Why Nasdaq Is Even More Optimistic About Blockchain Than It Was 3 Years Ago
Fredrik Voss, Nasdaq's head of blockchain initiatives, discusses what the company has accomplished with the technology and how his firm evaluates whether potential projects could benefit from a blockchain solution. He also reveals what is likely to really slow adoption of distributed ledgers (hint: not the tech itself) and gives advice to other companies looking to incorporate it. Read the show notes and my magazine story on Chain and its work with Nasdaq. This episode was sponsored by Onramp. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
21 Feb 201750min
With Deadline Looming, Will The SEC Approve A Bitcoin ETF?
The SEC will make a decision on a proposed bitcoin ETF by March 11. Will it approve? An optimist and pessimist weigh in, touching upon bitcoin’s liquidity, the impact recent events in China have had on its trading, as well as proposals for bitcoin ETFs by other companies. Plus, they reveal what impact an ETF could have on the bitcoin market. Read the show notes. Other links: Needham & Company Global Advisors Gemini This episode was sponsored by Onramp. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
7 Feb 201757min
Is The IRS Justified In Demanding Information On Millions Of Bitcoin Users?
The IRS found three entities using bitcoin to evade taxes and has now demanded the records of millions of users at Coinbase, the largest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange. An accountant and an attorney specializing in cryptocurrency discuss whether the IRS is overreaching, how this "unprecedented" case differs from previous ones pursued by the IRS, and what they think the ultimate outcome will be. Read the show notes. Other links: Coinbase Berns Weiss LLP Global Tax Accountants Brian Armstrong's response on Medium My magazine feature on Coinbase This episode was sponsored by Onramp. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
24 Jan 201751min
What Is One Of The World's Largest Derivatives Exchanges Doing With Bitcoin?
CME Group handles three billion contracts worth about $1 quadrillion annually. So why is it making a foray into bitcoin, whose market capitalization is a mere $16 billion? Sandra Ro, CME's head of digitization, explains its first cryptocurrency products, the Bitcoin Reference Rate and the Bitcoin Real-Time Index, as well as a forthcoming blockchain-based product, Royal Mint Gold. She also reveals which other cryptocurrencies have piqued her interest and which other physical world assets she thinks could be traded by blockchain. Read the show notes. Other links: CME's Bitcoin Reference Rate Bitcoin Real-Time Index Royal Mint Gold Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
10 Jan 201745min
Federal Prosecutor Kathryn Haun On How Criminals Use Bitcoin -- And How She Catches Them
Kathryn Haun put away the DEA and Secret Service agents who tried to make off with more than $800,000 in stolen bitcoin while investigating the darknet Silk Road marketplace. She talks about how the blockchain technology underlying Bitcoin made it possible to uncover their theft, why she believes blockchain will create a lot of good, and what she does when the very people behind tumblers and mixers -- technology that makes her work more difficult -- turn to her when they are the victims of crimes. Along the way, we learn about the habits of cryptocurrency criminals and get a fascinating view into the world of "breeder documents." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 Nov 201645min
How Coin Center Is Helping Define The 'Big Fuzzy Gray Area' Of Blockchain And Cryptocurrency Law
As blockchains and cryptocurrencies evolve, there are times when the technology outpaces the law. That's when Coin Center steps in. The non-profit, which represents the technology, not the industry, and aims for regulators to keep a mostly hands-off attitude, has already helped shape questions around which types of Bitcoin wallet providers are financial institutions and whether new coins being offered represent securities. And answering these questions has drawn it back into previous cases involving everything from Florida orange groves to Manhattan co-ops to golf club memberships. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
18 Okt 201650min
What Does Cornell’s Emin Gun Sirer See As The Main Security Threats In Cryptocurrency? ‘Everything’
Cornell University computer science professor Emin Gun Sirer, an influential figure in the cryptocurrency and blockchain space, describes his ideas for improving security in the space, his skepticism about how to scale these networks, and how the last time financial institutions invested in their systems appears to be for Y2K. He also tells us how growing up in an environment where he saw a lot of scams helps him find problems in code, explains why Bitcoin is the “universal bug bounty,” and reveals how two high school students saved burgeoning cryptocurrency network Ethereum “like in the movies — just before the clock was going to expire.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
4 Okt 201657min
Why A Wall Street Journal Currency Reporter Didn't Understand Money Until He Learned About Bitcoin
Michael Casey, senior advisor at MIT's Media Lab and author of the Age of Cryptocurrency, spent 18 years at the Wall Street Journal -- a good portion of that covering currency markets. But he says it wasn't until he learned about Bitcoin that he really understood what money was. In this episode of Unchained, he explains why, plus discusses why he thinks China will play a key role in moving the world to a cryptocurrency- or blockchain-based trade settlement system, what that could mean for the U.S. dollar as a reserve currency and what he thinks is the most cutting-edge work being done in blockchain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
20 Sep 201656min
