DeFi should feel 'magical' for average consumers, says Coinbase product director behind new bitcoin-backed loans

Austin Federa is a co-founder of DoubleZero. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Federa to discuss how the current public internet infrastructure bottlenecks blockchain performance, and how DoubleZero looks to address this by leveraging underutilized fiber optic cables to create a dedicated global network to support higher performance. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction 01:02 - Sponsor break 02:03 - DoubleZero’s core thesis 05:42 - The problem with the public internet infrastructure 10:13 - Understanding the current infrastructure 16:36 - DoubleZero’s impact 19:59 - Speed is the name of the game 24:18 - Timeframes for rebuilding infrastructure 31:11 - How DoubleZero finds and utilizes infrastructure 35:35 - Tokenization 36:55 - Technical difficulties 37:20 - This isn’t your grandfather’s internet 39:20 - Hiring talent and being a founder 40:21 - Hiring Talent for a New Layer of the Internet 44:37 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS Austin Federa on X: https://x.com/Austin_Federa DoubleZero on X: https://x.com/doublezero Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more.

John Wu is the President of Ava Labs. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Wu to discuss Avalanche’s growing institutional appeal, the rise of blockchain gaming, and how his background in traditional finance shaped his approach to building in crypto. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction 00:51 - Sponsor break 02:11 - John Wu’s tradfi background 06:36 - Taking crypto seriously 09:27 - Ava Labs’ focus 11:11 - The gaming landscape 18:38 - Ava Labs x financial markets 24:30 - Challenges in building in Tradfi 26:11 - How enterprises select blockchains 29:03 - Project Guardian 31:52 - Looking ahead GUEST LINKS John Wu on X: https://x.com/John1wu Ava Labs on X: https://x.com/AvaLabs Ava Labs: https://www.avalabs.org/ Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more.

Guilhem Chaumont is the Co-Founder and CEO of Flowdesk. The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, joined Chaumont at the Flowdesk office in Paris to discuss market volatility driven by tariffs, crypto’s convergence with traditional finance, and the evolving role of digital assets in institutional portfolios. OUTLINE 00:00 – Introduction 00:43 – Sponsor break 01:43 – Flowdesk 03:14 – Tariffs and Market Turbulence 04:58 – Market Uncertainty and Institutional Hesitation 08:20 – Volatility and Weekend Selloffs 12:02 – Amplified Declines in Altcoins 16:28 – Why This Crash Is Different from FTX 21:12 – Bridging Traditional Finance and Tokenization 26:07 – The Effect of AI 30:05 – Looking ahead and Conclusion GUEST LINKS Guilhem Chaumont: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guilhem-chaumont-215091a5/ Flowdesk on X: https://x.com/flowdesk_co Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more.

Nick Matthew is an investor with Standard Crypto. In this episode, Matthew joins The Scoop to discuss the current state of the crypto market, noting that investment opportunities still exist despite macro downturns. Matthew also contrasts the rise of stablecoins with memecoins, and the potential for crypto to consolidate and shift its evolution towards building 'Fintech 2.0' rather than web3. OUTLINE 00:00 – Introduction 01:12 – Sponsor break 03:04 – Coping with market downturnsl 03:25 – The Fundraising Freeze 05:02 – Macro in the driver seat 09:36 – Memecoin extinction or ressurection 15:59 – Who’s making money in crypto 17:45 – Fintech 2.0 or Web3 22:04 – Investing in stablecoins 25:26 – Investing in teams 28:30 – The next billion users 31:40 – Looking ahead and conclusion GUEST LINKS Nick Matthew on X: https://x.com/nickjmatt Standard Crypto on X: https://x.com/standardcrypto Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.

Arthur Breitman is the Co-Founder of Tezos. In this episode, Breitman joins The Scoop to discuss the launch of uranium.io, a new marketplace for trading uranium powered by blockchain technology that looks to make investing in uranium more accessible to retail investors. The conversation also touched on geopolitical and technological tailwinds that could drive greater demand for nuclear energy. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 00:49 Sponsor break 02:41 How uranium markets work today 05:36 The limitations of uranium ETFs and futures 07:10 Tokenization and RWA evolution 15:56 Why start with uranium 18:33 Why uranium is red hot right now 23:30 Lessons from entering the uranium market 28:01 Beyond commodities 31:13 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Arthur Breitman on X: https://x.com/ArthurB Uranium.io on X: https://x.com/uranium_io Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.

