The Scoop

Evan Cheng is the Co-Founder and CEO of Mysten Labs — the development team valued at over $2 billion that is behind the soon-to-be-released Sui blockchain. In this episode, Cheng discusses the limitations of current blockchains in supporting complex consumer applications and explains how Sui plans to overcome this challenge with the help of the Move programming language, which was initially create...

After sitting on the sidelines during the bull market mania of 2021 and the early part of 2022, early-stage investment firm 1kx has been deploying at a "frantic" pace since the third quarter of last year, according to Founding Partner Lasse Clausen. "We really like the bear markets," Clausen said, "We know that this is the good time to be very actively investing." 1kx has a policy of holding onto...

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce  opposes  her agency's recent targeting of Kraken's staking program in the US.  "If investor protection is about just shutting programs down or preventing people from purchasing certain things — that's a very unimaginative form of investor protection," Commissioner Peirce said. In this episode, Commissioner Hester Peirce discusses how the SEC's recent enforcement act...

With U.S. regulators cracking down on digital assets, Coinbase's Chief Legal Officer Paul Gewal says Coinbase is just looking for consistency. “We’re not saying we don’t want to be regulated. We’re just saying that regulation all ought to occur under the rule of law that is in a manner that’s consistent with what Congress wrote,” he added. One particular inconsistency Grewal points out is how the...

US financial regulators are conducting a coordinated front against certain crypto companies in what Compound Labs Founder Robert Leshner says is a "planned set of product takedowns." One particular case to watch is the SEC's potential suit against Paxos over its BUSD stablecoin, which the SEC is alleging is an unregistered security. According to Leshner, this case is of particular importance given...

In this venture-focused segment of The Scoop, veteran crypto VCs Meltem Demirors and Vanessa Grellet unpack the trends shaping crypto's venture landscape in 2023. According to Demirors, crypto companies must follow the flow of funds: "The name of the game is 'interchange,'" Demirors said. "The closer you migrate to where the actual interchange happens, the more likely you are to earn consistent re...

Just as the internet revolutionized the taxi industry through the advent of apps like Uber and Lyft, it is only a matter of time before money gets brought into the digital age, according to the pseudo-anonymous crypto personality Punk6529 . "Eventually cash is also going to end up being a centralized database," said Punk6529, and "the person who has the master password to the database can decide w...

For web3 developers looking for alternatives to tools like Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud Platform, QuickNode's development environment allows teams to easily build and deploy on over 16 blockchains. According to QuickNode Co-Founder and CEO Alex Nabutovsky, a recent surge in demand for NFT data has played a large part in QuickNode's recent success. "The amount of need for the NFT technology...

From  Starbucks  to  Warner Music , large corporations are building on the Polygon blockchain to bring their web3 visions to life. According to Polygon Labs President Ryan Wyatt, it’s not Polygon’s tech that is attracting big brands, but rather Polygon Labs’ unique "white glove" approach to corporate partnerships. “Fortune 500 companies are used to having their hand held along a journey, especiall...

Since the start of 2023, the total crypto market cap has risen over 20%, and daily exchange volume has nearly tripled, according to data from The Block Research.  In this Market Pulse edition of The Scoop, The Block's VP of Research Larry Cermak and eGirl Capital's Hedgedhog discuss the dynamics shaping the crypto market's current rally, and explain why they aren't holding out hope for a sustained...

While the crypto market may seem chaotic to the outside observer, game theory can be used to analyze the underlying dynamics that lead to volatile price action. Jordi Alexander , Founder & CIO of Selini Capital, has a track record for utilizing game theory to predict crypto market events — including the collapse of the TerraUSD 'stablecoin' last year.  In this episode of The Scoop, Alexander u...

Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., newly elected House GOP whip and a member of the House Financial Services Committee, has long been at the forefront of shaping the conversation regarding the regulation of cryptocurrencies and digital assets in the United States. In this episode of The Scoop, Rep. Emmer provides an overview of how Congressional attitudes towards crypto are shifting in light of the tumultuo...

Nabil Manji, Worldpay's head of crypto and web3, describes his firm as "one of the largest companies that most people have never heard of," since Worldpay plays a relatively behind-the-scenes role facilitating the "plumbing" of different aspects of the global financial system. In this episode of The Scoop, Manji discusses how Worldpay is positioning itself to expand its digital asset infrastructur...

