Geopolitical Tensions and Market Dynamics

In this week’s episode of Bits + Bips, the panel digs into why Tron’s rumored IPO is more than a headline, what Wall Street’s quiet shift into stablecoins signals, and how exchanges are racing to control token flow, even as regulation hangs in the balance.

They also explore:

• What the Israel–Iran conflict means for global markets, oil prices, and crypto positioning

• Whether banks can adopt stablecoins without threatening their own deposits

• If regulatory clarity will come fast enough to shape the next crypto phase

• How to tell if ETH’s revival has staying power

Sponsors:

• Bitwise

  
  

  Hosts:

• Ram Ahluwalia, CFA, CEO and Founder of Lumida

• Steve Ehrlich, Executive Editor at Unchained

Guests:

• Christopher Perkins, President of CoinFund

• • Vishal Gupta, Cofounder and CEO of True Markets.

  
  

  Links

Tron and Justin Sun

• FT: Crypto group Tron to go public after US pauses probe into billionaire founder

• Unchained: Eric Trump Claims No Public Involvement in Tron’s Nasdaq Entity

• The Guardian: Crypto entrepreneur eats banana art he bought for $6.2m

Israel - Iran

• WSJ: 

• Israel Takes Control of Iran’s Skies—a Feat That Still Eludes Russia in Ukraine

• How Israel’s Mossad Smuggled Drone Parts to Attack Iran From Within

Stablecoins and TradFi

• Unchained: 

• JPMorgan Files ‘JPMD’ Trademark, Hints at Bigger Crypto Offering

• Coinbase and Amex Team Up on Bitcoin Card as Exchange Reveals Broad Expansion Plans

• Bloomberg: Bessent Says $2 Trillion Reasonable for Dollar Stablecoin Market.

• WSJ: Walmart and Amazon are considering launching U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoins 

• Reuters: French Societe Generale became the first major bank to launch a dollar-pegged stablecoin

• The Information: Financial markets giant DTCC is exploring a stablecoin, according to The Information

Regulation

• Unchained: White House Rejects Ban on Conflicts of Interest in Crypto’s CLARITY Act

Timestamps:

🎬 0:00 Intro

📰 4:18 Why Tron’s potential IPO creates a dilemma for investors, and how Justin Sun’s Trump ties play into it

🛡️ 15:58 Should exchanges like Coinbase let investors trade whatever they want?

🏦 20:47 The reason why crypto treasury companies even exist

📊 25:59 What is driving the fierce competition among exchanges

💵 34:18 Can JPMorgan, Bank of America, and other TradFi giants succeed with stablecoins?

🤔 37:58 Will stablecoins cannibalize banks’ own deposit bases?

🌍 45:51 How the Iran–Israel conflict could shake macro markets and crypto sentiment

🚀 55:37 Why Ram and Chris are calling for an ETH breakout

📜 57:47 What are the risks if crypto regulation fails?

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