As Ethereum Turns 10, Where Is the Foundation Focused Next? - Ep. 877

Subscribe to the new Bits + Bips channels! 📺 YouTube  🎧 Podcast → Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, Fountain 🐦 X / Twitter  Coinbase’s L2 Base is quickly becoming the most powerful distribution funnel in crypto — and two builders are betting everything on it.  In this episode, Aerodrome’s Alex Cutler and Moonwell’s Luke Youngblood explain why they aligned early with Base, how Coinbase’s strategy could transform token launches by offering “one-click distribution” to 100M+ users, and why they believe Coinbase is set to become the world’s largest “crypto bank.”  They also debate whether exchanges should decide which assets people can trade, how DeFi must evolve to reward token holders sustainably, and whether Uniswap’s push to keep liquidity fragmented is a moat or a weakness.  Finally, they unpack the future of sequencing — and why Flashbots could deliver Solana-level speed while making trading fairer for everyone. Thank you to our sponsors! Walrus Guests: Alexander Cutler, Co-founder of Aerodrome Finance Luke Youngblood, founder of Moonwell Finance Links: Unchained: Companies Are Competing to Bring Crypto to the Masses. Who Is Best Positioned? Crypto Firms, Fintechs and Banks Hope to Dominate Stablecoins. Who Will Win? Moonwell stats Aerodrome stats Timestamps: 🎬 0:00 Intro 👥 2:56 Why Alex and Luke aligned early with Base, and how their backgrounds shapes that decision 📢 6:32 How Coinbase is positioning itself as the distribution partner of the onchain economy ⚖️ 21:12 Whether exchanges should be the ones deciding what assets people can trade 🌱 33:15 How DeFi needs to evolve to reward token holders sustainably and focus on long-term growth 💧 41:32 Whether liquidity fragmentation is actually a feature, not a bug, for Uniswap 💸 57:50 How  Moonwell and Aerodrome justify issuing more incentives than they currently earn in revenue Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

