CoinDesk Podcast Network The Blockspace Pod: What Epstein’s Bitcoin Investments Really Reveal w/ Kyle Torpey
Feb 10, 2026
Kyle Torpey, veteran Bitcoin reporter known for deep investigative work at Bitcoin Magazine and Forbes, walks through what DOJ files reveal about Jeffrey Epstein’s crypto ties. He outlines Epstein’s Coinbase investment, meetings with key regulators and developers, and how funds touched rival projects. The conversation also revisits the Blocksize Wars, SegWit2x, and mining centralization.
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Coinbase Pushed Hard Forks During Blocksize Wars
- The Epstein files reveal investors like Coinbase were actively pushing scaling hard forks during the blocksize wars.
- Kyle Torpey shows Brian Armstrong's investor letter explicitly discussed working behind the scenes to pass a hard fork.
New York Agreement Had Broad Industry But Not Dev Support
- The New York Agreement (Segwit2x) was a company-led compromise to combine SegWit with a later hard fork.
- It gathered major exchanges and ~90% of hash rate but lacked Bitcoin Core developers' support, causing its collapse.
Epstein's $3M Coinbase Bet Via Brock Pierce
- Jeffrey Epstein invested $3 million into Coinbase via Brock Pierce and later sold half of the stake for about $15 million.
- Kyle Torpey traces the deal through Pierce and Blockchain Capital threads in the DOJ files.