Stephan Livera Podcast

While in Madeira for Bitcoin Atlantis, I did some interviews on a range of topics with Lyn Alden, James Lavish, Tomer Strolight, Francis Pouliot, Steven Roose and Peter Todd. We discussed: is Macro mid curve?  USG debt Using analogies to teach bitcoin librerelay MEV concerns Self custodial and scaling Links: Lyn Alden X: @LynAldenContact Site: lynalden.com  James Lavish X: @jameslavish Site: james...

What applications exist for Bitcoin self custodial finance? Philipp Hoenisch, founder of 10101 (pronounced ten-ten-one) joins me on the show to talk about bitcoin trading without counterparty risk. We discuss: DLC overview and basics DLC channels and lightning 10101 walkthrough “Funding rate” Synthetic stablecoins For individuals or business? Risks and things can break down Prior Episodes: SLP349...

Eric Yakes, author of The 7th Property, joins me to talk about the future of Bitcoin Banking, LN and ecash. We discuss: Chaumian mints and ecash Interaction with LN Credit markets in the future How does the system remain Full Reserve?  Regulatory roadblocks Will there be a role for passive index funds?  Links: X: @ericyakes   axiombtc.capital/bank  Site: Y akes.io Sponsors: Swan.com (code LIVERA)...

Brian Morgenstern, Head of Public Policy of Riot Platforms joins me to talk about the latest attack on Bitcoin miners:  Is Bitcoin mining a partisan issue?  The EIA “Survey” Falsehoods on grid stability and emissions False Emergency What to do about it Links: X: @MorgensternNJ   Thread https://twitter.com/MorgensternNJ/status/1754634147232977246 X: @TXblockchain_   Sen. Lummis declares the survey...

Ben Carman of Mutiny Wallet rejoins me on the show to talk about what’s coming next for Bitcoin. We talk about scaling Bitcoin and contrast the different mindsets, discuss different soft fork proposals and directions Bitcoin could go. We also talk about what impact covenants will have and the latest with Mutiny Wallet.  Bitcoin’s biggest challenges Taxonomy of Bitcoin development culture Soft fork...

Do the lies about Bitcoin frustrate you? Join us in this episode as we discuss the ways to dispel and debunk some of the most egregious false climate narratives on Bitcoin with Daniel Batten, Managing Partner at CH4 Capital. We discuss: The biggest bitcoin climate myths Dishonest portrayal in the media “Per transaction” fake methodology Where Cambridge CCAF is wrong Bitcoin’s PoW and ‘ideological...

We talk about monetary maximalism, and whether everything is good for bitcoin with Christian Keroles of HRF. We discuss: Monetary maximalism: descriptive or prescriptive Bitcoin Spam  Antifragility What bitcoiners are getting wrong on personal finance How 2023 played out with “ordinals” Not being used to winning Links: X: @ck_SNARKs Site: HRF.org Site: https://cbdctracker.hrf.org/home Sponsors: Sw...

We’re trying something a little different this episode! While at Bitcoin Oasis 2024 in Dubai I captured some short interviews with some speakers at the conference. We covered a wide range of topics ranging from Bitcoin Spam, to nation state adoption and honestly grappling with bitcoin user adoption trade offs. The speakers interviewed are: Alejandro De La Torre of Demand Mining Luke Dashjr of Ocea...

Mike Peterson from Bitcoin Beach El Zonte, El Salvador rejoins me on the show to give listeners some updates from El Salvador. Having a reduced crime rate and improved investment and tourism into the country has driven big changes! We talk: How things look a few years on from the Bitcoin Law Life on the ground in El Salvador How easy it is to move El Salvador $1M Citizenship Program Dealing with o...

Get an overview of lightning wallets in this episode with Anita Posch. Anita walks through what she found in testing self custodial lightning wallets under conditions of poor internet connectivity. We also talk about themes that came up at the recent Adopting Bitcoin Cape Town South Africa.  On the ground insights Results of the self custodial wallet test Which LN apps came out best?  The situatio...

What does Life Insurance look like when it’s all priced and done in Bitcoin? Zac Townsend (CEO and co-founder of Meanwhile) joins me on the show to talk about it. We discuss: Life insurance as a model Term or Whole life Bitcoin denomination Is it the next Celsius or BlockFi?  Does it work under a deflationary Private credit fund Links: X: @ztownsend  X: @meanwhilelife Site: meanwhile.bm   Sponsors...

Aaron van Wirdum rejoins me to talk about his exploration of how Bitcoin came to be. We talk about his new book, The Genesis Book. In this book, Aaron explores some of the technologies, and philosophies that led to the creation of Bitcoin. We discuss: What he learned in making this book Hayek and the Austrians Extropians Cryptography and the Cypherpunks Libertarians Precursor tech to Bitcoin Links...