29 Aug 1h 28min

DAT mania meets market reality. Tom Lee becomes the face of ETH as BitMine amasses 1.5% of supply and mNAV premiums start to collapse. We break down Japan’s MetaPlanet tax arbitrage, SharpLink’s buyback tactics, and the coming wave of DAT M&A. Plus: Robinhood launches tokenized stocks in Europe using Arbitrum, the WFE fires a warning shot, and Stylus lets fintech devs go Rust-first onchain. 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. This week, Arbitrum’s AJ Warner (Chief Strategy Officer at Offchain Labs) joins to unpack the rise (and potential fall) of Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs), as Tom Lee emerges as Ethereum’s public face and BitMine amasses 1.5% of ETH. We dive into the collapse of mNAV premiums, Japan’s MetaPlanet tax arbitrage, and the looming consolidation of subscale DATs. Plus: Robinhood launches tokenized stocks in the EU on Arbitrum, AJ shares the roadmap for Robinhood Chain, and we debate whether token wrappers, buybacks, and DAT M&A mark the next era of crypto capital markets. Show highlights 🔹 Tom Lee’s ETH Blitz – How BitMine amassed 1.5% of the ETH supply, why Tom Lee says ETH could flip BTC, and how he’s become the “face of Ethereum.” 🔹 mNAV Compression Across DATs – Big-name DATs (BitMine, MicroStrategy) hold premiums; smaller ones trend toward par or discounts. 🔹 Japan’s MetaPlanet Tax Arbitrage – Why MetaPlanet trades at 2.5–3× NAV: stock taxation loopholes vs. crypto income tax rates in Japan. 🔹 DAT Buybacks, Activism & M&A – SharpLink’s buyback plan, potential for hostile takeovers, and speculation around “DAT piracy.” 🔹 One-DAT-per-Alt Endgame – Why most new DATs are failing, the shift to consolidation, and why each token may only support one treasury long-term. 🔹 Staking ETFs vs DATs – DATs can stake nearly 100% of assets; ETFs are constrained by redemptions and liquidity windows. 🔹 Corporate Tax Drag & Onchain Yield – Trade-offs between tax efficiency and flexibility in corporate vs. ETF structures. 🔹 WFE vs. Tokenized Stocks – Global exchange lobby attacks third-party wrappers as misleading “tokenized stocks” lacking shareholder protections. 🔹 Robinhood’s Tokenized Stock Rollout – Launching in the EU under MiCA, built on Arbitrum One, with a full Robinhood Chain to follow. 🔹 Stylus & Arbitrum Stack Strategy – Why Rust/C/C++ compatibility on Arbitrum helped win the Robinhood deal; flexibility for fintech devs. 🔹 Hyperliquid’s Bridge to Arbitrum – $5B+ in assets sourced via Arbitrum; why Arbitrum’s partner-first posture beats chasing L3s. 🔹 DATs as the New CMOs – How charismatic leaders like Tom Lee and Saylor act as public-facing evangelists for their ecosystems. HOSTS: ⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate ⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly  Guest: ⭐️ A.J. Warner, Chief Strategy Officer at Offchain Labs  Links: Disclosures⁠ DAT Mania Potential & mNAV Compression on the Chopping Block https://youtu.be/rF8TGVWWRTU?list=PLySrw1Nvf-srh6ZnJ033Jb440VKUjVNgX&t=2249  Timestamps 00:00 Intro 01:10 Ethereum's Market Performance  03:02 Tom Lee's Media Blitz  06:37 Digital Asset Treasuries in Crypto 08:47 Tax Arbitrage and Premiums in Different Markets 10:58 Challenges of Digital Asset Treasuries 16:20 Corporate Form vs. ETFs for Staking 19:25 The Role of Spokespersons in Digital Asset Treasuries 27:59 Equity Heavy Strategies and MicroStrategy's Leverage 29:10 Market Signals and Liquidity Challenges 31:29 Adversarial M&A and Stock Buybacks 33:57 WFE letter to SEC: attack on “tokenized stocks” 45:32 Robinhood & Arbitrum Partnership 53:51 Hyperliquid vs. Arbitrum's Ecosystem Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

28 Aug 58min

Subscribe to the new Bits + Bips channels! 📺 YouTube  🎧 Podcast → Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, Fountain 🐦 X / Twitter  Is crypto no longer moving in predictable four-year waves?  From the rise of DATs and stablecoin-specific chains, to Hyperliquid challenging Binance itself, the industry is fracturing into segments with  winners and losers.  In this episode, Hack VC’s Peter Hans and DBA’s Jon Charbonneau debate whether Solana is next in line for a TradFi pump, why ETH suddenly flipped from dead to indispensable, and how onchain exchanges could finally free projects from Binance’s grip. Thank you to our sponsors! Re Mantle Guests: Peter Hans, Partner and Global Head of Business Development at Hack VC Jon Charbonneau, co-founder and general partner of DBA Links: Rob Hadick’s tweet on the DAT trend  Vinny Lingham’s tweet on the locked SOL in DATs Unchained:  Hyperliquid Surpasses Robinhood in Trading Volume for Three Months Straight Circle to Launch Layer 1 Blockchain ‘Arc’ Stripe Is Building Its Own Layer 1 Blockchain Timestamps: 🎬 0:00 Intro 🎯 2:44 Whether the DAT trend is peaking or just getting started 🧾 10:57 Whether SOL DATs include locked funds from the FTX estate 🙅‍♂️ 11:52 Why Jon hasn’t touched any of these products 📈 16:28 Why Peter still sees long-term value in these vehicles 🔥 20:24 Why ETH is suddenly hot in TradFi and how SOL could follow 🏦 28:49 What makes a stablecoin-specific chain attractive 😶‍🌫️ 32:42 How crypto overlooked privacy for far too long 🔗 38:48 What it’ll take for stablecoin chains to win the payments game ⚠️ 45:39 Whether stablechains could hurt Ethereum, Tron, or Solana 🔍 47:46 Which stablechain has the best shot at success 💸 52:07 Why Hyperliquid beat Robinhood in trading volume 🧨 56:00 How Hyperliquid could break Binance’s listing chokehold 🕵️‍♂️ 59:23 What makes anonymous, no-KYC products appealing 📉 1:01:30 Whether the 4-year crypto cycle is officially dead Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

