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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 is joined by SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce—aka “CryptoMom”—for a rare, candid conversation. They unpack the SEC’s vibe shift, why airdrops might be doomed, and whether memecoins are just collectibles or cleverly disguised securities. Plus, Hester dishes on Paul Atkins’ potential leadership, the SEC’s new crypto task force, and what real regulatory clarity might finally look like.Show highlights🔹 Hester Peirce Unfiltered – The SEC’s “CryptoMom” on vibes vs. law, the Gensler era, and why the U.S. needs a freedom-first approach🔹 “Come In and Talk to Us” – Why the SEC wants founders to re-engage—but can trust be rebuilt after years of legal whiplash?🔹 Memecoins ≠ Securities? – How the new SEC is redefining meme coin oversight and why “collectibles” might be the new loophole🔹 Airdrops Are Kinda Pointless – Haseeb argues most airdrops fail to deliver value or decentralization; the panel debates🔹 Self-Regulation in Crypto – Hester’s surprising praise for proof-of-reserves and why industry norms might beat new rules🔹 The Howey Test Is Broken – How forcing orange grove law onto crypto led an entire industry to play armchair lawyer🔹 Will the New SEC Last? – If the White House flips, could the next Chair bring back the enforcement hammer?🔹 Tarun’s TradFi Feedback Loop – Why TradFi may start borrowing more from crypto playbooks than the other way around🔹 Regulation by Meme – The SEC embraces facts and circumstances—but is “Ghibli meme policy” scalable?🔹 What Should Founders Do Now? – The panel pushes Hester on timelines, clarity, and whether the U.S. is safe to build in againHosts⭐️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⭐️ Hester Peirce, SEC CommissionerDisclosuresLinksMiles To Go: Remarks before The Digital Chamber's 8th Annual DC Blockchain Summit by Hester Peirce: https://www.sec.gov/newsroom/speeches-statements/peirce-remarks-dc-blockchain-summit-032625 Timestamps00:00 Intro05:35 The Role of Regulation in Innovation09:54 Crypto Task Force & Future Plans18:47 Global Perspectives on Crypto Regulation23:26 Self-Regulation in the Crypto Industry27:27 SEC's Role & Potential Adjustments35:04 Evaluating Memecoins & Their Regulatory Status36:48 The Howey Test & Its Application to Crypto43:55 Future of Crypto Regulation & SEC's Approach47:10 Insights on SEC Leadership & Regulatory Philosophy51:35 Advice for Aspiring Securities LawyersLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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As DeFi continues to evolve, the challenge of finding a balance between decentralization and protection from all manner of exploits persists.
The founder of Infinex, Kain Warwick, joined the show to talk about:
How crypto market makers have at times veered into “all-out crime”
What market making looks like today
Playing chart games with token allocations
What Kain looks at when evaluating tokens
Why Binance kicked a MOVE market maker off its platform
The $JELLY attack on Hyperliquid and the problem of centralization in DeFi
What problems in crypto Kain is attempting to solve with Infinex
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
Bitwise
Guest:
Kain Warwick, founder of Infinex App and Synthetix
Previous appearances on Unchained:
2025 Will Be a Year of Crypto Competition. Can Ethereum Make a Comeback?
Links:
Crypto Market Making
Kain Warwick: Discussion about market makers
Binance: What happened with MOVE on Binance
Coindesk: Binance Offboards Market Maker That It Said Made $38M Profit on MOVE Listing
Bloomberg: Citadel Securities Plots Jump Into Crypto Trading After Trump’s Embrace
Hyperliquid
Unchained: Hyperliquid Saved Itself a $15 Million Loss, but Sparked Criticism
Infinex
The Block: Synthetix founder Kain Warwick launches Infinex
The Block: Peter Thiel's Founders Fund invests in Infinex's Patron NFT sale as total amount raised hits $67.7 million
Timestamps:
👋 0:00 Intro
💭 03:30 Thoughts on crypto market makers
🙊 05:54 ICO-era market makers engaging in ‘all-out crime’
🦹 09:33 Extracting value in an inefficient market
💸 11:28 How crypto market making has evolved in recent years
😨 16:53 The low float meta problem
📊 19:49 Why Kain evaluates tokens on FDV rather than market cap
⁉️ 25:06 What happened with MOVE on Binance
😱 31:14 Citadel as a market maker?
🥷 35:48 The $JELLY attack on Hyperliquid and the problem of centralization
🔧 44:59 The problems Kain is trying to solve with Infinex
🌎 54:13 Building a web vs. mobile app
👂 56:17 Echo group integration with Infinex
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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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 Hyperliquid controversy and what it reveals about decentralization theater in DeFi. Then, things get weirder: the Say Foundation wants to buy 23andMe and put your genetic data onchain. We break down the backlash and privacy concerns. Finally, we look at the new Stable Act making its way through Congress and whether stablecoin regulation is headed toward bank-only control.Show highlights🔹 Hyperliquid’s JELLYJELLY Debacle – How a DeFi darling nuked its credibility by bailing out its own vault at a fake oracle price🔹 The Exchange Wars Heat Up – Why Binance and OKX listing JELLYJELLY perps looked like an assassination attempt on Hyperliquid🔹 Are DEXes Just CEXes in Disguise? – What the Hyperliquid saga reveals about decentralization theater and validator capture🔹 23andMe on the Blockchain – Say Foundation wants to token-gate your DNA; is this privacy-preserving or dystopian?🔹 The Great DeSci Grift – Tarun revisits his war on DeSci and why putting genetics onchain is worse than memecoins🔹 Stablecoin Regulation Showdown – The Stable Act vs. The Genius Act and who’s really winning in D.C.🔹 Stablecoins as Narrow Banks – How crypto may finally force the Fed to accept a 20-year-old idea they’ve long resisted🔹 Red Bull & Ratio Bets – The hosts make a real-money wager on whether HLP deposits will rise or fall after the meltdown🔹 Memecoins and the Return of Olympus – Are the robbers now just quietly collecting rent from their broken treasuries?🔹 Tarun’s Aesthetic Death Rankings – Why JELLYJELLY is a worse way to die than MobileCoin, but at least it’s on brandHosts⭐️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 DisclosuresLinksKevin Zhou (Galois Capital) Tweet: https://x.com/Galois_Capital/status/1904942458666094932 Steil and Hill Introduce STABLE Act Press Release: https://steil.house.gov/media/press-releases/steil-and-hill-introduce-stable-act Timestamps00:00 Intro01:29 Hyperliquid Drama Unfolds10:49 Debating the Bailout Decision18:28 OKX & Binance Join 23:05 An FTX Moment?31:45 Future of 23andMe & SEI44:20 Stablecoin Legislation: Genius Act vs. Stable Act51:45 Are Stablecoins the Trojan Horse?Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Perpetual swap DEX Hyperliquid suffered a whale attack and was on the brink of losing $15 million. It promptly responded in a way that generated a fair amount of controversy.
The founder and CEO of Ambient Finance Doug Colkitt joined the show to explain:
How perp swaps work
How a whale used the low-liquidity memecoin $JELLY to attack Hyperliquid’s vault
How Hyperliquid’s response broke DeFi taboos around decentralization, oracles, etc.
Criticisms of and justifications for the team’s decisions
What can be done to prevent similar attacks in the future
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off
FalconX
Mantle
Guest
Doug Colkitt, Founder and CEO of Ambient Finance
Links
Accounts of the $JELLY whale attack on Hyperliquid and its response
X: The story
X: Nuking the vault
X: How Hyperliquid responded
Arguments for and against Hyperliquid’s solution:
ZachXBT: ZachXBT calls out alleged hypocrisy
Jordi Alexander: Shorting on a perp is not robust
Jose Maria Macedo: How do they override the oracle price?
Doug: Closing positions at an arbitrary price
Gracy Chen: Casting doubts on integrity
Steven.hl: In defense of HL
Kam: Of course quorum was reached easily
What precedent Hyperliquid’s actions set
Kevin Zhou: Binance and OKX set a precedent
Timestamps:
👋 0:00 Intro
🤔 02:59 What is Hyperliquid?
🐳 05:16 How a whale used $JELLY to attack
⛔ 09:19 How Hyperliquid responded
📈 11:59 Why did Binance and OKX suddenly list the memecoin?
🤔 16:32 How did Hyperliquid ‘change the rules’ to protect themselves?
⚖️ 19:25 ‘Losses for thee, but not for me’: Hyperliquid’s hypocrisy?
💡 24:39 Doug’s ‘cleaner’ solution
👀 28:35 Will this have positive or negative knock-on effects?
🧹 31:20 Tidying up illiquid markets
📰 32:46 Crypto News Recap
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Investors are still licking their wounds from this month’s corrections. But just as Trump’s tariffs are about to move into full-force, our experts are seeing silver linings and causes for optimism.
With conflicting signals coming from all corners of the map, hosts Noelle Acheson, Ram Ahluwalia, Alex Kruger, and Felix Jauvin break down:
What to expect from Trump on April 2nd
Takeaways from last week’s FOMC meeting
If the White House and Powell are actually on the same page
Why tech stocks are taking off again
Why BlackRock is bullish on bitcoin during bear markets
If ether is about to get its groove back
Sponsors:
Bitwise
Hosts:
Alex Kruger, Founder of Asgard
Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida
Noelle Acheson, Author of the “Crypto Is Macro Now” Newsletter
Felix Jauvin, Director and Host - Forward Guidance
Links
Incoming Trump Tariffs
Bloomberg: Trump Plans His Tariff ‘Liberation Day’ With More Targeted Push
WSJ: White House Narrows April 2 Tariffs
FOMC Meeting
Unchained: Bitcoin Drops as Fed Leaves Rates Unchanged, as Expected
NYTimes: Citing Tariffs and Uncertainty, Fed Sees Higher Inflation and Lower Growth
Animal Spirits Return
Barron’s: Don’t Count Out the Mag 7. They Could Lead a U.S. Stock Comeback.
CNBC: ‘Magnificent 7’ has a notable up day after struggling for 3 months
BlackRock
Decrypt: BlackRock Digital Assets Head Criticizes Narrative of Bitcoin as a Risk-On Asset
Bloomberg: BlackRock to List Bitcoin Exchange-Traded Product in Europe
Fidelity Tokenization
CoinDesk: Fidelity Files for Onchain U.S. Treasury Fund, Joining the Asset Tokenization Race
Timestamps:
👋 0:00 Intro
📉 2:16 Why investors are nervous about April 2nd
🌎 4:40 Two ways to think about tariffs
☯️ 6:56 The difference between retail and professional traders
🏦 8:44 Why the Fed is predicting a worst-case scenario
📈 12:08 Why the correction is largely done
💰 19:20 How the Mag7 got its groove back
🏛️ 20:42 Are Bessent and Powell more aligned than thought?
🚀 22:54 BlackRock says a recession is good for bitcoin?
🥇 24:54 Altcoin ETF race about to start?
🎌 28:41 Why Japan is irrelevant right now
🐂 30:42 Why animal spirits are back
⛓️ 35:03 The great financial unshackling
📈 38:02 Is ether ready for a comeback?
✅ 42:09 Why Fidelity is tokenizing on Ethereum
📈📉 44:32 Are pump and dumps over?
🇪🇺 49:32 Dumb money coming to Europe?
🐙 52:35 Why Kraken made a smart buy this week
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As Ethereum deploys Pectra, it faces stiff competition and community criticism. Ethereum Foundation Research co-leads Alex Stokes and Barnabe Monnot map out the chain’s direction.
Ethereum is well on its way to some major upgrades, with Pectra and Fusaka introducing a number of performance improvements in the near future. But will it be enough to stay ahead of the competition?
Ethereum Foundation Research co-leads Alex Stokes and Barnabe Monnot join the show to discuss:
How Pectra and Fusaka will improve Ethereum’s performance
What it means that its launch on two testnets failed
Ethereum’s “north star” — decentralization
Whether Ethereum can retain its top spot in the smart contract space
As Ethereum adopts native rollups and data availability, does it create competition with existing L2s and DA providers?
The new direction for the Ethereum Foundation leaders and whether Etherealize can bring Wall Street
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
Bitwise
Guest:
Alex Stokes, Co-Lead, Ethereum Foundation Research
Barnabe Monnot, Co-Lead, Ethereum Foundation Research
Previous appearances on Unchained:
5 Things to Know About Coinbase’s 2021
Links
Previous coverage on Unchained of:
Etherealize advocates for Ethereum
Why Ethereum’s New Marketing Arm Is Convinced Wall Street Will Adopt ETH
Ethereum Foundation contemplates comeback
Ethereum Is Lagging. Here’s How It Could Finally Shake Off Rival Solana
2025 Will Be a Year of Crypto Competition. Can Ethereum Make a Comeback?
What Ethena means for Ethereum
Ethena’s L1 Shows Fat Apps Are on the Rise. Can They Beat Fat Protocols?
The Chopping Block w/ Guy Young: Lessons from USD0, Ethena’s Bold Vision, and DeFi’s Future
The Pectra Upgrade
Ethereum.org: Pectra Testnet Announcement | Ethereum Foundation Blog
tim.mirror.xyz: AllCoreDevs Update 17
Ethereum.org: EIP-7691: Blob throughput increase
Ethereum.org: Holesky and Hoodi Testnet Updates | Ethereum Foundation Blog
Coindesk: Hello, Hoodi: Ethereum Welcomes a New Testnet
Fusaka on the horizon
Github: EIP-7805 proposed for Fusaka
Native rollups versus non-native rollups
Youtube: The Future of Ethereum Scaling: Native Rollups Explained
Reddit: Native rollup debates
L1 and L2 debates
Vitalik.eth.limo: Reasons to have higher L1 gas limits even in an L2-heavy Ethereum
Vitalik.eth.limo: Scaling Ethereum L1 and L2s in 2025 and beyond
Ethereum Foundation Leadership changes
X: Barnabe Monnot and Alex Stokes announcement
X: New EF titles
X: Fixing the Core Dev process
Ethena’s Converge news
John Wang’s tweet
Camila Russo’s comment
Timestamps:
👋 0:00 Intro
🪝 2:05 How Barnabe and Alex got hooked on Ethereum development
⚙️ 6:37 How Pectra will change Ethereum
🪴 10:35 How does increasing blobs boost Ethereum?
🪲 13:22 Pectra fork bugs on Holeski testnet
🔮 18:38 What’s in the upcoming Fusaka upgrade?
🤯 22:42 How decisions get made in Ethereum and which groups are involved
📈 30:34 Can Ethereum keep up with the competition?
🏁 39:16 Can Ethereum compete by scaling the L1?
🤓 44:02 What are native roll-ups and how do they help Ethereum compete?
🤺 49:26 Native rollups and expanded data availability on Ethereum vs. non-native options
⚰️ 52:22 Is Ethena building its own blockchain the “nail in the coffin” for Ethereum?
👬 1:00:05 Shaking up the EF’s leadership
🤔 1:06:14 Will Etherealize fix Ethereum’s problems?
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Blockchains were supposed to capture the majority of the value in crypto. But what if that’s wrong?
For years, the Fat Protocols Thesis argued that blockchains would be the biggest winners. But new data suggests that apps like Uniswap, Ethena, and others are now out-earning many networks.
Are we watching the rise of “Fat Apps” instead?
On this episode, Ryan Watkins, Co-founder at Syncracy Capital, talks about:
Why the biggest apps are generating more revenue than many layer 1s
Why Ethena is launching its own blockchain
What this means for Ethereum, Solana & other L1s
How blockchains can compete on value capture
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off
FalconX
Mantle
Guest
Ryan Watkins, Co-founder at Syncracy Capital
Links
Unchained: Ethena Labs and Securitize to Launch New EVM Blockchain for DeFi
Syncracy Capital: Applications Capture Fees, Blockchains Store Value
Hansolar’s tweet
Pump.fun launches its own DEX
Timestamps:
👋0:00 Intro
💰 2:12 Why apps are out-earning the blockchains they run on
🔗 5:44 Ethena’s move: why it’s launching its own chain
📈 8:33 The rise of “Fat Apps” and what it means for crypto
🚀 12:50 How today’s crypto founders think differently from past builders
🏆 15:51 The blockchain architectures that will dominate
⚖️ 22:32 Whether L1s can compete in this new environment
📊 241:27 How blockchains accrue value and why MEV isn’t the best metric
📰 31:00 News Recap
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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 unpacks Ethereum’s existential crisis and whether the rollup-centric roadmap is backfiring. Plus, AI is rapidly changing how crypto is built, traded, and secured—so what happens when blockchain and AI collide? We also dig into Solana’s controversial ad, Ethereum Foundation’s leadership shake-up, and why macro forces are still running the show.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Show highlights
🔹 AI’s Invasion of Software Engineering – Why AI is replacing developers & what it means for crypto startups
🔹 Ethereum’s Rollup Reckoning – The “rollup-centric roadmap” was supposed to save Ethereum, but is it actually weakening it?
