Empire

In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Josh Rosenthal - a former historian turned serial entrepreneur and crypto VC. Josh's encyclopedic knowledge of history - from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance and beyond - and ability to draw a throughline between historical events, Web3 and our world today is truly fascinating.Josh contends that we are living through the greatest Renaissance in history. How will historians look back on today? Tune in to find out.We discuss:- medieval life- what defines a Renaissance- the advent of a dynamic identity- signs of a reformation- what drives history- layering ownership into communication- the pendulum between aggregation and decentralization- how Web3 brings the missing element to the internet- why we are living through THE greatest Renaissance- how will society be impacted- -Follow Josh: https://twitter.com/JoshuaRosenthalFollow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw--Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/- -ParaSwap:If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage.- -(00:00) Introduction(04:07) Medieval You(10:30) Taking the Red Pill(17:45) Self-Generating Demand(21:16)The New Reformation(27:42) A Recreation of Society(32:15) Crypto Is A Counterweight To Aggregation(37:18) Paraswap Ad(38:26) Choosing Your Identity(41:59) Synthetic Worlds and Chaotic Change(46:51) Distinguishing the Institution From The Ideology(53:37) Zoom Out(56:46) Our Questions Affect the Outcomes(57:51) Have We Lost Our Ingenuity?(1:06:09) Institutions Eventually Give In(1:07:10) Embracing Pluralism(1:11:36) What Will the World Look Like?(1:15:08) Crypto's Impact on the Middle Class(1:21:18) New Jobs and Opportunities--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Santi reflect on what might have been the most dramatic week in crypto's history. They explore the market contagion, the fallout, and debate if we've hit rock bottom.Santi is back in the studio with perfect timing. How is Santi approaching this volatility, is he buying, and what is his updated investment strategy? Tune in to find out.Highlights include:- How did this all start- The effects of quantitative tightening- Why stETH is causing waves across crypto- A bank run at Celsius- Do CeFi companies need more regulation- Three Arrows Capital insolvency rumors- Santi's #1 takeaway from this week's drama- Tether FUD- The downside of on-chain transparency- Are Santi and Jason buying back in- Santi's updated investment strategy- How to maximize the bear market- -Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroelFollow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw- -Referenced in the show:degentrading Twitter thread on 3AC's liquidity criseshttps://tinyurl.com/4xer8dznJason's tweet on 3 phases of a bear markethttps://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz/status/1536365738906202112--BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users).Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/--Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/--(00:00) Introduction(03:26) How Did We Get Here?(07:02) A Sudden and Brutal Bear Market(13:15) Thesis vs Fear Driven(15:14) Balancing Optimism With Rational Valuation(18:42) What Is Happening With sETH?(25:12) Why Celsisus Is In A Liquidity Crunch?(34:52) Should CeFi Companies Be Regulated Like Banks?(39:04) Bitmex Ad(40:05) What's Next For Celsius?(44:04) Three Arrows Capital is treading water(51:12) Margin calls, 3AC and risk mgmt.(55:19) Santi's #1 Takeaway(1:01:36) Contagion(1:07:12) Tether FUD(1:09:47) Negative Consequences of Transparency(1:13:25) Is This Rock Bottom?(1:18:32) Santi's Current Strategy(1:27:52) Patience and Staying In The Game(1:41:00) Blockworks and Building in a Bear--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Haseeb Qureshi and Tom Schmidt from Dragonfly Capital. Haseeb and Tom are top venture capitalists with unique insights into crypto's current trends, new innovations and market sentiment. If you want expert advice on the market, these are two people you ask.We discuss:- the venture capital landscape- power is shifting to investors- being long crypto while fighting the Fed- supercharged crowdfunding- convertible bonds & debt financing- the changing meta- how projects choose where to build- the end of airdrops- market outlook- -Follow Haseeb: https://twitter.com/hosseebFollow Tom: https://twitter.com/tomhschmidtFollow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw- -Referenced in the show:Dragonfly's letter to foundershttps://tinyurl.com/493vrmppTom's tweet on Porter Financehttps://twitter.com/tomhschmidt/status/1533779269851176960- -ParaSwap:If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage.- -(00:00) Introduction(01:33) Today's Narrative(05:25) A venture capitalist perspective(08:17) Rising interest rates and available capital(16:15) The big outstanding problems(21:29) Utilizing debt financing(27:35) The changing meta(31:49) Paraswap Ad(32:58) The layer one wars(36:00) How projects "shop around" protocols(39:10) Where should new projects build?(42:22) The end of airdrops(47:28) How founders should approach growth(51:25) Advice on down rounds(59:32) Public vs Private markets(1:02:47) How long will the bear market last?--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Mike discuss the current state of crypto. It's officially a bear market, so how are companies and DAOs responding? What are the stories that you need to know? Tune in to find out.Highlights include: Did companies overhire What happens in a down round Why we need to separate investors from traders DAOs look to stables and the need for debt financing The Coinbase vs FTX strategy debate Is the Lummis bill good for crypto Enterprise blockchains are back Optimism loses 20M OP tokens ApeCoin DAO sides with Ethereum - -Follow Mike: https://twitter.com/MikeIppolito_Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw- -Referenced in the show:BlockFi down roundhttps://tinyurl.com/2tej9jyfNovogratz says 2/3 of crypto funds will failhttps://tinyurl.com/yh4x2jsuLido, FEI and Frax proposalshttps://research.lido.fi/t/lido-to-prepare-for-the-bear-market/2318/5https://tribe.fei.money/t/tip-110-simplify-pcv/4323https://gov.frax.finance/t/fip-77-20m-fxs-buyback-program-using-twamm/1523SBF on Empirehttps://tinyurl.com/23wp5uzaSBF on Invest Like The Besthttps://tinyurl.com/2p8wsdfeFTX surpasses Coinbase in BTC & ETH spot tradinghttps://coinmetrics.substack.com/p/state-of-the-network-issue-158?s=rCoinbase job portalhttps://coda.io/@coinbase-talent/coinbase-talent-hub/Richard Burton article on how crypto is like building hardwarehttps://tinyurl.com/ytww6ap7Tim Beiko on Banklesshttps://tinyurl.com/2vxmcdux--BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users).Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/--Timestamps(00:00) Introduction(02:45) Down Rounds, Layoffs and Hiring Freezes(16:40) An Investor Reckoning?(18:20) Separating Investors vs Traders(20:05) Frothy Private Markets(23:50) DAO Treasuries and Debt Financing(27:53) Questioning Token Buybacks(32:30) Bitmex Ad(33:33) FTX Surpassing Coinbase(40:15) Cynthia Lummis Bill(45:15) Are Tokens Securities?(48:21) Salesforce and Enterprise Blockchains(56:15) Optimism loses $20M OP tokens(59:45) APE DAO votes on Ethereum(1:03:40) When ETH merge--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Qiao Wang and Imran Khan, core contributors at Alliance DAO (the Y Combinator of Web3). Alliance DAO is a Web3 startup accelerator whose portfolio includes 0x, dYdX, Paraswap, Synthetix and top Web3 protocols.Qiao and Imran are former founders who now assist Web3's top entrepreneurs in building, launching and growing their products. As a result, the duo has a front-row seat to the latest trends and innovations in crypto. This episode is for you if you want to know what it takes to build a top Web3 product.We discuss: - how to think about tokenomics - why product should come before community- what tech stack developers are building on- why Qiao recommends launching your product on Avalanche- how to scale a team in Web3- the top 3 things founders should think about- why you shouldn't start a DAO, and much more!--Follow Qiao: https://twitter.com/QwQiaoFollow Imran: https://twitter.com/ImrankhanFollow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw- -Referenced in the show:Empire's previous episode with Qiao & Imranhttps://tinyurl.com/bznjm8ubAlliance DAOhttps://alliance.xyz/Qiao's "Common Pitfalls for Web3 Founders" posthttps://twitter.com/QwQiao/status/1503365524272689156Imran's tweet thread on "leveraged CAC"https://twitter.com/lmrankhan/status/1501247894325768194Imran's tweet on a Robinhood acquisitionhttps://twitter.com/lmrankhan/status/1527353717741490178Imran's tweet on DAO treasuries growing to $11Bhttps://twitter.com/lmrankhan/status/1517551697148747777The Obol staking protocolhttps://obol.tech/- -ParaSwap:If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage.- -(00:00) Introduction(01:37) State of The Market(06:37) Is This Crypto's Last Cycle?