Sébastien Gouspillou is a French Bitcoin miner, entrepreneur, and speaker. He is the CEO of BBGS (Big Block Green Services) and he joins me to talk about Bitcoin mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Oman and elsewhere around the world:  Bitcoin mining in the DRC Bitcoin mining in Oman Using various forms of energy  Working in different environments Narrative shifts in Bitcoin Mining and...

It seems that the EU is constantly coming out with bad new regulations that will impact Bitcoiners and Bitcoin miners. Joining me today is Lyudmyla Kozlovska and Bota Jardemalie from the Open Dialogue Foundation - Bitcoin and human rights advocates. We talk about: EU bureaucracy and ECB threat to Bitcoin Why engage with these people at all? Attacks on Bitcoin’s Proof of Work Threat to self custody...

Given the recent discussion on covenants, you might be curious about what actual covenant use cases look like. Joining me today is Steven Roose to help explain covenant uses and TXHASH as well as various objections:  Case for Covenants Why TXHASH  Scope of changes Covenants.info Covenant use cases Ark Commercial viability Links: X: @stevenroose3   Site: C ovenants.info TXHASH ML post: https://list...

On the eve of Bitcoin ETFs being approved, is Bitcoin entering a new era? Tuur Demeester, long time bitcoin advocate, writer and speaker rejoins me on the show to discuss his thoughts: This new era for Bitcoin ETF approval and what it means Capture risks are low Psychology of a market cycle and HODLers “Hate buying” Bitcoin Bitcoin Life Insurance Why every company needs a Bitcoin strategy Future o...

Have you heard about Dubai but been wondering about what it’s like there? Lara Eggiman joins me to talk about Dubai, the UAE and the new bitcoin-only conference launching here, Bitcoin Oasis. We discuss: Dubai lifestyle Common misconceptions Tips for people who want to set up in Dubai Why the UAE is well placed for Bitcoin adoption Bitcoin Oasis Bitcoin Association  Links: X: @SwissAlice1   Site:...

In this conversation, Natalie Smolenski discusses the intersection of Bitcoin, anthropology, and political economy. She explores the debate on the origin of money and the clash between anthropologists and economists. Smolenski argues that money is a social technology that can take different forms based on trust and use cases. She examines the limitations of fiat currency and the importance of trus...

Not everybody understands that blockchains themselves don’t scale. And this may create some tricky implications if we want to onboard large numbers of people to Bitcoin. This is why some of the discussion nowadays is about soft forks and covenants. Brandon Black rejoins me to talk about some of his ideas on how many people can use Bitcoin with current tech, and how covenants such as CTV (Check Tem...

Elizabeth Warren has come out with a new anti Bitcoin bill. Joining me is VP of Research at Riot Platforms, Pierre Rochard. We talk about:  What’s in the bill Policy objectives “Unhosted wallets” FATF Ordinals Tx Fees Third school of thought on long term fees Links: X: @BitcoinPierre Sponsors: Swan.com (code LIVERA) CoinKite.com (code LIVERA) Mempool.space Stephan Livera links: Follow me on X: @st...

What are the key principles underlying Bitcoin? How should we think about changes to Bitcoin? Michael Saylor, Executive Chairman and Founder of MicroStrategy rejoins me on the show to discuss: Bitcoin Protocols Bitcoin Principles Bitcoin Dynamics Bitcoin Politics Bitcoin Philosophy Links: X: @saylor Prior Episode: SLP213 Michael Saylor – Bitcoin Dematerializes Money Prior Episode: SLP213 Michael S...

Should Bitcoiners consider Small Business? What are some of the important considerations here? Bobby Shell of Voltage and Imprint Digital joins me on the show to talk about his experiences in SMB and why Bitcoiners should also think about it.  Why do SMB Earning more and making an impact His experiences with digital and physical businesses Why not just stack sats? The latest at Voltage Links: Twit...

Drivechain is a proposal from 2015 which has had a lot of community debate recently. Joining us today to debate this are Paul Sztorc (CEO of Layer Two Labs) and Peter Todd. We discuss a range of points: Drivechain and miner centralisation Whether you can delegate running a node Legal risks Fees and Blocksize limits Links: Earlier episode with Shinobi: Will Drivechain Centralise Bitcoin? With Shino...

Now many of us are familiar with the idea of using steel backups for our bitcoin private keys, but what about in the case of multi signature? And what about using machine engraving? Dax and E from the SeedHammer project join me to talk: Why they are interested in this problem Passphrase vs multi sig Descriptor backup on steel Seed Hammer walk through Cost Attack vectors Changing standards Where th...

How many people can use Bitcoin and Lightning today? Severin Buhler from Synonym joins me to talk about the LSP spec as well as lightning development. We talk about how the new LSP spec will enable more wallet builders, and more user choice, as well as smoothing the process for LSPs to compete:  What is an LSP A marketplace of LSPs Competition between jurisdictions Wallet of Satoshi news How many...