The Lightning Network Is Like Investing in Western Union

Wall Street veteran and founder of Custodia Bank Caitlin Long joins us to discuss bitcoin banks, leverage and the macroeconomy. She explains how new “dollar and digital asset banks” like Custodia Bank are helping to bridge the gap between bitcoin and the US dollar, and why she has chosen to seek regulation rather than bypass it. She and Saifedean discuss financial leverage, its impact on bitcoin’s price and why people should be wary of companies promising risk-free yield on bitcoin. The conversation also covers recent developments in financial markets, including rising bond yields and the fall in the British pound. In the Q&A, Caitlin answers questions on Chinese inflation, stablecoin velocity and whether the path to hyperbitcoinization will be orderly.

References

• Caitlin Forbes article introducing dollar and digital asset banks.
• The Institutional Risk Analyst article on The Narrow Bank case against the Federal Reserve.
• Explanation of Wyoming Special Purpose Depository Institutions by government of Wyoming.
• Jameson Lopp tweet about not helping people to buy bitcoin.
• Saifedean and Tone Vays debate Celsius’ business model with Alex Mashinsky in 2019.
• Nik Bhatia article explaining the concept of the Lightning Network Reference Rate (risk-free rate).
• Mises Wiki article on the Plaza Accord and relationship to monetary expansion in Japan.
• When Money Dies by Adam Fergusson
• See Human Action Chapter XXXI, 2. The Interventionist Aspect of Legal Tender Legislation, for a discussion of deflationary policy in Great Britain following inflationary war spending.
• Saifedean’s first book, The Bitcoin Standard.
• Saifedean’s second book, The Fiat Standard. See chapter 5 Fiat Balances: Universal debt slavery for a discussion of The Narrow Bank.
• Saifedean’s first book, The Bitcoin Standard.
• Saifedean’s second book, The Fiat Standard. 

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