CD189: MONEYBADGER - BITCOIN PAYMENTS IN SOUTH AFRICA

Carel van Wyk is the founder and CEO of MoneyBadger. MoneyBadger enables easy bitcoin payments at 650 thousand stores in South Africa. MoneyBadger on Nostr: https://primal.net/p/nprofile1qqsz85k206vm3vqdmlvcy9l4kyfqchlnf4hnctasxufa3ph0ck9decgpk49rf MoneyBadger on X: https://x.com/MoneyBadgerPayWesbite: https://www.moneybadger.co.za/EPISODE: 189BLOCK: 933542PRICE:  1112 sats per dollar(00:03:26) What is Money Badger? Mission and merchant focus(00:05:13) Paying anywhere in South Africa(00:05:27) 650,000 locations(00:07:04) Leveraging existing QR payment rails and the Pick n Pay breakthrough(00:10:01) How the flow works: bridging proprietary QR to Lightning(00:11:18) MoneyBadger app as translator vs. using any Lightning wallet(00:13:04) Fiat settlement, volatility handling, and business model(00:17:07) Why no Money Badger wallet? Integrations with Blink, Zeus, Aqua(00:20:20) A clever LNURL/Lightning Address pattern to decode merchant QRs(00:23:39) Pragmatic, a bit hacky, and works across wallets(00:28:04) Replicability beyond SA: Kenya’s M‑Pesa, Ghana, Latin America(00:32:10) Creating demand: Bitcoin Ekasi as proof-of-use for Pick n Pay(00:35:15) Real usage: growth to ~5k tx/month and $200k volume(00:39:40) Who spends Bitcoin? From cash users to OGs and ideologues(00:42:34) Incentives and the challenge of moving the middle(00:43:42) Tax context in South Africa: capital gains thresholds(00:46:59) UX talk: tap-to-pay vs. QR, hardware realities and patience(00:49:12) Beyond POS: treasury, suppliers, and stablecoin pull(00:51:03) Bitcoin vs. stablecoins in SA usage; Luno/Binance integrations(00:55:07) Wild flexibility: paying with almost any token via partners(00:57:46) Urgency to prove Bitcoin as money before it’s siloed(00:58:00) Hypothetical: Square/Cash App design vs. bridge approach(01:03:41) Consumer friction at checkout and signaling acceptance(01:07:38) Tipping, bridges to Venmo/Cash App, and cash realities(01:09:19) Call to action: spend Bitcoin to create demand(01:11:08) Wrap-up: plans to visit SA, links, and farewellmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz

Matt Corallo has been a bitcoin developer for nearly fifteen years. We discuss his views on the recent bitcoin core bug, the proposed us clarity act, and the risks/mitigations of quantum computing.Corallo on Nostr: https://primal.net/mattcorallo Corallo on X: https://x.com/TheBlueMattSave our Wallets: https://SaveOurWallets.orgTen31 Quantum Report: https://www.ten31.xyz/insights/quantum-computing-bitcoin-securityEPISODE: 188BLOCK: 932276PRICE: 1030 sats per dollar(00:03:37) Bitcoin Core legacy wallet migration bug(00:07:41) Backups, edge cases, and defensive coding culture(00:07:58) Clarity Act and developer protections: SaveOurWallets.org(00:10:19) Self-custody legal clarity(00:13:12) Partisan Bitcoin ownership data(00:14:43) Surveillance and KYC/AML tightening concerns(00:20:43) Quantum threat framing and scope(00:22:10) Seed phrases enable quantum-safe proofs via hashes(00:24:58) What quantum breaks: exposed public keys, Taproot, and address reuse(00:31:21) Design choices hinge on whether insecure spend paths are frozen(00:33:43) Options: backup TapLeaf, new address types, and fee/UX tradeoffs(00:36:14) Opt-in Taproot versioning to signal post-quantum readiness(00:38:07) Adoption reality: wallet support, privacy impacts, and rollout pace(00:39:34) Freeze-or-not debate: social contract, market dynamics, forks(00:43:56) Public vs. secret quantum progress: who gets there first?(00:47:06) Fork economics: supply shocks, Satoshis coins, and market choice(00:55:01) In-system vs. out-of-system theft; why quantum is different(01:10:01) Preparing pragmatically: give future users post-quantum options(01:24:28) Timelines and hype: where quantum computing really stands(01:29:00) Final takeaways: no panicmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz

Anjan Sundaram is an independent journalist, author, and founder of the Stringer Foundation with a mission to expand global independent journalism. We discuss his work and how open protocols, such as bitcoin and nostr, empower journalists.Anjan on Nostr: https://primal.net/anjansun Anjan on X: https://x.com/anjansunStringer Foundation on X: https://stringerjournalism.org/EPISODE: 187BLOCK: 928149PRICE: 1140 sats per dollar(00:03:09) Anjan’s path: from Yale and Goldman Sachs to war reporting(00:06:07) How war reporting is changing in the age of social media(00:10:32) What makes a journalist? Raw footage vs. verified reporting(00:14:00) Publishing pathways, bylines, pay, and lack of safety nets(00:18:12) Fixing incentives: philanthropy, prizes, and media economics(00:21:00) Turning down quant life: the Goldman Sachs detour(00:23:07) Values alignment: finance, bitcoin, and free information flows(00:24:49) Bloomberg, Substack, and sustainability(00:26:19) Designing the Stringer Prize: credibility, juries, and impact(00:29:39) Launching Stringer: partners, applications, and endowment plan(00:32:10) Why pay in bitcoin: global payouts, fees, and onboarding stories(00:35:33) Grants to awards pipeline and the courage index(00:41:01) Lean ops vs. big charity: publicity without bloat(00:43:59) The tenure problem: long-term support without dependency(00:48:26) Transformative fellowships: MacArthur model and global gaps(00:51:30) Journalism’s core: elevating humane, inspiring stories(00:53:10) Value-for-value, Nostr, and building ad-free media(00:58:24) Own your audience: platforms vs. protocols(01:02:30) Bootstrapping Nostr: network effects and onboarding journalists(01:05:13) Building a global home for independent journalists(01:06:07) The drought in investigative reporting and who funds itmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz

John Arnold is a colleague of mine at Ten31, we are five man team focused on investing in and supporting the best bitcoin businesses globally. This is our third quarterly update where we cover current market dynamics and our outlook.More info on Ten31: https://www.ten31.xyzQuantum: https://www.ten31.xyz/insights/quantum-computing-bitcoin-securityNote: AnchorWatch does not use taproot. I was mistaken.John on Nostr: https://primal.net/johnJohn on X: https://x.com/JohnArnoldTen31Ten31 on X: https://x.com/ten31fundsEPISODE: 186BLOCK: 927606PRICE: 1108 sats per dollar(00:07:01) Four Year Cycles: Liquidity vs. halving(00:12:21) Market manipulation?(00:13:53) Day vs. night: IBIT hours, ETFs, stay humble and stack sats(00:16:40) Premarket/postmarket liquidity and trading(00:16:47) Quantum: FUD Rising(00:24:03) Address types at risk: P2PK, P2PKH race, Taproot exposure(00:25:11) Practical mitigations(00:27:28) Long-range vs. short-range quantum attacks and feasibility(00:28:40) Reality check: scaling physical QC and secrecy constraints(00:31:01) Coordination and upgrade paths: post-quantum options(00:33:30) Social contract: no seizure of old coins(00:36:25) Did quantum FUD drive the drawdown?(00:40:00) Why gold and silver are at highs while Bitcoin lags(00:51:06) Mega-cap tech as the new savings account and TINA(00:57:36) Fed cuts, QT ends, QE or not semantics, and Bitcoins response(01:07:00) Looking ahead: more cuts, policy path, and 2026 setup(01:13:01) Giga-bullish case: scarce assets vs. fiscal-monetary impulse(01:16:03) Gold vs. Bitcoin for individuals and sovereigns(01:20:02) Counterparty risk with ETFs and the case for self-custody(01:26:12) Bottom in? Price targets, humility, and risk management(01:30:29) USD tokens (stablecoins): growth, limits, and policy aims(01:35:04) Tethers dominance, gold tokens, and a silver tangent(01:41:03) Closing thoughts: on-chain flows, whos buying, and sign-offmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz

Rob is the creator of Kyoto, an implementation of compact block filters that makes it easier for developers to build more private bitcoin wallets. Andreas is the creator of Bitcoin Safe, an app designed to make it easier to use hardware wallets securely.Andreas on Nostr: https://primal.net/p/nprofile1qqsqd0y6klqxew4glwggn63jvumrgprnl32tw7hpuzfhv6msgf7y3agm756qu Bitcoin Safe on Nostr: https://primal.net/p/nprofile1qqsyz7tjgwuarktk88qvlnkzue3ja52c3e64s7pcdwj52egphdfll0cq9934g Bitcoin Safe on X: https://x.com/BitcoinSafeOrgKyoto on Github: https://github.com/rustaceanrob/kyoto2140: https://2140.devEPISODE: 185BLOCK: 926163PRICE: 1099 sats per dollar(00:03:04) Bitcoin Dev Kit(00:04:39) Andreas (Bitcoin Safe) and Rob (Kyoto)(00:05:58) What is BDK? Goals, safety, and language bindings(00:09:27) Why BDK matters for UX, testing, and reliability(00:09:50) Kyoto origin story and compact block filters vision(00:13:21) Privacy model: servers vs. compact block filters(00:19:39) Do compact block filters work on mobile? Performance tradeoffs(00:23:55) Kyoto as a Rust reference client for BIP157/158(00:24:35) Bitcoin Safe overview: desktop cold storage with hardware signers(00:25:40) Using compact block filters in Bitcoin Safe: initial sync vs. daily speed(00:28:27) Why connect your own node and peer pools for CBF(00:33:14) Design choice: hardware-only wallets and setup wizard(00:36:29) Differentiating from Sparrow: private sync and Nostr-based multisig coordination(00:39:08) Will Sparrow adopt compact block filters? Considerations and UX(00:48:49) Developer ecosystems: 2140, OpenSats, and in-person collaboration(00:50:38) Making CBF the default: UX, education, and recovery flow(00:52:56) Electrum server defaults and operational notes(00:53:50) Birth heights, segwit/taproot start points, and future optimizations(00:56:17) Address reuse, scanning guarantees, and performance benchmarks(01:00:13) Bandwidth vs. compute: where the real bottlenecks are(01:00:19) Closing discussion, calls to action, and advice for new devsmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyznostr: https://primal.net/odell

Calle is the creator and lead maintainer of the Cashu open source protocol. Cashu enables users to easily use bitcoin in a private, offline, and programmable way. Calle is also the maintainer of Bitchat android, a cross platform meshnet app that enables users to chat and send bitcoin without an internet connection.Calle on Nostr: https://primal.net/calleCalle on X: https://x.com/callebtcBitchat: https://bitchat.free/Cashu: https://cashu.space/Hackathon: https://nutnovember.org/AOS: https://andotherstuff.org/EPISODE: 184BLOCK: 925030PRICE: 1126 sats per dollar(00:04:44) Bitchat: Bluetooth Mesh Without Internet(00:06:21) Protests and Outages Drive Downloads: Nepal, Indonesia, Madagascar, Côte d’Ivoire, Jamaica(00:09:51) Predicting Unrest from Download Spikes(00:14:27) Adding Nostr Transport: Hyperlocal Mesh vs. Geohash Chats(00:18:03) Geolocated Relay Selection(00:23:56) Ephemeral Identity, UX, and Censorship Considerations(00:28:37) Mesh Upgrades: Voice, Images, Files, Source Routing like Tor(00:30:23) WiFi Aware Mesh and Background Operation to Boost Range and Uptime(00:34:15) White Noise vs. Bitchat(00:40:00) Protocols and Transports: Weaving White Noise, Cashu, and Bitchat(00:43:48) Transport Neutral Design: Cashu and Nostr(00:45:57) Cashu Progress: Shipping Libraries, Dev Ecosystem Growth(00:51:18) We Need More Bitcoin Devs(00:53:08) Integrating Cashu into BitChat: Wallet UX and Local Payments(00:57:17) Running Mints: Spark, Ark, and Proof of Reserves/Liabilities(01:03:40) Layered Scaling Without Consensus Changes: Ark, Spark, Cashu(01:04:18) Bitcoin for Signal: Replacing MobileCoin with Cashu(01:13:32) Why Cashu for Signal? Privacy and Scaling(01:22:31) Mint Choice vs. Simplicity: Defaults, Lightning Interoperability, and UX(01:32:21) Focus on Financial Privacy for the Masses, not Distractions(01:37:11) Zcash Hype Dismissed; Call to Build on Bitcoin(01:39:26) Nut November Hackathon and How to Contribute to Bitchat and Cashu(01:45:06) Happy Thanksgivingmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyznostr: https://primal.net/odell