(11:24) The Best Time To Launch A Product(12:49) Leveraged Customer Acquisition Cost(16:09) Don't Start Your Company As A DAO(18:02) Paraswap Ad(19:09) Why Do We Even Need DAOs?(21:26) Building Community Around A Project(24:47) Scaling a Team In Web3(26:55) The Use Case for Creator DAOs(30:22) How Do Builders Choose Which Platform to Build On?(35:42) Will Talent Flock to Ethereum L2s?(38:49) Web3 Unit Economics(42:38) Top 3 Things Founders Should Focus On(45:04) How to Think About Community(48:43) Is Coinbase undervalued?(49:59) Will Robinhood Be Acquired in 2022?(51:25) Coinbase vs FTX(51:56) Where is the NFT Market Headed?(55:08) Lido's Future Dominance--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason is joined by Byron Gilliam - a markets strategist and author of the Blockworks newsletter. Often called the Matt Levine of Web3, Byron brings his traditional finance experience to crypto with a mix of wisdom and wit.Jason and Byron cover this week's biggest stories and explore crypto's outlook as an investable asset class. Episode highlights include: Why Byron frames crypto as commodities, not equities How private markets are losing their advantage Why crypto may be amazing for users, but a bad investment How OpenSea's insider trading news will affect other Web3 companies What happened with Optimism's airdrop Can L2s find a sustainable revenue model How BTC mining could fuel growth in renewable energy Byron questions if MEV is crypto's only use case Why UST's collapse was not crypto's Lehman moment and much more! - -Follow Byron: https://twitter.com/bgilliam1982Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw- -Referenced in the show:Byron's Newsletterhttps://blockworks.co/newsletter/0xHamZ tweet on $100B required market inflowshttps://twitter.com/0xHamz/status/1530222542413234176Arthur Hayes articlehttps://entrepreneurshandbook.co/shut-it-down-15d230b28089- -BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users).Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/--(00:00) Introduction(01:26) Byron's Evolving View on Crypto(05:50) Lack of moats and risk taking founders(11:28) Byron's investment outlook(13:30) The private market arbitrage(16:25) OpenSea insider trading(23:49) Optimism's Airdrop(27:18) Bitmex Ad(33:08) Public goods & Layer 2 tokens(36:28) Oil companies working with BTC miners(38:51) Is everything just MEV?(42:39) Crypto's structural selling(46:31) No profits, just circular pricing(48:13) Trust in Tether--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Charles Cascarilla, co-founder of Paxos, to discuss the state of the market. How did we get here, and what should we expect next?Show highlights include: How the everything bubble started in 1995 What tradeoff the Fed has to make How low interest rates perpetuated the greatest lie The 3 likely scenarios going forward How Paxos plans to bring $700T of assets on chain Why stablecoins aren't actually stable What Richard is looking forward to next - -Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw--ParaSwap:If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage.- -Referenced in the show:Paxos Websitehttps://paxos.com/Charles on "Invest Like the Best" (2019)https://tinyurl.com/32x95pfbCharles on "Invest Like the Best" (2020)https://tinyurl.com/2p92aszt--(00:00) Introduction(01:12) The Macros Mess(08:17) The Everything Bubble(10:27) How To Invest In This Environment(13:06) What is Bitcoin's Narrative?(18:34) BTC and Crypto's Outlook In A Macro Bear Market(24:18) Short Or Long-Term Pain?(28:05) Paraswap Ad(29:13) Almost All Stablecoins Aren't Stable(35:54) Paxos Aims To Bring All Assets On Chain(38:28) Privacy Is A Requirement For Adoption(40:17) Crypto's Unlock(43:32) What Projects Emerge From The Bear?(45:35) The Most Exciting Thing in Web3 Today--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Santiago discuss how to navigate the current bear market. Things aren't looking pretty, but this isn't the team's first rodeo. The duo explores what to expect, how to stay in the game and where opportunities might emerge. Highlights include: where will crypto's total market cap bottom? are Jason and Santi buyers at these prices? why are funds ignoring liquid markets? how founders should approach the bear thoughts on a16z's new $4.5B fund will Coinbase be acquired? and much more - -Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroelSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw- -Referenced in the show:Chris Dixon Permissionless Keynotehttps://youtu.be/Znkpa64J7qASanti's Coinbase Acquisition Tweethttps://twitter.com/santiagoroel/status/1525941336070922242Bill Gurley's "All In" Panelhttps://youtu.be/lcyec3pvAEY- -BitMEX is back and better than ever. Sign up for BitmEX's new Spot Exchange for a chance to win a piece of $500,000 in BTC (new users).Learn more about them at https://www.bitmex.com/--(00:00) Introduction(01:11) Crypto Marketing(04:04) Why Santi Missed Permissionless(05:45) Advice For This Bear Market(17:32) A 16z Raises 4.5B(22:04) How Founders Can Embrace The Bear(26:34) ETH And Assessing Value Today(29:13) Overleveraged(33:05) How Capital Calls Work(34:55) Will Funds Leave The Space?