Public Key

The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report Preview (Part 1 of 2) 2022 has brought record highs when it comes to DeFi hacks, but also abnormal declines in ransomware attacks. The 2023 Crypto Crime report has the most important financial crime findings in the industry and we get a guided preview.  In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by occasional co-host and Director of Research at Chainalysis , Kim Grauer, who walks us through emerging investment and pig butchering scams and identifies the factors impacting ransomware attacks over the last 12 months.  She provides analysis on the financial crimes affecting web3 and the impact the collapses of major crypto institutions had on the rest of the industry.  She highlights the biggest use cases for crypto around the world and the sudden movement of funds from dormant accounts held by crypto entities linked to illicit activity .  Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (3:15) –Crypto crime at an all time high and pig butchering and investment schemes emerging as leading scams (8:50) – What has happened to Ransomware attacks and crypto payouts over the last 2 years?   (13:05) – Analyzing the NFT, DeFi and web3 financial crime fluctuations in 2022 (17:55) – Tales from the Crypt: Wallet activity of old crypto cases that have come back to life (20:21) – The biggest takeaways from the Chainalysis 2022 Geography of Cryptocurrency Report (25:25) – The collapse of crypto juggernauts and the contagion felt by the entire industry Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Report: The Chainalysis 2023 Crypto Crime Report (Coming February 2023) Newsletter: 2023 Crypto Crime Report: Sanctions Preview, Key Crypto Moments From 2022, and more Conference: Chainalysis Links Conference 2023 in New York City LinkedIn Post: Yolo Group is the first company to integrate Chainalysis products in the #igaming industry Video: Forkast News: What trends will we see in the regulatory space in 2023? Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchains TikTok: Newly launched Chainalysis Tik Tok page Youtube: Chainalysis Youtube page is completely revamped Website: Careers at Chainalysis - Join us today Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis)  Kim Grauer (Director of Research, Chainalysis) This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Why Incident Response Needs are Surging Amidst New Cyber Threats If 2021 was the year of Ransomware then 2022 definitely should be called the year of DeFi hacks. What I’m wondering is there any chance that 2023 can be the year Cyber Security teams take their revenge?   In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by two experts from the Cyber Risk team at Kroll, Christopher Ballod (Managing Director) and Jaycee Roth (Associate Managing Director) about this possibility. Chris and Jaycee walk us through the last 18 months of cyber incidents and ransomware and highlight the changing ransomware attack vectors and changes in the cyber insurance markets. We also learn that companies are getting better at protecting themselves and are becoming less likely to pay ransoms.  * It is noted that Kroll is a Chainalysis partner. Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (2:20) – Understanding the various industries Kroll is involved in and how they expanded into the cyber security and risk  (4:55) – When did cryptocurrency start playing a major role in incident response when dealing with cyber threat actors (11:04) –Start to finish. How does an incident response team respond to cyber threat emergencies (15:00) – Are companies getting better in 2022 at protecting themselves and their customer’s data against ransomware? (17:55) – What role does cyber insurance plans play in ransomware attacks and payouts (21 :40) – The shift of cyber attackers focus from business to personal hacking attempts (25:35) - Understanding where the vulnerabilities are in our personal and professional network (30:05) - 2023 Ransomware and Incident predictions and potential outcomes Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Website: Kroll: Risk and Financial Advisory Solutions Blog: Cyber Extortion Gets Personal– The Next Step in Email Compromises Blog: Q3 2022 Threat Landscape: Insider Threat, The Trojan Horse of 2022 Blog: AvosLocker Ransomware Update: Backup Targeting and Defense Evasion Techniques Conference: Chainalysis Links Conference 2023 in New York City LinkedIn Post: Yolo Group is the first company to integrate Chainalysis products in the #igaming industry Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchains Tik Tok: Newly launched Chainalysis Tik Tok page Youtube: Chainalysis Youtube page is completely revamped Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis)  Jaycee Roth (Associate Managing Director, Cyber Risk, Kroll) Christopher Ballod (Managing Director, Cyber Risk, Kroll) *It is noted that Kroll is a Chainalysis partner.  This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company.   