NVK is CoFounder of Coinkite, the makers of Coldcard. Coldcards are designed to help users securely use bitcoin offline. We discuss the variety of features that Coldcards provide users and the tradeoffs present when choosing how to best secure bitcoin.Disclosure: Ten31 is the exclusive investor in Coinkite.my easy coldcard guide: https://werunbtc.com/coldcardNVK on Nostr: https://primal.net/nvkNVK on X: https://x.com/nvkCoinkite:  https://coinkite.com/Ten31: https://www.ten31.xyz/Cove Wallet: https://covebitcoinwallet.com/Sparrow Wallet: https://sparrowwallet.com/Bull Wallet: https://wallet.bullbitcoin.com/ White Noise: https://www.whitenoise.chat/Bitkey: https://bitkey.world/EPISODE: 183BLOCK: 923180PRICE:  967 sats per dollar(00:03:36) Whats New at Coinkite and the Growing User Base(00:05:24) Designing for Global Users and Changing Threat Models(00:06:36) Power vs. Simplicity(00:08:44) Onboarding Stories(00:09:56) Mobile vs Desktop Habits and Emerging Wallets(00:14:28) QR Workflows, NFC Push-tx, and SD Card Signing(00:15:32) Travel and Borders(00:17:04) Key Teleport: Device to Device Encrypted Sharing(00:22:38) Spending Policies(00:25:02) Trick PINs, Duress Flows, and Safe Inspired Defenses(00:29:02) Border Stories and Why Brick Me PIN Exists(00:31:05) SeedXOR vs Passphrase vs Multisig(00:34:07) Family Planning and Inheritance Strategies(00:40:00) Physical Security Model: Dual SE + MCU(00:43:37) Comparisons to Trezor Designs and Components(00:49:44) Seeds as Sovereignty and Unilateral Exit(00:53:21) Debate: iCloud Backups, Ease vs Sovereignty(01:00:08) Bitkey Debate: Goals, Risks, and Break Glass Exit(01:08:54) Edge Cases, Loss Scenarios, and Marketing Ethics(01:20:05) Coinkite Roadmap(01:22:23) Future Products(01:28:01) Touchscreens, Supply Chain Risk, and PWAs(01:30:31) Cove, White Noise MLS, and AI Bots(01:32:26) Nostr Adoption, Socials, and Moderation(01:41:36) Wrap Up, Gratitude, and Ways to Supportmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz

Alex is Head of Ecosystem at Ark Labs. We discuss their new bitcoin protocol: Arkade. It can be used with the lightning network to make self custody bitcoin usage more powerful and accessible. This rip was in person, in Lugano. We are both here for the PlanB Forum.Alex B on Nostr: https://primal.net/alexbAlex B on X: https://x.com/bergealex4Ark Labs: https://arklabs.xyz/PlanB Forum: https://planb.lugano.ch/planb-forum/EPISODE: 182BLOCK: 920390PRICE:  915 sats per dollar(00:00:35) Arkade Activation Day in Lugano(00:03:11) What is Ark? Positioning vs. Lightning and L2s(00:04:32) Ark fundamentals: batching, VTXOs, and two-of-two with an operator(00:08:38) Double-spend risks and the operator trust model(00:10:24) Settling vs. zero conf: anchoring batches onchain(00:16:04) Beyond cheap payments: programmable offchain Bitcoin(00:18:12) Ark Lightning swaps and unilateral exits(00:21:01) Unilateral exit costs, trees of transactions, and anchoring cadence(00:26:17) Wallet UX: automating settlement and exposure management(00:27:22) Ark vs. Spark: security model and settlement feedback to L1(00:34:39) Onchain demand: Lightning realities, Spark cadence, Ark batches(00:36:59) Ark is tech, Arkade is implementation(00:37:45) Batch frequency and scaling: hundreds per batch, Taproot efficiency(00:38:41) Covenants soft fork would cut interactivity overhead(00:42:01) Users, servers, and always on clients: who runs what?(00:45:02) DeFi on Arkade: loans, new opcodes, and secondary markets(00:47:00) Credit, derivatives, and Bitcoinization(00:55:06) Company model: Ark Labs, open source Arkade, and revenue(01:01:02) Flagship apps strategy: neo-bank, swaps, prediction markets(01:07:05) Try it today: arkade.money PWA and roadmap to native apps(01:12:05) Operators landscape: competition, network effects, resilience(01:15:27) Closing thoughts: adapt, focus, and take the white pillmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz

Francis is the Founder of Bull Bitcoin, one of the best bitcoin brokerage services. They recently launched a self custody mobile wallet on ios and android: Bull Wallet. This rip was earlier today, in person, in Lugano. We are both here for the PlanB Forum.Francis on Nostr: https://primal.net/francisFrancis on X: https://x.com/francispouliot_Bull Wallet: https://wallet.bullbitcoin.comPlanB Forum: https://planb.lugano.ch/planb-forum/EPISODE: 181BLOCK: 920238PRICE: 929 sats per dollar(00:00:00) Catching up from Lugano: old rips, 2019 memories, and lore(00:01:07) Introducing Bull Wallet: goals, BDK under the hood, and UX vision(00:02:21) Lightning lessons: LDK attempts, liquidity pain, and Phoenix tradeoffs(00:04:38) Fee shocks and “just-in-time” channels: why Liquid entered the plan(00:06:24) Liquid + Boltz atomic swaps: architecture, Rootstock notes, and standards push(00:07:37) Designing for privacy and power users: Sparrow on mobile, Payjoin journey(00:12:21) Data minimization in practice: no push, no cloud leaks, strict dependencies(00:13:56) Shipping realities: iOS approval grind and cross‑platform necessity(00:15:11) Secure versus Instant: Liquid framing, hype cycles, and collaborative custody(00:19:13) The UX–compromise matrix: placing Liquid among trust models(00:21:24) Auto‑swap safety rails: keeping Liquid balances modest by default(00:24:26) Confidential transactions and buying flows: privacy wins via Liquid(00:27:24) Swap providers and resilience: Boltz today, multi‑provider tomorrow(00:31:05) Builders who ship: moving fast, potentially Ark or Spark in the future(00:32:11) Why Ark: unilateral exits, pre‑confirmed states, and costs(00:50:00) Ark tradeoffs without soft forks: watchtowers, refresh, and liveness(00:57:15) Ark vs Liquid in Bull Wallet: timelines, reckless testing, and user defaults(01:04:12) Payjoin, heuristics, and passive consolidation(01:11:01) Consolidation strategies: Liquid swaps, CT, and fee‑aware UTXO management(01:15:48) Lightning address UX with Liquid: directories, costs, and tiny payments(01:17:10) Nostr as a wallet backend: zaps, contact book, and secure comms(01:18:01) Multisig in practice: BitPay’s UX, Miniscript future, and mobile approvals(01:20:19) Operator messaging and alerts: following npubs inside the app(01:20:49) Core v30, OP_RETURN, and policy vs consensus(01:31:09) Funding open source: OpenSats, private companies, and shipping culture(01:35:15) Why open source keeps us sane: creativity, legacy, and closing notesmore info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz

My keynote presentation at the Imagine If conference in Nashville focused on how i think about scaling freedom tech.Date: September 20, 2025OpenSats: https://opensats.orgTen31: https://ten31.xyzImagine If: https://bitcoinpark.com/imagineif(01:02) ODELL takes the stage(01:23) Diagnosing the problem(02:35) Ad driven surveillance and addictive platforms(03:04) Open source and open protocols(03:49) Scaling open source: incentives and funding(04:26) OpenSats and Bitcoin powered grants(05:25) Email, an open protocol, and Gmails predatory model(06:42) Make freedom profitable: align incentives(06:54) Ten31 thesis: sustainable, user-aligned businesses(07:28) Case study: Start9 and self-hosted services(08:16) Case study: Maples private AI and open API(08:51) Case study: Primal on Nostr and Bitcoin(09:37) Case study: Strike and low switching costs(10:25) Closing call to action: profit drives scalabilityVideo:  https://primal.net/e/nevent1qqs8g25llcvddu2cacsglckxks2afya2c27pt6g3qf3rh5rma3eachsg5mu8s more info on the show: https://citadeldispatch.comlearn more about me: https://odell.xyz