27 Aug 1h 8min

Altcoin froth meets real-asset rails. Vlad explains why Robinhood built an L2, how tokenized stocks—and even private shares like OpenAI/SpaceX—could trade on-chain, and what that means for accreditation, access, and the public/private wall. Plus: DATs, DTCC in a tokenized world, and AI that formally proves smart contracts. 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. This week, Robinhood co‑founder/CEO Vlad Tenev joins to explain Robinhood Chain, why they chose a Layer 2 over a Layer 1, and the plan to bring tokenized stocks — including private shares — on‑chain. We get into the OpenAI/SpaceX kerfuffle, accreditation rules, and whether permissionless tokenization erodes the public/private boundary. Then we zoom out to 24/7 trading, Digital Asset Treasuries, and how formal verification (Lean proofs) could make smart contracts safer. Show highlights 🔹 Robinhood Chain L2 vs. L1 – Why Vlad Tenev chose a Layer 2 over a Layer 1 for tokenized stocks and real-world assets. 🔹 Tokenized Stocks & Private Shares – How Robinhood could put U.S. equities and private company equity (OpenAI, SpaceX) on-chain via SPVs and secondaries. 🔹 OpenAI/SpaceX Tokenization Debate – Issuer consent vs. permissionless exposure: what the kerfuffle reveals about private markets on-chain. 🔹 Retail Access & Accreditation Reform – Moving from wealth-gated accreditation to disclosure + self-certification so more investors can participate. 🔹 Ex-US Rollout for Tokenized Equities – Stablecoin-style playbook with KYC/geofencing and permissionless assets where allowed. 🔹 24/7 Trading for Stocks – From 24/5 to 24/7 markets; what this means for DTCC, transfer agents, and market plumbing. 🔹 Wallet + Chain + Custody Stack – Vertical integration advantages: pricing, UX, and liquidity when Robinhood owns more of the rails. 🔹 Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) – Yield dynamics, mNAV compression, and how DATs stack up against staking ETFs. 🔹 Memecoins vs. Real Assets – “You can buy memes but not OpenAI” paradox and why investor-protection rules feel backward. 🔹 AI-Verified Smart Contracts – Lean proofs, formal verification, and reducing smart-contract risk beyond manual audits. 🔹 Harmonic’s “Aristotle” – Vlad’s AI hitting IMO gold-medal-level math performance and what that means for code safety. 🔹 Robinhood’s Next Decade – Retail super app → B2B/institutional rails and ex-US expansion for tokenized finance. 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  Guest: ⭐️ Vlad Tenev, CEO & Co-founder of Robinhood Timestamps 00:00 Intro 01:52 L2 vs. L1 Trade-Offs 04:19 Tokenized Stocks on Robinhood Chain  07:56 Private Markets Onchain 16:10 Accreditation Reform & Compliance  21:47 24/7 Trading for Equities 31:05 Public vs. Private Boundary 32:59 Memecoin Paradox vs. Real-Asset Tokenization 35:27 Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs)  37:50 Robinhood’s Business Mix  41:38 Retail to Institutions: Global Expansion 46:44 Harmonic AI & Lean Proofs 54:48 Safer Smart Contracts Beyond Manual Audits Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

22 Aug 56min

The drama is heating up in crypto M&A. LayerZero, the omnichain interoperability protocol, shocked the market with a $110 million bid to acquire Stargate DAO — the very bridge it originally launched. Then Wormhole jumped in, asking the DAO to pause the vote so it could make a counter-offer. This episode unpacks the first-ever so-called onchain bidding war: how to value DAOs like real businesses, why LayerZero and Wormhole are fighting over Stargate, and whether this deal marks the beginning of a consolidation wave across crypto. Guests David Nage of Arca and M&A advisor Lawson Bae of Relayzero break down the numbers, the strategy, and what this turning point means for the industry. Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! Sui Xapo Bank Guests: David Nage, VC Portfolio Manager at Arca Lawson Bae, Founder of Relayzero Links: Unchained:  Wormhole Foundation to Counter LayerZero’s Bid for Stargate LayerZero Foundation Proposes $110 Million Stargate Acquisition, Retiring STG for ZRO Tokens  Timestamps: 🎬 0:00 Intro 🧱 2:57 Why LayerZero wants to buy Stargate, the bridge it launched 💸 8:36 Whether the $110 million offer from LayerZero was actually fair 🕵️‍♂️ 14:07 How Wormhole may be trying to make things difficult for its biggest rival 📊 16:35 Why David thinks the $110 million number can be justified 📈 21:07 How the number of daily active users factors into valuing crypto projects 🔢 27:07 What a “reasonable multiple” for Stargate could look like 🗳️ 30:34 How the Stargate DAO should approach this pivotal decision 🤝 34:49 Why this deal shows that crypto M&A is booming Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

22 Aug 51min

Subscribe to the new Bits + Bips channels! 📺 YouTube  🎧 Podcast → Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, Fountain 🐦 X / Twitter  Crypto is moving past speculation — and into the battle for mass adoption. In this episode, Phantom CEO Brandon Millman and Pudgy Penguins CEO Luca Netz join Unchained to debate who will own the next hundred million users. Will it be product-led startups, Web2 giants like X and Meta, or crypto-native apps like Phantom? From payments to trading wars to the “everything app” dream, they unpack where the real value will accrue — and why the easy money era for entrepreneurs is over. Thank you to the sponsors who make this show possible! Re  Mantle Guests: Brandon Millman, CEO and co-founder of Phantom Luca Netz, CEO of Pudgy Penguins Timestamps: 🎬 0:00 Intro 🚧 3:34 Why Brandon still thinks it’s a great time to build in crypto ⚡ 5:55 How Luca sees this moment as an “inflection point” for the industry 👥 9:36 What Brandon and Luca’s personal journeys reveal about building in Web3 🌍 18:07 Who’s best positioned to onboard the next wave of users into crypto 💸 25:05 How distribution is key and why Luca desperately wants to invest in Phantom 😀 💳 37:00 Who might win the payments race and what gives them the edge 📱 51:26 Whether Solana’s Seeker phone has any real shot at breaking through 🔗 58:32 How Robinhood might use Privy and Bridge to dominate the crypto stack ⚔️ 1:01:17 What the new crypto trading wars say about Robinhood, Coinbase, and Kraken 🤔 1:06:05 Whether Coinbase lacks a good product team 📲 1:10:36 Whether the “everything app” dream actually makes sense Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

