Unchained

While it’s now mostly contained, the Curve crisis has exposed some of the systemic risks in the world of DeFi. Sam Kazemian, founder of Frax Finance, joins the show to discuss what DeFi needs to do to get better – and what builders should learn from a novel attack that was ultimately about much more than $50 million in drained funds. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights: how the Curve exploit occurred and why this hack is different  how the attack triggered a crisis in major lending platforms like Aave, Fraxlend, and Abracadabra what Curve founder Michael Egorov’s solution was to the potential liquidation of his several loans whether this situation proves that DeFi is not as good as promised what can be done to prevent these kinds of issues in the future, particularly with large loans in DeFi that could potentially bring down the ecosystem Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Railgun DAO Arbitrum Foundation Thales DAO Guest Sam Kazemian, founder of Frax Finance Links Previous coverage on the Curve hack: The Chopping Block: Who’s to Blame for the Curve Hack? Unchained:  $52 Million Drained in Curve Finance Pools Exploit Curve Founder’s Liquidation Could Trigger Chaos for DeFi Curve Exploit Results in Largest MEV Block Rewards in Ethereum’s History CoinDesk:  Curve Founder Deploys New Liquidity Pool to Address FRAX Debt Situation Spooked by Curve Liquidation Threat, DeFi Protocols Shore Up Defenses Aave Should Block Curve Token Borrowing, Risk Management Firm Proposes After the Curve Attack: What's Next for DeFi?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

4 Aug 202338min

Welcome to “The Chopping Block” – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, and Tarun Chitra chop it up about the latest news. This week, Laurence Day, smart-contract sleuth and co-founder of Wildcat Finance, joins the show to discuss the ramifications of the Curve Finance exploit that has the DeFi world talking. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights: how Curve Finance, one of the most prominent DeFi protocols, got hacked why maintaining different coding languages and clients is so hard whether developers are responsible for this kind of attack whether Curve founder Michael Egorov’s loans in Aave and Fraxlend have put DeFi at risk how the loan in Fraxlend impacted the liquidation price of the Aave loan Tarun’s reaction to the situation, given that his firm Gauntlet has tried to mitigate these risks in the past how people in the community worked together to keep DeFi safe and resilient why Tarun got canceled on LinkedIn what happened with the BALD meme coin mania on Base Hosts Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures Guest: Laurence Day, co-founder of Wildcat Finance Disclosures    Links Unchained: BALD Token Falls 90% Amid Rug Pull Allegations $60 Million in ETH Bridged to Coinbase Layer 2 Base Curve Founder’s Liquidation Could Trigger Chaos for DeFi $52 Million Drained in Curve Finance Pools Exploit Curve Exploit Results in Largest MEV Block Rewards in Ethereum’s History CoinDesk: Curve Founder Deploys New Liquidity Pool to Address FRAX Debt Situation Spooked by Curve Liquidation Threat, DeFi Protocols Shore Up Defenses Aave Should Block Curve Token Borrowing, Risk Management Firm Proposes After the Curve Attack: What's Next for DeFi? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

3 Aug 202359min

CoinFund’s Jake Brukhman and Chris Perkins join Unchained to dissect their recent $158 million seed round and the transformation of the investment landscape following the 2022 crypto carnage. As backers of Worldcoin, they confront criticisms about the project's approach of distributing money to individuals who may not fully comprehend the underlying technology. They also delve into why the Coinbase lawsuit could potentially boost the industry, share their perspectives on current crypto legislation, and explore the intersection of AI and crypto. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights: how the fundraising crypto environment changed this past year after the 2022 carnage what the impact of FTX’s alleged fraud has been  why Chris and Jake believe that the SEC’s lawsuit against Coinbase is bullish for the industry why Jake believes there's no massive consumer application in web3 yet how institutions have been building during the bear market whether Worldcoin solves the sybil resistance problem in crypto and whether it could become more decentralized than Bitcoin Jake's response to the criticism surrounding the centralization and privacy issues in Worldcoin the ethical implications of giving free money to people who may not fully understand how their biometric data is being used what the Composite Ether Staking Rate (CESR) is and what are its two main applications how the foundational web3 + AI intersection is happening in the compute area why Chris believes that the crypto market structure bill is not perfect whether creating proper stablecoin legislation is a very important opportunity for the US how DeFi should be regulated to ensure that privacy gets protected Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Arbitrum Foundation TOKEN2049 Guests: Chris Perkins, President of CoinFund Jake Brukhman, Founder and CEO of CoinFund Links Unchained:  Worldcoin Launches Token on Mainnet, Plans to Deploy 1,500 Eyeball Scanning Orbs Is Sam Altman's Worldcoin the End of People's Privacy? CoinDesk:  Worldcoin Could Enable Wider Distribution of Crypto Than Even Bitcoin, Says CoinFund,  Worldcoin Releases Tokenomics, Report Geofenced for Some Countries   The Block: What exactly is CoinFund's new Composite Ethereum Staking Rate What do I think about biometric proof of personhood? By Vitalik Buterin CoinDesk Indices and CoinFund Announce CESR, the Benchmark Rate for Staking on Ethereum CoinFund Reinforces Commitment to Web3 Technology with the Close of $158M Seed IV Fund Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1 Aug 20231h 6min

Crypto markets are under the gun from SEC Chairman Gary Gensler’s ‘regulation by enforcement’ policy. Meanwhile, a divided political landscape creates gridlock on Capitol Hill. Democratic Representative Ritchie Torres (NY-15) claims regulators have overstepped their bounds, while generational divide in the Democratic party slows appropriate regulatory legislation from passing. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights: Why stablecoins are less dangerous than fractional reserve banking How the current system fails to protect retail investors Why Democrats and Republicans have flipped traditional stances on regulation Increased skepticism after the FTX meltdown Regulation by enforcement an abuse of power If and when a digital asset is an investment contract What he views as Prometheum’s planned political stunt Resolving crypto’s long term problems responsibly   Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Railgun DAO Ondo Finance Arbitrum Foundation Guest  Ritchie Torres, U.S. representative   Links Fortune: Ritchie Torres went from crypto ‘newbie’ to key ally in Washington. Now he could shape the industry’s post-FTX future NY Daily: A liberal case for cryptocurrency CoinDesk: Rep. Ritchie Torres: We've Seen a 'Weaponization of the SEC' From Gensler Against Crypto Industry U.S. Financial Service Committee: McHenry, Thompson, Hill, Johnson Release Digital Asset Market Structure Proposal Bloomberg Law: McHenry Says White House Torpedoed Bipartisan Stablecoin Deal NBC: Sen. Cynthia Lummis: Crypto regulation bill could prevent another FTX-style crisis Rep. Torres’s open letter to Gensler following the Ripple decision Rep. Torres’ speech   Previously on Unchained Why the SEC Doesn’t Want the Ripple Case to Go to the Supreme Court New Order in SEC vs. Ripple Over XRP Is a Win for Crypto: What Happens Now? Why the SEC vs. Ripple Order Is Now About 2 Things: Coinbase and Congress Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

28 Jul 202339min

Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest news. This week, they debate whether infrastructure is being over-invested in, explore the potential of UniswapX and the controversial launch of Worldcoin’s token, and dive into the curious world of hamster racing in crypto.  Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights:  why Tarun thinks EthCC Paris was much better than ETH Denver whether VCs are overinvesting in infrastructure why Haseeb believes that founders should focus on building applications rather than infrastructure whether the WRLD token is a new “Sam coin” what everyone thinks about Worldoin and the need to develop proof of personhood in crypto what is going on with hamster racing and whether this is the reason "normies hate crypto" UniswapX and its benefits (and tradeoffs)  whether there is a shift toward intents-based trading Hosts Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly  Robert Leshner, founder of Compound Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly  Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures Disclosures  Links Unchained:  Worldcoin Launches Token on Mainnet, Plans to Deploy 1,500 Eyeball Scanning Orbs UniswapX Launches With MEV Protection and Gas Free Swaps Is Sam Altman's Worldcoin the End of People's Privacy? Decrypt: You Can Now Bet Crypto on Hamster Races. What Could Go Wrong? What do I think about biometric proof of personhood? By Vitalik Buterin Paradigm: Intent-Based Architectures and Their Risks Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

