What do billion-dollar asset managers really think about your token?

Pranav Kanade manages Digital Assets Alpha Fund, an actively managed crypto strategy at VanEck, one of the world’s largest asset managers with over $116B in assets under management. In this episode, Amanda and Pranav unpack how traditional finance approaches the space, how they evaluate projects, what good tokenomics actually look like, and why most founders misunderstand what institutional investors care about.

They dive into Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana and even a few DePIN projects and dig into why some play well with capital allocators while others don’t stand a chance. Pranav shares what makes a token investable, how he thinks about liquidity, governance, and incentives, and what’s still broken in the DeFi–TradFi bridge.

This episode pulls back the curtain on what it takes for a crypto project to earn the attention of a firm like VanEck and reveals how institutions really view the space.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Pranav's Journey from TradFi to Crypto

03:04 Defining Good Crypto Investments

05:59 The Importance of Tokenomics

08:52 Buyback and Burn Mechanisms

12:10 The Impact of Financialization on Technology

15:01 Strategies for Token Generation Events

18:13 Building Trust in Crypto Projects

21:06 The Future of Multi-Token ETFs

24:08 Exciting Developments in Tokenized Equities

29:36 Tesla's Path to Robotaxis

31:59 The Role of Centralized Exchanges

32:54 User Experience in DeFi vs. TradFi

34:32 The Future of Crypto and TradFi Integration

38:01 The Ideal End State for Crypto

40:15 Predictions in the Crypto Market

41:45 AI Agents and Financial Transactions

44:28 AI and Crypto Crossover Opportunities

47:03 The Future of Stablecoins

49:50 The Power Law in Currencies

50:52 Quality of People in Crypto

RESOURCES

Pranav on X: @vaneckpk https://x.com/vaneckpk

Subscribe to Endgame: https://www.youtube.com/@endgamepodcast

Amanda on X: https://x.com/amandacassatt

Serotonin on X: https://x.com/serotonin

Endgame on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/45B9szUxVXEwfCDA6uRxwq?si=HT9XXqF9Q2CcM9hfLbmkVg

Endgame on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/endgame-with-amanda-cassatt/id1801809440

Substack: https://substack.com/@UCInZsV3L1nDGoFjxoNUnPQQ

Peter J. Lightheart

The AI-powered Podcast Player