Stripe’s Trillion-Dollar Bet: How Stablecoins Eat Global Payments | Founder of Bridge Zach Abrams

🏴 Access all episodes with Citizenship 🏴 https://www.bankless.com/premium —— In this bonus episode of the Bankless podcast, we highlight insights from three guests featured in the Bankless premium feed. Uma Roy from Succinct discusses the Succinct Prover Network's role in enhancing Ethereum's transaction capabilities. Preston Van Loon outlines the upcoming hard forks Fusaka and Glamsterdam, along with essential privacy innovations. DeFi pioneer Dave from CapMoney presents a novel stablecoin model that combines yield-generating strategies with risk mitigation. Join us for a glimpse into the innovative advancements shaping the crypto world! —— TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 1:28 Uma Roy’s Insights on Succinct Prover Network 7:50 Ethereum Roadmap with Preston Van Loon 14:30 DeFi Innovations with DeFi Dave 20:11 Conclusion and Call to Action —— Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

In the 2nd Weekly Rollup of Flat-tember, we discuss whether the crypto bull market is over amid rising unemployment and market uncertainty. We cover stablecoin competition for Hyperliquid partnerships, Justin Sun's frozen WFLI tokens, and Nasdaq's tokenized equities. With Ethereum leading in asset tokenization, they also reflect on lost SEC Chair Gensler's texts and the rise of DAOs, alongside major moves from Fidelity and Robinhood. —- 📣SANCTUM | STAKE YOUR SOL https://bankless.cc/Sanctum-report --- Bankless Weekly Rollup: 2nd Week of September, 2025 --- BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle 🎩DEGEN | JOIN THE COMMUNITY https://bankless.cc/degen --- TIMESTAMPS & RESOURCES 0:00 Intro 3:42 Markets https://www.reuters.com/business/us-unemployment-rate-near-4-year-high-labor-market-hits-stall-speed-2025-09-05/ https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UNRATE https://www.reuters.com/business/cooler-us-producer-inflation-hints-softening-demand-2025-09-10/ https://polymarket.com/event/fed-decision-in-september https://thedefireport.io/research/markets-are-nearing-an-inflection-point#global-liquidity https://x.com/EricBalchunas/status/1965381497936117794 https://x.com/SharpLinkGaming/status/1965385468360741042 https://x.com/DefiIgnas/status/1965412886731538686 https://x.com/amitisinvesting/status/1965031182443139242 https://blockworks.co/news/samani-expected-chairman-solana-treasury https://x.com/smyyguy/status/1965054449212342629 https://blockworks.com/analytics/treasury-companies/market-data https://x.com/RyanSAdams/status/1965118547052695588 https://beincrypto.com/fidelity-tokenized-treasury-fund-on-ethereum/ https://x.com/RyanSAdams/status/1965152999963328571 29:30 Justin Son WLFI Frozen https://x.com/molly0xFFF/status/1963684142454894967 https://x.com/QuintenFrancois/status/1963882897909145937 https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/world-liberty-financial https://x.com/jconorgrogan/status/1963665497393975324 https://x.com/0xNonceSense/status/1963654615947514277 https://x.com/worldlibertyfi/status/1964081164408250558 https://x.com/jconorgrogan/status/1963665740109893656 https://x.com/justinsuntron/status/1963807543983263802 https://x.com/ASvanevik/status/1963761428445442341 35:35 Hyperliquid USDH Bidding War https://www.bankless.com/read/hyperliquids-usdh-bidding-war https://x.com/DefiIgnas/status/1965370023377248437 https://polymarket.com/event/who-will-win-the-usdh-ticker-159?tid=1757505856052 https://x.com/0xfoobar/status/1965445696032846173 https://x.com/hosseeb/status/1965520465172328717 42:15 MegaETH Stablecoin https://x.com/megaeth_labs/status/1965082874627199414 47:30 Ronin and Upbeat Join OP Stack L2 https://x.com/Ronin_Network/status/1965220031320793442 https://giwa.io/home https://coinmarketcap.com/rankings/exchanges/ https://x.com/hildobby/status/1965820218854486232 50:56 Robinhood Joins S&P 500 https://x.com/WatcherGuru/status/1964078422050681221 https://www.tradingview.com/chart/1CDu50yK/?symbol=NASDAQ%3AHOOD 52:45 Gary Gensler’s Missing Texts https://x.com/EleanorTerrett/status/1963731865577127980 https://x.com/haydenzadams/status/1964471380403245525 https://x.com/NateGeraci/status/1963780017281765392 https://x.com/lex_node/status/1642242646931300353 56:36 Senate Clarity Act https://x.com/jchervinsky/status/1965465751122592119 58:15 Nasdaq Seeks Tokenized Stocks https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2025/09/08/nasdaq-seeks-nod-from-u-s-sec-to-tokenize-stocks 1:01:15 Robinhood Social https://x.com/RobinhoodApp/status/1965589746937446623 --- Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

Ryan & David sit down with Ondo Finance’s Nathan Allman and Ian De Bode to map the path from stablecoins to tokenized treasuries to tokenized stocks. We break down why Ondo’s wrapper model is set out to win, how blockchain brings 24/5 primary markets with 24/7 secondary markets, Defi composability and liquidity at fair prices. Ethereum and Ondo are leading a $100T onchain migration you can’t miss. ------ 📣SPOTIFY PREMIUM RSS FEED | USE CODE: SPOTIFY24  https://bankless.cc/spotify-premium ------ BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle 🎩DEGEN | JOIN THE COMMUNITY https://bankless.cc/degen ------ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 5:55 Is Business Booming? 7:59 Are RWAs Inevitable? 12:50 Tokenized Treasuries 19:13 Tokenization Roadmap 24:17 Types of Tokenized Treasuries 31:40 What’s Holding the US Back? 37:08 Tokenized Stocks 41:04 Tokenized Stocks Liquidity 50:56 Property Rights 56:25 Is Permissionless Tokenization Possible? 1:04:32 24/7 Markets? 1:07:52 Ondo Global Markets 1:10:54 Why Ethereum? 1:12:08 Stocks Meet DeFi 1:19:26 What Chains will RWAs Settle On? 1:32:41 Is Wall Street Ready? 1:34:29 What’s Next? 1:36:00 Closing & Disclaimers ------ RESOURCES Ian https://x.com/iandebode  Nathan https://x.com/nathanlallman  Ondo Finance https://ondo.finance/  Ondo Global Markets https://app.ondo.finance/  RWAs Overview https://app.rwa.xyz/  ------ Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures⁠

Hyperliquid is less than a year old, yet it’s already rivalling Ethereum and Solana in revenue. In this episode, Ryan and Michael from the DeFi Report dive deep into the rise of crypto’s hottest exchange: from its fair-launch token drop to its Binance-like UX, to why whales and builders can’t get enough of it. We cover the project’s inception story, the ecosystem forming around HyperEVM, and the unique buyback model funnelling millions back into its token. Along the way, we unpack tough questions about valuation, decentralization, and regulatory risk. Is Hyperliquid the future of on-chain trading or just another bull market phenomenon? Tune in for a full breakdown of the fundamentals, the risks, and the potential upside. --- 📣SANCTUM | STAKE YOUR SOL https://bankless.cc/Sanctum-report --- BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle 🎩DEGEN | JOIN THE COMMUNITY https://bankless.cc/degen --- TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 1:47 Hyperliquid’s Revenue Surge 6:33 Valuation Questions 13:42 Product Experience & Growth Flywheel 18:16 The Team Behind Hyperliquid 20:14 Ecosystem Expansion 24:33 Decentralization & Risks 33:34 Regulation, AML, and KYC 38:35 Tokenomics & Buybacks 49:18 Valuation Comparisons 57:15 Closing Thoughts --- RESOURCES Michael Nadeau https://x.com/JustDeauIt The DeFi Report https://x.com/the_defi_report Hyperliquid (HYPE) https://x.com/HyperliquidX --- Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

