Wallet security was in the spotlight after the announcement of Ledger Recover, but the crypto community doesn’t need to “freak out,” according to Itai Turbahn, co-founder and CEO of Dynamic Labs, and Ouriel Ohayon, CEO of ZenGo. The two CEOs join the show to talk about the challenges of bringing self-custody to the masses. For many, “not your keys, not your coins” is actually “your keys, your problem.” Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights: the problems that may arise when managing your own keys the misconceptions that people have about hardware wallets why Ouriel says that Ledger is going in the right direction but made a major mistake how multi-party computation can be a solution to the problem of securing your own keys what are other ways to solve it, such as Shamir’s secret sharing (SSS) and multisigs the tradeoffs between security and user experience how Dynamic Wallet works by linking multiple wallets to a single account whether “passwordless authentication” is the future of security how can users protect themselves from “bad transactions” and what are companies doing to help whether open source contributes to more security in the wallet landscape how account abstraction will change the user experience whether security is the key to the future of crypto  Thank you to our sponsors!Crypto.comGuests: Itai Turbahn, cofounder and CEO of Dynamic Labs Ouriel Ohayon, CEO of ZenGo Previous appearance on Unchained: ZenGo: A Self-Custodial Wallet Minus the Risk of Losing Your Keys Previous coverage of Unchained on wallets:The Ugly Tradeoffs of Ledger’s New Recovery ServiceLinks What is ZenGo Recovery Kit? Cointelegraph: Multiparty computation could offer increased protection for crypto wallets I run a Ledger competitor — But I support it in blow-up over keys Unchained: ‘Backdoor’ for Seed Phrases? Ledger’s New Recovery Feature Spooks Users Tweet from Ouriel that explains the differences between ZenGo and Ledger Solving the crypto adoption problem: making crypto *actually* usable Multi-Party Computation (MPC) Technology Can Ensure Effective Fraud Detection | Nasdaq Web3 Auth 101: What is wallet-based authentication?   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to “The Chopping Block” – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner, chop it up about the latest news. In this episode, the gang answers audience questions, digs into the discourse around rollups, and debates whether modular blockchains will vanquish existing monoliths.Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights:  How someone asked people to just give them money, and raised over $1 million Answering audience questions from Twitter, including ‘what’s Tarun’s favorite drug?’ Whether there’s tension between Haseeb and Tarun How the incoming generations of crypto people (e.g. “Class of 2017”) have changed over the cycles The five-level explainer on what a rollup is  Why everyone’s debating the ontology of rollups and why Haseeb still thinks blockchains are like religions Tarun’s take on the modular blockchain thesis and why Haseeb is skeptical Whether app chains like the ones in Cosmos will become dominant Whether one of the top 4 chains will be modular in the next five to 10 years Hosts Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly  Robert Leshner, founder of Compound Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly  Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures DisclosuresLinks Binance Feed: Bored Ape NFT Holder Ben.eth Launches Third Crusade of Memecoin Psychopathy Rollups, Rigor, and Reality by Kelvin Fichter Rollups Are L1s (& L2s) a.k.a. How Rollups *Actually Actually Actually* Work by Jon Charbonneau Haseeb’s question on Twitter Previous episode of The Chopping Block on the L1 debate: Why Are We Still Building Layer 1s? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If a year in crypto is like a decade in other industries, then Laura Shin has seen a lot. To commemorate the 500th episode of “Unchained” (actually, there’s about 150 more under a different brand name), Laura hops on the other side of the microphone to field questions from Unchained Contributing Editor Zack Seward about standout moments dating back to 2018. From the early rise of Binance to a charged interview with Terra founder Do Kwon, Shin takes you behind the scenes for rare insights into her process, her favorite moments, and how key episodes have aged.Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Highlighted episodes: Sept. 25, 2018: How Binance Became the Most Popular Crypto Exchange in 5 Months March 26, 2019: Vitalik Buterin on Whether or Not Ethereum Is ‘Blowing It’ April 8, 2022: Here’s Why USDN De-Pegged From the Dollar – And Why UST Might Too Dec. 23, 2022: Martin Shkreli Explains Why Sam Bankman-Fried Got Lucky With His Judge Aug. 3, 2021: Can a DeFi Smart Contract Be Regulated? Two CFTC Commissioners Discuss May 23, 2023: Ex-CFTC Commissioner Berkovitz Says ‘DeFi Should Be Regulated’ – But How? March 18, 2022: Punk6529 on the Significance of Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks Oct. 18, 2022: Do Kwon of Terra: ‘It Was Never Really About Money or Fame or Success’ July 31, 2018: Meltem Demirors and Jill Carlson on the Shitcoin Waterfall Aug. 10, 2021: Is ETH on Its Way to Becoming Ultra-Sound Money? Yes, Says Justin Drake Dec. 28, 2021: Why NFT OG Mitchell Chan Has Released Just One Project This Year Oct. 28, 2022: The Mango Markets Attacker on Whether His ‘Trade’ Was Ethical or Not Feb. 7, 2018: Xapo’s Wences Casares on How Bitcoin Makes a Fairer World Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Copilot Money Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Lack of regulatory clarity” is the catchall complaint levied against U.S. regulators by most major players in the crypto industry. But the founders of Bosonic and Prometheum disagree. Both firms have spent years chasing the necessary regulatory approvals to compliantly trade digital assets, including those seen as securities. Last week, Prometheum secured a potentially landmark approval to operate as a special purpose broker-dealer for digital asset securities. Prometheum co-founder Aaron Kaplan and Rosario Ingargiola, founder of Bosonic, which earlier secured a similar approval, discuss why big players like Coinbase need to quit carping in the court of public opinion and do the hard work of getting approved.Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights: what Bosonic and Prometheum Capital do  how Aaron and Rosario started working in crypto what it means to be a special purpose broker-dealer what the three-step letter from the SEC is and why it's relevant for scaling a digital asset business how exchanges work in traditional finance and how crypto differs why Aaron believes there’s a “pathway forward for crypto in the U.S.” whether the argument that there’s a lack of regulatory clarity is convenient for crypto incumbents  why Aaron agrees with SEC Chair Gary Gensler on his stance that everything except BTC is a security how a token registration would work and what the nuances would be why Coinbase’s approval to be a publicly traded company does not mean that the SEC is in line with the business whether ETH is a security, with Aaron arguing it is and Rosario saying it’s a commodity what the different requirements are for national securities exchanges and alternative trading systems what Aaron and Rosario would tell existing crypto companies as it relates to compliance whether regulation kills innovation Thank you to our sponsors!Crypto.comGuests: Aaron Kaplan, co-CEO and co-founder of Prometheum Rosario Ingargiola, Founder and CEO of Bosonic Previous coverage of Unchained on crypto regulation:  Ex-CFTC Commissioner Berkovitz Says ‘DeFi Should Be Regulated’ – But How? ‘Is ETH a Security?’ Why Gary Gensler Couldn’t Give Congress a Straight Answer Coinbase's Legal Action Against the SEC: How It Will Likely Unfold Rep. Emmer on Why He Believes Gary Gensler Is a ‘Bad-Faith Regulator’ Is the Government Trying to Kill Off Crypto in the US? Coinbase’s Top Lawyer Calls SEC Wells Notice a ‘Massive Overreach’ Links CoinDesk:  SEC Proposal Could Bar Investment Advisers From Keeping Assets at Crypto Firms U.S. SEC Moves Toward DeFi Oversight as It Reopens Proposed Regulations Prepared Remarks of Gary Gensler On Crypto Markets Penn Law Capital Markets Association Annual Conference SEC Issues Investigative Report Concluding DAO Tokens, a Digital Asset, Were Securities Unchained:  SEC Chair Gary Gensler Avoids Question: ‘Is Ethereum a Security?’ Coinbase Seeks to Compel SEC Response to Rulemaking Petition SEC Asks Court to Deny Coinbase Demand for Crypto Rules Financial Institutions Hub: SEC Proposal Targets Crypto Exchanges, Trading Platforms, and Brokers Emmer and Soto Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Provide Regulatory Clarity for Digital Assets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s in the name: mint.fun. Co-founder Luke Miles joins the show to talk about his platform’s efforts to make NFTs more discoverable, accessible and fun. He also shares his on-the-ground perspectives on emerging trends in the NFT space – everything from Bitcoin Ordinals to the rise of Ethereum L2s as NFT hot spots. With last cycle’s NFT mania in the rearview, what’s next?Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights: what mint.fun is and what problems it solves for NFT users how it is different from popular NFT marketplaces such as OpenSea and Blur why mint.fun is also launching on Ethereum layer 2s Luke’s thoughts on the current state of the NFT market  why the narrative has shifted from PFP projects delivering a roadmap to the ‘single creator narrative’ the difference between open-edition mints and limited editions why NFTs on layer 2s are “about to have a moment,” according to Luke whether mint.fun will launch on other blockchains what Luke thinks of Ordinals and the BRC-20 mania Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Stader Labs Guest Luke Miles, CEO of mint.fun Links Dune dashboard Fundrop Recent coverage on BRC-20s: Bitcoin’s BRC-20 Mania: Is It Sustainable? Unchained: What Is NFT Farming? A Beginner's Guide Music NFTs: What Are They & How Do They Work? A Guide to Yuga Labs: The Most Important NFT Company Exploring the NFT blue chips What Is an NFT Marketplace? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to “The Chopping Block” – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner, chop it up about the latest news. In this episode, EigenLayer founder Sreeram Kannan explains his vision for providing “decentralized trust” to new projects on Ethereum. Was Vitalik Buterin’s recent “re-staking” post a shot across EigenLayer’s bow?Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights:  how Sreeram has transitioned from academia into the world of crypto why he believes that crypto is the “coordination highway” what EigenLayer is – explained to a five-year-old, a high schooler, a day trader, a developer, and a crypto professor how middleware enables technology innovation where the value accrues if there’s no token for securing a blockchain whether Vitalik is right in being concerned about the risk of corrupting validators what EigenLayer did to minimize risks and externalities to Ethereum whether protocols and applications will fork if they get hacked and whether Ethereum will “bail them out” Hosts Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly  Robert Leshner, founder of Compound Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly  Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures Guest Sreeram Kannan, founder of EigenLayer Previous appearances on Unchained:  Do You Need to Think Twice Before Restaking Your Assets? DisclosuresLinks Don't overload Ethereum's consensus by Vitalik ButerinPrevious coverage of Unchained on Ethereum staking:  Shapella in the Rearview: After Major Upgrade, What’s Next for Ethereum? How Will ETH React to Ethereum’s Shanghai Upgrade? Post-Merge, If Lido Becomes Dominant, What Does That Mean for Ethereum? In the Recent Crypto Market Meltdown, What Role Did Lido’s stETH Play? Is ETH on Its Way to Becoming Ultra-Sound Money? Yes, Says Justin Drake Learn more: How Liquid Staking Works A Guide to Ethereum’s Shanghai Upgrade How to Stake Ethereum With Liquid Staking Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the SEC’s push to rein in the crypto sector, one question looms large: Is ETH a security? Dan Berkovitz, a former CFTC commissioner and SEC general counsel, and Colin Lloyd, a partner at law firm Sullivan & Cromwell, assess the current state of the regulatory turf war in the U.S., shedding light on some of Washington’s unanswered questions. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights: how an asset can be both a commodity and a security what it means that bitcoin and ether were listed as non-security futures whether The Merge may have changed regulators’ views on the classification of ETH who would be responsible for determining that ETH is a security what Colin and Dan say about ETH being a security or not what would happen if any regulator, be it the CFTC or SEC, determined that ETH is a security how and whether DeFi applications should be regulated why it is important to consider the “human initiative” behind DeFi platforms the implications of having a technology that allows for the sale of securities without an intermediary the implications of the SEC’s proposal to change the definition of an exchange how new technologies were integrated with the regulatory system in the past and how that differs from the current approach of the SEC the problems of trying to regulate a technology that’s changing so fast how other jurisdictions have been taking a more proactive approach to regulating digital assets Thank you to our sponsors!Crypto.comGuests: Dan Berkovitz, former General Counsel at the SEC and former Commissioner at the CFTC. Previous appearance on Unchained: Can a DeFi Smart Contract Be Regulated? Two CFTC Commissioners Discuss Colin Lloyd, partner at Sullivan & Cromwell Previous coverage of Unchained on crypto regulation:  ‘Is ETH a Security?’ Why Gary Gensler Couldn’t Give Congress a Straight Answer Coinbase's Legal Action Against the SEC: How It Will Likely Unfold Rep. Emmer on Why He Believes Gary Gensler Is a ‘Bad-Faith Regulator’ Is the Government Trying to Kill Off Crypto in the US? Coinbase’s Top Lawyer Calls SEC Wells Notice a ‘Massive Overreach’ Links CoinDesk:  U.S. SEC Moves Toward DeFi Oversight as It Reopens Proposed Regulations SEC Chair Gensler Declines to Say if Ether Is a Security in Contentious Congressional Hearing Bloomberg: CFTC Chair Rostin Behnam on the Fight to Regulate Crypto Unchained:  SEC Chair Gary Gensler Avoids Question: ‘Is Ethereum a Security?’ SEC Sues Bittrex, Names Dash, Algorand and Other Tokens ‘Crypto Asset Securities’ Coinbase Seeks to Compel SEC Response to Rulemaking Petition SEC Asks Court to Deny Coinbase Demand for Crypto Rules Financial Institutions Hub: SEC Proposal Targets Crypto Exchanges, Trading Platforms, and Brokers Emmer and Soto Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Provide Regulatory Clarity for Digital Assets Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to “The Chopping Block” – where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, and Robert Leshner, chop it up about the latest news. In this episode, Taproot Wizards instigator Eric Wall joins the show to discuss the rise of Ordinals and what it means for the future of Bitcoin. Will inscriptions and BRC-20 tokens bring a slew of Ethereum-style problems to the original blockchain? Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights:  how Eric has set up a “war” between the “laser-eye tribe” and the “magicians” how the Bitcoin maxi community is different from the normal Bitcoin user base whether Ordinals fixes the lack of demand for Bitcoin block space what Taproot is and what it enabled on the Bitcoin network the MEV problem that could arise in Bitcoin now that demand for block space is going up whether Bitcoin’s values resemble a religion whether the increased demand for Bitcoin block space is good for the network, even if it’s fueled by JPEGs and “shitcoins” why so many people got worried about Ledger Recover why Robert thinks that Ledger’s new service is “terrifying” and why Haseeb is not so concerned whether Bitcoin is becoming a unit of account once again Hosts Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly  Robert Leshner, founder of Compound Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly  GuestEric Wall, cofounder of Taproot WizardsPrevious appearances on Unchained:  Eric Wall and Udi Wertheimer on Why Bitcoin Maximalism Is 'Like a Shitcoin Community' Is Bitcoin Doomed to Fail? Eric Wall and Justin Bons Face Off Why Terra Collapsed and Whether an Algo Stablecoin Can Ever Succeed DisclosuresLinks CoinDesk:  Ledger Bats Back Criticism of New Wallet Recovery Service The Blocksize Wars Revisited: How Bitcoin's Civil War Still Resonates Today Nic Carter: There's No Such Thing as High Fees on Bitcoin Unchained:  ‘Backdoor’ for Seed Phrases? Ledger’s New Recovery Feature Spooks Users ​​‘Technically’ Possible to Extract User Keys? Ledger Addresses Deleted Tweet Haseeb Qureshi’s thread on Ledger Recover Previous coverage of Unchained on Ordinals and BRC-20s: Bitcoin’s BRC-20 Mania: Is It Sustainable? Bitcoin Ordinal NFTs Are Hot and Getting Hotter. What's the Hype About? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ledger, the crypto industry’s leading hardware wallet manufacturer, rolled out a new recovery feature this month that caused an uproar. The recovery service has dangerous implications for crypto self-custody, says Foundation Devices Head of Content “Seth For Privacy.” He joins the show to discuss the downsides of closed-source code and the security risks that come with compromising for mainstream adoption.Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights: how Ledger Recover works and why it caused an outrage in the crypto community why the fact that Ledger’s code is not open-source could be considered a problem what the concerns are about handing over additional data to Ledger how darknet markets have always existed for fake ID verifications and how it relates to Ledger’s new feature some of Ledger’s previous security lapses  why introducing a trusted third party undermines one of Bitcoin’s most central tenets whether Ledger’s move is a “net good for society,” and whether people actually want a service like this in a hardware wallet whether something will go wrong with Ledger in the future Thank you to our sponsors! Crypto.com Railgun DAO  Stader Labs GuestSeth for Privacy, blogger and head of content at Foundation Devices Blog Foundation Devices Twitter thread on the logistics and risks of the Ledger recovery process Links Ledger CTO Twitter thread on Ledger Recover  CoinDesk: Ledger Bats Back Criticism of New Wallet Recovery Service, CoinDesk  Unchained: ‘Backdoor’ for Seed Phrases? Ledger’s New Recovery Feature Spooks Users Ledger Recover webpage Haseeb Qureshi’s thread on the Ledger controversy Past Ledger security issues CoinDesk: Crypto Wallet Maker Ledger Loses 1M Email Addresses in Data Theft Cointelegraph: Ledger data leak: A ‘simple mistake’ exposed 270K crypto wallet buyers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ordinal theory has unleashed a new wave of NFTs, memecoins and innovation on Bitcoin — but not without controversy. Bitcoin educator Dan Held and Bitcoin Frontier Fund Managing Partner Trevor Owens join the show to discuss the breakneck rise of BRC-20s and why they’re both bullish on what memecoins mean for the original blockchain.Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.Show highlights: what ordinal theory is and how it enabled Bitcoin “NFTs” how the Ordinals Protocol differs from the ERC-721 token standard used by many Ethereum NFTs how BRC-20s work by relying on some off-chain mechanisms why Bitcoin is not a “dinosaur chain,” according to Dan why Trevor says BRC-20 memecoins are superior to those on Ethereum what the practical utilities of BRC-20s are, if any why transaction fees in Bitcoin rose so much and why it’s healthy for the network  whether innovation is coming back to Bitcoin whether Satoshi Nakamoto would have approved of Bitcoin NFTs the role of speculation in fueling bitcoin adoption  the current and future state of layer 2s on Bitcoin why Dan says BRC-20s “absolutely” solve the problem with Bitcoin’s security budget why it’s hard to determine an “appropriate” amount for the security budget of Bitcoin how the NFT market could be shaped after the rise of Ordinals and BRC-20s what needs to be developed so that BRC-20s can flourish Thank you to our sponsors!Crypto.comGuests: Dan Held, Bitcoin educator and marketing advisor at Trust Machines  Trevor Owens, managing partner at Bitcoin Frontier Fund Previous coverage of Unchained on Ordinals:Bitcoin Ordinal NFTs Are Hot and Getting Hotter. What's the Hype About? - NFT CryptoLinks Unchained:  How to Create a Bitcoin Ordinal Bitcoin Core Developers Mull Getting Rid of BRC-20 Transactions Binance Briefly Halted Bitcoin Withdrawals Amid Network Congestion Domo’s thread on BRC-20s  Anita Posch’s comments.on the high fees Nic Carter: There's No Such Thing as High Fees on Bitcoin Nic Carter’s MIT presentation: MIT Bitcoin Expo 2019 - 10 years of Bitcoin: Evaluating its Performance as a Monetary System Decrypt: Michael Saylor: Bitcoin Ordinals Are a ‘Catalyst’ for Adoption [bitcoin-dev] [Mempool spam] Should we as developers reject non-standard Taproot transactions from full nodes? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices