When Shift Happens Podcast

E164: GSR CEO: The New Era of Crypto Is About to Begin

Mar 26, 2026
Xin Song, Group CEO of GSR Markets, a veteran crypto market-maker now building a full-service Web3 investment bank. He digs into why crypto market structure is broken, how token issuance incentives misalign, and what it will take to professionalize markets, tokenization, and advisory services in the new crypto era.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
ANECDOTE

Early Deribit Drawdown From A Thin Market

  • Xin recounts early market making on Deribit where BTC moved from ~$3k to $5k overnight causing hedging losses.
  • He uses this to show risk management limits in thin markets and how small flows could move prices back then.
INSIGHT

Market Making Is A Two Sided Marketplace

  • Market making is a two-sided marketplace like ride-hailing: supply must be incentivized to deliver predictable liquidity.
  • Xin likens exchanges to Uber and GSR to drivers paid to provide resting orders so takers get low-slippage fills 24/7.
INSIGHT

Reputation Issues Stem From Misaligned Incentives

  • Crypto market makers have reputational problems because the market is under-regulated and incentives favor short-term gains.
  • Xin notes limited enforcement and easy exit for bad actors, so honest firms get tarred by association.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app