Why Crypto is Africa’s Next Big Bet | James Zhang, Jambo

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Santi share their thoughts on the state of the market, the endless hacks in crypto and a few of the latest innovations. Santi gives his unique private-market insights, Jason gives a behind-the-scenes look at Blockworks, and the duo discuss the biggest story of the week: the Binance and Mango Markets Exploit. We then discuss the 3 big ZK-rollup announcements (scaling season?), Arbitrum's acquisition, and more! - - Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (02:16) What's Changed At Blockworks During The Bear? (06:53) State of Venture, Macro And Crypto Markets (21:39) Does Everything Need A Token? (26:14) Hacks, Exploits And More Hacks (Binance, Mango) (39:43) Yuga Labs & Regulation By Enforcement (48:08) ZK Tech Is Here (51:56) Arbitrum Acquires Prysmatic Labs (55:36) Coinbase News, Stephane Resigns, PayPal & More - - Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz 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 - - Referenced in the show: Cosmos podcast https://spoti.fi/3S3W9zP GCR's "inside job" tweet https://twitter.com/GCRClassic/status/1579837794675216384 Rebecca & Jake regulation podcast https://spoti.fi/3rSZMOw Scroll's zkEVM podcast https://spoti.fi/3rTXO0w Polygon deep dive by Blockworks Research https://bit.ly/3S3Wti1 Starkware podcast https://spoti.fi/3Vqu88v Influence Empire (book) https://bit.ly/3T9CLTc David Marcus tweet criticizing PayPal https://twitter.com/davidmarcus/status/1578795041719750663 -- Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is. Learn more at: http://empirepodcast.link/circle --  Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/  - -  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.

14 Okt 20221h 4min

In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Michelle Bailhe Fradin, Partner at Sequoia for a wide ranging discussion on venture capital in crypto. Michelle shares her thoughts on the fat protocol thesis, how infrastructure development is necessary for application growth, changing business models during a bear market and what the biggest opportunities for growth are in this environment. To hear all of this and more, you'll have to tune in! -- Follow Michelle: https://twitter.com/michellebailhe Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is. -- Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (01:05) Ask Not Wen Moon–Ask Why Moon (04:34) The Fat Protocol Thesis (12:58) The Myth of The Infrastructure Phase (16:57) Where Is Sequoia Seeing Opportunity In Crypto? (18:53) The State of Crypto VC Funding (23:10) Circle Ad (24:52) What Metrics Do VC's Track In Crypto? (33:29) How Business Models Change In A Bear Market (36:12) Rethinking Crypto Business Models (38:19) How Active Is Sequoia In Governance? (39:52) Michelle's Thesis On DAOs (48:02) How The VC Landscape Is Changing (53:33) Opportunities Outside of Crypto - - Referenced In The Show:  Ask Not Wen Moon–Ask Why Moon: https://www.sequoiacap.com/article/ask-not-wen-moon-ask-why-moon/  Fat Protocols https://www.usv.com/writing/2016/08/fat-protocols/  The Myth of The Infrastructure Phase: https://www.usv.com/writing/2018/10/the-myth-of-the-infrastructure-phase/ -- 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 Okt 202258min

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, we discuss one area of the market many aren’t paying attention to, private order flow (POF). As well as POF, Sushiswap announced a new head chef, MakerDAO plans to invest $500M in US treasurys and many VCs are looking to gaming for the next big opportunity in crypto? To hear all this and more, you’ll have to tune in! -- Timestamps:  (00:00) Introduction (01:30) Sushiswap Brings In A New Head Chef (15:38) Uniswap & The App-Chain Thesis (28:15) Private Order Flow Is The New MEV (40:30) The Biggest Winners In MEV (43:00) Gaming: Crypto’s Biggest Opportunity (1:02:30) MakerDAO To Invest $500M in US Treasurys & Corporate Bonds   -- Follow Vance Follow Michael Follow Jason Follow Bell Curve -- Referenced In The Show:  SushiSwap ‘Head Chef’ Election Settled by GoldenTree, Cumberland https://blockworks.co/sushiswap-election-settled-by-goldentree-cumberland/  - Core, from Ava Labs, is more than just a wallet. It’s a free, non-custodial browser extension that gives Avalanche users a more seamless and secure Web3 experience. Download Core today at https://www.core.app/ - - 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. Mike, Jason, Michael, Vance and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

7 Okt 20221h 11min

In this episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by Eli Ben-Sasson and Uri Kolodny to discuss Starkware and the ZK-rollup future. This episode is an absolute masterclass on scaling Ethereum using zero-knowledge proofs and a fractal architecture. We discuss the limits of L1 scaling, ZK vs Optimistic rollups, native L2 programming languages, Layer 3 applications and much more! - - Timestamps: (00:00) Intro (00:32) The Limits of L1 Scaling (05:30) Optimistic vs ZK Rollups (14:40) Why ZK Rollups Lag Optimistic Rollups in TVL (19:10) Advantages of the Cairo Programming Language (26:57) L1 Apps Building for an L2 World (30:01) Circle Ad (31:43) dYdX’s Move From Starkware to Cosmos (37:15) MEV, Bitcoin and Cairo 1.0 Adoption (46:23) Layer 3 Scaling (57:38) What Comes Next - - Follow Eli: https://twitter.com/EliBenSasson Follow Uri: https://twitter.com/ukolodny Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz 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 - - Resources Vitalik's post on fractal scaling https://vitalik.ca/general/2022/09/17/layer_3.html Starkware https://starkware.co/ -- Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is. - - Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - 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.