21 Aug 1h 16min

Stablecoin-focused blockchains are popping up everywhere. Stripe, Circle, and more are betting they can dominate payments. But are these chains even needed? And will Ethereum ever be ready for real-world assets?  Austin Campbell, NYU professor and founder of Zero Knowledge Consulting, joins Unchained to cut through the hype. From why “the market eventually eats you” to how consumers, not companies, could be the real winners, Campbell unpacks the competitive landscape and warns that the ultimate champion might be someone who isn’t even on the field today. Thank you to our sponsors! Walrus Xapo Bank Guest: Austin Campbell, NYU Stern professor and founder and managing partner of Zero Knowledge Consulting Links: Unchained:  Circle to Launch Layer 1 Blockchain ‘Arc’ Stripe Is Building Its Own Layer 1 Blockchain: Report Fortune: Top crypto VC Matt Huang to lead Stripe blockchain Tempo as CEO, stay at Paradigm Timestamps: 🎬 0:00 Intro 💸 4:23 Whether the world really needs stablecoin-specific blockchains 🧪 9:45 How Stripe’s Tempo chain could gain an edge in the payments game 🌐 12:25 Why Circle’s Arc might struggle to stand out 🏆 15:19 Who could emerge as the winner of the stablecoin payments race 🗺️ 20:35 What the broader stablecoin chain landscape looks like right now 🏦 23:36 Whether crypto companies have a real shot at disrupting traditional finance 🙋‍ 27:51 Who could end up being the biggest winners 🧱 31:52 Why Ethereum may not be ready for the RWA moment 🔮 34:52 Who’s best positioned to capitalize on the next wave of blockchain-based payments Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

15 Aug 50min

Altcoin season meets corporate blockchains as Circle and Stripe launch their own L1s, Monero suffers the biggest 51% attack in history (powered by an AI named “Garth”), and the crew debates whether the DAT boom is heading toward equilibrium or mania. 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 dives into the surprising altcoin rally and asks whether ETH still counts as an alt. The big news: Circle unveils Arc, Stripe leaks Tempo — and crypto Twitter is not impressed. We explore why major fintechs are launching their own chains instead of using Ethereum L2s, and whether stablecoin-centric blockchains are the future or just profit grabs. Then: the wildest headline of the week — Monero gets hit with a 51% attack by Qubic, a project training an AI called “Garth,” in what might be the largest attack of its kind. We break down the game theory, the proof-of-work vs. proof-of-stake debate, and what this foreshadows for Bitcoin’s security decades from now. Also: Trump’s executive order opens the door for crypto in 401(k) plans, we speculate about a future GPU debt market crisis, and dissect the state of play in Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) — including whether yield advantages over staking ETFs mean we’re only halfway to mania. Show highlights 🔹 ETH vs. Alts – Is Ethereum still an altcoin, or has it graduated to “major” status? 🔹 Circle’s Arc & Stripe’s Tempo – Why are fintech giants launching their own L1s instead of using Ethereum L2s? 🔹 Crypto Twitter Backlash – The ethos clash between “public goods” culture and corporate profit motives. 🔹 Monero’s 51% Attack – Qubic’s AI Garth mines enough hash power to take over Monero as a “proof of concept.” 🔹 Game Theory & Chain Security – Why PoW is fun (and dangerous) to reason about, and how PoS differs. 🔹 Bitcoin’s Future Risk – How tail emissions (or lack thereof) could leave BTC open to similar attacks. 🔹 401(k) Goes Crypto – Trump’s executive order allows digital assets in retirement accounts. 🔹 GPU Debt Crisis Fanfic – Tarun’s prediction for a future financial meltdown. 🔹 DATs Debate – Are Digital Asset Treasuries sustainable, or primed for a spectacular unwind? 🔹 Yield Edge over ETFs – Why DATs may outperform staking ETFs in capturing on-chain yield. ⭐️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  Democratizing Access To Alternative Assets For 401(K) Investors  https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/08/democratizing-access-to-alternative-assets-for-401k-investors/  Timestamps 00:00 Intro 01:01 Crypto Market Sentiments 02:29 Circle’s Arc & Stripe's Tempo 07:34 Corporate Chains vs. L2 Solutions 17:57 Monero's 51% Attack by Qubic 27:11  Real-World & Protocol Incentives 29:33 Monero's Tail Emission & Bitcoin's Future 34:39 Trump’s Executive Order: Crypto in 401(k)s 37:15 Next Financial Crisis? GPU Debt Crisis 41:15 DAT Mania Potential & mNAV Compression Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

14 Aug 51min