

51 Insights – What Matters in Digital Assets
Marc Baumann
We talk with digital asset and technology leaders about what's next in finance and commerce. Subscribe to our newsletter & join 35k+ others: www.51insights.xyz www.51insights.xyz
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Dec 23, 2025 • 43min
Why the application layer is crypto’s next $10T opportunity, with Richard Galvin, CIO of DACM
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️"We think the space now moves to a growth phase where the underlying build-out is largely done and value really shifts to the applications that sit on top.”That’s Richard Galvin, Executive Chairman and Chief Investment Officer at Digital Asset Capital Management (DACM), describing the most compelling arbitrage in crypto right now.Richard’s thesis is simple but profound: The era of investing only in "Blockchains" (Layer 1s) is ending. The era of "Applications" is beginning.In our conversation, he breaks down a staggering statistic: Application revenue now represents nearly 70% of the entire crypto revenue pool, yet these apps account for only 7% of total market value.“We’ve built the supply. Block space is now cheap, fast, and commoditized. We don’t need more blockchains; we need more users. The value is migrating from the ‘pipes’ to the ‘services’ and the market hasn't priced it in yet.”About Richard: Richard Galvin is the Executive Chairman and Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of Digital Asset Capital Management (DACM), a global investment firm specialising in digital assets and cryptocurrencies. He co-founded DACM in 2017 after a 20-year career in senior investment banking. His previous roles include serving as Head of Equity & Derivative Capital Markets (Australia) at JPMorgan and as Co-Head of TMT Investment Banking at Goldman Sachs JBWere.As of late 2025, he also serves as a member of the Board of Directors at Bakkt Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: BKKT), a digital asset services platform.🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.🎧 Jump to the best parts* (02:09) → The Canary in the Coal Mine: Why crypto is the leading indicator for macro liquidity and what it’s telling us about the next 12 months.* (05:49) → The Great Altcoin Devaluation: Why fundamentals (users, revenue) are up triple digits while token prices are down 70%—and why this is a “value investor’s dream.”* (10:50) → The Dotcom Parallel: Why L1s (Solana, Ethereum) are the “Cisco” of this cycle, and why the “Amazon” of crypto is currently sitting in the application layer.* (13:02) → The 70/7 Mispricing: Richard breaks down the math: 70% of industry revenue comes from apps, but they hold only 7% of the market cap.* (18:37) → From Lending to Meme Coins: Why Richard is bullish on both the “serious” (Aave) and the “speculative” (Pump.fun) as drivers of mass adoption.* (33:52) → The 2035 End State: Why your grandmother will use DeFi without ever knowing what a “private key” is. Important Links * LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/richard-galvin-b336808 * X: https://x.com/richwgalvin* Medium: https://medium.com/@richard.galvin* DACM: https://www.dacm.io/* AIMA: https://www.aima.org/🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* The 4-year cycle is dead (but the market hasn't caught up yet): Unlike previous boom-bust cycles where the same retail cohort chased returns, today's crypto is dominated by sophisticated institutions with fundamentally different investment behaviors. This should compress volatility and extend growth cycles.* Why he's bearish on 2025 (but still bullish long-term): Crypto is currently weaker than most asset classes, driven by a drop in corporate treasury buying (which artificially propped up prices) and capitulation from investors front-running a non-existent cycle. This is actually healthy, it's removing speculation.* The internet parallel everyone gets wrong: In the 1990s, people thought infrastructure companies would hold all the value. But infrastructure (Cisco, Nortel) became commoditized. Applications (Google, Amazon) captured the upside. Same thing is happening in crypto right now. We explore how. * Why Solana applications are the most mispriced: Solana has the fastest growth, highest revenues, lowest transaction costs (~$0.00001), yet applications trade at discounts to other ecosystems. The market sees volatility and competition as downsides. Richard sees them as proof of health.Watch or listen now:YouTube • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:🙌 A note from 51: Start a research-driven growth campaign with us and reach 100k+ decision makers across digital assets and finance. My biggest takeaways from this conversation & who to bet on: 1. The dot-com parallel (& the 10x mispricing)

