Money Code

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK.In this episode of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh sit down with May Zabeneh, SVP and GM of Crypto at PayPal, where she's building the playbook for how a major fintech embeds stablecoins into existing payment infrastructure.They unpack how PayPal enabled stablecoins in millions of wallets and the bets they hope to pay off, how "disrupting yourself is painful but important for long-term success," and why the best stablecoin strategy might be one where nobody needs to say the word "crypto."Subscribe and listen to the Money Code podcast here:https://lnk.to/MoneyCodeSNChapters00:00 PYUSD goes live in 70 countries - and users don't need to do anything01:48 Why custodial stablecoins are harder than open wallets04:25 "They can't even hold balance today": the utility unlock07:52 Should crypto and stablecoins even share a name?11:23 Foundations before flywheel: hold, earn, send, spend - in that order14:56 Payouts as the Trojan horse: gig workers and Google creators17:36 "There were times we were trying to do too much"20:15 No playbook existed - PayPal had to write it23:50 Disrupting yourself inside a public company28:12 "You don't need to touch crypto": abstracting it away for merchants32:37 The Skype analogy: interoperability as the real growth driver35:42 AI agents will need programmable money - but not yet41:50 Success means stablecoins become invisible infrastructureConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.comRaj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyzMay Zabeneh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mayzabaneh/ | http://paypal.com/About StableconStablecon (https://stablecon.com/) is the premier gathering for those at the intersection of DeFi, economic policy, financial infrastructure, and institutional integration, and those reinventing global commerce. By convening the brightest minds in fintech and crypto, Stablecon provides attendees with world class thought leadership and fosters unparalleled networking and strategic collaboration across the digital payments industry. Whether you're building, advising, or navigating this new frontier, this is the room where it happens.About BVNKBVNK is the leading provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, helping businesses move money faster, settle globally, and even launch their own stablecoin products. Head to https://bvnk.com/ to learn more.

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK.In this episode of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh sit down with Zach Abrams, co-founder and CEO of Bridge, the stablecoin infrastructure company acquired by Stripe that grew several multiples in 2025.They unpack why Zach calls himself "the founder equivalent of a child of the Great Depression," how following developers into the "fog of war" built five businesses in two years, and why stablecoins won't realize their potential unless someone forces the economics away from existing issuers and back to consumers.Subscribe and listen to the Money Code podcast here:https://lnk.to/MoneyCodeSNChapters00:00 How Bridge went from early adopters to mainstream in three months02:54 "The founder equivalent of a Great Depression child"06:09 Why stablecoins are the first global financial building block07:30 Agentic payments: planting seeds for the next cycle14:30 How one use case kept pulling Bridge into the next18:45 The $10B ceiling that forced a bank charter22:50 "Everyone is competing on maximal regulation"31:42 Why "focus" is wrong advice for this market36:17 The Stripe acquisition made things harder, not easier43:42 How one customer becomes five products49:30 Why tokenized stocks beat real ones at half the borrowing cost52:55 "If we don't build it, no one else will"58:47 Where to find Zach and BridgeConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.comRaj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyzZach Abrams: https://x.com/zcabrams | https://bridge.xyzAbout StableconStablecon (https://stablecon.com/) is the premier gathering for those at the intersection of DeFi, economic policy, financial infrastructure, and institutional integration, and those reinventing global commerce. By convening the brightest minds in fintech and crypto, Stablecon provides attendees with world class thought leadership and fosters unparalleled networking and strategic collaboration across the digital payments industry. Whether you're building, advising, or navigating this new frontier, this is the room where it happens.About BVNKBVNK is the leading provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, helping businesses move money faster, settle globally, and even launch their own stablecoin products. Head to https://bvnk.com/ to learn more.