Powering the Digital Asset Transformation in Nigeria and Beyond If you’ve read the Chainalysis 2022 Global Crypto Adoption Index you might have noticed that Nigeria has been rapidly climbing the charts when it comes to grass roots adoption of Cryptocurrency.  In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by co-founders, Michael Adeyeri (CEO) and Moyo Sodipo (Chief Product Officer) of Busha, one of the fastest growing digital asset platforms in Africa. They go in depth about the challenges Nigerians have in accessing currencies like the dollar and euro and how cryptocurrency and stablecoins enable an alternative international payment solution.  The co-founders describe the current crypto regulatory landscape in Nigeria and explain why adoption in the country is far from just speculation and how remittances and facilitating business operations is top priority for many Nigerians.  * It is noted that Busha is a Chainalysis customer.  Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (2:15) – How early days of figuring out alternative value transfer solutions turned into Busha’s thriving African cryptocurrency  exchange (4:19) – How Busha was able to provide consumer centric concierge services to their user base and grow in Nigeria  (7:15) – Dealing with banking challenges in Nigeria as a cryptocurrency service provider (13:59) – The emergence of Nigeria’s CBDC the eNaira and the place it has in the digital asset landscape of Africa (15:01) – Demystifying the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) decision to ban cryptocurrency and the current state of crypto regulations  (19:00) – Why NFTs aren’t as popular in Nigeria and surrounding regions Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Website: Busha: Join one of Africa's leading digital asset platforms Blog: The Ultimate Guide to Saving in Dollars in Nigeria Blog: 4 Basic Strategies To Better Crypto Trading Blog: 4 Simple Things Your Busha Wallet Can Do Links 2023 Conference (NYC) Where private and public sector leaders convene to discuss key issues facing the cryptocurrency industry Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchains4 Basic Strategies To Better Crypto Trading Tik Tok: Chainalysis Tik Tok: Building trust in blockchains among people, businesses, and governments. Youtube: Chainalysis on Youtube Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Michael Adeyeri (CEO & CTO, Busha) https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeladeyeri/ Moyo Sodipo (COO & CPO, Busha) https://www.linkedin.com/in/moyosodipo *It is noted that Busha is a Chainalysis customer.  This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Web3 Security and Crypto's $10 Billion Problem If you are listening to this podcast then you’ve probably already heard a lot about The Ronin Bridge hack, or the attack on the Wormhole Protocol and probably the ransomware attack against Colonial Pipeline, but have  you heard about the scam that hit tens of thousands MetaMask wallet users and resulted in the theft of over $200 Million of funds? On this podcast,  Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by colleagues from the Chainalysis Investigations team Adam Hart and Julia Hardy.  This episode was recorded just  after they returned from presenting their research at DevCon Bogota, the biggest gathering of Ethereum developers this year. The discussion gets into the mechanics of one of this leading crypto scams, the investigative process and the enthusiasm from the Ethereum community to help solve this problem.  Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (1:31) – Recap of Devcon Bogota 2022. Highlighting the Ethereum focused blockchain developers and community (3:25) – Identifying consumer protection as the big “elephant in the room” for the Ethereum community  (6:34) – Balancing the core blockchain ethos of decentralization with stopping bad actors and protecting consumers and institutions trying to operate in the space  (9:50) - Analyzing the USDT Approval Mining Scam that was identified by MetaMask  (14:05) – Identifying the cash out points used by the scam operators (17:55) – How the USDT approval mining scam has similar characteristics of the emerging Pig Butchering scam (21:25) - Collaboration of MetaMask and Openseato educate users on how to use  a wallet and gain access to web3 (25:25) - Blockchain investigations tips to pursue illicit activity on digital asset networks Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Conference: Chainalysis Links 2023 Conference in NYC Public Key Podcast: Ep. 19: Pig Butchering Crypto Scam: Crypto’s Emerging Human Trafficking And Romance Scam Industry Devcon Recording::The $10B Problem - web3 Security Against Coordinated Adversaries | Devcon  Blog: FTX Investor Impact: Timeline of Realized Cryptocurrency Gains and Losses Shows FTX Hit Investor Wallets Less Than Previous Crises LinkedIn Newsletter: Chainalysis Monthly Roundup Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchains Tik Tok: Chainalysis Tik Tok: Building trust in blockchains among people, businesses, and governments. Youtube: Chainalysis on Youtube Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Adam Hart (Senior Training Specialist, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-hart- Julia Hardy  (Senior Investigator, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-hardy   This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Smart Contracts Could Be The Key To Crypto Mass Adoption A simple mistake in code usually meant that your viral app was down for a few hours and you may have lost a few loyal users, but in Web3 the stakes are much higher as an error in code or a vulnerable smart contract could lead to hundreds of millions of dollars worth of lost cryptocurrency.  On this podcast,  Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by the co-founders of the all in one platform development company, Tenderly.  Andrej Benčić (CEO) and Bogdan Habić (CTO) explain how their platform is allowing developers easier access to Web3 and the ability to test, simulate and gain real time data in order to produce more efficient and less faulty code for smart contracts. They describe the difference between web2 and web3 from a developer perspective and how many of the products and features they built were out of their own frustrations incurred from over a decade of software development.  Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (2:11) – How the frustration of web development lead to developer focused tools and solutions for web3 software engineers and the creation of Tenderly  (5:05) – How the evolution of the technology gives access to more developers to try it out and deters skeptics  (9:34) – The differences between being a developer in web2 vs. utilizing web3 development platforms.  (14:50) - Using Simulation environments to allow developers to detect bugs and go back in time on their code with real data  (21:28) – Tenderly announces Web3 Gateway and how this gamechanger competes with other Web3 industry stakeholders (27:55) – The shift of web3 development to layering and modular blockchains (31:25) – The Tenderly product and feature roadmap and the future of web3 smart contract development Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Conference: Chainalysis Links 2023 Conference in NYC Website: Tenderly: All-in-one development platform Demo: Try Tenderly Gateway Politico Podcast Series: Beth Bisbee (Chainalysis) joins host Mohar Chatterjee to discuss her career in the federal government and takedowns of darknet marketplaces Unit 21 Blog: Fraud Trends and Predictions for 2023 Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchains Tik Tok: Chainalysis Tik Tok: Building trust in blockchains among people, businesses, and governments. Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Andrej Bencic (CEO, Co-founder, Tenderly) https://twitter.com/BencicAndrej Bogdan Habić (CTO, , Co-founder, Tenderly) https://twitter.com/BogdanHabic This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Why Balance Sheets Are All The Rage In Crypto Over the last month it seems like the entire crypto industry has started talking about proof of reserves, off-chain liabilities, and counterparty risk.  On this podcast,  Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) sat down with Gil Hildebrand (Chief Executive Officer, Gilded), to dive into the world of financial controls and how crypto exchanges and businesses can utilize these internal processes to avoid mismanagement. Gil explains the key to a secure operating model is removing the silos between the finance team and the dev and operations team.  Gil explains that many web3 businesses are not prioritizing their back office operations and as a result taking on unnecessary risk, but by focusing on some key areas companies can improve security and operational efficiency. Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (2:05) – Gil’s early realization he was destined to be a software engineer and partnering with Seth Godin  (5:25) – What are decentralized operations and blockchain and crypto companies can be proactive with back office operations. (10:34) – The type of companies entering Web3 and looking to ensure their accounting and operations are in order  (14:05) – 8 Internal Controls to  create a real crypto operational strategy (18:16) – Describing why there are very few DAOs that are completely decentralized (21:05) –  What is Wallet Hygiene and why is it in such high demand  (24:46) – The emergence of public companies getting into NFTs and cryptocurrency (26:16) – Changes to standard accounting principles and the IRS taking enforcement action against non-filing crypto holders  Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Blog: The Value of The Internet of Value: written by co-founder, Michael Gronager Newsletter: DeOps Weekly: A weekly roundup and analysis for finance and ops leaders in web3. Website: Gilded: Enterprise Grade Crypto Accounting & Payments LinkedIn Post: 8 Internal Controls to create a real crypto operational strategy Podcast: Decentralized Ops Podcast: How do web3's biggest brands scale their operations? Blog: OFAC Sanctions Internet-based Suppliers of Illicit Fentanyl and Other Synthetic Drugs Twitter: Chainalysis Twitter: Building trust in blockchains Tik Tok: Chainalysis Tik Tok: Building trust in blockchains among people, businesses, and governments. Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Gil Hildebrand (Chief Executive Officer, Gilded) linkedin.com/in/gilhildebrand This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company.   