Kyle Samani is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Multicoin Capital. In this episode, Samani discusses the current state of the crypto market and venture capital funding in the industry. Samani highlights areas which he believes are key investment opportunities, and lays out why he sees a brighter future for Solana in on-chain finance over Ethereum. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 00:32 Sponsor Break 02:24 VC Funding Downtrend 08:04 Clarifying Crypto's Usecases 13:46 New Era of Crypto Regulation 17:06 Regulatory Clarity = Increased Investment? 22:49 Samani's Revised Solana Thesis 25:28 Solana vs. Ethereum 32:17 Closing Thoughts & Predictions GUEST LINKS Kyle Samani on X: https://x.com/KyleSamani Multicoin capital on X: https://x.com/multicoincap Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.

Michael Rihani is the director of products at Coinbase and one of the chief architects behind Coinbase's new bitcoin-backed loan product for everyday consumers. In this episode, Rihani explains how Coinbase's new loan product is designed to make DeFi feel 'magical,' and how this fits into Coinbase's broader strategy of bringing the power of blockchain technology to a global audience. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 00:57 Sponsor Shoutouts 03:11 Coinbase's New Loan Product 07:50 The "DeFi Mullet" 09:21 Morpho Integration 11:52 CeFi+DeFi Synergy 17:00 Coinbase's Product Roadmap 21:00 Making DeFi "Magical" 23:12 DeFi Adoption Roadblocks 25:54 The Future of DeFi Lending GUEST LINKS Michael Rihani on X: https://www.x.com/MichaelRihani Coinbase's crypto-backed loans: https://www.coinbase.com/loans Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.

In this episode, host Frank Chaparro is joined by M13 General Partner Latif Peracha and M13 Principal Mark Grace. The conversation explores the risks and opportunities presented by crypto's volatile liquid tokens, as well as the need for crypto founders to balance short-term liquidity with long-term potential when it comes to bootstrapping. OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 01:17 Sponsor Shoutouts 03:40 Overview of M13 08:07 Generalist Crypto VCs 10:35 IPOs vs. ICOs 12:42 Token Volatility 18:32 Taking Profit 22:30 Opportunities in CeFi vs. DeFi 28:20 Regulatory Clarity & Innovation 31:17 Predictions & Closing Thoughts GUEST LINKS M13 - https://www.m13.co/ M13 on X - https://x.com/M13Company Latif Peracha on X: https://x.com/latifperacha Mark Grace on X: https://x.com/markwgrace Are you hiring in crypto? Use Campus to quickly find your best candidates with our challenging Crypto Assessment Test. Faster hiring, stronger teams. Sign up for a trial today: theblock.co/campus This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by The Digital Chamber President Cody Carbone. In this episode, Chaparro and Carbone discussed the current U.S. policy landscape for the crypto industry under the new Trump administration. With growing bipartisan support and regulatory clarity, the conversation highlights how crypto is becoming a mainstream political issue with significant economic and electoral implications. OUTLINE 00:00 Intro 01:12 Sponsor break 03:05 The tone has shifted 05:37 IRS DeFi rule nullified 09:25 Stablecoin legislation 12:35 Fine-tuning crypto policy 15:31 Crypto’s growing political influence 18:01 How Trump changed the crypto debate 24:14 The next six months 28:56 Conclusion GUEST LINKS Cody Carbone - https://www.linkedin.com/in/codycarbone/ Cody Carbone on X - https://x.com/CodyCarboneDC The Digital Chamber - https://digitalchamber.org/ The Digital Chamber on X - https://x.com/DigitalChamber This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Paris Blockchain Week Chairman Michael Amar. In this episode, Chaparro and Amar discussed the origin and development of Paris Blockchain Week. Amar shared anecdotes of the various challenges and milestones reached over the years, and gave tips on curating a top-tier crypto conference. OUTLINE 00:00 - Introduction 00:56 - Sponsor break 02:49 - Michael Amar’s journey into crypto 06:55 - The development of Paris Blockchain Week 08:57 - Capturing the Zeitgeist each year 11:11 - Crypto conference oversaturation 13:40 - The Biggest Challenges in Running a Crypto Event 18:28 - The European crypto landscape 20:35 - Expectations for 2025 22:20 - Emerging sectors and trends 25:33 - Advice for founders entering the crypto space 30:38 - Conclusion GUEST LINKS Michael Amar - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amarmic/ Michael Amar on X - https://x.com/amarmic Paris Blockchain Week - https://www.parisblockchainweek.com/ Paris Blockchain Week on X - https://x.com/Parisblockweek This episode is brought to your by our sponsors: Fidelity Explore Fidelity crypto careers today. Go to crypto.FidelityCareers.com to learn more. Uranium.io Investing in uranium is now widely accessible. Visit uranium.io to learn more.