The crypto bull market in 2017 inspired journalist Camila Russo to tell the story behind the creation of Ethereum. Russo's book, "The Infinite Machine," has caught the attention of Ridley Scott, whose production company Scott Free Productions has signed on to co-produce the film adaption. Ridley Scott is best known for helming such blockbusters as "Gladiator", "Alien", "Blade Runner", "Thelma &amp...

Since its beginnings as a skunkworks intern project in late 2015, Jump Crypto has developed a multifaceted crypto strategy that spans proprietary trading, venture investing, and infrastructure development.  Although Jump had some exposure to FTX, the firm says it remains well capitalized.  In this episode of The Scoop, Jump Crypto President Kanav Kariya reflects on lessons learned during 2022 and...

For The Scoop’s final episode of 2022, Larry Cermak, vice president of Research at The Block, joins host Frank Chaparro to unpack highlights from The Block Research’s 2023 Digital Assets Outlook Report and to break down some of the major events that shaped the crypto market in 2022. The Block Research’s 2023 Digital Assets Outlook Report offers a deep look into the state of the crypto markets toda...

Founded in 2013, GSR is one of the oldest crypto market makers and is also an active venture investor. In this episode of The Scoop, GSR CEO Jakob Palmstierna discusses how his firm is responding to the collapse of FTX and shares his forecast for what a crypto recovery might look like. According to Palmstierna, GSR covered the losses of all of its customers who had funds stuck on FTX:  “We announc...

Founded in 2011, Bitstamp has navigated the ups and downs of multiple crypto market cycles over the years. In this episode of The Scoop, Bitstamp USA CEO Bobby Zagotta discusses Bitstamp’s resilience, and explains how centralized exchanges can restore user confidence in the wake of FTX’s collapse. According to Zagotta, "proof-of-reserves" is an important step towards giving customers more visibili...

To date, Silicon Valley-based VC firm a16z has raised over $7.6 billion to invest in crypto and web3. In this episode of The Scoop, a16z General Partner Chris Dixon shares some of the guiding principles that determine a16z’s investments in the crypto space and explains why the time is ripe for decentralized networks to replace centralized, corporate networks. According to Dixon, both a16z and othe...

Solana co-founder Raj Gokal has referred to the FTX crisis as a "crucible moment" for Solana's ecosystem. The amount of value moved on Solana has decreased dramatically since Alameda declared bankruptcy in November, data from The Block shows. In this episode of The Scoop, Solana co-founders Raj Gokal and Anatoly Yakovenko discuss how Solana initially became intertwined with FTX, and when they firs...

Six-time NBA champion Scottie Pippen is making his mark on the metaverse with a digital sneaker collection featuring 1,000 unique ‘SP33’ NFTs. For the launch, Pippen partnered with Orange Comet — the company that recently helped Sir Anthony Hopkins launch his own NFT collection . In this episode of The Scoop, Scottie Pippen and Orange Comet CEO Dave Broome discuss how Web3 is creating new ways for...

A DeFi protocol known as Cryptex offers a permissionless way to speculate on the total crypto market capitalization through its novel index token, TCAP. Now, Cryptex is on the verge of releasing its newest index token, JPEGz, which will allow holders to track the total market cap of NFTs on Ethereum. In this episode of The Scoop, Cryptex co-founder Joe Sticco shares the details behind the upcoming...

In this month's 'Market Pulse' episode of The Scoop, The Block Vice President of Research Larry Cermak and Loomdart, a founding member of crypto-native venture firm eGirl Capital, reflect on FTX’s collapse and speculate on what comes next for the crypto industry. According to Cermak, former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) is remaining in the Bahamas to stay engaged with local regulators: “Sam stil...

In this episode of The Scoop, Sam Bankman-Fried describes how a legacy payment system linked FTX’s future to Alameda Research’s fate, and explores why regulators and auditors alike failed to discover this relationship. According to Bankman-Fried, many FTX customers would fund their accounts via direct wire transfers to Alameda Research bank accounts: “What that flow I think looked like was basical...

In 2020, Cowen Digital formed to allow institutional customers of the investment bank Cowen to trade digital assets. The digital arm has been growing steadily in its eight months of existence, despite the onset of crypto winter. In this episode of The Scoop, Cowen Digital managing director and head Drew Forman explains how the crypto industry can rebuild in the wake of FTX’s meltdown, as well as w...