Zach Abrams—co-founder of Bridge, acquired by Stripe—joins Ryan to unpack Stripe’s stablecoin strategy and why tokenized dollars are poised to devour global payments. We cover Bridge’s sale to Stripe, how “fiat L1 / stablecoin L2” rails unlock faster, cheaper cross-border payouts (from startups to government aid), the case for many issuer- and app-specific stablecoins with better yield sharing, and what the Tempo chain targets for payment-scale throughput, privacy, and finality.  ------ 📣SPOTIFY PREMIUM RSS FEED | USE CODE: SPOTIFY24  https://bankless.cc/spotify-premium ------ BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle 🎩DEGEN | JOIN THE COMMUNITY https://bankless.cc/degen ------ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 6:28 Zach’s Founder Arc 15:47 Fintech x Crypto Convergence 18:55 Founding Bridge in the Dark Times 22:42 Traditional Payment Inefficiencies 26:21 Bridge 101 42:00 Traditional Bank Pushback 42:17 Stablecoin Treasuries 50:22 Post-Genius Stablecoin Market 59:27 Fintech in 5 years 1:05:01 Tempo L1 1:13:30 Too Many Blockchains 1:17:25 Exiting TradFi 1:20:49 Getting Stablecoins to Trillions 1:25:28 Stripe x Crypto 1:29:44 AI Stablecoin Users 1:32:32 Closing & Disclaimers ------ RESOURCES Zach Abrams https://x.com/zcabrams  Tempo https://tempo.xyz/  Bridge https://www.bridge.xyz/  Stripe https://stripe.com/  ------ Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures⁠

In this episode, we discuss Ethereum's rise past $4,780 and co-host David Hoffman's insights from Burning Man. We explore Ethereum's treasury dynamics, the debut of the World Liberty Financial Token, and potential Bitcoin and Ethereum listings on major exchanges. The episode also covers advancements in tokenized securities, competition in prediction markets, and the quirky rise of tokenized Pokémon cards. Join us for a concise look at the latest in crypto! --- 📣SANCTUM | STAKE YOUR SOL https://bankless.cc/Sanctum-report --- BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle 🎩DEGEN | JOIN THE COMMUNITY https://bankless.cc/degen --- TIMESTAMPS & RESOURCES 0:00 Burning Man 7:30 Markets https://thedefiant.io/news/markets/bitcoin-august-all-time-high-above-usd124k-could-be-cycle-top-coingecko https://www.theblock.co/post/369477/ethereums-monthly-spot-volume-tops-bitcoin-trading-on-centralized-exchanges-for-first-time-in-over-7-years https://x.com/RyanSAdams/status/1962945359988035865 https://www.theblock.co/post/369497/nasdaq-tightens-scrutiny-of-companies-raising-cash-to-buy-crypto-report https://x.com/intocryptoverse/status/1963240688146948108 https://x.com/intocryptoverse/status/1962989752455700874 32:00 WLFI Dropped https://x.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/1962485085896323466 https://x.com/worldlibertyfi/status/1960068943562870830 https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/world-liberty-financial https://governance.worldlibertyfinancial.com/t/proposal-use-100-of-wlfi-treasury-liquidity-fees-for-buyback-burn/41226 https://x.com/worldlibertyfi/status/1962648359681839381 https://x.com/NateGeraci/status/1962634267764166743 https://mail.blockworks.com/p/wlfi-the-token-is-the-product https://x.com/jchervinsky/status/1962884341626773959 38:30 Tempo https://x.com/matthuang/status/1963633379284587017 https://x.com/zcabrams/status/1963640969183859116 45:00 Tokenized Securities https://x.com/OndoFinance/status/1886822778277351608 https://x.com/rleshner/status/1963211892438049172 49:50 Polymarket in US https://x.com/shayne_coplan/status/1963280673709625346 https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/9113-25 https://x.com/shayne_coplan/status/1962903170859843759 https://x.com/shayne_coplan/status/1960377824793010489 https://x.com/williamlegate/status/1963386120471003607 https://x.com/allanmaman/status/1963406022183465032 55:14 Tokenized Pokemon https://x.com/Collector_Crypt 58:49 Credit Score https://x.com/mattyTokenomics/status/1963009390342242327 --- Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