🔹 The Solana Ad Disaster – How Solana’s political ad backfired & alienated both sides of the aisle
🔹 Is Ethereum Becoming IBM? – Why Ethereum risks getting stuck as the slow-moving corporate giant of crypto
🔹 The Great AI Pivot – Why top engineers are abandoning language models for robotics & what it means for the future
🔹 AI Trading Bots & Crypto Security Risks – How prompt injections could turn AI-powered wallets into honeypots
🔹 Ethereum’s New Leadership – Does the Ethereum Foundation finally have a plan to fix its credibility problem?
🔹 The XRP Bartender Index – The unexpected bar tab metric that tracks XRP market sentiment
🔹 Will AI Replace VCs? – The case for AI-led investment strategies & automated due diligence
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
Disclosures
Links
Solana Ad repost by @basedkarbon: https://x.com/basedkarbon/status/1901809992514052319
Timestamps -
00:00 Intro
01:48 Solana's Controversial Ad Campaign
08:14 Memorable Crypto Ads
11:27 AI's Impact on Research & Crypto
18:33 Future of AI in Crypto and Beyond
29:29 Security Concerns with AI
36:49 EF's Leadership Changes
40:20 The Future of Ethereum and Rollups
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The financial market is getting wrecked, inflation is still a problem, and bitcoin isn’t acting like the hedge that it’s supposed to be. Is this a real economic shift, or just noise?
With tariffs, stagflation fears, and fiscal dominance taking center stage, hosts James Seyffart, Joe McCann, Ram Ahluwalia and Noelle Acheson break down:
Why markets are struggling—and whether a recession or stagflation is coming
Whether the Fed has become irrelevant
How the stablecoin bill could rescue sales of treasuries
Why bitcoin isn’t following gold’s rally
The factors that could kickstart the next crypto boom
The latest on all the dozens of crypto ETFs in the works
Sponsors:
Bitwise
Hosts:
James Seyffart, Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence
Joe McCann, Founder, CEO, and CIO of Asymmetric
Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida
Noelle Acheson, Author of the “Crypto Is Macro Now” Newsletter
Links
The stagflation trade
Bloomberg: Stagflation Trade Emerges as Rare Winner in US Stock Market Rout
Reuters: Fed's Powell gets chance to address trade war, stagflation fears
Tweet by Noah Smith
Budget bill
Wharton: The FY2025 House Budget reconciliation and Trump Administration Tax Proposals: Budgetary, Economic, and Distributional Effects
Stablecoin bill:
Unchained: Stablecoin Bills Could Squeeze Out $140 Billion Tether
CoinDesk: U.S. Senate Takes First Big Step to Advance Stablecoin Bill
Solana futures
Cointelegraph: Solana futures finish first trading day on CME
Solana ad
Unchained: Solana Deletes ‘Cringe’ Ad After Crypto Community Backlash
Timestamps:
👋 0:00 Intro
📉 1:39 Stagflation fears and which tariffs actually matter for the economy
🌎 6:11 Why the outlook for commodities is so uncertain
📊 10:49 Is the Trump administration sabotaging itself?
🐶 16:57 Why DOGE’s role in the market is bigger than you think
📉 23:51 Why the 10-year yield isn’t dropping as expected
💰 28:04 Will shrinking liquidity grind the market to a halt?
🏛️ 32:37 Why the Fed has become irrelevant
🔄 36:53 Is quantitative tightening (QT) ending? Plus, one key thing crypto investors don’t get
⚠️ 41:13 Why a recession is not a foregone conclusion
🥇 48:25 Gold is hitting all-time highs—so why isn’t bitcoin following?
🏦 51:24 How the stablecoin bill could save US government finances
🚀 1:01:47 How bitcoin gets its next rally
📉 1:07:16 The hidden benefit of CME SOL futures
✅ 1:12:15 The latest on pending crypto ETF approvals
📣 1:17:26 Reactions to the controversial Solana ad
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The memecoin trade might be over. And Joe McCann says that’s just the beginning.
The founder of Asymmetric has been at the intersection of crypto, macro, and tech for years. He called the $BONK trade early, made moves before most saw the opportunity, and now? He’s shifting his focus.
Meanwhile, the crypto markets are a bloodbath, with bitcoin, ether, and solana down 10%, 41%, and 35%, respectively, year-to-date.
In this episode, Joe joins Unchained to discuss:
Why memecoins won’t work the way they used to
How institutions are approaching crypto in this cycle
Why prices are down so much
Why Bitcoin might be so hard to outperform
Whether Solana is still the fastest horse
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
FalconX
Bitwise
Guest:
Joe McCann, founder of Asymmetric
Links
Unchained:
Solana Rejected Inflation Reduction—Here’s Why
Are Memecoins Collapsing? These 8 Charts May Be Signaling Yes
Bitcoin Has Declined 20%. How Soon Could the BTC Price Revive?
Timestamps:
👋 0:00 Intro
🚀 2:19 How Joe’s background shaped his crypto investing approach
🐶 10:25 Spotting the $BONK opportunity before the crowd
📉 17:38 Why the memecoin trade might be over
💰 21:51 Why Joe believes Pump.fun is NOT extractive
📊 33:11 Why crypto prices have struggled despite a pro-crypto shift in Washington
🎯 42:34 The moment Joe “finally” gives credit to Arthur Hayes
⏳ 45:15 Could having no catalyst actually BE the catalyst?
🔥 49:22 Why Joe wasn’t convinced by the SOL inflation proposal
⚡ 56:45 Wait—no altcoin season?
⚙️ 1:01:34 What still excites Joe about Solana
🏦 1:04:57 Why Asymmetric is betting on Bitcoin DeFi
🤖 1:07:29 How AI is helping Joe’s team optimize its strategy
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The Solana ecosystem just completed a critical governance vote. SIMD-228, a proposal to tie Solana’s inflation rate to its staking participation rate, was put forward by Multicoin Capital and Anza, but despite a majority voting in favor, it failed to meet the required supermajority to pass.
Tushar Jain, co-founder and managing partner at Multicoin Capital, who co-authored the proposal, joins the show to discuss:
Why he believes the proposal was necessary
Whether inflation is too high for Solana’s long-term health
If some validators voted against their own interests
The silver lining of the governance process
Why a smaller proposal focused on fee sharing did pass
Whether Multicoin Capital will resubmit a revised proposal
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off
Mantle
Guest
Tushar Jain, Co-founder and Managing Partner at Multicoin Capital
Links
Unchained: Proposal to Cut SOL Inflation by 80% Fails After ‘Close Call’
SIMD Vote Status
Kayuza’s tweet
Timestamps:
🤝 0:00 Intro
🗳️ 3:09 Why Solana’s inflation rate was initially an afterthought
💰5:20 Why inflation became untenable
⚙️ 6:23 What does it take to right-size inflation for Solana
⚙️ 7:18 How SIMD-228 would have worked
🤯 11:00 Why Tushar “does not want to bet on people being dumb”
💰 15:48 How this could have strengthened DeFi on Solana
😕 17:49 Why Tushar was disappointed with the outcome but sees a silver lining
📚 19:49 Could the vote have been fairer?
⚖️ 22:06 Whether smaller validators would be unfairly hurt by SIMD-228
🔐 27:37 Does Solana pay too much for security?
📈 27:55 Would this have boosted the price of SOL?
✔️28:19 Whether validators should ask stakers how to vote
✅ 30:13 What the passing of SIMD-123 means for the network
🔄 32:40 Will Multicoin resubmit the proposal?
📰 34:50 News Recap
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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week, we’re joined by special guest Quinn Thompson, Master of Macro at Lekker Capital, to dissect Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve. The US government is now officially hodling Bitcoin —Trump’s executive order creates a BTC reserve using seized funds. But markets didn’t buy the hype. Bitcoin tanked, and traders are still questioning what this means for crypto’s future. Meanwhile, the global macro picture is a disaster—stocks are down, trade wars are escalating, and recession fears are mounting.Is this controlled demolition of the economy, or just a side effect of Trump’s economic agenda? And most importantly, what does this mean for crypto? Let’s dive in.
Show highlights
🔹 Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve Announcement – The US government officially holds BTC, but it’s not buying more. No new demand—just a change in optics.
🔹 Digital Asset Stockpile – XRP, ADA, SOL? Treasury isn’t sure what it owns, and no guarantee these altcoins stay on the balance sheet.
🔹 Market Reactions – Bitcoin pumped, then crashed. No net buying pressure, just an end to government auctions of seized BTC.
🔹 Trade War Fallout – Tariffs hit Mexico, Canada, EU, and China—S&P 500 posts worst day since 2022, losing $1.4T in market cap.
🔹 Trump’s Endgame? – Is this a controlled demolition of asset prices, or just chaos in motion?
🔹 Crypto’s Liquidity Crunch – The Fed isn’t stepping in (yet), but the macro backdrop is grim. Rate cuts may be the only way out.
Hosts
⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly
⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures
⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly
⭐️Robert Leshner, CEO & Co-founder of Superstate
Guest
⭐️Quinn Thompson, Founder & CIO at Lekker Capital
Disclosures
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
02:36 Trump’s Bitcoin Reserve
05:17 Bitcoin Tanks
14:30 How This Affects Crypto & Traditional Finance
19:36 Trade Wars Escalate
31:30 Corn Twitter Is Mad
35:16 Why Stocks & Crypto Are Dumping in Sync
41:39 Trump's Historical Stance on Tariffs
54:57 Government Spending and Crypto Market
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The markets are a bloodbath.
If you’re feeling lost in the markets right now, you’re not alone. Stocks are getting crushed, bonds are sliding, and crypto isn’t escaping the carnage. The question is: why is everything selling off—and where does it go from here?
One thing is clear: the next market move is extremely hard to predict. Between Trump’s economic policies, inflation worries, and DOGE’s cuts, there’s a storm of conflicting signals.
So, is this pain temporary? Or are we looking at a long trend downward?
Sponsors:
Bitwise
Hosts:
James Seyffart, Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence
Alex Kruger, Founder of Asgard
Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida
Guest:
Travis Kling, CIO of Ikigai Asset Management
Links
Recession?