Dec 17, 2025 • 49min
Why altcoins will be bigger than Bitcoin, with Yat Siu, Co-founder of Animoca Brands
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️“Capitalism is the superior system broadly. But when left unchecked, it has a lot of problems. And the reason communism and socialism have become more popular is because most people in the world are not participating in the capitalist system.”That’s Yat Siu, Co-founder and Executive Chairman of Animoca Brands, outlining what drives Animoca Brand’s investment thesis. Animoca has quietly built a $1.4 billion portfolio of over 600 companies. Their bet? That while Bitcoin is the reserve asset, the “Altcoin” economy, representing culture, gaming, and data, will ultimately be the larger asset classIn our conversation, he breaks down why Animoca Brands is looking to go public on the NASDAQ and why “digital property rights” are the only viable path to re-enfranchise the global population into the capitalist machine. And here is his biggest take:“No king willingly gives up their kingdom. Spotify won’t decentralize. Facebook won’t tokenize. It’s not innovation from incumbents, it’s creative destruction. A new company will disrupt them, and they’ll have to adapt or die.”In this episode, we sit down with Yat to unpack the philosophy of digital property rights and the future of Animoca.About Yat: Yat Siu is a Hong Kong-based technology entrepreneur, investor, and a leading advocate for Web3 and digital property rights. He is best known as the co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands, a global leader in gamification and blockchain with a portfolio of over 600 companies.He’s been investing in blockchain since the earliest days and is known for his philosophical approach to technology and economics. Before Animoca, he was an early investor in mobile gaming and founded multiple companies.🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.🎧 Jump to the best parts* (00:52) → From Checkpoint Charlie to Web3: Yat Siu grew up crossing between East and West Berlin. He explains how seeing “scarcity vs. abundance” side-by-side shaped his belief that property rights are the foundation of freedom.* (05:16) → The problem with modern capitalism: Why real estate, compound earnings, and the stock market have become impossible for most people and how QE destroyed the savings mechanism.* (13:06) → John Locke’s labor theory in the digital age: Why your data and ideas are the new “apples you plucked” and why Big Tech is essentially enslaving creators.* (30:59) → The Altcoin Thesis: Why Animoca views itself as a leveraged bet on the altcoin market, and why Yat believes the collective market cap of altcoins will eventually surpass Bitcoin’s “digital gold” status.* (36:30) → From NFTs to digital identity to stablecoins: Why Animoca invests across every layer of tokenization.* (44:47) → The vision for the next 5-10 years: Why tokenization will make everyone financially literate.Important Links * LinkedIn: https://hk.linkedin.com/in/yatsiu* X: https://x.com/ysiu* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ysiu/* Animoca Brands: https://www.animocabrands.com/* Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yat_Siu🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* Why capitalism is dying (and how to save it): The failure of antitrust, the rise of tech monopolies, and why data (the new oil) needs to be owned by the people who create it, not the platforms that exploit it.* The NASDAQ Strategy: Why Animoca plans to go public to allow broad retail participation, contrasting with the closed nature of VC funds.* Where to tokenize: Tokenizing liquid assets (like Treasuries) adds utility. Tokenizing illiquid assets (like real estate) doesn’t magically make them liquid, it just wraps the same problem in a token.* Digital identity as the killer app: Why privacy ≠ anonymity, and why blockchain needs reputation (what Animoca is building) before it can scale trust.Watch or listen now:YouTube • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:Recommended reports:🙌 A note from 51: Start a research-driven growth campaign with us and reach 100k+ decision makers across digital assets and finance. My biggest takeaways from this conversation & who to bet on: 1. Altcoins will be larger than Bitcoin

Dec 11, 2025 • 37min
The $400 trillion tokenization migration, with Carlos Domingo, CEO Securitize
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️“The $400 trillion market is any asset that is recorded on an antiquated ledger... If we go to $2 trillion in the next five or 10 years, that would be a very good outcome for everybody.”That’s Carlos Domingo, CEO and co-founder of tokenization pioneer Securitize. And he clears up a big myth: “Tokenization makes the asset easier to trade... But that doesn’t necessarily make it liquid unless the asset is liquid itself because the liquidity is intrinsic to the asset.”In this episode, we sit down with Carlos to understand how tokenisation moves from a buzzword to reality.Carlos explains why 2025 is an inflection point for tokenization. He breaks down why Securitize is going public via a SPAC at a ~$2B valuation , and why the “liquidity myth” of tokenizing real estate is a trap.We also cover the critical shift from stablecoins to tokenized treasuries, the entry of BlackRock, and the inevitable future where your Tesla shares aren’t just entries in a DTCC database, but liquid collateral in your digital walletAbout Carlos: Carlos Domingo is the Co-founder and CEO of Securitize, one of the leading tokenization platforms. He founded the company in 2017 when the space was pure speculation. He has led Securitize to become the transfer agent of choice for giants like BlackRock and KKR. Before Securitize, he worked at Fortune 500 companies and was co-founder and managing partner at SPiCE Fund. 🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.🎧 Jump to the best parts* (00:25) → The $400T opportunity: Why tokenization isn’t a threat to traditional finance, it’s an upgrade to it. And why $2-10T in real tokenized assets over the next 10 years is the realistic target.* (04:39) → Why Carlos started Securitize in 2017: The founding story, watching shares take weeks to transfer, getting inspired by ICOs, and realizing institutions needed the same efficiency.* (08:57) → The BlackRock moment: Why the largest asset manager in the world launching a tokenized product wasn’t just a win for Securitize, it was the moment the entire industry’s eyes opened.* (18:39) → The public vs. private blockchain war: Why private blockchains (like JP Morgan’s) will lose to open ecosystems, using the same logic that killed AOL and won the internet for everyone.* (23:36) → Tokenizing public equities: Why shares trapped in DTCC databases need to be freed onto blockchains, and why the first big marquee company to do it unlocks everything.* (31:15) → How to profit from tokenisation: Three buckets - infrastructure tokens, service providers like Securitize, and enterprise exposure. Why betting on all three matters, and why buying the asset is better than buying the company.Important Links * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlosdomingo/ * X: https://x.com/carlosdomingo* Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carlosdomingo/* Medium: https://medium.com/@carlosdomingo* Securitize: https://securitize.io/* BlackRock BUIDL Fund: https://securitize.io/buidl🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* The “big bang” moment for tokenized assets: Why 2025 might be the tipping point as BlackRock, JPMorgan, and Citi scale tokenized funds and treasuries.* Why Stablecoins were the Trojan Horse: How the $300B stablecoin market proved the tech works, paving the way for yield-bearing instruments like Treasuries.* The “infrastructure war”: Why banks are building private chains due to regulation, not utility, and why open innovation always wins.* Tokenized equities: The roadmap to taking shares of companies like Tesla or Apple out of the centralized depository and into your digital wallet.* The “service provider” alpha: Why investing in the picks and shovels (transfer agents, compliance layers) is the safest bet on the tokenization megatrend.Watch or listen now:YouTube • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:Recommended reports:🙌 A note from 51: Start a research-driven growth campaign with us and reach 100k+ decision makers across digital assets and finance. My biggest takeaways from this conversation & who to bet on: 1. Private blockchains are the “Intranets” of finance (and they will die)

Dec 3, 2025 • 47min
The crypto playbook for 2026, with Matt Hougan, CIO of Bitwise
