
Hell Money
A weekly podcast from two Bitcoin enthusiasts. Each week Casey and Erin discuss a different aspect of Bitcoin's technology, culture, and vibe.
Latest episodes

Jul 15, 2025 • 1h 39min
Adam Krellenstein Returns: Counterparty’s Comeback & Bitcoin’s Soul Search
In this episode of the Hell Money Podcast, we sit down with Adam Krellenstein — Counterparty’s co‑founder and longtime lead maintainer — for a tour of Bitcoin’s formative years and the ideas shaping its future. Adam revisits the birth of XCP, explains why he walked away a decade ago, and describes what dragged him back into the codebase. Along the way we tackle the perennial question: What is Bitcoin for? Is embedding data on‑chain an evolutionary feature or a contagion best off‑loaded to sidechains? And if you aren't buying your daily coffee with BTC, has Satoshi’s dream failed, or merely evolved?We explore:- Counterparty’s origin story- Early Bitcoin dev culture- OP_RETURN drama, Blockstream’s sidechain vision & the data‑bloat dilemma- Whether Bitcoin is prepared for sophisticated political actors- Counterparty culture & NFTs- Adam’s decade‑long hiatus: burnout, philosophy of nature & why he’s back- What's next for BitcoinFOLLOW ADAM: https://x.com/agkrellensteinGet bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtTIMESTAMPS0:00 The beginning of Counterparty17:30 Worse is better development24:15 Early Bitcoin dev culture32:05 OP_RETURN & Bitcoin core devs38:05 Blockstream & sidechains, storing data on Bitcoin45:15 Bitcoin is unprepared for sophisticated political actors54:55 Counterparty culture & NFTs1:00:30 Adam's departure from Counterparty1:08:00 Philosophy of Nature1:19:00 Returning to open source development1:36:00 What's next for Bitcoin?

Jun 26, 2025 • 1h 42min
Bitcoin Core Dev Walks Away… to Battle The Great Firewall of China (with Carl Dong)
We sat down with Carl Dong — former Bitcoin Core contributor, now founder of Obscura VPN focused on real-world censorship resistance.In this episode, we dive into:- Why Carl walked away from Bitcoin Core development to tackle privacy head-on- What sets Obscura apart from other VPNs- Lessons from the Great Firewall and routing traffic through hostile networks- Chinese numerology- Carl & Casey's long and storied shared historyFOLLOW CARL: https://x.com/carl_dongGet bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtTIMESTAMPS:0:00 Intro & Carl's journey to Bitcoin development11:59 Hard problems in Bitcoin16:00 Binaries, compliers, and reproducible builds37:30 Transitioning from Bitcoin core to working on Obscura VPN1:05:00 Advice for current Bitcoin core contributors1:10:00 Ordinals numerology1:39:00 Outro

Jun 11, 2025 • 1h 32min
The Whitelist Grind is OVER: How Signals.art is Fixing NFT Launches (with Nick Sainato)
While Bitcoin 2025 and Inscribing Vegas lit up the Strip, we camped out with a mic and grabbed the builders behind the biggest moves in Ordinals. Episode #1 from Sin City features Nick Sainato —Gamma Co‑Founder, now debuting Signals.art, the platform out to kill the NFT whitelist grind and give everyone a social credit score.We dive into:- Whitelist grind culture & inefficiencies in the market- Price discovery and go-to-market strategies for NFTs- Signals.art walkthrough- Early Ordinals lore & Nick's origin storyFOLLOW NICK: https://x.com/nicksainatoFOLLOW SIGNALS: https://x.com/signalsartCLAIM 300 BARS ON SIGNALS.ART WITH CODE "#HMP": https://signals.art/Get bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtTIMESTAMPS:0:00 Intro & Inscribing Vegas review8:55 Signals.art & where we're at in the market14:00 Fixing the whitelist grind18:30 What is Signals?29:00 Clearing price auction price discovery38:10 Signals is chain-agnostic41:00 Pricing psychology52:00 Mint behavior59:00 Signals walkthrough1:08:15 Nick Sainato origin story1:18:15 Early Ordinals lore1:25:50 Outro

May 14, 2025 • 1h
BITCOIN CORE IS COMPROMISED! Meanwhile the Ordinals empire expands 🔥
On this episode of Hell Money, we’re locking in on final updates before we take over Las Vegas, Nevada. We’re auctioning the first piece from FUN!, the debut collection by Casey Rodarmor and Parker Day, and showing why Bitcoin-native auction tech beats the grift of legacy art houses.We explore:- Why Sotheby’s and Christie’s can’t compete with Bitcoin builders- Launching Megalith.art, the first Ordinals + Bitcoin-native auction platform- The debut piece from FUN! by Casey + Parker- How to use Ordinals Satscards for in-person trading of inscriptions, runes, and more- The OP_RETURN drama: Bitcoin podcasters vs. Bitcoin Core devsGet bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys 10% OFF INSCRIBING VEGAS: https://pretix.eu/inscribing/vegas/redeem?voucher=HELLMONEY10% OFF BITCOIN 2025: https://tickets.b.tc/code/inscribing/event/bitcoin-2025ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtTIMESTAMPS:0:00 Intro and Inscribing Vegas9:12 Megalith.art auction of FUN!27:50 Ordinals Satscards32:00 Ordinals Satscard tutorial42:15 OP_RETURN drama57:00 Outro

Apr 30, 2025 • 2h 58min
THE SPIRITUALITY ICEBERG
On this episode of Hell Money, we map the descent from New Age girlboss spirituality into the deep lore of interdimensional entrapment. It’s Erin’s spirituality iceberg: past the veil, past the simulation, straight into the metaphysical abyss.We explore:Shifting, twin flames, and the TikTok spirituality pipelineGalactic Federation Council bureaucracy hellscapeWhether we’re evolving or being harvestedSaturnian timelines, Hyperborea, and nuclear karmaWhat it means to escape the reincarnation matrixGet bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys 10% OFF INSCRIBING VEGAS: https://pretix.eu/inscribing/vegas/redeem?voucher=HELLMONEY10% OFF BITCOIN 2025: https://tickets.b.tc/code/inscribing/event/bitcoin-2025ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtTIMESTAMPS:0:00 Intro6:35 Tier 133:50 Tier 21:09:15 Tier 31:41:00 Tier 42:36:00 Tier 5

Apr 16, 2025 • 1h 23min
Casey Rodarmor Breaks His Silence on OP_CAT
In this episode of the Hell Money Podcast, we deliver a cosmic market update from the depths of tariff uncertainty, then discuss the opcode everyone’s frothing at the mouth over: OP_CAT. What is OP_CAT? What does it unlock for Bitcoin? And should it even happen?We explore:- AI and telepathy in the Age of Aquarius- Tariffs and a cosmic market update- Finding decentralized truth in the Akashic Records- Explaining the basics of OP_CAT- How OP_CAT could enable powerful primitives like vaults, covenants, and turing completeness- Whether or not OP_CAT belongs in BitcoinGet bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys 10% OFF INSCRIBING VEGAS: https://pretix.eu/inscribing/vegas/redeem?voucher=HELLMONEY10% OFF BITCOIN 2025: https://tickets.b.tc/code/inscribing/event/bitcoin-2025ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtTIMESTAMPS:0:00 Intro & AI Telepathy8:00 Tariffs & Cosmic Market Update43:00 The Akashic Records, Decentralized Truth, & Randonauting51:45 OP_CAT54:15 Turing machines & completeness1:00:00 Uses for OP_CAT1:13:30 Rijndael's Taplocks1:18:00 Outro