Bloomberg: Trump Says US Economy Faces ‘Transition,’ Avoids Recession Call
Inflation
Bloomberg: Inflation-Linked Bonds Rebound on Trump Tariffs: Credit Weekly
DXY
FX Empire: US Dollar Forecast: DXY Sinks as Weak Jobs Data Fuels Rate Cut Bets, EUR/USD Surges
Powell’s comments:
CNN: Fed Chair Powell says he’s not worried about the economy amid Trump’s tariff chaos
FT: Federal Reserve chief Jay Powell plays down growth worries after jobs report disappoints
Bonds:
Bloomberg: The Bond Market’s Trump Trade Is Looking Like a Recession Trade
CNBC: 10-year Treasury yield rises after weaker-than-expected jobs growth
Bond yields in Europe and elsewhere are rising
Tariffs:
Bloomberg: Lutnick Says Trump Sticking to US Aluminum-Steel Tariff Timeline
Japan and the carry trade:
Japan's 20-Year Government Bond Yield rises to its highest level since 2008.
Jeff Park tweeted “Bitcoin is Japan’s game now whether you like it or not” - thoughts?
FT: Japan seeks tariff reprieve after Donald Trump questions long-standing defence pact
China’s deflation:
Bloomberg: China’s Inflation Declines Below Zero for First Time in Year
Ukraine War talks:
FT: Ukraine seeks to persuade US to resume aid in high-stakes talks
Timestamps:
👋 0:00 Intro
📉 3:05 What’s behind this brutal market selloff
🤔 7:26 Why making a market prediction right now is nearly impossible
🇺🇸 13:41 How Trump’s economic moves drive uncertainty
⚠️ 19:37 Is the Trump administration intentionally triggering a recession?
💰 20:30 The real impact of “austerity” on the economy
📉 22:59 What must happen before the market bottoms out
🔥 26:52 Where inflation might head next
📊 36:21 What the VIX is saying about the market
📉 39:00 How markets will react to today’s CPI numbers
🚀 43:40 When might Trump push for tax cuts?
🏦 49:19 Will ETF buyers create a bitcoin floor?
💴 55:12 What a declining Japanese yen reveals about demand for risky assets
₿ 1:00:35 Why BTC is the furthest that it has ever been from altcoins
🛍️ 1:11:00 What new groups might step in and buy bitcoin?📉
🤦♂️ 1:20:25 Whether the Trump administration “fucked up” the economy
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The election of Donald Trump marked a sea change for U.S. crypto policy.
The symbolism of that transformation was on full display at the White House’s first-ever Crypto Summit, at which President Trump met with several crypto business leaders. But what was actually said behind closed doors? And does this mark the beginning of a truly pro-crypto shift—or just another short-lived political move?
In this episode, BitGo CEO Mike Belshe and former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo break down what really happened at the summit, whether the proposed Bitcoin reserve is a smart idea or a political gimmick, and why some believe the U.S. dollar could one day be backed by BTC.
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
Bitwise
Guests:
Mike Belshe, CEO at BitGo
Chris Giancarlo, Senior counsel at Willkie Farr & Gallagher and former CFTC chairman
Links
Recent coverage of Unchained on the Bitcoin Reserve and the White House Crypto Summit :
Trump Says He Is Ending Operation Choke Point 2.0
Trump Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Trump's Surprise Crypto Reserve Announcement Iced Out D.C. Insiders
How Did Ripple Sell Trump on XRP in a Crypto Reserve? By Pushing for Solana
Why Trump May Have Chosen This Week to Announce a Strategic Crypto Reserve
Which Crypto Assets Belong in a Reserve? This VC Says Not XRP and ADA
Chris’s article: Crypto neo-privateers could be the solution to hacks
Nic Carter’s tweet on Trump’s crypto endeavours
Omid Malekan’s analogy of the SBR with buying a shirt
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Trump’s latest crypto moves have sent the market on a rollercoaster.
First, he posted on Truth Social that a U.S. crypto reserve would include XRP, Solana, and Cardano. A couple hours later, he had to clarify that Bitcoin and Ethereum would also be included. The market jumped 12%—only to crash the next day.
Meanwhile, the White House crypto summit is happening Friday, and not everyone is happy with the guest list. Some say it’s a step toward real regulation, while others argue that without DeFi voices, it’s just a meeting of centralized players.
So what does it all mean? David Nage, VC at Arca, joins Unchained to talk about:
4:55 Why David is unfazed by crypto’s swings around Trump’s reserve posts
9:03 David’s take on Cardano and XRP being named for the crypto reserve list
18:11 Why he thinks Bitcoin is a strong candidate for a national reserve asset
22:52 Why David isn’t impressed with the guest list at the White House Crypto Summit
26:26 Why the markets have been struggling—and what could finally turn things around
28:52 News Recap
Will real crypto policy changes emerge from this? Or is this just another distraction in a year full of big promises?
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
BitKey: Use code UNCHAINED for 20% off
Mantle
Guest
David Nage, VC Portfolio Manager at Arca
Links
Unchained:
Why Trump May Have Chosen This Week to Announce a Strategic Crypto Reserve
Cardano Founder Charles Hoskinson Is Not Invited to White House Crypto Summit
How Did Ripple Sell Trump on XRP in a Crypto Reserve? By Pushing for Solana
Trump Is Having Second Thoughts About His Crypto Council
David’s tweet on Cardano and Ripple
Eleanor Terrett’s tweet with the Crypto Summit guest list
David Sacks’ tweet saying that the government lost almost $17 billion
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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week, we’re joined by special guest Laura Shin to dissect Trump’s Strategic Crypto Reserve fiasco. Why did he name-drop XRP and Cardano first? Was this real policy or just a market pump? Meanwhile, Crypto Twitter is melting down over Trump’s crypto summit guest list—who made the cut, and who got snubbed? Plus, another SEC lawsuit bites the dust, and memecoins look deader than ever. Let’s get into it.