Austin Campbell (NYU) and Omid Malekan (Columbia) debate a simple question: is Ethereum ready to host real-world assets? They walk through stress tests—what if an exchange is hacked, a stablecoin breaks, or a court order targets the chain—and whether the network should ever step in. You’ll hear where they agree and disagree, what protections are realistic today, and what still needs to be built before RWAs can scale. ------ 📣RONIN “ONCHAIN NINTENDO” | DOWNLOAD THE RONIN WALLET https://bankless.cc/RoninWallet ------ BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle 🎩DEGEN | JOIN THE COMMUNITY https://bankless.cc/degen ------ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 6:13 Twitter Debate Genesis 8:58 Bybit Hack 17:56 Crypto vs RWA Immutability 29:29 Ethereum Validator Intervention 33:11 Dealing with Multiple Jurisdictions 52:23 Credible Neutrality for a Multipolar World 1:00:32 Blockchain Use Cases 1:13:40 Consortium Chains 1:24:57 Closing Arguments ------ RESOURCES Omid Malekan https://x.com/malekanoms  https://www.omidmalekan.com/  Austin Campbell https://x.com/campbelljaustin  https://zero-in.beehiiv.com/  ------ Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures⁠

What does BlackRock’s former crypto lead see in Ethereum that others still miss? Joseph Chalom joins Bankless to take us inside the IBIT/ETHA ramp, why BUIDL launched on Ethereum mainnet, and the simple—but powerful—framework he uses to value ETH as “high-octane money.” We break down staking inside ETFs, the tokenization roadmap from stablecoins to the S&P in your wallet, and the real mechanics of ETH treasury companies—mNAV premiums, ATMs, converts, and the transparency metrics that matter. Less hype, more architecture: if security, liquidity, and 24/7 settlement are the future, this is the bridge. --- 📣SPOTIFY PREMIUM RSS FEED | USE CODE: SPOTIFY24 https://bankless.cc/spotify-premium --- BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle 🎩DEGEN | JOIN THE COMMUNITY https://bankless.cc/degen --- TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 3:53 Larry Fink’s arc: skeptic to champion 9:15 Joseph’s crypto journey 18:09 Aladdin × Coinbase Prime 20:55 Building IBIT 24:28 ETHA & ETH ETF staking approval 36:04 Tokenization roadmap & magnitude 44:48 SharpLink’s ETH bet 50:13 Ether as “high-octane money” 58:54 Beyond ‘buy and hold’ 1:03:11 ETH vs BTC treasuries 1:06:09 Radical transparency 1:10:31 mNAV, ATMs & buybacks 1:19:10 Where’s the price impact? 1:25:32 How many treasuries win? 1:29:25 Closing thoughts --- RESOURCES Joseph Chalom https://x.com/joechalom Sharplink https://www.sharplink.com/ --- Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