Apr 2, 2025 • 2h 3min
Bitcoin Meets Wall Street: How Futures & Derivatives Drive Global Adoption (with Matt Wraith)
Today we’re joined by dear friend of the pod Matt Wraith, CTO of Bitnomial, a Bitcoin futures and derivatives exchange. What starts as a conversation about Bitcoin futures and derivatives trading quickly spirals into a philosophical exploration of financial abstraction, capitalism, and the physical reality of money itself.We cover:- How Bitcoin futures and derivatives work- Good and bad abstraction in financialization- Self regulation in complex economic systems- Matt's journey from physics to Bitcoin- Why money should be expensive and useless- Ordinals, Runes, and Inscriptions derivativesGet bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys 10% OFF INSCRIBING VEGAS: https://pretix.eu/inscribing/vegas/redeem?voucher=HELLMONEY10% OFF BITCOIN 2025: https://tickets.b.tc/code/inscribing/event/bitcoin-2025ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtFOLLOW MATT: https://x.com/wraith_mFOLLOW BITNOMIAL: https://x.com/BitnomialLEARN MORE ABOUT BITNOMIAL: https://bitnomial.com/BOTANICAL.FINANCE: https://botanical.finance/FOLLOW HELL MONEY PODCAST:→ HMP: https://x.com/hellmoneypod→ Casey: https://x.com/rodarmor→ Erin: https://x.com/realizingerin→ Podcast Links: https://hell.money/TIMESTAMPS:0:00 Intro, the Friedman family, SF Bitdevs11:00 Bitnomial: Bitcoin futures & options13:30 How do futures work?18:00 Bitcoin futures21:00 Matt's history with Bitcoin & Bitnomial28:40 Bitcoin derivatives, futures, options, & risk36:00 Oil futures went negative in 202039:00 Complicated economic systems self regulating44:00 21st century economic experiments49:50 Matt's academic history, physics of metals1:01:00 Chicago & the commodities industry1:04:00 Bitcoin futures are a necessary part of institutional adoption1:10:00 Derivatives, financial abstraction, & market stability1:15:00 Investors fund the future, our rigged economic system1:23:00 We need more economic/political experiments1:24:30 Matt's journey to Bitcoin1:30:00 Bitcoin is a tether between digital and physical reality1:35:00 Money should be useless and expensive1:38:00 We don't know everything that Bitcoin can do1:41:30 Instantaneous money transfer1:44:30 Stablecoins on Runes1:46:30 Ordinals, Runes, & Inscriptions futures1:51:00 Trading Places, people are not fungible1:59:00 Outro

Mar 19, 2025 • 1h 11min
Ordinals are OVER: Casey Rodarmor Breaks Down Ord 1.0
In this episode of the Hell Money Podcast, Casey Rodarmor explains ORD 1.0: the final, stable version of the Ordinals Protocol. What does it mean for Ordinals to be "finished"? Is this really the end? And what comes next?We explore:- The history of Ordinals from pre-release chaos to beta and now 1.0- What changes in ORD 1.0, including wallet refactors and error handling- Galleries and attributes—bringing legacy collections fully on-chain- Agent mode and how it could revolutionize selling inscriptions and runes- The future of Ordinals, building in the bear, and why the days of easy money are overGet bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys 10% OFF INSCRIBING VEGAS: https://pretix.eu/inscribing/vegas/redeem?voucher=HELLMONEY10% OFF BITCOIN 2025: https://tickets.b.tc/code/inscribing/event/bitcoin-2025ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtFOLLOW HELL MONEY PODCAST:→ HMP: https://x.com/hellmoneypod→ Casey: https://x.com/rodarmor→ Erin: https://x.com/realizingerin→ Podcast Links: https://hell.money/TIMESTAMPS0:00 Intro & alpha vs. beta. vs 1.05:05 What is ord 1.0? Ord wallet & technical debt13:10 Alpha on HMP subs-only spaces & shilling18:50 Galleries vs. Parent-Child24:14 Legacy collections migrating to galleries26:00 Galleries for curation28:30 Attributes33:00 Why don't marketplaces index parent-child inscriptions?34:00 Schema of attributes40:30: Agent mode & policies for selling inscriptions & runes52:00: Smart contracts suck, ByBit hack, multisigs on Ethereum aren't real58:00: Agent mode for selling Runes (getting around lot splitting)1:04:00: If you want to make money, try creating value1:08:30: The future of the Ordinals ecosystem