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️“Zero is crazy because it means you’re just completely against the market... The starting point is about 2% of the size of the equity market and that should be the neutral starting point.”That’s Matt Hougan, CIO of Bitwise Asset Management, on Bitcoin allocation. His point isn’t that one needs to be a crypto evangelist or a “laser-eyed” maximalist. It’s simply that in a world where Harvard is tripling its exposure and sovereign wealth funds are doubling down, having 0% exposure to digital assets is actually an active bet against the market.In this episode, we sit down with Matt to make sense of the market’s recent swings. Matt explains why the liquidity crunch and rate anxiety are temporary headwinds masking a massive structural shift: the transition from a programmed, halving-dependent cycle to a mature, macro-driven asset class.We cover the “Bitcoin as a Service” valuation framework, why the old four-year cycle no longer explains the market, and why the smart money is quietly buying the haystack while retail tries to time the needle.About Matt: Matt Hougan is the Chief Investment Officer at Bitwise Asset Management, the world’s largest crypto index fund manager. He was an early voice advocating for Bitcoin ETFs, and before joining Bitwise, he served as the CEO of ETF.com. A three-time member of the “Barron’s 100 Most Influential People in Fund Management,” Matt is the bridge between Wall Street rigor and the digital asset frontier, with presence on financial news channels like CNBC and Bloomberg.🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.🎧 Jump to the best parts* (00:37) → The Four Major Headwinds: Why the market is stalling right now (liquidity, election anxiety, and the ghosts of October 10th) and why 2026 is the real target* (11:44) → Bitcoin is a SaaS Company: Matt’s brilliant framework for explaining Bitcoin’s value to traditional investors: It provides a service (wealth storage), but you buy the asset instead of paying a subscription.* (22:14) → Is MicroStrategy A Ticking Time-Bomb?: Matt breaks down the math behind the “synthetic halving” and why corporate treasuries need to do more than just HODL.* (26:30) → The “Do Hard Things” Thesis for DATs: Why ETFs have become the “risk-free rate” of crypto access, forcing companies like MicroStrategy and others to take on operational complexity to justify their premiums.* (41:33) → Buy the Haystack: In a world of exploding stablecoins and L2s, picking winners is hard. Matt explains why a diversified approach, owning the equity, the infrastructure, and the tokens, is the only sane strategy.* (46:36) → The Four 2026 Catalysts Bitwise Is WatchingLiquidity reversal (December 1st), Fed rate cuts, October 10th fears fading, and market structure progress. Matt’s specific roadmap for what needs to happen to hit new all-time highs—and why institutions are positioning now.Important Links * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-hougan/* X: https://x.com/Matt_Hougan* Bitwise memo: https://experts.bitwiseinvestments.com/cio-memos* CFA Society NY: https://cfany.org/speaker-organizer/matt-hougan/* Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/matthougan/🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* Why the “Four Year Cycle” is fundamentally dead, even if it’s psychologically alive.* The rise of the “DeFi Mullet”: TradFi in the front, DeFi in the back.* Why stablecoins are the US dollar pair for the future of tokenised markets.* The valuation math behind a $1.3M Bitcoin price target by 2035.* Why Bitwise launched an XRP ETF and a staking-native Solana ETF.Watch or listen now:YouTube • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:Recommended reports:🙌 A note from 51: We arm financial institutions and digital asset leaders with bespoke research, thought leadership to shape the most important conversations, scale trust, and win business.My biggest takeaways from this conversation:

Nov 13, 2025 • 49min
Europe’s €11 trillion stablecoin opportunity, with Sveinn Valfells, Co-Founder of Monerium
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️“Fiat needs to move 24/7. And that’s what blockchains are built for.”That’s Sveinn Valfells, co-founder of Monerium, one of Europe’s oldest and largest stablecoin players – and one of the few people in Europe who’s not just talking about on-chain finance but actually building the regulatory-compliant rails to make it happen.In this episode, we talk about how Sveinn helped write the stablecoin playbook that’s now shaping global policy. His company, Monerium, issued the first regulated stablecoin in Europe, long before Circle had a legal framework and before the U.S. even passed enabling legislation.But this isn’t just another stablecoin episode.It’s a front-row seat to the regulatory cold war unfolding between the U.S. and Europe and why Europe lost the first phase of this war. About Sveinn: Sveinn Valfells is an Icelandic entrepreneur, scientist, and investor. With a background in tech and physics, Sveinn was an early adopter of Bitcoin, helping to organise the first Bitcoin conferences in London. He led Monerium in 2015 to become the first company licensed in the European Economic Area to issue e-money on-chain, including EURe, GBPe, and USDe stablecoins, enabling instant transfers between traditional bank accounts and blockchain wallets.🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.🎧 Jump to the best parts* (00:37) → The future of Fiat is on-chain: Sveinn explains his core thesis: blockchains offer a superior infrastructure for transacting real-world assets, and fiat currency is the most significant of these.* (07:23) → The e-money blueprint: How Monerium issued the first regulated stablecoin in Europe using the pre-MiCA e-money framework — years before Circle or Paxos had legal clarity.* (17:11) → MiCA vs. the Genius Act: Sveinn compares the EU’s MiCA regime with the U.S. Payment Stablecoin Act — and explains why America is now copying Europe’s early blueprint.¨* (23:47) → The “too big to fail” risk of dollar dominance: Why relying on USD for 99% of stablecoin volume is dangerous — and how multi-currency rails could mitigate systemic risk.* (29:00) → Why Europe fell behind and how they’ll catch up: Despite clear regulation, Europe’s fragmented startup ecosystem slowed real adoption. Sveinn outlines what needs to change for Europe to lead.Important Links * Website: https://sveinn.valfells.com/* X: https://x.com/sveinn_valfells* LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sveinn-valfells* Medium: https://medium.com/@valfells* Monerium: https://monerium.com/board/🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* Why the future of fiat currency is on the blockchain* How Monarium pioneered regulated stablecoins in Europe* The critical differences and similarities between EU and US stablecoin regulation* The systemic risks of global reliance on the US dollar and its infrastructure* Why the Euro has the potential to become a major on-chain currency* The future of financial services in a tokenised world* Why a multi-chain, multi-currency stablecoin ecosystem is inevitableWatch or listen now:YouTube • Spotify • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:Recommended reports:🙌 A note from 51: We arm financial institutions and digital asset leaders with bespoke research, thought leadership to shape the most important conversations, scale trust, and win business.My biggest takeaways from this conversation:

Nov 4, 2025 • 52min
Raoul Pal’s 2026 Playbook: Dollar, Debt, and Crypto's Big Debasement Trade
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️“We’ve now got the single most powerful factor in all of investing that’s ever existed… Everything is tied to this debasement of currency.”That’s Raoul Pal, CEO of Real Vision and one of the most respected macro thinkers in the world, explaining why the entire financial system has converged on a single trade: outrun the collapse of fiat.In this episode, Raoul lays out a sweeping thesis: The world is caught in a massive sovereign debt spiral that can only be managed by persistent currency debasement. What looks like asset appreciation is really just denominator decay, the optical illusion of rising prices in a world of falling money. “The S&P 500 isn’t going up. The dollar is going down. Once you see that, you can’t unsee it.”This isn’t a bug; it’s a feature of the current financial system. This singular macro force makes investing in scarce, exponential assets like crypto not just an opportunity, but a necessity for capital preservation and growth.We trace this macro supercycle from its origins in the global debt boom to its next chapter: tokenized networks, AI agents, and a replatforming of capital itself. The game is no longer about picking assets based on traditional fundamentals; it’s about choosing the best vehicles to outrun the devaluation of fiat currency.About Raoul: After forecasting the 2008 financial crisis and the 2012 European sovereign debt crisis, Raoul delved into the world of Bitcoin. He authored the first-ever institutional macro report on Bitcoin in 2013 and has since transitioned from a diversified macro investor to being almost entirely focused on digital assets. After a distinguished career that included managing hedge funds at Goldman Sachs, he retired from active fund management at 36 to launch the research service Global Macro Investor. He later co-founded Real Vision to democratise financial knowledge for all.🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.🎧 Jump to the best parts* (04:22) → The Endgame of Currency Debasement and Debt: Raoul explains the inescapable math of sovereign debt, how the post-2008 debt spiral locked central banks into perpetual money printing, and why central bank liquidity is the “single most powerful factor in all of investing.”* (07:46) → The $100 Trillion Destination: Why crypto is the single most powerful macro trade of all time, with a network adoption trend line pointing to a $100 trillion asset class within eight years. We are only 4% of the way there.* (13:12) → Why Gold Preserves Wealth but Doesn’t Compound ItRaoul contrasts gold and crypto: gold protects against debasement, but crypto grows through exponential network effects. In a system where fiat is structurally melting, compounding > storing.* (20:10) → Metcalfe’s Law, Not DCF: Why traditional valuation models fail for crypto. Raoul argues that blockchains are technology networks, not companies, and their value is driven by users and transaction volume, the same law that governs Google, Amazon, and Tesla.* (31:37) → The Economic Singularity: Raoul’s long-term outlook. The debasement trade will continue until ~2032, forcing a mass migration to blockchain rails before AI and robotics fundamentally rewrite the rules of GDP growth.* (33:37) → The Four-Year Cycle is Now Five: A provocative and data-backed argument for why the crypto cycle has elongated. It was never about the Bitcoin halving; it was about the global debt refinancing schedule.* (44:29) → NFTs Are Humanity’s Contract Layer: Moving beyond digital art, Raoul explains why NFTs will become the largest part of crypto networks, underpinning everything from financial derivatives and brand loyalty to your digital identity.Important Links * Website: https://raoulpal.com/* X: https://x.com/RaoulGMI * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raoul-pal-real-vision/* Real Vision: https://www.realvision.com/contributor/raoul-pal🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* The endgame of currency debasement and debt* The “biggest macro trade of all time”* Why gold is a store of value but not a compounder of wealth* Why the four-year crypto cycle is dead* Why the current cycle’s slow, steady build-up may actually be a sign of deep structural strength* Which L1s are going to win* How NFTs will transform brand loyalty, social graphs, and the creator economy.* Why AI and blockchain will be the solution to our debt spiralWatch or listen now:YouTube • Spotify • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:Recommended reports:🙌 Work with us: We create pioneering thought leadership that helps digital asset and technology companies lead the conversation, earn trust and win business.My biggest takeaways from this conversation:

Oct 15, 2025 • 51min
Ethereum's Endgame: Why Credible Neutrality Beats Speed, with William Mougayar
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️“You cannot build a reputation based on what you are going to do. Trust must be earned over time. The track record matters.”William Mougayar on why Ethereum’s 10-year record matters more than competitor speed claims.William Mougayar, an early internet pioneer and one of the first to recognise the potential of Ethereum, has been in the technology business for nearly four decades. He met Vitalik Buterin in late 2013 and has had a front-row seat to the evolution of the blockchain industry ever since. He advised the Ethereum Foundation through its early growing pains, served as chairman of the Kin Foundation during Solana’s 35-cent days, and has spent four decades watching technology waves from Hewlett-Packard to peer-to-peer protocols.His thesis: The general-purpose L1 wars are over. Ethereum won. What remains is specialization, consolidation, and the infrastructure layer maturing into a $700B capital base.🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here.🎧 Jump to the best parts* (07:03) → The double-spend solution and programmable money: William traces blockchain’s lineage from 1990s Cybercash to Napster’s peer-to-peer revolution to Satoshi’s breakthrough, explaining why “if this, then that” logic with money attached changed everything.* (17:05) → The first principles of blockchain: William argues that trust, decentralisation, and credible neutrality are far more critical than speed, explaining why institutions prioritise consistency and fairness over flashy performance metrics.