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK.In this episode of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh sit down with Ayo Omojola, General Partner at Refract VC, former Cash App banking lead, and organizer of A Very Stable Conference. They unpack why the biggest stablecoin opportunity isn't in the US, where Chase is "ferocious" and payments feel good enough, but in serving billions of people worldwide who can now access dollar-denominated savings from an app store, and why $300B in circulating supply is still peanuts compared to what's coming.Subscribe and listen to the Money Code podcast here:https://lnk.to/MoneyCodeSNChapters00:00 Investing in stablecoins: why people matter more than tech03:30 The wealth flight thesis: why rich people move money to Switzerland08:00 Agentic payments: real or overhyped?12:35 A Very Stable Conference: catching lightning in a bottle19:20 The Jamie Dimon problem: competing with Chase26:00 Why long sales cycles are a product problem28:50 Cash App parallels: "we knew a secret"34:15 $300B is peanuts — the real market sizing math37:15 Why incumbents have paper-thin advantages42:45 "Fish don't feel the water as wet"49:20 Non-USD stablecoins: institutional gaps as the foothold54:30 Where to find Ayo and A Very Stable ConferenceConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.comRaj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyzAyo Omojola: https://x.com/ay_o | https://kunle.appAbout StableconStablecon (https://stablecon.com/) is the premier gathering for those at the intersection of DeFi, economic policy, financial infrastructure, and institutional integration, and those reinventing global commerce. By convening the brightest minds in fintech and crypto, Stablecon provides attendees with world class thought leadership and fosters unparalleled networking and strategic collaboration across the digital payments industry. Whether you're building, advising, or navigating this new frontier, this is the room where it happens.About BVNKBVNK is the leading provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, helping businesses move money faster, settle globally, and even launch their own stablecoin products. Head to https://bvnk.com/ to learn more.

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK. In episode 21 of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh are joined by Prabhakar Reddy, Co-Founder & CEO at OpenFX. They explain why “instant FX” can’t be achieved with bank API wrappers alone, and how OpenFX combines end-to-end automation, regional liquidity, local rails, and stablecoins as a routing leg to settle large cross-border transfers in minutes, with bank access and balance sheet constraints setting the ceiling at global scale.Chapters00:00 $45B proves the point: what’s broken in FX03:20 The three unlocks: ICP, automation, 24/7 team06:30 What OpenFX sells: “money moves like SMS”09:45 Working capital and prefunding: the hidden tax on fintech FX12:40 Stablecoins as a routing leg, not the product15:50 Currency expansion playbook: demand, regulation, bank rails, automation21:15 Why FX wrappers can’t fix bank cutoffs and float incentives26:40 Why crypto exchanges fail at $10M+ size29:05 The $10M walkthrough: fiat → stablecoin leg → fiat in minutes34:45 What has to be true: licenses, liquidity, automation, security, balance sheet38:30 Defensibility: regional liquidity + utility pricing + 24/7 ops42:25 What breaks next: bank access and balance sheet ceiling44:40 The future: AI agents, and why non-USD stablecoins lagConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.com Raj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyz Prabhakar Reddy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prabhakar2reddy/  | https://x.com/prabhakar2reddy | http://openfx.com/ About StableconStablecon (https://stablecon.com/) is the premier gathering for those at the intersection of DeFi, economic policy, financial infrastructure, and institutional integration, and those reinventing global commerce. By convening the brightest minds in fintech and crypto, Stablecon provides attendees with world class thought leadership and fosters unparalleled networking and strategic collaboration across the digital payments industry.   Whether you’re building, advising, or navigating this new frontier, this is the room where it happens.About BVNKBVNK is the leading provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, helping businesses move money faster, settle globally, and even launch their own stablecoin products. Head to https://bvnk.com/ to learn more.

