The Breakdown

Today on the Brief: Visa drops $5.3B Plaid acquisition after DOJ antitrust suit ECB President Christine Lagarde discusses bitcoin and digital euro  Acting OCC chief Brian Brooks to step down this week  Our main discussion: Gary Gensler rumored to be the new SEC Chair. In this episode, NLW discusses: Gensler’s background at Goldman, CFTC and MIT Gensler’s MIT course Previous statements on Bitcoin,...

Today on the Brief: Whales accumulated during yesterday’s crash  Kentucky legislators introduce bill to attract crypto miners UBS lowers the threshold for charging savers because of negative interest rates Our main discussion: What China’s prospective nationalization of Alibaba has to do with the nation’s digital currency efforts.  In this episode, NLW: Gives a background on China’s digital curren...

Today on the brief: Trump ejected from social media  Bakkt confirms plans to go public via SPAC NYDIG buys Digital Assets Data Our main discussion: Are we at the beginning of a new FUD cycle?  In this episode, NLW looks at: What happened with bitcoin’s big price crash How the crypto community is reacting to the dip  New regulatory FUD out of the U.K. Why regulatory issues are likely to be this bul...

On this week’s Long Reads Sunday, NLW reads two pieces from former bitcoin skeptics who have changed their mind about the asset.  “Bitcoin Crushes Doubters as 224% Rally Proves It’s Here to Stay” by Ed van der Walt  “Why I’ve Changed My Mind on Bitcoin” by Nick Maggiulli, COO of Ritholtz Wealth Management   -- Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started...

On this edition of The Breakdown’s weekly recap, NLW looks at what was one of the most spectacular and surprising weeks in bitcoin and crypto history. Specifically, he discusses: Price action Macro tailwinds Regulatory shifts in surprise guidance from the OCC Retail investor momentum building -- Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started at nexo.io - A...

Today on the Brief: U.S. loses 140,000 jobs in December Chamath’s SoFi SPAC A SPAC for Bakkt Our main discussion: upcoming stimulus plans  As the dust (finally? sort of?) settles on elections that began last year, the Democrats are looking to jump right out of the gate with a new set of stimulus plans, including both payments to individuals as well as big infrastructure spending.  In this episode,...

Today on the Brief: U.S. President Trump signs order banning Chinese apps Initial jobless claims hold steady at 787,000 Elon Musk becomes the world’s richest person Our main discussion: Can bitcoin just keep going up?  In this episode, NLW breaks down: What’s driving the rally, including the growth of institutional buyers, burgeoning retail FOMO, Asian markets and more  Why some indicators are poi...

Today on the Brief: ShapeShift goes full DEX Neil Young and the changing business of music China stocks delisted from NYSE Our main discussion: What are the implications of Georgia’s runoff elections for bitcoin and markets as a whole?  In this episode, NLW discusses: The immediate response of Crypto Twitter to the victory for Dems Why Kelly Loeffler was a disappointing industry rep in the Senate ...

Yesterday, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency released Interpretive Letter 1174. The letter allows banks to participate as nodes in “independent node verification networks” (which you might better know as blockchain networks) as well as use stablecoins for payments settlement.  In this episode of The Breakdown, NLW looks at:  Crypto Twitter’s response to the news  A review of key passag...

The end of December was a momentous time in bitcoin’s history. Not content to clear the psychological barrier of $20,000, bitcoin’s price smashed up almost all the way to $30,000, although it would take the turn to the new year to hit that new high-water mark.  In this episode, NLW looks at interpretations of why bitcoin is rising, why it dipped today and what analysts and investors think will hap...

Tony Greer is a macro analyst and author of the Morning Navigator Newsletter. In this conversation, he and NLW discuss how central banks continued to kick the can down the road on debt as well as unexpected sources of strength for the economy heading into 2021. Find our guest online: @TgMacro Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1438693620?...

Dan Tapiero is an investor and entrepreneur with deep experience in gold and bitcoin. In this conversation with NLW he discusses the new group of institutional investors coming into the space and why, for them, bitcoin represents much more than just a hedge against possible future inflation. Find our guest online: @DTAPCAP Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  https://podcasts....

The wealth adviser and CEO of Onramp Invest discusses why the Federal Reserve continues to ignore its role in income inequality and what the bitcoin community can do to be a force for positive change. Find our guest online: @TR401 Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1438693620?at=1000lSDb Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/538vuul1Puor...

Alyse Killeen is the founder and managing partner of StillMark, and has been investing in bitcoin companies since 2013. While much of the conversation this year has been about high level narratives and new institutional investors, Alyse breaks down the technical advances that happened this year. Find our guest online: @AlyseKilleen Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  https://...

Brent Johnson is an investor at Santiago Capital and the creator of the well-known “Dollar Milkshake Theory.” In this conversation with NLW, he discusses what 2020 taught us about the state of the dollar around the world. Find our guest online: @santiagoaufund Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1438693620?at=1000lSDb Spotify: https://open...

Daniel Lacalle is the chief economist for Tressis SV and a well-known economics personality. In this conversation with NLW he discusses the devastation of small businesses in America and around the world and why the recovery could be less even than people think in the year ahead. Find our guest online: @dlacalle_IA The Breakdown is produced and distributed by CoinDesk.com

George Goncalves has been a macro analyst specializing in bonds for more than 20 years. In this conversation, he and NLW discuss the story bonds are telling the market and why central bank digital currencies are likely to have an important part of the macro conversation in 2021. Find our guest online: @bondstrategist  

Mark Moss is the host of a fast-growing and popular YouTube channel covering economics, bitcoin and more. In this conversation, he discusses why gold, bitcoin and sound money have become even more important in the context of central bank printing gone wild. Find our guest online: @1MarkMoss The Breakdown is produced and distributed by CoinDesk.com

Bill Baryhdt is the CEO of Abra, a mobile crypto banking app. In this discussion with NLW, Bill talks about the year in bitcoin and why the mass expansion of central bank balance sheets was the most important economic story of the year. Find our guest online: @billbarhydt The Breakdown is produced and distributed by CoinDesk.com

Ria Bhutoria is the director of research at Fidelity Digital Assets. In this conversation she gives listeners a look at how one of the most important institutional players in the space has viewed the evolution of bitcoin over the past year. Find our guest online: @riabhutoria The Breakdown is produced and distributed by CoinDesk.com

Bully Esquire is a Crypto Twitter personality, lawyer, founder of AlphaMarkets and host of the “Bully Esquire” podcast. In this conversation, he and NLW discuss what was good and bad about the DeFi boom of 2020 and more. Find our guest online: @bullyesq

No one would have expected an economic crisis to bring a new generation of investors to the table, but that's exactly what it did.

Max Keiser and Stacy Herbert are one of bitcoin's most dynamic duos, producing a variety of content, including the Orange Pill podcast. In this discussion with NLW, they talk about why this year was transformational in terms of how people view the aging economic system, and why 2021 is poised to mint even more new bitcoiners. Find our guests online:  @maxkeiser @stacyherbert

Raoul Pal is the founder and CEO of Global Macro Investor and Real Vision and one of the leading voices in modern macroeconomic discussions. In this conversation, he and NLW discuss bitcoin's monster 2020, how DeFi compares to ICOs, and why we should be paying more attention to central bank digital currencies. Find our guest online: @RaoulGMI  The Breakdown is produced and distributed by CoinDesk....

On this week’s Long Reads Sunday, NLW starts with the latest essay by Jeffrey Snider, “A Nonsensical Jumble of Misused Words Requires Discussion” and then with Caitlin Long’s followup thread, putting the discussion of rehypothecation in the bitcoin context.