* (28:48) → Why Ethereum sacrificed L1 activity by design: The intentional shift to L2s wasn’t weakness—it was strategic expansion. “Ethereum is no longer just the L1. Ethereum is an ecosystem.” Why comparing Solana’s base layer to Ethereum’s base layer is intellectually dishonest.* (34:40) → Debunking Solana’s narrative: DEX volumes, app revenue, L2 value extraction, capital turnover, and speed. William systematically dismantles each with data: Ethereum does 8.4B in DEX volume vs Solana’s 5B when L2s are included. Top 10 Ethereum apps revenue: $4B; Solana: $2B.* (40:03) → A new valuation for blockchains: Why traditional metrics like P/E ratios and discounted cash flows fail to capture the value of public blockchain infrastructure, and why network effects and the flow of money are better indicators.👉 Subscribe to our digital asset treasury newsletter for all the alpha!We sat down with William Mougayar, author of The Business Blockchain and founder of the Ethereum Market Research Center, to cut through the noise and return to the first principles of what makes a blockchain valuable and enduring.Why it’s important: As the Layer 1 landscape becomes increasingly competitive, narratives often diverge from fundamentals. With billions of dollars at stake, understanding the core tenets of decentralization, trust, and credible neutrality is crucial for investors, builders, instituions and enterprises. William provides a masterclass in separating hype from reality, drawing on his decades of experience in technology cycles.Where to find * X: @wmougayar* Blog: https://wamougayar.xyz * Research: https://ethmrc.com 🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* Pre-Bitcoin digital cash and peer-to-peer technologies* What made Ethereum’s smart contracts a revolutionary leap forward* Why the “Layer 1” label is a misleading oversimplification for Ethereum* The critical importance of credible neutrality and censorship resistance* A detailed rebuttal of common anti-Ethereum arguments, particularly regarding Solana* The flaws in using “revenue” as the primary metric for valuing a blockchain* How value accrues to ETH through its role as a productive, foundational asset* The evolution of valuation models from the early internet to today’s blockchain ecosystems* What’s next for blockchain adoption, from institutional finance to consumer appsWatch or listen now:YouTube • Spotify • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:Recommended reports:🙌 Work with us: We create pioneering thought leadership that helps digital asset and technology companies lead the conversation, earn trust and win business.My biggest takeaways from this conversation:1. The “general-purpose blockchain” game is over

Oct 7, 2025 • 36min
How Stablecoins Are Eating Payments, with Chris Harmse, Co-founder & CBO of BVNK
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHi, it’s Marc. ✌️“Money should travel at the speed of the internet. Stablecoins make that possible.”— Chris Harmse, Co-founder & CBO of BVNKBVNK, a leading stablecoin payment infrastructure provider, just hit $20 billion in annual transaction volume with 320 employees.In May, they partnered with Worldpay, which processes $2.3 trillion annually for 1M+ merchants, to enable stablecoin payouts across 180+ countries.🚨 We just opened new sponsorship slots for our podcast. Want to reach 35k+ digital asset leaders? Contact us here. 🎧 Jump to the best parts* (08:28) → The new financial stack: Chris outlines the six core ‘payment primitives’ (send, receive, store, earn, spend, comply) driving adoption and explains how companies can now build entire neobanks on top of stablecoin rails, reaching 200 markets instantly.* (15:13) → The three catalysts behind the 2025 Stablecoin summer: Why did the market explode this year? Chris pinpoints the trifecta of regulatory clarity, massive payment volumes, and a critical mass of global users that created the perfect storm for enterprise adoption. * (20:41) → Competing with giants like Stripe: As big players enter, Chris explains why fragmentation creates opportunity and how BVNK’s value proposition is to abstract away all complexity, making blockchain payments as seamless as using a credit card.* (29:15) → Regulation, regions, and the next 3 years: Why LatAm, Africa, and Southeast Asia are leading adoption from the bottom up, and why regulatory clarity has turned from headwind to tailwind for global enterprises.