Mar 5, 2025 • 1h 42min
COUNTERPARTY & RARE PEPES: The Forgotten History of Bitcoin NFTs (with Dan Anderson)
In this episode of the Hell Money Podcast, we sit down with Dan Anderson (@droplister), a self-described "internet nobody" with deep roots in crypto-native culture. Dan shares his journey from the early days of Bitcoin, Counterparty, and Rare Pepes, and the history of NFT experiments on Bitcoin. We explore: - The origins of Counterparty and its impact on Bitcoin and crypto culture - The history of NFT and token experiments on Bitcoin - Ethereum's ICO and smart contracts on Bitcoin - Rare Pepe Science - Counterparty 2.0Get bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys FOLLOW DAN ANDERSON: https://x.com/droplister10% OFF INSCRIBING VEGAS: https://pretix.eu/inscribing/vegas/redeem?voucher=HELLMONEY10% OFF BITCOIN VEGAS: https://tickets.b.tc/code/inscribing/event/bitcoin-2025ORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtFOLLOW HELL MONEY PODCAST:→ HMP: https://x.com/hellmoneypod→ Casey: https://x.com/rodarmor→ Erin: https://x.com/realizingerin→ Podcast Links: https://hell.money/TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 Intro & Dan's early inscriptions 6:25 Dan's journey to Bitcoin (and why he never went full Ethereum) 12:58 Counterparty (XCP), Rare Pepes, and the emergence of crypto-native culture 16:25 Counterparty's fair launch via Bitcoin burn 20:00 Namecoin & Mastercoin launches, OP_RETURN 24:30 Stamps vs. Ordinal Inscriptions 27:30 Mastercoin, Tether, & Colored Coins 33:00 Ordinals as an improvement on colored coins 36:30 Counterparty founding & design 38:30 Ethereum's ICO and influence from Counterparty 41:00 Smart contracts on Bitcoin vs Ethereum 43:00 What do people want to do with Bitcoin and digital assets? 51:00 Tether, Omni, hard forks, & the risk of economic nodes controlling protocols 57:15 Early Counterparty token experiments 59:30 The success of Ordinals 1:02:00 The value of simplicity in development 1:03:00 Spells of Genesis, Rare Pepe origins 1:05:00 Rare Pepe Scientists, certifications for rare vs. fake pepes 1:08:50 "NFT" was a term invented by lawyers 1:11:00 Pepe as a symbol for the collective unconscious 1:13:00 Migration from Counterparty to Ethereum, the success of NFTs 1:18:00 The timing of Ordinals' success 1:23:40 The future of Counterparty & Counterparty 2.0 1:32:00 Community-driven curation in meme culture 1:35:10 Bitcoin Uncensored foreshadowing the breakup of Hell Money Podcast 1:39:00 Casey's egregious digital footprint 1:40:00 The Dan Files & closing remarks

Feb 19, 2025 • 1h 33min
CASEY AND ERIN'S RELATIONSHIP STATUS... | HMP LOVELINE
It's our Valentine's Day special! Answering love and relationship questions from the degens ❤️Get bonus content by subscribing to @hellmoneypod on X: https://x.com/hellmoneypod/creator-subscriptions/subscribeOr support the podcast by sending a BTC donation: bc1qztncp7lmcxdgude4px2vzh72p2yu2aud0eyzys 10% OFF INSCRIBING VEGAS: https://pretix.eu/inscribing/vegas/redeem?voucher=HELLMONEYORDINALS PROTOCOL SHIRT: https://shop.inscribing.com/products/ordinals-protocol-shirtFOLLOW HELL MONEY PODCAST:→ HMP: https://x.com/hellmoneypod→ Casey: https://x.com/rodarmor→ Erin: https://x.com/realizingerin→ Podcast Links: https://hell.money/TIMESTAMPS:00:00 Intro5:08 Mom cheating on Dad9:03 Heroin addict17:13 Are happy endings cheating?25:55 4megger for Valentine's Day28:18 Getting back into early relationship vibe in a long term relationship41:08 Sex in a long term relationship46:14 Creativity and romance in a long term relationship51:45 Polyamorous relationships59:17 When to share your Bitcoin seed phrase?1:02:30 Gay tendencies1:08:36 Is it important to have kids?1:15:45 Financial split in a committed relationship1:26:30 Casey and Erin's relationship status1:31:45 Proposal to Erin