Show highlights
🔹 Trump’s Crypto Reserve Announcement – Trump proposes a U.S. Crypto Strategic Reserve, initially boosting XRP, ADA, SOL, BTC, and ETH—only for markets to fully reverse in 48 hours.
🔹 Who Picked These Coins? – XRP & ADA make the list despite having lower adoption than SOL or ETH. Was this a serious policy move or just pay-to-play politics?
🔹 Trump’s 5D Chess or Just a Meme? – Did the Trump team just pick random coins off CoinMarketCap? Or was this an orchestrated move to pay back donors?
🔹 The Crypto Council Drama – Trump’s Crypto Council implodes before launch due to infighting over seats. First summit features Ripple’s Garlinghouse, Michael Saylor, Chainlink’s Nazarov, Brian Armstrong, and Jesse Powell—but no actual protocol founders.
🔹 Is Crypto Being Used for Politics? – Nic Carter calls the plan a grift, saying the U.S. government should not buy altcoins with taxpayer money. Even Bitcoin maxis are skeptical.
🔹 Trump’s Obsession With Bitcoin Prices – Reports claim Trump personally tracks Bitcoin price movements and wants BTC to hit $150K during his presidency—is he manipulating markets?
🔹 The SEC Softens on Crypto? – Enforcement pivots as the SEC drops cases against Cumberland and Kraken. Will the Coinbase lawsuit be next?
🔹 Market Exhaustion Sets In – Despite the noise, traders are tired. The market isn’t buying into Trump’s crypto plans—was this just another empty promise?
Hosts
⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly
⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures
⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly
⭐️Laura Shin, Journalist, Author of ‘The Cryptopians,’ Founder and CEO of Unchained
Disclosures
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
01:05 Market Reactions to Trump's Announcement
03:25 Skepticism of the Crypto Reserve
07:02 Strategic Value of Crypto Reserve
11:11 Political and Market Implications
18:52 Security Concerns & Future Speculations
31:30 Government Control of Crypto
39:50 Potential Forks & Government Influence
45:37 Crypto Summit & Council
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A strategic crypto reserve for the U.S. economy? That’s Trump’s latest proposal (or directive?)—and the reaction from the industry has been… let’s just say, mixed. Would it even work? And does it create more problems than it solves?
Meanwhile, the White House is hosting a crypto roundtable—but not everyone is convinced it’s going to be productive. Who will be in the room, what will actually be discussed, and will it help or hurt the industry?
On this episode of Bits + Bips, hosts James Seyffart and Noelle Acheson together with guests Steve Hou and Steven Ehrlich break it all down. Will tariffs and macro factors keep weighing on crypto? What’s driving the explosion in new ETFs? And what happens if banks start issuing their own stablecoins?
Plus: What could be the real next catalyst for the crypto market.
Show highlights:
6:13 - Whether a strategic crypto reserve makes sense for the U.S.
14:50 - How this reserve could actually give people outside of crypto second thoughts
24:37 - What the Crypto Roundtable will be about and whether it’s what the industry wanted
27:32 - Whether David Sacks is directing the reserve allocations so as to personally benefit
32:07 - Why Noelle was surprised after the SEC stated memecoins are not securities
42:22 - James’ insights into the avalanche of altcoin ETFs
47:10 - The significance of BlackRock adding IBIT to its model portfolio
54:02 - How macro news drove risk assets to such a selloff on Monday
58:12 - Why the 10YT is such a significant chart to watch
1:10:21 - Whether the war in Ukraine is coming to an end
1:16:20 - What the next catalyst for crypto is
1:19:07 - Whether stablecoins are a good business for banks
Thank you to our sponsors!
RockWallet
Bitwise
Hosts:
James Seyffart, Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence
Noelle Acheson, Author of the “Crypto Is Macro Now” Newsletter
Guests:
Steve Hou, Quantitative Researcher at Bloomberg LP
Steven Ehrlich, Executive Editor at Unchained
Links
Crypto reserve:
Unchained: Why Trump May Have Chosen This Week to Announce a Strategic Crypto Reserve
Bloomberg: Bitcoin Reserve Is Likely to Come First From States, Senator Lummis Says
Crypto roundtable:
CoinDesk: Trump to Host First Crypto Roundtable at White House Next Week
Crypto Czar David Sacks says he sold crypto holdings before administration began
Memecoins:
SEC: Staff Statement on Meme Coins
ETFs:
SOL: CME Group to launch Solana futures on March 17 as ETF momentum builds
BlackRock Adds Its Bitcoin ETF to Model Portfolio for First Time
Macro:
Trump’s tariff post on Truth Social
Atlanta’s negative 2.8% GDP projection
CNBC: 10-year Treasury yield falls to lowest since December on latest signs of slowing economy
Reuters:
Inflation, growth may be in conflict but Fed seen restarting cuts in June
US weekly jobless claims post largest gain in five months; weather blamed
Stablecoins:
CoinDesk: Bank of America CEO Says Bank Will Likely Launch Its Own Stablecoin
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A new consensus model. A bear-themed brand. And one of the most debated token launches in recent memory.
Berachain is trying something radically different. Instead of just rewarding validators, it pays liquidity providers—turning the traditional blockchain incentive model on its head.
But not everyone is convinced. Some critics say too much of the token supply went to VCs. Others question whether “proof of liquidity” can actually work at scale.
In this episode, Smokey, Chief Smokey Officer at Berachain, joins Unchained to break it all down. Why did Berachain choose to make itself EVM-identical? What really happened with the token launch? And what’s next?
Show highlights:
1:47 How Smokey got into crypto and how that led to the founding of Berachain
7:24 What proof of liquidity is and what problems it solves
12:06 Whether there’s an incentive problem in how BGT and BERA are designed
16:03 Why Smokey believes the EVM has the “largest capital base”
21:12 How Berachain leveraged culture to accrue network effects
26:23 How Berachain achieved so much TVL growth
30:01 What Smokey thinks about the big allocation of BERA to VCs
35:38 How the bear-themed NFTs were born
39:26 How the project was able to buy back a portion of the tokens sold to VCs
40:58 Whether Smokey should have done things differently when launching the token
43:21 Smokey’s response to the criticism of private participants staking BERA
46:57 Why Smokey believes that the inflation will be useful for ecosystem growth
52:23 What’s next in Berachain’s roadmap
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
Bitwise
Guest:
Smokey the Bera, Chief Smokey Officer at Berachain
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Welcome to The Chopping Block – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner break down the biggest stories in crypto. This week: Recapping how Bybit lost $1.5B to North Korea’s Lazarus Group—how did it happen, and why did they use THORChain to launder the money? Meanwhile, Ethereum is facing an identity crisis at ETH Denver, with the Foundation’s bizarre “Silviculture Society” raising eyebrows across the ecosystem. And if that wasn’t enough, memecoins are in freefall, with Hayden Adams admitting the game was rigged all along. It’s a wild week—let’s break it all down.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pods, Fountain, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Show highlights
🔹 Bybit’s $1.5B Hack – Largest crypto heist ever, pulled off by North Korea’s Lazarus Group. Attack exploited Gnosis Safe’s front end, not Bybit itself.
🔹 THORChain: The New Laundromat? – Lazarus Group uses THORChain to launder stolen funds, sparking backlash. Some THORChain members celebrated the volume spike.
🔹 Memecoins Declared ‘Collectibles’ – SEC says memecoins aren’t securities—right as the bubble bursts. New token launches are down 60%, and pump.fun is drying up.
🔹 InfoWars Bought With a Memecoin?! – Alex Jones supporters use Wars token to outbid The Onion for InfoWars.com in a bankruptcy auction.
🔹 Ethereum’s Cultural Crisis – EF’s ‘Silviculture Society’ announcement triggers community backlash. Hayden Adams calls it “peak Ethereum dysfunction.”
🔹 SEC’s Crypto Pivot – Enforcement shift: Uniswap, OpenSea, and Consensys investigations dropped. Is the SEC losing its war on crypto?
🔹 Richard Heart’s Case Dismissed – The SEC’s lawsuit against the HEX founder gets tossed on procedural grounds, but the agency has a chance to refile.
🔹 The Hyperliquid Question – Is Hyperliquid the next frontier for crypto liquidity, or a regulatory time bomb waiting to go off?
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
Disclosures
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
00:48 ETH Denver
06:16 Bybit Hack & Its Aftermath
14:52 Lazarus Group Has Skills
16:52 THORChain and Ethics of Decentralization
24:49 Role of KYT Services in Crypto Security
28:40 SEC's Stance on Memecoins
37:19 EF Silviculture Society
46:43 Ethereum Scaling Bet
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Crypto derivatives exchange Bybit just became the latest victim of North Korea’s elite hacking unit, the Lazarus Group. They didn’t brute-force their way in. They didn’t exploit some obscure vulnerability. Instead, they tricked a trusted developer, slipped in malicious code, and took off with a fortune.
How did this happen? Why was $1.5 billion sitting in a single wallet? What mistakes did Bybit and Safe make? And, more importantly, what needs to change to stop this from happening again?
This week, Mudit Gupta, chief information security officer at Polygon, joins Unchained to expose the security failures, the sophisticated tactics Lazarus used, and why crypto still hasn’t learned its lesson.
Show highlights:
2:11 Mudit’s experience with North Korea’s Lazarus
3:24 How Lazarus perpetrated the $1.5 billion hack
5:55 Why Lazarus relies on social engineering over technical exploits
7:34 Why Bybit was so specifically targeted by the hackers
10:02 What Bybit should have done to prevent the exploit
13:12 Why Mudit believes there was “no reason” to hold so much ETH in one single wallet
15:57 Who should be a signer in multisigs
17:46 How to prevent using a malicious website
19:13 Why Safe should have done things differently, according to Mudit
19:55 How Bybit and Safe handled crisis communication
24:20 Mudit’s must-know security tips for protecting your crypto
Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com
Thank you to our sponsors!
Mantle
Guest
Mudit Gupta, Chief Information Security Officer at Polygon
Links
Recent coverage of Unchained on the Bybit hack:
North Korean Hackers Are Winning. Is the Crypto Industry Ready to Stop Them?
The Chopping Block: Crypto’s Worst Week? Bybit Hack, Libra Scandal, & The Memecoin Reckoning
Bits + Bips: Markets Are Down Bad. When Will Crypto Recover?
Unchained: Bybit Flows Return to ‘Normal’ After Biggest-Ever Crypto Hack
Bybit Hack Forensics Report
"Safe{Wallet} Statement on Targeted Attack on Bybit "
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