👉 Subscribe to our digital asset treasury newsletter for all the alpha!We sat down with Chris Harmse, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at BVNK, to explore the surge in demand for stablecoins for payments and their transformative impact on global finance.Why it’s important: Stablecoins have crossed $300B in supply, putting them on par with some of the largest U.S. retail money market funds and regional banks. Initiatives like Stripe’s Open Issuance, BVNK’s WorldPay partnership and Circle’s Payment Network CPN show that money movement on blockchains is hitting mainstream. BVNK: Founded in 2021, BVNK is a London-based fintech company that provides a full-stack stablecoin operating system for businesses, enabling them to integrate stablecoin payments and treasury solutions into their operations. It has processed $20B+ in transactions and is valued at $750M, backed by top investors and enterprise partnerships across 180+ countries.Where to find Chris Harmse:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisharmse/X: https://x.com/chrisharmse89Website: https://bvnk.com/about-us 🎙️ In our conversation, we discussed:* Why traditional payment rails are broken and fragmented* The evolution of stablecoins from niche to enterprise-scale* Which use cases (payouts, commerce, treasury) are scaling fastest* How BVNK differentiates in an increasingly crowded market* Why regulatory clarity flipped the narrative in 2025* The WorldPay partnership and its network effects* How emerging markets are driving adoption from the bottom up* Where value will accrue across the payments stack (issuers vs. distributors vs. L1s)* Navigating the complexities of KYC and compliance in a blockchain world* Future outlook: Regulation and enterprise adoptionWatch or listen now:YouTube • Spotify • Apple PodcastsRecommended podcasts:Recommended reports:🙌 Work with us: We create pioneering thought leadership that helps digital asset and technology companies lead the conversation, earn trust and win business.My biggest takeaways from this conversation:1. Enterprise adoption has matured1. Enterprise adoption has matured—the conversation shifted from education to executionThe pilot phase is over. Chris argues that enterprises no longer need stablecoin 101 - they’re architecting specific use cases. The traditional financial system, with fragmented domestic schemes and SWIFT-dependent cross-border rails, can’t compete with instant, 24/7, low-cost blockchain infrastructure.“Two to three years ago, people were thinking about pilots. That has shifted to today where they’re going live and they’re doing billions and billions of dollars of TPV.”

Sep 29, 2025 • 36min
Inside Pantera’s $500M Solana Treasury Play, with Cosmo Jiang, GP at Pantera Capital
Cosmo Jiang, General Partner at Pantera Capital, shares insights on Solana and digital asset treasuries. He explains how Pantera's unique treasury strategies reshape investment paradigms, emphasizing NAV per share over token price. Cosmo highlights Solana's potential as a cash-flow engine outpacing Ethereum in user growth and fees. He discusses the innovative structure of their Solana Company, which aims to maximize staking economics. Additionally, he envisions a future where multiple chains thrive together, driven by institutional interest and AI integration.

Sep 24, 2025 • 55min
Stable Fees, Infinite Scale with Matt Sorg, VP of Technology at Solana Foundation
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.51insights.xyzHey, it’s Marc. ✌️“Solana’s built to be the internet’s capital market fast, decentralized, and ready for the future.”We sat down with Matt Sorg, VP of Technology at Solana Foundation, for an insightful look into why Solana’s high-speed, low-cost blockchain is redefining how value moves globally.From his days leading AI at Unity to steering Solana’s tech vision, Matt’s journey reflects the cutting edge of blockchain innovation. Now, he’s helping Solana power everything from meme coins to institutional assets, with AI and quantum security on the horizon.We talked about:* Solana’s core philosophy: "Increased Bandwidth, Reduced Latency."* Why it’s the go-to for DeFi, NFTs, and DePIN* How Solana outpaces traditional finance* Preparing for a quantum-secure future* AI’s growing role in blockchain… and much more.Here are our key insights & take-aways. The Solana advantageMatt keeps it real about Solana’s edge:“Solana delivers internet-scale capital markets, moving value faster than anything out there.”Unlike traditional systems like Visa, which settle daily, Solana’s near-instant transactions let businesses scale at the speed of the internet. Think digital startups buying AI compute or tokenizing assets, Solana’s low fees and high throughput make it a no-brainer for innovators.Matt explained how Solana’s ecosystem thrives:


