Walled Garden Wars: Corporate Chains vs Open Money

Connect with Early Riders // Connect with OnrampPresented collaboratively by Early Riders & Onramp Media…Final Settlement is a weekly podcast covering the underlying mechanics of the bitcoin protocol, its ongoing development and funding, and real-world applications of the technology.00:00 - Market Movements and Upcoming Events02:11 - Banking Crisis in Thailand09:59 - Youth Revolt in Nepal18:23 - Bitcoin's Role in Financial Portfolios23:09 - Gemini's Public Offering and Market Trends28:06 - Exploring Solana's Blockchain Advantages33:07 - The Future of Bitcoin Dividends35:25 - Hyper Liquid and the Evolution of Stablecoins37:42 - Vercel and the Future of Micro Payments43:51 - The Rise of Bitcoin in Everyday Transactions49:28 - Navigating the Fragile EconomyIf you found this valuable, please subscribe to Early Riders Insights for access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.Links discussed:https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/09/nasdaq-to-invest-50-million-in-winklevoss-founded-crypto-exchange-gemini.htmlhttps://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/12/gemini-the-winklevoss-crypto-exchange-pops-in-nasdaq-debut.htmlhttps://hbr.org/2025/09/does-bitcoin-belong-on-your-balance-sheethttps://vercel.com/blog/introducing-x402-mcp-open-protocol-payments-for-mcp-toolshttps://www.thaiexaminer.com/thai-news-foreigners/2025/09/14/banking-crisis-as-security-overreach-limits-large-numbers-of-personal-and-small-business-bank-accounts/https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/bitchat-surges-in-nepal-as-gen-z-protesters-pick-pm-on-discord-whatis-bitchat-and-how-it-is-used-2787021-2025-09-14https://www.theblock.co/post/370570/native-markets-team-wins-hyperliquid-usdh-stablecoin-bid-eyes-test-phase-within-dayshttps://finance.yahoo.com/news/superstate-issue-fresh-galaxy-digital-110007162.htmlhttps://www.tradingview.com/news/cointelegraph:b7f86629f094b:0-investment-giant-capital-group-s-1b-bet-on-bitcoin-treasuries-balloons-to-6b/https://www.wsj.com/opinion/americas-buy-now-pay-later-economy-3dae0902Keep up with Michael: https://x.com/MTangumahttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mtanguma/Keep up with Brian: https://x.com/BackslashBTChttps://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cubellis-00b1a660/Keep up with Liam: https://x.com/Lnelson_21https://www.linkedin.com/in/liam-nelson1/

Connect with Onramp // Connect with Acropolis // Connect with Early RidersPresented by Onramp Media in collaboration with Acropolis & Early Riders...Bitcoin for Businesses is a bi-weekly podcast for operators. We turn headlines into a playbook, covering custody architecture, board approvals, accounting, financing, and real-world implementation.00:00 – Welcome to Bitcoin for Businesses02:12 – MIC: the corporate custody unlock06:42 – Ledn pivots to bitcoin-only lending10:59 – Bitcoin-only vs multi-asset UX12:47 – Public treasuries + fair-value accounting catalyst20:39 – The “yield” mirage: save, don’t reach25:16 – Macro: inflation squeeze, bankruptcies, rate cuts & MMFs32:05 – Offense & defense: pricing power, network effects39:49 – BTC-backed credit lines for working capital43:52 – Stablecoins as on-ramps; finality vs chargebacks51:58 – Real-world payments: Namecheap $2M via BTCPay57:25 – Closing takeaways & CTAIf you found this valuable, please subscribe to Onramp Media.

Connect with Onramp // Onramp Terminal // Onramp InstitutionalThe Last Trade: a weekly, bitcoin-native podcast covering the intersection of bitcoin, tech, & finance on a macro scale. Hosted by Jackson Mikalic, Michael Tanguma, & Brian Cubellis. Join us as we dive into what bitcoin means for how individuals & institutions save, invest, & propagate their purchasing power through time. It's not just another asset...in the digital age, it's The Last Trade that investors will ever need to make.00:00 – Intro & Why Macro Matters Now04:40 – Bessent’s Op-Ed: Fed “Gain-of-Function” Critique07:36 – Post-2008 Playbook: Distorted Signals & Debt Monetization10:38 – Stablecoins as Dollar Statecraft13:30 – Global Pressures & the Dollar’s Next Act16:30 – Gold Breakout, BTC Setup: Sound-Money Signals19:26 – Fed Independence Under Fire22:18 – Hard Assets as Liquidity Batteries (Gold & BTC)25:19 – Navigating the Reset: A Playbook for Allocators37:33 – Corporate BTC, U.S. Advantage & Balance Sheets41:22 – TradFi Meets Crypto & Policy Greenlights46:06 – Wallet Warnings & Supply-Chain Exploits51:19 – Custody Stress Is Real: Fault Tolerance & MIC56:51 – Onramp Institutional: Bespoke Access for Allocators01:05:40 – Outro & DisclaimerPlease subscribe to Onramp Media channels and sign up for weekly Research & Analysis to get access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.

Connect with Early Riders // Connect with OnrampPresented collaboratively by Early Riders & Onramp Media…Final Settlement is a weekly podcast covering the underlying mechanics of the bitcoin protocol, its ongoing development and funding, and real-world applications of the technology.00:00 - Introduction and Market Overview02:57 - Stripe's Stablecoin Chain and Industry Reactions05:57 - David Marcus' Perspective on Centralized Control09:00 - Decentralization vs. Centralization in Crypto12:03 - The Future of Payments and Corporate Influence14:57 - World Liberty Financial and the Illusion of Decentralization17:32 - Hyperliquid: A New Player in the Market32:47 - The Rise of Prediction Markets and Decentralization37:06 - Sovereign Accumulation of Bitcoin43:48 - India's Unexpected Crypto Adoption47:00 - Tether's Investment in Gold and Bitcoin55:51 - The Future of Money: Gold vs. Bitcoin01:01:04 - AI and the Future of LaborIf you found this valuable, please subscribe to Early Riders Insights for access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.Links discussed:https://x.com/zoomerfied/status/1965022977986122116https://x.com/paoloardoino/status/1963970499530399774https://x.com/GwartyGwart/status/1963335764508643696https://www.theblock.co/post/369420/india-leads-global-crypto-adoption-chainalysis?utm_source=telegram1&utm_medium=socialhttps://finance.yahoo.com/news/inside-look-uae-700-million-193253131.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAJmztmDB6EOB8AvPo5_wrG1BFxxX3rm6-VJqiTd-PWIKlUhRCtUZJTd-YnxvQlQCaCpNqkY2jJYrLZhldgKLu9K2WImqlqrkqZL2z43487rBeJXoZJ_wgVDrVRa-CUFz_khNFnjofFGupKVvMEoIMn_8tMgll6FrpraD8DzUsQphhttps://x.com/notgrubles/status/1963680872512790585https://x.com/ccatalini/status/1964027763616358450https://x.com/davidmarcus/status/1964055754648014852https://x.com/brian_armstrong/status/1963375254526709879Keep up with Michael: https://x.com/MTangumahttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mtanguma/Keep up with Brian: https://x.com/BackslashBTChttps://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cubellis-00b1a660/Keep up with Liam: https://x.com/Lnelson_21https://www.linkedin.com/in/liam-nelson1/

Connect with Onramp // Onramp Terminal // Jesse Kobernick on XThe Last Trade: a weekly, bitcoin-native podcast covering the intersection of bitcoin, tech, & finance on a macro scale. Hosted by Jackson Mikalic, Michael Tanguma, & Brian Cubellis. Join us as we dive into what bitcoin means for how individuals & institutions save, invest, & propagate their purchasing power through time. It's not just another asset...in the digital age, it's The Last Trade that investors will ever need to make.00:00 - Intro to Jesse Kobernick05:10 - Bitcoin Treasury Companies: Promises vs Reality23:55 - Retail Flows and Reflexivity32:35 - Outlook and Risks for Bitcoin Equity Proxies38:38 - Gold vs Bitcoin: A Century in One Chart43:17 - Long Bonds, Fiscal Dominance, and the Risk-Free Myth49:00 - Global Reserves Shift: Central Banks Buy Gold51:57 - Self-Custody at Scale: Real Risks01:22:11 - Multi-Institution Custody Explained01:24:46 - ETFs and Single-Custodian Risk01:28:44 - Market Structure and Cycle Paths01:34:19 - Supercycle on the Table?01:37:53 - Guardian Controls for Real-World Threats01:49:40 - Outro and DisclaimerPlease subscribe to Onramp Media channels and sign up for weekly Research & Analysis to get access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.

Connect with Onramp // Jackson Mikalic on X // Chris Kuiper on X // Fidelity Digital AssetsScarce Assets: a biweekly podcast presented by Onramp which delves into the emergent role of bitcoin in finance professionals' strategies and outlooks. Hosted by Jackson Mikalic, Scarce Assets provides invaluable insights for wealth managers aiming to outperform their peers in the decades ahead. Finance professionals everywhere know about stocks and bonds, but the macroeconomic outlook requires that serious investors pay close attention to another category: Scarce Assets.00:00 - Intro to Chris Kuiper & Onramp Institutional05:27 - ETF era takeaways: record flows & advisor demand11:17 - Ancient bitcoin supply selling into strength14:12 - RIAs wake up: education & compliance hurdles17:19 - Positioning bitcoin: non-sovereign monetary asset23:27 - Bonds are impaired: rethinking the 60/4029:28 - Institutional inertia: committees & career risk37:25 - Structures over spot: custody & risk shifting48:37 - Macro drivers: liquidity, stagflation, & expectations55:57 - Volatility that pays: upside skew, gold baton01:02:05 - Bitcoin’s bucket: risk-off vs risk-on; crypto baskets01:07:14 - Outro & disclaimerPlease subscribe to Onramp Media channels and sign up for weekly Research & Analysis to get access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.

Connect with Early Riders // Connect with OnrampPresented collaboratively by Early Riders & Onramp Media…Final Settlement is a weekly podcast covering the underlying mechanics of the bitcoin protocol, its ongoing development and funding, and real-world applications of the technology.00:00 - Introduction and Market Overview01:52 - Blockchain and Government Data Confusion05:52 - The Rise of Prediction Markets10:01 - Trump Media and Digital Assets13:23 - Fed Policy and the Dollar's Reserve Status19:36 - The Shift Towards Hard Assets25:17 - The Future of Investment Strategies32:14 - Career Risk and Market Dynamics34:45 - The Mortgage Crisis and Real Estate Liquidity36:15 - The Rise of ETFs and Financialization39:41 - The Challenge of Outperforming Benchmarks42:40 - The Importance of Small Allocations in Crypto46:01 - The Role of Incentives in Financial Products48:43 - CFTC's New Advisory on Offshore Exchanges54:38 - Institutional Investors and the Crypto DilemmaIf you found this valuable, please subscribe to Early Riders Insights for access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.Links discussed:https://archive.ph/XFfSehttps://www.theblock.co/post/368295/trump-media-crypto-com-cro-token-treasury-fundinghttps://www.wsj.com/finance/currencies/trump-family-amasses-6-billion-fortune-after-crypto-launchEktBp6GuTDvqhf3MZXIVFYfFFqAJd0Ov4pUL42sn7RDX-1hGRmECPS8DlqSLw%3D%3Dhttps://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1962235795622035767https://x.com/elerianm/status/1962275798619914297https://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1962532572015001630https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/trump-removing-federal-reserve-governor-lisa-cook-rcna227138https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-25/us-etfs-eclipse-total-number-of-stocks-in-paradox-of-choice-for-investors?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=emailhttps://x.com/LukeGromen/status/1958522779331961319https://cryptobriefing.com/offshore-crypto-trading-cftc-guidance/https://x.com/LukeGromen/status/1959631878547259400https://stanfordreview.org/uchicago-lost-money-on-crypto-then-froze-research-when-federal-funding-was-cut/Keep up with Michael: https://x.com/MTangumahttps://www.linkedin.com/in/mtanguma/Keep up with Brian: https://x.com/BackslashBTChttps://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cubellis-00b1a660/Keep up with Liam: https://x.com/Lnelson_21https://www.linkedin.com/in/liam-nelson1/

Connect with Onramp // Onramp Terminal // Luke Gromen on X // Luke's Research (FFTT)The Last Trade: a weekly, bitcoin-native podcast covering the intersection of bitcoin, tech, & finance on a macro scale. Hosted by Jackson Mikalic, Michael Tanguma, & Brian Cubellis. Join us as we dive into what bitcoin means for how individuals & institutions save, invest, & propagate their purchasing power through time. It's not just another asset...in the digital age, it's The Last Trade that investors will ever need to make.00:00 – Introduction & macro setup03:41 – Gold & bitcoin lead the cycle07:07 – Bretton Woods III & neutral reserves11:56 – Gold’s role in global economics17:13 – China, Russia & the gold paradox21:53 – Bitcoin in the macro landscape28:08 – Luke’s bitcoin & gold journey36:34 – Institutional blind spots & adoption44:13 – ETFs, stablecoins & purchasing power47:28 – Trump era policy & course corrections55:23 – Nationalization & U.S. industry59:48 – AI, debt & the future of labor01:04:18 – Gold & bitcoin as the future of money01:18:23 – Outro & disclaimerPlease subscribe to Onramp Media channels and sign up for weekly Research & Analysis to get access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.

Connect with Early Riders // Connect with OnrampPresented collaboratively by Early Riders & Onramp Media…Final Settlement is a weekly podcast covering the underlying mechanics of the bitcoin protocol, its ongoing development and funding, and real-world applications of the technology.00:00 - Government Intervention in Private Sector12:47 - Private Equity Liquidity Crisis20:52 - Bitcoin Lightning and Traditional Finance29:33 - The Rise of Altcoins and Market Dynamics34:26 - The Risks of the Current Crypto Market38:10 - Shifting Focus: Inflation and Labor Markets42:10 - Global Adoption of Bitcoin as a Reserve Asset44:07 - Innovations in Stablecoins and CBDCs48:11 - The Future of Bitcoin Custody01:00:01 - Custody Risks and Corporate Bitcoin TreasuriesIf you found this valuable, please subscribe to Early Riders Insights for access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.Links discussed:https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/us-examines-equity-stake-chip-makers-chips-act-cash-grants-sources-say-2025-08-20https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115074444617901812https://docs.congress.hrep.online/legisdocs/basic_20/HB00421.pdfhttps://bitcoin.docsend.com/view/5d9i69p3b78w7wqnhttps://blockchaintechnology-news.com/news/sofi-becomes-first-us-bank-to-use-bitcoin-lightning-for-remittanceshttps://x.com/SpencerHakimian/status/1958906585948069890https://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1959279096292053363https://x.com/MacroScope17/status/1959628044580073818https://x.com/AyyouEm/status/1958879078410592741https://x.com/BoringBiz_/status/1959688259015180728https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7363548191142658049/https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/08/21/corporate-bitcoin-treasuries-could-raise-credit-risks-morningstar-dbrs-sayshttps://x.com/strack_ben/status/1958525507655335937https://www.theblock.co/post/367914/bitcoin-og-sell-bitcoin-buy-etherKeep up with Michael: X and LinkedInKeep up with Brian: X and LinkedInKeep up with Liam: X and LinkedIn

Connect with Onramp // Onramp Terminal // Joe Bryan on X // What's The ProblemThe Last Trade: a weekly, bitcoin-native podcast covering the intersection of bitcoin, tech, & finance on a macro scale. Hosted by Jackson Mikalic, Michael Tanguma, & Brian Cubellis. Join us as we dive into what bitcoin means for how individuals & institutions save, invest, & propagate their purchasing power through time. It's not just another asset...in the digital age, it's The Last Trade that investors will ever need to make.00:00 - Framing the Problem of Broken Money13:13 - From TradFi to Bitcoin: Joe Bryan’s Path23:20 - Inflation Explained: Mechanism & Fallout34:14 - Inflation’s Toll on Families & Small Businesses43:25 - Forced Speculation: The Fiat Burden49:16 - Today’s Playbook: Bonds, Equities, Bitcoin58:18 - The “Risk-Free” Mirage: Seizure & Real Returns01:04:44 - Money’s Arc: Gold → Paper → Code01:11:15 - Bitcoin vs. Altcoins: Fixed Rules vs. Red Buttons01:16:52 - Outro & DisclaimerPlease subscribe to Onramp Media channels and sign up for weekly Research & Analysis to get access to the best content in the ecosystem weekly.