Raoul Pal: The Journey Man

Two major players in the crypto industry, BitGo and Galaxy Digital, have come together to advance a shared vision of what comes next for digital assets on the path to widespread deployment and use among the general public. Of key importance, according to BitGo CEO Mike Belshe, is crypto establishing a strong voice in the developing conversation about regulation. Belshe is concerned about the potential impact of multiple bureaucracies trying to assert some sort of control at the same time. Another pivotal piece of the mass adoption puzzle is building software tools that make decentralized financial transactions more seamless, like people are used to in the Web 2.0 world. Belshe talks to Real Vision’s Ash Bennington about BitGo’s and Galaxy Digital’s partnership and its impact on the future of crypto. Recorded on February 10, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ever wanted to know more about Raoul’s story? Interested in how he approaches not only his investments but life generally? Curious about what made it possible for him to retire for the first time at 36? In this special crossover episode, Raoul finds himself in the guest seat as My First Million host Shaan Puri probes Raoul’s background, his life philosophy, and the facts behind his first million. Shaan and Raoul also explore Raoul's Bitcoin-versus-ethereum "bet" as well how NFTs are commodifying culture for the first time in history. For more information on My First Million, please visit: https://www.mfmpod.com. Recorded on February 24, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Multiple layers of bureaucracy in the California real estate industry create major burdens but have proven ineffective at preventing fraud. This duality ultimately means higher transaction costs. At the same time, accommodative monetary policy and historically low mortgage rates attracted the ultra-rich. Altogether, too many people have been priced out of the California market. That’s why Natalia Karayaneva, as she explains to Santiago Velez, co-founder and division lead of R&D at Block Digital, founded Propy, a platform built to automate the real estate sales process. Natalia, a real estate agent for 15 years, and her team are also experimenting with using cryptocurrency and NFTs to facilitate property transactions. According to Natalia, tokenization and fractionalization of real estate via NFTs will broaden the pool of property investors in a way that was not possible before. Propy also offers crypto-centered courses to licensed realtors to educate the realty industry. Recorded on February 21, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The NFT revolution has only just started and we all need to learn how to navigate it. This interview sets the core foundation stones for all of us to get involved. Sergio Silva, NFT Collector and Sales Director at Fireblocks, has taken the journey from being in investment banking to working full time in the digital asset world and being a key player in the NFT space. Raoul gets his inspiring story and picks Sergio’s brains on what NFTs represent, where they are going, how to think through the complexity of the space, and, more importantly, how to invest. Recorded live at Real Vision/MGM's The Takeover on December 10, 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Alex Thorn, head of firmwide research at Galaxy Digital, says Bitcoin is inevitable. That’s despite a slide of nearly 40% from its all-time-high price. Meanwhile, based on his own analysis of the issues in play, Thorn sees regulation eventually providing a tailwind to digital assets generally. In conversation with Real Vision’s Ash Bennington, Thorn also addresses interesting developments for Ethereum and other “altcoin” communities. Ethereum, he notes, faces an “innovator’s dilemma”: solving its scalability problem faster than its vast number of competitors can establish robust user networks. Ethereum’s future is less certain. But Bitcoin, according to Thorn, is here for the duration. Recorded on February 16, 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Everyrealm is already an active developer in the metaverse ecosystem, with holdings in 25 platform portfolios, ownership of more than 3,000 NFTs, and management of more than 100 metaverse real estate projects. It began life as Republic Realm, alternative asset crowdfunding platform Republic’s metaverse real estate arm. Co-founder and CEO Janine Yorio led a spin off and rebrand that now has Everyrealm positioned to build an NFT and gaming production studio, in addition to its metaverse real estate development activity. It recently closed a $60 million Series A funding round led by high-profile and seasoned players such as Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Dapper Labs, Coinbase Ventures, The Sandbox, Nas, Paris Hilton, and Randi Zuckerberg, among others. Yorio explains Everyrealm’s strategy to become the “Netflix of the metaverse” in conversation with Metros Capital founder Nick Halaris. As Yorio notes, the core of that mission means connecting the Web3 audience with metaverse technology to make it easier for users to access content. Recorded on February 15, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

One of the world’s most successful NFT art-drops to date, Yam Karkai’s 10,000 images of diverse and powerful women has drawn global attention to female-led projects. The company she co-founded, World of Women, now includes celebrity collectors and investors like Reese Witherspoon, Shonda Rhimes, Eva Longoria, and Liam Payne. Yam and co-founder Raphael Malavieille talk to Real Vision’s Elaine Ly about where they plan to go after such a resounding debut for a company that’s rapidly evolving into a power brand. One thing is sure: They’re already well on their way there. As Raphael notes, the momentum from the WoW community “is great fuel.” Check out the earth-shaking first collection from Yam and World of Women here: https://opensea.io/collection/world-of-women-nft. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happened with the OpenSea $1.7 million phishing hack? And did Laura Shin unmask the perpetrator who siphoned 3.6 million Ether (with a current value north of $11 billion) from the Ethereum network? Robin Schmidt and Camila Russo of The Defiant join Real Vision's Elaine Ly to talk about these headline-making stories and the issues around them – including their views on safety and traceability in the crypto space. Robin, Camila, and Elaine also discuss the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. Rising geopolitical tensions will impact all financial markets, and crypto is no exception. Recorded on February 23, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Centralization has defined technology, finance, and government for decades. Bill Barhydt, co-founder and CEO of Abra, considers the 1969 moon landing the peak of centralization: people working together, pooling massive amounts of resources, achieving the near-impossible. Centralization has its benefits. It’s also had its day. History shows that global change often corresponds with the introduction of new technology. The present shift from centralization to decentralization, according to Barhydt, is being catalyzed by blockchain. And Abra’s global DeFi hub is at the cutting edge of this revolution. In addition to his big-picture philosophy, Barhydt explains how yield is generated in the DeFi economy and shares his views on the future of several mainstream layer 1 tokens. Interviewed by Real Vision’s Ash Bennington on February 9, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We’re still in the Netscape phase of crypto, according to Marshall Hayner, founder and CEO of Metal Payments, and the future is bright. Hayner sees regulation and user interface as the two pivotal factors affecting mass adoption. While 2021 saw a rapid acceleration of lobbying efforts as well as public-awareness initiatives, most governments still just don’t seem to get it and people are still using clunky software like Metamask. Hayner and his team at Metal are currently working to create browser-based and seamless crypto payment systems. In the very near future, though, the cumbersome tasks we assume are just part of the process will slowly ease as they are abstracted away by developers. The implications of what is a relatively simple shift are immense, according to Hayner, and he remains highly optimistic on the next decade in this space. Interviewed by Ash Bennington on February 3, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices