is happening with CoinFLEX and Roger Ver - 3AC officially defaults - Why users aren't ready to use DeFi - Jason and Santi's bet on the next crypto catalyst - A potential Bitcoin miner death spiral - What is a high watermark - Arthur Hayes' predictions - Are we just reliant on the Fed? - Maker DAO is buying T-Bills - Jason/Santi book recommendations - - Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw - - Referenced in the show: Jill Gunter of Espresso Systems https://twitter.com/jillrgunter Ryan Swanson (Blockworks Research Analyst) https://twitter.com/ryan_swansonx -- BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users). Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/ -- Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- (00:00) Introduction (03:01) State of the Market (09:45) Bearish On Undercollaterized Loans (12:15) CoinFLEX, Roger Ver and More Contagion (19:08) Will People Use DeFi? (26:25) A Privacy & Security Bet (29:06) Voyager Issues Default Notice to 3AC (29:58) Bitmex Ad (30:56) BTC Miner Death Spiral (42:26) Funder Redemptions ft. Arthur Hayes (50:25) Closing Crypto Funds & High Watermarks (59:10) MakerDAO Vote to Buy T-Bills (1:04:20) Catalyst For The Next Cycle (1:11:20) Crypto's Progress (1:15:48) New Episodes and Book Recommendations -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
1 Jul 20221h 20min
Patients, Not Profits, Should Drive Drug Discovery | Vibe Bio, Alok Tayi
In this episode of Empire, Santi is joined by Alok Tayi, scientist and founder of Vibe Bio. Alok started Vibe Bio because the biggest obstacle in treating patients with overlooked diseases isn’t finding potential treatments — it’s funding them. Vibe Bio is leveraging crypto's economic and coordination tools to fund the research and development that the legacy biotech industry ignores. Don't miss this fascinating conversation! We discuss: - Vibe Bio's origin story - How Vibe Bio works - Big pharma's dilemma - Why these diseases don't receive funding today - How to prioritize projects - Crypto's unique advantages - The $VIBE token - How to grow & leverage Vibe's community - Diseases don't care about interest rates - Biggest challenges - - Follow Alok: https://twitter.com/aloktayi Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw - - ParaSwap: If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage. Visit paraswap.io/beta to learn more about Paraswap's new app. - - Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- (00:00) Introduction (02:27) Official Vibe Bio Launch (03:50) The Origin Story (06:32) How Funding Works in Biotech (12:15) Vibe Bio's Gameplan (14:50) Community Inspiration (17:48) Big Pharma's Dilemma (19:42) How Has The Community Responded? (22:25) Why Now? (24:58) How To Prioritize (30:42) Paraswap Ad (31:51) Is There An Adverse Selection Problem (36:50) Two Key Milestones (42:17) The Biggest Risks (45:15) The $Vibe token (48:18) Does IP matter? (51:47) Help The Mission -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
27 Jun 202259min
SBF Saves CeFi | DeFi Yields Crash | Voyager, BlockFi & 3AC | Solend | Worst Case Scenario
In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Santi discuss CeFi's contagion risk and the fragility in the crypto market. Prices are crashing, and multiple companies appear to be on the verge of bankruptcy. Is SBF saving the industry? What questions should we all be asking right now? Tune in to find out! Highlights include: - What's going on in the markets - Crypto is transparent but not perfect - What is crypto's worst-case scenario - Crypto is transparent but not perfect - Will 3AC survive - Voyager joins the illiquidity party - BlockFi continues to be in pain - SBF & Alameda swoop in - Are low DeFi yields existential - What happened with Solend - Is it okay if applications are centralized - - Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw - - Referenced in the show: Jason's tweet on 3 phases of a bear market https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz/status/1536365738906202112 Episode with Qiao from Alliance DAO https://tinyurl.com/4wrkuakz -- BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users). Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/ -- Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- (00:00) Introduction (01:41) Market Update (04:34) Today's Risk Factors (08:37) 3AC Crises Update (13:17) Celsius & sETH Update (13:45) Voyager & Risk Mgmt (17:56) How Bad Are Low Yields For DeFi? (20:16) Bitmex Ad (21:16) The Question You Should Be Asking (27:27) When Markets Go Quiet (29:02) SBF Saves CeFi (35:04) A Daisy Chain of Yields (31:02) Solend & Centralization1 (41:33) Topics For Next Week -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
24 Jun 202243min
The Crypto Renaissance Has Begun | Josh Rosenthal
In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Josh Rosenthal - a former historian turned serial entrepreneur and crypto VC. Josh's encyclopedic knowledge of history - from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance and beyond - and ability to draw a throughline between historical events, Web3 and our world today is truly fascinating. Josh contends that we are living through the greatest Renaissance in history. How will historians look back on today? Tune in to find out. We discuss: - medieval life - what defines a Renaissance - the advent of a dynamic identity - signs of a reformation - what drives history - layering ownership into communication - the pendulum between aggregation and decentralization - how Web3 brings the missing element to the internet - why we are living through THE greatest Renaissance - how will society be impacted - - Follow Josh: https://twitter.com/JoshuaRosenthal Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw -- Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - ParaSwap: If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage. - - (00:00) Introduction (04:07) Medieval You (10:30) Taking the Red Pill (17:45) Self-Generating Demand (21:16)The New Reformation (27:42) A Recreation of Society (32:15) Crypto Is A Counterweight To Aggregation (37:18) Paraswap Ad (38:26) Choosing Your Identity (41:59) Synthetic Worlds and Chaotic Change (46:51) Distinguishing the Institution From The Ideology (53:37) Zoom Out (56:46) Our Questions Affect the Outcomes (57:51) Have We Lost Our Ingenuity? (1:06:09) Institutions Eventually Give In (1:07:10) Embracing Pluralism (1:11:36) What Will the World Look Like? (1:15:08) Crypto's Impact on the Middle Class (1:21:18) New Jobs and Opportunities -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
20 Jun 20221h 26min
Market Contagion | stETH fallout | Celsius & 3AC Liquidity Crises | Santi's Investment Strategy
In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Santi reflect on what might have been the most dramatic week in crypto's history. They explore the market contagion, the fallout, and debate if we've hit rock bottom. Santi is back in the studio with perfect timing. How is Santi approaching this volatility, is he buying, and what is his updated investment strategy? Tune in to find out. Highlights include: - How did this all start - The effects of quantitative tightening - Why stETH is causing waves across crypto - A bank run at Celsius - Do CeFi companies need more regulation - Three Arrows Capital insolvency rumors - Santi's #1 takeaway from this week's drama - Tether FUD - The downside of on-chain transparency - Are Santi and Jason buying back in - Santi's updated investment strategy - How to maximize the bear market - - Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw - - Referenced in the show: degentrading Twitter thread on 3AC's liquidity crises https://tinyurl.com/4xer8dzn Jason's tweet on 3 phases of a bear market https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz/status/1536365738906202112 -- BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users). Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/ -- Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- (00:00) Introduction (03:26) How Did We Get Here? (07:02) A Sudden and Brutal Bear Market (13:15) Thesis vs Fear Driven (15:14) Balancing Optimism With Rational Valuation (18:42) What Is Happening With sETH? (25:12) Why Celsisus Is In A Liquidity Crunch? (34:52) Should CeFi Companies Be Regulated Like Banks? (39:04) Bitmex Ad (40:05) What's Next For Celsius? (44:04) Three Arrows Capital is treading water (51:12) Margin calls, 3AC and risk mgmt. (55:19) Santi's #1 Takeaway (1:01:36) Contagion (1:07:12) Tether FUD (1:09:47) Negative Consequences of Transparency (1:13:25) Is This Rock Bottom? (1:18:32) Santi's Current Strategy (1:27:52) Patience and Staying In The Game (1:41:00) Blockworks and Building in a Bear -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
17 Jun 20221h 45min
Can Crypto Find a New Narrative? | Haseeb Qureshi & Tom Schmidt
In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Haseeb Qureshi and Tom Schmidt from Dragonfly Capital. Haseeb and Tom are top venture capitalists with unique insights into crypto's current trends, new innovations and market sentiment. If you want expert advice on the market, these are two people you ask. We discuss: - the venture capital landscape - power is shifting to investors - being long crypto while fighting the Fed - supercharged crowdfunding - convertible bonds & debt financing - the changing meta - how projects choose where to build - the end of airdrops - market outlook - - Follow Haseeb: https://twitter.com/hosseeb Follow Tom: https://twitter.com/tomhschmidt Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw - - Referenced in the show: Dragonfly's letter to founders https://tinyurl.com/493vrmpp Tom's tweet on Porter Finance https://twitter.com/tomhschmidt/status/1533779269851176960 - - ParaSwap: If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage. - - (00:00) Introduction (01:33) Today's Narrative (05:25) A venture capitalist perspective (08:17) Rising interest rates and available capital (16:15) The big outstanding problems (21:29) Utilizing debt financing (27:35) The changing meta (31:49) Paraswap Ad (32:58) The layer one wars (36:00) How projects "shop around" protocols (39:10) Where should new projects build? (42:22) The end of airdrops (47:28) How founders should approach growth (51:25) Advice on down rounds (59:32) Public vs Private markets (1:02:47) How long will the bear market last? -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
13 Jun 20221h 7min
Roundup: BlockFi Down Round | DAOs Scrambling | Cynthia Lummis Bill | FTX vs Coinbase
In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Mike discuss the current state of crypto. It's officially a bear market, so how are companies and DAOs responding? What are the stories that you need to know? Tune in to find out. Highlights include: Did companies overhire What happens in a down round Why we need to separate investors from traders DAOs look to stables and the need for debt financing The Coinbase vs FTX strategy debate Is the Lummis bill good for crypto Enterprise blockchains are back Optimism loses 20M OP tokens ApeCoin DAO sides with Ethereum - - Follow Mike: https://twitter.com/MikeIppolito_ Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw - - Referenced in the show: BlockFi down round https://tinyurl.com/2tej9jyf Novogratz says 2/3 of crypto funds will fail https://tinyurl.com/yh4x2jsu Lido, FEI and Frax proposals https://research.lido.fi/t/lido-to-prepare-for-the-bear-market/2318/5 https://tribe.fei.money/t/tip-110-simplify-pcv/4323 https://gov.frax.finance/t/fip-77-20m-fxs-buyback-program-using-twamm/1523 SBF on Empire https://tinyurl.com/23wp5uza SBF on Invest Like The Best https://tinyurl.com/2p8wsdfe FTX surpasses Coinbase in BTC & ETH spot trading https://coinmetrics.substack.com/p/state-of-the-network-issue-158?s=r Coinbase job portal https://coda.io/@coinbase-talent/coinbase-talent-hub/ Richard Burton article on how crypto is like building hardware https://tinyurl.com/ytww6ap7 Tim Beiko on Bankless https://tinyurl.com/2vxmcdux -- BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users). Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/ -- Timestamps (00:00) Introduction (02:45) Down Rounds, Layoffs and Hiring Freezes (16:40) An Investor Reckoning? (18:20) Separating Investors vs Traders (20:05) Frothy Private Markets (23:50) DAO Treasuries and Debt Financing (27:53) Questioning Token Buybacks (32:30) Bitmex Ad (33:33) FTX Surpassing Coinbase (40:15) Cynthia Lummis Bill (45:15) Are Tokens Securities? (48:21) Salesforce and Enterprise Blockchains (56:15) Optimism loses $20M OP tokens (59:45) APE DAO votes on Ethereum (1:03:40) When ETH merge -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
10 Jun 20221h 7min
The Web3 Founder’s Playbook | Imran Khan, Qiao Wang, AllianceDAO
In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Qiao Wang and Imran Khan, core contributors at Alliance DAO (the Y Combinator of Web3). Alliance DAO is a Web3 startup accelerator whose portfolio includes 0x, dYdX, Paraswap, Synthetix and top Web3 protocols. Qiao and Imran are former founders who now assist Web3's top entrepreneurs in building, launching and growing their products. As a result, the duo has a front-row seat to the latest trends and innovations in crypto. This episode is for you if you want to know what it takes to build a top Web3 product. We discuss: - how to think about tokenomics - why product should come before community - what tech stack developers are building on - why Qiao recommends launching your product on Avalanche - how to scale a team in Web3 - the top 3 things founders should think about - why you shouldn't start a DAO, and much more! -- Follow Qiao: https://twitter.com/QwQiao Follow Imran: https://twitter.com/Imrankhan Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw - - Referenced in the show: Empire's previous episode with Qiao & Imran https://tinyurl.com/bznjm8ub Alliance DAO https://alliance.xyz/ Qiao's "Common Pitfalls for Web3 Founders" post https://twitter.com/QwQiao/status/1503365524272689156 Imran's tweet thread on "leveraged CAC" https://twitter.com/lmrankhan/status/1501247894325768194 Imran's tweet on a Robinhood acquisition https://twitter.com/lmrankhan/status/1527353717741490178 Imran's tweet on DAO treasuries growing to $11B https://twitter.com/lmrankhan/status/1517551697148747777 The Obol staking protocol https://obol.tech/ - - ParaSwap: If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage. - - (00:00) Introduction (01:37) State of The Market (06:37) Is This Crypto's Last Cycle? (11:24) The Best Time To Launch A Product (12:49) Leveraged Customer Acquisition Cost (16:09) Don't Start Your Company As A DAO (18:02) Paraswap Ad (19:09) Why Do We Even Need DAOs? (21:26) Building Community Around A Project (24:47) Scaling a Team In Web3 (26:55) The Use Case for Creator DAOs (30:22) How Do Builders Choose Which Platform to Build On? (35:42) Will Talent Flock to Ethereum L2s? (38:49) Web3 Unit Economics (42:38) Top 3 Things Founders Should Focus On (45:04) How to Think About Community (48:43) Is Coinbase undervalued? (49:59) Will Robinhood Be Acquired in 2022? (51:25) Coinbase vs FTX (51:56) Where is the NFT Market Headed? (55:08) Lido's Future Dominance -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
6 Jun 202256min