27 Jul 202353min

Despite the doom and gloom, Placeholder VC partners Chris Burniske and Joel Monegro are highly bullish on the present moment. “We’re all going to look back on this period and remember it as fondly as we remember ‘18 and ‘19,” Monegro tells Laura Shin. The two long-term investors explain why the confluence of macroeconomic factors and crypto-native (and AI) innovations make this the ideal time to invest in a Web3 future. They cut their teeth on Bitcoin, they grew up with Ethereum; hear what they think is next. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights: why Chris says crypto’s four-year cycle will likely play out once again the role of interest rates in asset valuation whether the crypto industry has learned its lessons from the “crypto carnage” of 2022 whether there’s a future for KYC’d DeFi when failing in crypto should be considered a crime, as in the Do Kwon case what could happen with the rate hikes and how the macroeconomic environment affects the markets how the ruling in the Ripple case impacts the development of new crypto companies and user adoption whether Joel felt relieved by the ruling, considering Placeholder has invested in many tokens that were named as securities by the SEC what Joel thinks of the new crypto bill in Congress and how he wishes that smart contracts were used to self-regulate the industry what Joel and Chris think of the delicate situations of crypto giants such as Binance and DCG whether the fat protocol thesis still holds up and whether it colors Placeholder’s current investment thesis why most of the Layer 1s will become rollups, according to Chris why Chris is bullish on Solana, despite the massive collapse in value following the FTX debacle how NFTs will play a significant role in “establishing the provenance of content” whether AI agents will become crypto power users Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Arbitrum Foundation TOKEN2049 Guests: Chris Burniske, partner at Placeholder VC Previous appearance on Unchained:  2022 in Review + How Cobie and Chris Burniske Are Playing the New Year Cobie and Chris Burniske on How to Navigate a Crypto Bear Market How To Value A Crypto Asset Joel Monegro, partner at Placeholder VC. Placeholder’s Joel Monegro on the Fat Protocols Thesis Links Fat Protocols by Joel Monegro The Blockchain Application Stack by Joel Monegro Decred Thesis by Joel Monegro and Chris Burniske WSJ:  Binance Lays Off Over 1,000 Employees Binance Cuts Back Employee Benefits, Citing Decline in Profit CoinDesk: Unpacking the Latest Lummis-Gillibrand Bill Draft Reuters: US SEC accepts six spot bitcoin ETF proposals for review Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