On this week’s Weekly Rollup, Ryan and Haseeb debate if ETH’s new all-time high signals the top or just the start, with whales rotating from BTC into ETH and alt season heating up. Powell hints at rate cuts, ETFs keep pulling billions, and Tom Lee’s billion-dollar ETH bet takes center stage while treasury premiums sink. Meanwhile, Google teases an L1, Hyperliquid outpaces Robinhood, and Europe floats a digital euro, setting up another pivotal week in crypto. --- 📣RONIN “ONCHAIN NINTENDO” | DOWNLOAD THE RONIN WALLET https://bankless.cc/RoninWallet --- BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle --- TIMESTAMPS & RESOURCES 0:00 Intro 0:38 Big Sean Crypto https://x.com/altcoindaily/status/1960753873376961031 3:20 Powell’s speech last week https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/powell-opens-door-potential-rate-cut-speech-jack https://x.com/FinanceLancelot/status/1958934829082583312 https://x.com/Cointelegraph/status/1958907551442993491: https://x.com/charliebilello/status/1958910251819786478 https://x.com/AnnaEconomist/status/1958923556680536487 9:10 Markets https://x.com/JSeyff/status/1959982000804442559 https://x.com/BanklessHQ/status/1958941150041317514 https://x.com/speculatorart/status/1960322107864141966 https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/08/25/bitcoin-flash-crash-triggers-usd550m-in-sunday-l https://x.com/JacobKinge/status/1959724849598718428 https://x.com/lookonchain/status/1958767845934080277 https://x.com/woonomic/status/1960442328604200987 24:53 HYPE Crushing it - competitive with major exchanges https://x.com/cointelegraph/status/1960379396927213990 https://blockworks-research.beehiiv.com/p/is-hype-still-cheap-8541fea8eaae3e65 https://x.com/infinitybanyan/status/1960373080389304611 34:55 SOL DATs are coming - 3 of em! https://x.com/matthew_sigel/status/1959942140500365564 https://x.com/SolanaFloor/status/1959948823280619558 https://decrypt.co/336832/pantera-capital-eyes-1-25b-raise-solana-treasury-firm https://panteracapital.com/blockchain-letter/dat-value-creation/ https://mcga.com/news/trump-media-group-cro-strategy-to-acquire-cro-digital-asset-treasury https://blockworks.co/analytics/treasury-companies/market-data 42:01 Google is building its L1 https://www.linkedin.com/posts/rich-widmann-a816a54b_all-this-talk-of-layer-1-blockchains-has-activity-7366124738848415744-7idA/ 49:35 US GOV - will publish GDP figures onchain! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbEPqUdelFo https://blog.chain.link/united-states-department-of-commerce-macroeconomic-data/ https://x.com/Cointelegraph/status/1961067983800881224 https://x.com/krakenfx/status/1961081675175149795 https://etherscan.io/address/0x36ccdf11044f60f196e981970d592a7de567ed7b#code https://docs.chain.link/data-feeds/us-government-macroeconomic/addresses?page=1&testnetPage=1 51:41 The EU may release a Stablecoin on a public chain - Ethereum or Solana https://x.com/DefiIgnas/status/1958754787345727712 https://app.rwa.xyz/stablecoins https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/china-considering-yuan-backed-stablecoins-boost-global-currency-usage-sources-2025-08-21/ 56:45 Kanye West released $YZY https://x.com/kanyewest/status/1958346810801697237 https://x.com/CryptoHayes/status/1958356982991401006 https://x.com/lookonchain/status/1958355708010975580 https://x.com/JamesWynnReal/status/1958383968945831940 59:43 DOJ announced that it won’t bring charges against non-custodial developers https://x.com/BanklessHQ/status/1958645825732501566 1:04:51 Closing & Disclaimers --- Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

ETHZilla wants to turn ETH into Wall Street’s new reserve asset, and they’ve built a plan to do it. Ryan sits down with Avichal Garg (Electric Capital) and Mac Rudisill (ETHZilla) to unpack why ETH treasuries exploded this cycle, how credit markets (converts, preferreds, and debt) supercharge accumulation, and why stablecoins → DeFi → ETH forms a flywheel that turns Ether into high-quality collateral. We dig into leverage discipline, mNAV premiums, operational security, and the business math that makes an ETH treasury look more like Berkshire than a hype trade. Plus: can this wave trigger a DeFi after-boom, and what does “winning” actually mean for ETHZilla? --- 📣RONIN “ONCHAIN NINTENDO” | DOWNLOAD THE RONIN WALLET https://bankless.cc/RoninWallet --- BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP | SWAP ON UNICHAIN https://bankless.cc/unichain 🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle --- TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 3:53 Catching Tom Lee and Peter Thiel Backing 7:53 Treasury vs. ETF vs. Just Holding ETH 11:58 Why Treasuries Are Booming 16:51 New Debt Instruments & Appetite 22:00 Leverage, Rehypothecation & Risk Controls 29:50 The Big Unlock: ETH as High-Quality Collateral 34:35 Stablecoins → DeFi → ETH Flywheel 38:55 “ETH Is the Next Bitcoin?” 54:51 Why ETH Lagged BTC 56:05 ETH vs BTC Treasuries: Yield Surface 1:01:33 Why Electric Capital Runs Deployment 1:03:45 Buy Rules: Time vs. Price 1:09:00 Attention Matters: Spokesperson & Community 1:13:24 What “Winning” Looks Like for ETHZilla 1:17:59 Where Are We in the Cycle? 1:26:12 DeFi Afterboom? --- RESOURCES Maria Shen’s “Beyond Stablecoins” Report https://x.com/MariaShen/status/1942658782439395815 --- Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures