

Bell Curve
Blockworks
Bell Curve breaks down the most important themes in crypto for people who, like us, are confined to the middle of the bell curve. Each season explores a different thesis that we'll test and refine through debate with crypto's best. If you're a crypto native, degen or investooor, this podcast is for you.Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3R1D1D9Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/3pQTfmDSubscribe on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3cpKZXHGet top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/Join the Bell Curve Telegram group: https://t.me/+nzyxAvQ0Xxc3YTEx
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 15, 2023 • 1h 6min
Data Availability Bake-off and Solana Fee Market | Roundup
The podcast episode explores the Data Availability (DA) wars and strategies for enhancing Ethereum Roll-ups. They discuss Solana fee markets and economically enticing applications. The implications of the recent FOMC meeting on asset prices in the crypto markets are also mentioned.

Dec 8, 2023 • 47min
Into the Next Cycle: Jito Airdrop, BTC NFTs, and The Return of VCs | Roundup
In this episode, the Bell Curve team returns to explore the recent launch of JTO token airdrop and discuss a Bitcoin NFT hot take. They dive into Jito's future, business model, and link to MEV and liquid staking. The conversation then shifts to Bitcoin NFTs and how they are rapidly gaining attention. Finally, they also talk about a wealth transfer effect in the upcoming years, the role of millennials, and how they are looking for more advantageous ways of creating wealth, including crypto.- -Follow Mike: https://twitter.com/MikeIppolito_Follow Michael: https://twitter.com/im_mandersonFollow Vance: https://twitter.com/pythianismSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3R1D1D9Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/3pQTfmDSubscribe on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3cpKZXHGet top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/- -Join us at DAS (Digital Asset Summit) in London this March! DAS is the #1 institutional conference in crypto, hosted by Blockworks. Use the link below to learn more, and use BELL20 to get 20% off your ticket! Sign up now because the price goes up every month. See you there!https://blockworks.co/event/digital-asset-summit-2024-london/home- -Timestamps(0:00) Introduction(2:25) Jito Token Airdrop(17:28) The Bitcoin NFT Hot Take(20:51) DAS London Ad(22:00) Is Retail Back?(27:26) Indicators of Market Cycle Shift(32:47) Synthetix Burn Mechanism & Generating Revenue(39:13) Crypto: Generational Wealth Transfer?- -Disclaimer: Nothing said on Bell Curve 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. Mike, Jason, Michael, Vance and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.tt and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

Dec 5, 2023 • 1h 26min
How Appchains Align DEX Incentives | Season 6 Episode 7
Explore the world of decentralized derivatives trading with dYdX's founder and CEO. Learn about their journey from Ethereum to Layer 2 to their own blockchain. Discover designs enabled by app chains, social slashing approach to mitigating MEV, off-chain components, and challenges of building perpetual exchanges.

Dec 1, 2023 • 1h 18min
Why the Cosmos Hub is Forking and BLAST L2 Will Probably Work | Roundup
In this podcast, Sam Hart, the head of product and strategy at Skip Protocol, joins the hosts to discuss the forking of the Cosmos hub, the controversial launch of BLAST L2, and Binance CEO CZ stepping down. They also touch on institutional rally odds, Blur market dominance, USDT redemptions, the Bitcoin block size wars, Cosmos Prop 848, and Elon Musk's fight against advertisers.