25 Jul 20231h 46min

If the SEC wants to appeal last week’s judgment in the Ripple case, it better act fast. So says Bill Hughes, regulatory chief at Ethereum booster ConsenSys and one of the many crypto policy pros assessing the ramifications of U.S. district judge Analisa Torres’ decision. The regulatory agency’s decision to appeal hinges on a number of factors, Hughes says, including that this Supreme Court will likely be unkind to SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s interpretation of how to regulate crypto. But of course, a political calculus is also in play, and suddenly U.S. lawmakers have a slew of crypto bills and amendments to choose from. How will it play out? Show highlights: whether the SEC is going to appeal the recent Ripple ruling and whether Judge Analisa Torres would allow it what the risks are for the SEC of taking the case to the Second Circuit why Bill believes that the SEC’s chances are not good at the Supreme Court what the motivation is behind the new DeFi bill in the U.S. Senate how that bill would impact the different stakeholders in a DeFi project why the crypto community should put its focus on the stablecoin and market structure bills first, according to Bill how the SEC has been dropping lawsuits days prior to Congressional debates about crypto Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Railgun DAO Ondo Finance Arbitrum Foundation Guest Bill Hughes, senior counsel and director of global regulatory matters at ConsenSys. Links Previous coverage of Unchained on the Ripple case:  Why the SEC vs. Ripple Order Is Now About 2 Things: Coinbase and Congress  New Order in SEC vs. Ripple Over XRP Is a Win for Crypto: What Happens Now? The Chopping Block: Should XRP Holders Really Be Rejoicing? The SEC's Lawsuit Against Ripple and 2 Execs: What You Need to Know  Ripple's XRP: Why Its Chances of Success Are Low CoinDesk: Ripple's Legal Win Means It's Time for Crypto to Stand Up to the SEC Unchained:  U.S. Senate Bill Calls for Strict KYC and AML Regulations for DeFi SEC vs Ripple: Judge Rules XRP Sold on Exchanges Is Not a Security Bill’s thread on the Lummis-Gillibrand amendment S.Amdt.712 to S.2226 - 118th Congress (2023-2024) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

21 Jul 202343min

XRP isn’t itself a security; it depends on how it’s sold. So said a federal judge last Thursday in the SEC vs. Ripple case and the implications are significant. Jake Chervinsky, chief policy officer at the Blockchain Association, and lawyer Kayvan Sadeghi, partner at Jenner & Block, join the show to discuss two major ramifications. One: U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres dealt a major blow to the legal theory underpinning the SEC’s case against Coinbase. Two: This order really “lights a fire” under U.S. lawmakers to act on a pair of crypto bills in Congress. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform. Show highlights: why this is an “extraordinary victory” for the industry, according to Jake whether Judge Torres made the right decision how the SEC could seek an interlocutory appeal to halt the case, though it’s unlikely what are the pending items in the case that need to be resolved why the order that Judge Torres issued is not a final judgment why it is more important to look at the transaction, not at the nature of the asset, to determine whether something should be deemed a security whether the SEC has the authority to call digital assets securities the significance of the “major questions doctrine” how the order in the Ripple case will affect other cases like the Coinbase one whether exchanges should re-list XRP why this case could be instrumental in steering the direction of crypto regulation in the U.S. whether other crypto tokens like SOL or MATIC should feel relieved with this new ruling why Jake says that this case will speed up the chances of crypto legislation getting passed what the differences are between the current crypto bills that are being proposed whether SEC Chair Gary Gensler should recuse himself from enforcement actions in the crypto industry Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Arbitrum Foundation TOKEN2049 Guests: Jake Chervinsky, chief policy officer at the Blockchain Association Previous appearances on Unchained: The Chopping Block: Jake Chervinsky on How the SEC Has Lost Credibility All Things Crypto Regulation With Jake Chervinsky Everything You Need to Know About the Looming Battle Over Privacy in Crypto Can Crypto Be a Force in the Midterms? Yes, Say Kristin Smith and Jake Chervinsky Kayvan Sadeghi, partner at Jenner & Block and co-chair of the fintech and crypto assets practice. Links: Previous coverage of Unchained on the Ripple case:  New Order in SEC vs. Ripple Over XRP Is a Win for Crypto: What Happens Now? The Chopping Block: Should XRP Holders Really Be Rejoicing? The SEC's Lawsuit Against Ripple and 2 Execs: What You Need to Know  Ripple's XRP: Why Its Chances of Success Are Low SEC vs Ripple: Judge Rules XRP Sold on Exchanges Is Not a Security CoinDesk: Ripple, Crypto Industry Score Partial Win in SEC Court Fight Over XRP Ripple Labs Ruling Throws U.S. Crypto-Token Regulation into Disarray The Washington Post: Ripple ruling threatens SEC’s crypto regulation push Chair Gensler Must Recuse Himself From Digital Asset Enforcement Decisions - Blockchain Association Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

18 Jul 20231h 11min