(37:00) Bitmex Ad(38:02) When Do You Buy?(45:10) Stay In The Game?(47:16) Coinbase Acquisition Thesis(53:07) Three Leading Indicators(54:07) Smaller Funds Underwater(57:35) Liquid Assets Have Been Ignored(1:00:27) Investing Isn't Easy

In today’s episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by the founders of Scroll - Sandy Peng, Ye Zhang and Haichen Shen - to discuss how ZK tech will scale Ethereum. Scroll is a general-purpose zkEVM rollup that combines Ethereum’s security with drastically reduced fees and low latency.We start the conversation with a deep dive into zero-knowledge tech, the power of validity proofs and the different L2 scaling techniques. The team then explains Scroll's advantage, the difficulty of building a general-purpose L2 and why Scroll’s “EVM equivalence” is a massive breakthrough for Ethereum developers. Scroll has been flying under the radar, but they won’t be for long. Don’t miss this conversation on the most sci-fi tech in crypto.- -Follow Scroll: https://twitter.com/Scroll_ZKPFollow Sandy: https://twitter.com/SandyPeng1Follow Ye: https://twitter.com/yezhang1998Follow Haichen: https://twitter.com/shenhaichenFollow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroelSubscribe To Our YouTube Channel: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw--ParaSwap:If you want to make a swap at the best price across the DeFi market, check out paraswap.io. ParaSwap’s state-of-the-art algorithm beats the market price across all major DEXs and brings you the most optimized swaps with the best prices and lowest slippage.--Referenced in the show:Layer-2 for beginnershttps://gourmetcrypto.substack.com/p/layer-2-for-beginners?s=rOptimistic vs ZK Rollupshttps://blog.matter-labs.io/optimistic-vs-zk-rollup-deep-dive-ea141e71e075--(00:00) Intro(05:00) Scroll, a zkEVM Rollup(05:26) Why Is zk Tech Interesting?(07:58) Optimistic vs ZK rollups(10:26) The Evolution of ZK Tech(13:27) zkSync and Starkware(20:26) Where Is Scroll Today?(22:09) The Scroll Team(24:16) Moats In An Open-Source Industry(26:42) General-Purpose vs App-Specific Rollup(28:44) Paraswap Ad(29:44) Creating The Best Developer Experience(32:12) Working With The Ethereum Foundation(36:02) What Scroll Will Enable for Web3(41:22) China and Web3(46:17) Building and Investing(47:19) What's Next For Scroll?--Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

On today's episode of Empire, Jason and Mike are joined by Richard Craib, founder of Numerai, to discuss why Richard sold all his ETH.Richard is a prolific investor and has been part of the Ethereum ecosystem since the 2014 ICO. That’s why it was such a big deal when he announced he sold his ETH and that he no longer sees crypto as a good investment.Does crypto have a product outside of speculation? Is crypto’s growth just a result of the Fed? Is crypto more about regulatory arbitrage than the tech? These questions and more are explored in this fascinating conversation (debate!) where Richard holds nothing back.- -Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitzFollow Mike: https://twitter.com/MikeIppolito_Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepodFollow Richard: https://twitter.com/richardcraibSubscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2jSubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw- -Referenced in the show:Richard's video announcing why he sold his ETHhttps://twitter.com/richardcraib/status/1523513981347848192?s=20&t=qwlN5rWxe5-KWyJOEr4B6Q--(00:00) Intro(01:52) Why Richard Sold All of His ETH(09:00) The Fed "Created" UST(12:14) Macro Trouble(15:53) A Market Neutral Strategy(19:38) Is Crypto's Only Product Speculation?(32:58) An Overreaction to a Flawed System(36:26) A Massive Misallocation of Capital(40:25) It's Mostly Just Regulatory Arbitrage(43:00) Why People Join The Crypto Industry(47:33) Is There A Real Use Case?(52:28) What Richard First Liked About Crypto