Block by Block: Assessing The Risk In DeFi Protocols The last 2 months of the cryptocurrency industry has been filled with DeFi Hacks, Crypto exchange collapses and industry wide fear, uncertainty and doubt.But what if some of that uncertainty could have been proactively identified and some of the risks mitigated? In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) sat down with Nick Cannon (VP of Growth at Gauntlet). They talk about Gauntlet’s financial modelling platform that uses techniques from the algorithmic trading industry to improve DeFi protocol risk management. Nick shares how Gauntlet has helped DeFI pioneer, Aave improve protocol revenue without taking on additional risk and how they were early to recommend customers not accept tokens like Terra’s UST and FTX’s FTT tokens. Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (2:45) – What is Gauntlet Network and how do they support the DeFi ecosystem  (8:39) – Using historical data to determine liquidation risks for projects   (11:01) Taking into a DeFi protocols risk appetite when creating a risk assessment and exposing vulnerabilities  (16:05) – How the transparency of DeFi protocols helps protect against major crypto collapses like FTX and Three Arrows Capital (18:51) –Unraveling the Mango Market vulnerability and how Gauntlet assess the DeFi protocol’s risk (22:55) - Analyzing Token Quality when creating holistic risk assessments on the Gauntlet Platform (24:46) - Why Proof of Reserves may not tell the whole story and how we can improve the crypto exchange audit process  Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Blog: Post FTX Market Updates Blog: Impact Measurement: Aave - A Case Study Medium:Gauntlet Blog Website Website: Gauntlet uses battle-tested techniques to inform on-chain protocol management. Blog: Chainalysis Storyline is Here: Transparency and Clarity for Web3 Webinar:  Intro to Storyline: A Two-Part Series: Understand, Investigate, Communicate DeFi Transactions Website: Aera: The world’s first autonomous, data-driven treasury management protocol. Twitter: Chainalysis Official Twitter Page: Building trust in blockchains Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Nick Cannon (VP of Growth, Gauntlet) https://twitter.com/inkymaze This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Remittances Are Powering Crypto Markets In Sub-Saharan Africa Not many people have seen the power of Bitcoin impact an entire portion of a continent as closely as Ray Youssef, CEO of Paxful. In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) has a mind blowing and heartstring pulling conversation with the man who is trying to provide basic human rights to over 1 Billion citizens and unite the global south using the magic of Bitcoin.  Ray discusses why peer-to-peer marketplaces are providing alternative payment options and explains the difficulty in moving money around countries in Africa and why he believes Bitcoin is still the best technology to bank the underbanked.  Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (3:05) – Ray’s journey from launching successful startups to MMA and then eventually finding his way into crypto  (7:39) – The early understanding that banking the unbank was a great use case for Bitcoin and cryptocurrency  (10:07) Why the difficulty in movement of funds in countries like Nigeria made it ripe for crypto adoption  (17:05) – Why education is so crucial to the success of Bitcoin in Africa which has a history of falling victim to scams connected to cryptocurrency  (26:25) –Lightning Network and the technology pushing Bitcoin into more mainstream adoption and fixing broken civilizations (29:55) - The state of crypto regulation in Nigeria and Africa compared to the Western Countries Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Blog: Post FTX Market Updates Press Release: Paxful Becomes Africa Bitcoin Conference Major Sponsor Article: Bitcoin Ekasi Launches Financial Education Center In South Africa Video: Bitcoin Amsterdam: Emerging Markets & Bitcoin Panel Articles: Ray Youssef’s Bitcoin Magazine Articles Article: Bringing Clean Water To Communities That Need It With Bitcoin Twitter: Chainalysis Company Twitter Page Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Ray Youssef  (Chief Executive Officer, Paxful) https://twitter.com/raypaxful This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company. 