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK. In episode 20 of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh are joined by Chris Harmse, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at BVNK, and Anthony Yim, Co-Founder and CTO at Artemis. They dive into BVNK and Artemis’ new YouGov survey on stablecoin usage to show how demand for “normal payments” is outpacing real-world access, and why the next adoption wave is less about ideology and more about embedding stablecoin rails into the fintech apps people already trust.Chapters00:00 Why this survey matters right now04:42 Stablecoins as everyday money (paid + spend)07:52 The 77% signal: stablecoins inside fintech apps15:35 Enterprise reality: sub-1% penetration, fast growth19:03 Demand outpaces access: the integration gap23:58 Do users want stablecoins or just faster payments?31:53 Instant cash-out mechanics and why legacy rails tax speed36:46 Closing takeaways + where to find BVNK and ArtemisConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.com Raj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyz Chris Harmse: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisharmse/ | http://bvnk.com/ Anthony Yim: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyyim/ | https://x.com/anthonyyim | https://www.artemisanalytics.com/ About StableconStablecon (https://stablecon.com/) is the premier gathering for those at the intersection of DeFi, economic policy, financial infrastructure, and institutional integration, and those reinventing global commerce. By convening the brightest minds in fintech and crypto, Stablecon provides attendees with world class thought leadership and fosters unparalleled networking and strategic collaboration across the digital payments industry.   Whether you’re building, advising, or navigating this new frontier, this is the room where it happens.About BVNKBVNK is the leading provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, helping businesses move money faster, settle globally, and even launch their own stablecoin products. Head to https://bvnk.com/ to learn more.

Mike Hudack, Co-founder and CEO of Sling Money, former product lead at Facebook, Deliveroo and Monzo. He tells the origin story of building a global Venmo-like app using self-custodial stablecoins. Conversations cover how Sling moves value across 120 countries, ramps and localization as the real hard problems, and why compliance, trust, and liquidity choices shape the product.

Cooper Thompson, Head of Innovation for Embedded Finance and Digital Assets at Fiserv, leads FIUSD and bank–blockchain integrations. He discusses how blockchains can connect bank cores, FIUSD’s fiat-layer design that keeps reserves distributed across banks, differences between payment stablecoins and tokenized deposits, and which banking products are likely to move onchain first.

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK. In episode 17 of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh are joined by Jess Houlgrave, CEO at WalletConnect. They use the recent Ingenico partnership to unpack what it really takes to scale stablecoin payments at the physical checkout: incentives that move behavior, compliant routing from on-chain to fiat, UX that feels like Web2, and privacy constraints that shape whether merchants and consumers will ever choose on-chain settlement.Subscribe and listen to the Money Code podcast here:https://lnk.to/MoneyCodeSNChapters01:08 WalletConnect as the “messaging layer” between apps and wallets02:49 Why crypto checkout feels wrong and what WalletConnect Pay changes04:34 The coffee shop walkthrough: QR, wallets, assets, chains07:40 Where funds go after on-chain payment: transit accounts and off-ramps10:03 The supply-side reality: merchants, acquirers, and incentives to enable14:42 Which merchants care first: luxury, cross-border, LATAM QR familiarity19:18 Why B2C is harder25:38 Incentives and “on-chain interchange” to shift consumer behavior35:15 Privacy: why transparent ledgers collide with payment norms38:19 The end-state: tap-like UX and settlement routing users never seeConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.com Raj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyz Jess Houlgrave: https://www.linkedin.com/in/houlgrave/ | https://x.com/Houlgrave | https://walletconnect.network/ About Money CodeMoney Code is the show that decodes stablecoins and the evolution of programmable money for builders, investors, and decision-makers. Each week, join hosts Chuk Okpalugo, Author of Stablecoin Blueprint and Raj Parekh, Head of Payments/Stablecoins at Monad Foundation as they break down the systems and strategies of seasoned operators in the space, revealing the insights you need for better build and buy decisions.About StableconStablecon (https://stablecon.com/) is the premier gathering for those at the intersection of DeFi, economic policy, financial infrastructure, and institutional integration, and those reinventing global commerce. By convening the brightest minds in fintech and crypto, Stablecon provides attendees with world class thought leadership and fosters unparalleled networking and strategic collaboration across the digital payments industry.   Whether you’re building, advising, or navigating this new frontier, this is the room where it happens.About BVNKBVNK is the leading provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, helping businesses move money faster, settle globally, and even launch their own stablecoin products. Head to https://bvnk.com/ to learn more.

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK. In episode 16 of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh are joined by Joao Del Valle, CEO and Co-founder at EBANX, and Chris Harmse, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer at BVNK. They break down why and how EBANX is incorporating stablecoins into its global money movement stack and share views for how to potentially seed non-USD liquidity via tokenized asset settlement rather than retail payments.Subscribe and listen to the Money Code podcast here:https://lnk.to/MoneyCodeSNChapters00:00 EBANX’s origin: local acceptance, foreign settlement03:00 Pay-ins vs payouts across fragmented emerging-market rails05:01 Stablecoins as a “100-country APM” with one integration09:06 The regulatory mood shift: CBDCs down, stablecoins normalized11:55 2025 breakout: checkout + payouts + embedded dollar wallets14:39 Expansion playbook: merchant-led, but regulation is the bottleneck17:58 Liquidity and VASP rules: stablecoins as common language24:07 Domestic RTPs are great, interconnectivity is the real gap26:47 Visa stablecoin settlement: sponsor banks unlock US scale29:52 Non-USD stablecoins: tokenization seeds the cash leg and liquidity37:48 Treasury ROI: speed, predictability, and visible payment status42:43 Compliance vs privacy: what flows need opacityConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.com Raj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyz Chris Harmse: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisharmse/ | http://bvnk.com/ João Del Valle: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joaodelvalle/ | https://www.ebanx.com/ About Money CodeMoney Code is the show that decodes stablecoins and the evolution of programmable money for builders, investors, and decision-makers. Each week, join hosts Chuk Okpalugo, Author of Stablecoin Blueprint and Raj Parekh, Head of Payments/Stablecoins at Monad Foundation as they break down the systems and strategies of seasoned operators in the space, revealing the insights you need for better build and buy decisions.About StableconStablecon (https://stablecon.com/) is the premier gathering for those at the intersection of DeFi, economic policy, financial infrastructure, and institutional integration, and those reinventing global commerce. By convening the brightest minds in fintech and crypto, Stablecon provides attendees with world class thought leadership and fosters unparalleled networking and strategic collaboration across the digital payments industry.   Whether you’re building, advising, or navigating this new frontier, this is the room where it happens.About BVNKBVNK is the leading provider of stablecoin payments infrastructure, helping businesses move money faster, settle globally, and even launch their own stablecoin products. Head to https://bvnk.com/ to learn more.

Presented by Stablecon; Powered by BVNK. In episode 15 of Money Code, hosts Chuk Okpalugo and Raj Parekh are joined by Jackie Reses, Chair and CEO at Lead Bank. They break down why stablecoin payments quietly depend on banks as regulated “plumbing,” how compliance automation becomes a product advantage, and why the biggest second-order risk of stablecoin growth may be destabilizing community-bank deposit bases before local credit creation has a replacement.Subscribe and listen to the Money Code podcast here:https://lnk.to/MoneyCodeSNChapters00:00 Stablecoins don’t work without the banking layer01:28 Why Lead Bank was built from scratch04:27 How you earn regulator trust in modern banking11:25 Onboarding “too tricky” clients and scaling with them13:34 Compliance as a front-of-house product17:44 Why Lead acquired Loop Crypto20:02 Lead’s API primitives and composable banking stack22:49 How different banks should think about stablecoins24:41 The community bank risk: deposit flight and local lending34:25 Tokenized deposits vs stablecoins as rails39:26 The “Hunger Games” phase of fragmentation44:30 Builder advice: precision, scale, and no hyperboleConnect with the Hosts & GuestChuk Okpalugo: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuk-okpalugo/ | https://x.com/chuk_xyz/ | http://stablecoinblueprint.com Raj Parekh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajparekh7/ | https://x.com/rajparekh | http://monad.xyz Jackie Reses: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacqueline-reses-938b7850/