Nov 30, 2023 • 1h 6min
Crypto’s Next Cycle: Solana’s Comeback vs Ethereum’s Head Start | Qiao Wang
Qiao Wang from Alliance DAO (a web3 accelerator) joins us to discuss the applications and protocols that are primed to dominate crypto's next cycle. Qiao reviews thousands of crypto startups every year, has an uncanny ability to predict future narratives and is one of my favorite thinkers in the space! In this episode, we discuss why RWAs and payments are crypto's massive opportunity, how speculation is crypto's killer feature, Solana's comeback vs Ethereum's headstart, Coinbase's giant opportunity, where the developers are building and more!- -Join us at DAS (Digital Asset Summit) in London this March! DAS is the #1 institutional conference in crypto, hosted by Blockworks. Use the link below to learn more, and use LIGHTSPEED20 to get 20% off your ticket! Sign up now because the price goes up every month. See you there!Learn more + get your ticket here: https://blockworks.co/event/digital-asset-summit-2024-london/home- -Timestamps00:00 Introduction00:45 Two Massive Opportunities: RWAs + Payments18:40 Why DePIN Works21:01 Speculation is Utility24:28 DAS LDN Plug25:26 Where Are Developers Building?28:57 Why Price Leads Everything32:13 DeFi Apps and Horizontal Integration34:53 The SuperApp Thesis39:32 Coinbase and Onchain Identity46:56 Cosmos’ Problem49:46 L2 Competition and Fragmentation57:29 What it Takes to Be a Great Crypto Founder- -Follow Qiao: https://twitter.com/QwQiaoFollow Mert: https://twitter.com/0xMert_Follow Garrett: https://twitter.com/GarrettHarper_Follow Lightspeed: https://twitter.com/LightspeedpodhqSubscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/43o3SykSubscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/3OhiXgVSubscribe on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3OkF7PDGet top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - -ResourcesGood Game podcasthttps://spoti.fi/3MKMLRQAlliance DAOhttps://alliance.xyz/https://twitter.com/alliancedaoWhat does it take to be a good crypto founder?https://medium.com/alliancedao/what-does-it-take-to-be-a-good-crypto-founder-6c2600a99770- - Disclaimers:Lightspeed was kickstarted by a grant from the Solana Foundation.Nothing said on Lightspeed 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. Mert, Garrett and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

Nov 22, 2023 • 1h 19min
Liquid Restaking is Coming Sooner Than You Think
This podcast episode explores the emerging world of liquid restaking and its implications for crypto native treasuries. The speakers discuss the inner workings of depositing staked ETH into protocols like Eigenlayer, competitive dynamics between these protocols, and the potential for ETH to become a crypto native treasury. They also touch on the DAS London conference and strategic considerations for launching a liquid restaking token provider.

Nov 21, 2023 • 1h 26min
Crosschain DEXs: The Next Frontier | Season 6 Episode 6
Today's podcast delves deep into interoperability, discussing different bridge architectures like atomic swaps, canonical bridges, and optimistic bridges. They explore intent-based protocols like Uniswap X and Across Protocol, reimagining bridges with third parties to enable faster, cheaper transfers. The team also discusses UX challenges in bridging assets across chains and the role of retail traders as cross-chain market makers.

Nov 17, 2023 • 1h 1min
The Chainlink End Game: CCIP, Link Restaking, and Competition | Roundup
Chainlinkgod.eth, a Link Marine legend, joins Bell Curve to discuss the past, present, and future of Chainlink. Topics include Chainlink's community origins, its role as a decentralized oracle network, CCIP for cross-chain messaging, real world asset tokenization, and the power of blockchain technology in various industries.

Nov 14, 2023 • 1h 17min
A Deep Dive into Batch Auctions | Season 6 Episode 5
Anna, co-founder of CowSwap, and Ludwig, Founder of Sorella Labs, join the podcast to discuss batch auctions. They explore how CowSwap utilizes batch auctions and how Sorella Labs addresses LVR for sustainable liquidity. The guests also discuss app layer innovation, MEV-conscious design, and the potential for decentralized price discovery. A deep dive into the world of batch auctions and liquidity enhancement in decentralized exchanges.

Nov 10, 2023 • 59min
Institutionalizing Crypto & The Return of the Bull Market | Roundup
Guests include Wintermute CEO Evgeny Gaevoy and the Near Foundation. Topics include market rally implications, Ethereum ETF approval, Wintermute controversy, rise of alternative L1s, and blockchain applications.