3 Okt 20221h 9min

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, the Blockworks Research team takes over the pod! We start with a debate on the implications of ATOM 2.0 and USDC launching on Cosmos. Is ATOM no longer a meme coin? Does everything revolve around MEV? What opportunities does native USDC unlock for the Cosmos ecosystem? We then discuss the feasibility of reversible on-chain transactions, the next NFT catalyst and how Polygon is a relentless business development machine. Tune in for all of this and more! And don't worry, Jason and Santi will be back next week. - - Timestamps: (00:00 Introduction (01:15) ATOM 2.0 & USDC Cosmos Announcement (20:09) GMX MEV Opportunity Explained (23:33) Politicians Continue to Fight Crypto (26:37) Centre & USDC Dominance (29:45) Reversible Transactions (38:41) The Next NFT Catalyst (42:22) Polygon’s Business Development  (47:39) Blockworks Research - - Follow Matt: https://twitter.com/MattFiebach Follow Dan: https://twitter.com/smyyguy Follow Sam: https://twitter.com/swmartin19 Follow Garrett: https://twitter.com/G_C_Harp 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: Youssef Amrani's tweet on ATOM 2.0 https://bit.ly/3RwU1Re Polka tweet on GMX MEV Opportunity https://bit.ly/3LRO2VR Blockworks Research Twitter https://twitter.com/blockworksres Blockworks Research Newsletter https://blockworks.co/newsletter/daily-debrief-by-blockworks-research/ -- Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/  - -  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.

30 Sep 202250min

In this episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by Cooper Turley, aka Coopahtroopa, for a master class on music NFTs. We all listen to music every day, yet monetization for 99% of artists is abysmal. Coop explains how artists can leverage Web3 to maximize revenue, fan engagement and creativity. We explore how music NFTs work, why they have value, which artists should participate and how Web3 will revolutionize the music industry. Cooper is an absolute expert, you won't want to miss it! - - Timestamps: (00:00) Intro (02:00) Coop Records & Intro to Music NFTs (06:50) The Evolution of Music Monetization (11:30) How to Value Music NFTs (14:41) Artists as CEOs & the Music NFT Market (22:59) Circle Ad (24:41) Should Every Artist Create Music NFTs? (28:57) Do Music NFTs Need Utility? (37:40) One-of-Ones vs Collections (41:35) AI-Generated Music & Virtual Artists (47:05) Monetization, Fan Data and the Innovator's Dilemma (53:16) Incubating Artists, Creator Equity Tokens & Community (1:00:01) Tokenized Media & Rapid Fire Questions - - Follow Cooper: https://twitter.com/Cooopahtroopa Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz 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 - - Resources Relics by Monstercat https://relics.xyz/ Hume https://www.wearehume.com/ Coop's Substack https://thisweekinmusicnfts.substack.com/ Coop Records https://www.cooprecords.xyz/ -- Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is. - - Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - 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.

26 Sep 20221h 7min

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason is joined by 0xpibblez and Westie from Blockworks Research to discuss this week's biggest stories. We start with the $160M Wintermute hack, Nasdaq's new custody offering and why pibblez is staying away from algo stablecoin governance tokens. We then discuss Arbitrum's white hat hacker, why the Cosmos ecosystem might start seeing more exploits, how DAOs should codify their cap tables and more! - - Timestamps (00:00) Introduction (00:38) Who The F*ck is Buying ETH Right Now? (01:46) Wintermute $160M Vanity Address Hack (14:36) Nasdaq's Crypto Custody Announcement (17:31) New Draft Stablecoin Bill (25:44) Avalanche Ad (27:12) Arbitrum Vulnerability Exposed (34:44) Rari Fuse Hack Payment - - Follow Pibblez: https://twitter.com/0xpibblez Follow Westie: https://twitter.com/WestieCapital 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: Arbitrum white hat hacker (Riptide) blog https://medium.com/@0xriptide/hackers-in-arbitrums-inbox-ca23272641a2 Riptide's tweet asking if Arbitrum would have been insolvent https://twitter.com/0xriptide/status/1572269938580115456 -- Core, from Ava Labs, is more than just a wallet. It’s a free, non-custodial browser extension that gives Avalanche users a more seamless and secure Web3 experience. Download Core today at https://www.core.app/ -- Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - 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.

23 Sep 202239min

In this episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by Zaki Manian and Jack Zampolin to explore the past, present and future of the Cosmos ecosystem and tech stack. What are the advantages of application-specific chains? How will IBC and Interchain security shape the future of cross-chain interactions? What is ATOM 2.0? We discuss these questions and more in this Cosmos deep dive. - - Follow Zaki: https://twitter.com/zmanian Follow Jack: https://twitter.com/jackzampolin Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz 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 -- Timecodes: (00:00) Introduction (01:21) History of Cosmos & Tendermint (18:18) App-Chain Thesis (30:47) DyDx's Move to Cosmos (40:57) Circle Ad (42:39) Cosmos & ATOM Value Accrual (50:29) ATOM 2.0 Alpha (52:33) Asynchronous Composability, Flash Loans and New Innovations (1:05:44) Expanding Cosmos, MEV and IBC Ethereum (1:16:52) Pros and Cons of the Cosmos Developer Collective -- Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is. - - Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - 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.

19 Sep 20221h 26min