Bell Curve Introducing: Inflection Point | The Crypto-TradFi Convergence
Mar 5, 2026
Michael Mark Antonio, Head of DeFi at Galaxy Digital, builds institutional on‑chain primitives. Matt Hogan, CIO at Bitwise, oversees large crypto ETFs and institutional research. David Lawant, Head of Research at Anchorage Digital, focuses on custody and prime brokerage. They discuss TradFi moving into crypto, spot ETFs and big institutions signaling change, DeFi tradeoffs like UX and regulation, and shifting market structure and settlement.
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Spot ETFs Reshaped Bitcoin Market Structure
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs transformed market participation and volume, quickly becoming a dominant trading venue.
- David Lawant found ETF trading reached 30–50% of Bitcoin spot volume and options open interest shifted to IBIT vs Deribit.
Aave UX Convinced A DeFi Believer
- Matt Hogan's personal DeFi moment came from using Aave and seeing its UX 'magic' that convinced him institutions would arrive.
- He says everyone he walked through lending on Aave assumed DeFi would win because the experience felt so compelling.
DeFi As A Response To 2008 Failures
- DeFi's original purpose was to structurally remove the opacity and interconnected counterparty risk that caused the 2008 crisis.
- Michael Mark Antonio links DeFi pillars—self-custody, transparency, decentralized networks—to a safer programmable financial system.