Ep. 31: Liquid Staking: What Is It And Why Is It Taking Over The Ethereum Blockchain? Just as many of us are starting to get our heads wrapped around the concept of staking in cryptocurrency, Liquid Staking has now become one of the most talked about and fastest growing protocols on the Ethereum network.   In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is  joined by Mara Schmiedt, the new Chief Growth Officer of Alluvial. She talks about the early conversations of Bitcoin and family dinners and explains the fundamentals and nuances of liquid staking.  Mara and Ian go deep into the mechanics of liquid staking and something called the Liquid Collective, that Mara describes as the secure liquid staking standard, a protocol designed to meet the needs of institutions. Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (2:45) – Mara’s crypto origin story: From discussing bitcoin at a family event in 2014 to growing one of the biggest liquid staking companies in the industry.  (6:39) – Understanding staking and the core principles behind the liquid staking ecosystem  (10:07) –Comparing the methodologies of liquid staking to taking out a home equity line of credit  (17:05) – What does it mean to be an “first enterprise focused organization” in the liquid staking space  (22:15) –What is the liquid collective and how does Alluvial and its team contribute to these industry standards (24:35) – What are some of the implications on the industry of Coinbase and other stakeholders offering liquid staking to its customers  (26:55) - The future of liquid staking and evolution to more blockchains  Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Blog: The State of Crypto Markets After An Extremely Hectic WeekKorean Hackers To Profit Website: Alluvial: Building the enterprise-grade liquid staking standard Website: Liquid Collective: Collective of leading web3 teams including The Liquid Foundation, Alluvial, Coinbase Cloud, Figment, Kiln, Rome Blockchain Labs, Kraken, Staked Article: Institutions are getting serious about staking Blog: How The Ethereum Merge May Impact the Crypto Ecosystem: On-chain Indicators to Watch Liquid Staking Tracker: Dune Ethereum Liquid Staking dashboard Contact Alluvial: For general, media or collaboration inquiries - email Alluvial  Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Mara Schmiedt (Chief Growth Officer, Alluvial Finance) https://twitter.com/maraschmiedt This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company.   

Blockchain Modularity: Understanding the Future of Web3 Not everyday do you get to talk to one of the brightest minds in blockchain development, but this week Ian Andrews (CMO at Chainalysis) was lucky enough to sit down with Nader Dabit (Director of Developer Relations at Aave and Lens Protocol) to discuss Modular blockchains (from his time at Celestia) and to explain why he thinks most people don’t care about NFTs as they are widely used today.  He dissects his viral twitter thread and details why people should not pay to transact in cryptocurrency in most cases and how to balance decentralization, while maintaining user experience.  Ian and Nader also tackle stablecoins, the ultimate debate of databases vs. blockchains and even get into some of the most interesting projects in the blockchain ecosystem. Minute-by-minute episode breakdown (3:03) – Nader’s Origin story of being a developer for over a decade (7:25) – Most people don’t care about NFTs as they’re widely used today (11:20) –Most people will not (should not?) pay to transact in most cases (15:35) –Is it possible to reach pure decentralization and maintain the user experience that centralized applications provide the industry  (20:39) –Why stablecoins are the most powerful primitives. but they are still not understood by most people (25:51) – The debate between Databases vs. Blockchains  (29:37) - The move towards modular blockchain and web3 infrastructure (34:05) - Arweave Network, Lens protocol and other interesting projects that are on Nader’s radar Related resources Check out more resources provided by Chainalysis that perfectly complement this episode of the Public Key. Twitter Thread: 15 thoughts from a developer working 1.5 years in crypto / blockchain / web3 Website: Nader’s Arweave profile Blog: Making Blockchains Suck Less:  A pragmatic view of the blockchain landscape. Article: Defining the web3 stack Chainalysis Blog: Ethereum Merge Scams: How Scammers Took Advantage of The Ethereum Merge to Make Millions LinkedIn Post: Chainalysis submitted comments to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s RFC on illicit financing in digital assets. Speakers on today’s episode Ian Andrews * Host * (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianhandrews Nader Dabit (Director of Developer Relations at Aave) https://twitter.com/dabit3 This website may contain links to third-party sites that are not under the control of Chainalysis, Inc. or its affiliates (collectively “Chainalysis”). Access to such information does not imply association with, endorsement of, approval of, or recommendation by Chainalysis of the site or its operators, and Chainalysis is not responsible for the products, services, or other content hosted therein. Our podcasts are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to provide legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. Listeners should consult their own advisors before making these types of decisions. Chainalysis has no responsibility or liability for any decision made or any other acts or omissions in connection with your use of this material. Chainalysis does not guarantee or warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, suitability or validity of the information in any particular podcast and will not be responsible for any claim attributable to errors, omissions, or other inaccuracies of any part of such material.  Unless stated otherwise, reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by Chainalysis. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. Views and opinions expressed by Chainalysis employees are those of the employees and do not necessarily reflect the views of the company.