Around The Coin

You can't seem to pick up any Fintech aka banking & payments magazine or blog without the mention of the word, 'financial inclusion'. Depending on whom you talk to, the number of financially excluded population is anywhere from 2.5 Billion people to 1.5 Billion. World Bank Group defines financial inclusion as individuals (and businesses) that have access to useful and affordable financial products and services that meet their needs - such as transactions, payments, savings, credit and insurance - delivered in a responsible and sustainable way. Most of this is done through microfinance banks. These microfinance basically offer a very specialized category of financial services to those who lack access to conventional banking and related services.One such institution that is helping solve this problem of underbanked/unbanked is FINCA. FINCA's network of 20 community-based microfinance institutions and banks use fintech to expand financial inclusion, offering innovative, responsible and impactful financial services to low-income clients.I'm very honored to have Andrée Simon who is the President& CEO of FINACA Impact Finance, based out of Washington DC.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this interview Mike Townsend talks to Kyle Hill, which is a special episode because Kyle and Mike are co-founders of Redeeem (trusted peer-to-peer crypto gift card exchange), and have started 3 startups over the last 8 years together. Previous to Redeeem, they raised $23M for HomeHero, a tech-enabled home care marketplace. They talk about how to work successfully together as a team, the mission and story of Redeeem, as well as a variety of topics related to bitcoin, government regulation, and upcoming exciting blockchain projects.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this interview Mike Townsend interviews Ethan, who talks about his journey from CTO of VC funded startup, Overnight, to partner of AGE Crypto hedge fund. Learn about the differences between a VC fund and a crypto hedge fund, as well as how many exist what specific methods hedge funds use to provide returns for their LPs. Ethan walks us through a typical day, researching github projects, talking to developers of tokens, building tools that automate crypto trading, as well as much more.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this podcast, Nako Mbelle interviews Yan Pritzker the author of Inventing Bitcoin and I discuss what makes bitcoin a revolutionary tech; and why he left his full-time CTO position at his startup to devote 100% of his time to Bitcoin. Yan’s book Inventing Bitcoin is written for non-technical people who want to better understand bitcoin at a deeper level and go beyond the superficial talking points of price and profit.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode Mike Townsend visited the offices of SFOX to interview Founder George Melika and Head of Growth Danny Kim in their offices in Playa Vista, California. SFOX raised $23M in VC from Y Combinator, Social Capital, Tribe Capital among others to build the easiest tool to access the digital cryptocurrency market.We discussed exchange trading, how crypto companies can successfully work with banks, and underrated projects and people working in crypto. Hope you enjoy the conversation and let us know if you have any feedback or suggestions for our next episode.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This show focuses on the FATF, the Financial Action Task Force. We discuss why the organization – that remains unknown to many finance and payments professionals and even to AML/CFT compliance specialists, is so powerful and important. We discuss the basics: why was it created? What are FATF’s goals? What are the down sides or unintended consequences of the standards it sets? We discuss the effects of non-compliance on countries and the inner workings of the mutual evaluation process that countries go through. Finally, we touch upon the questions of political influence, organizational overreach and even bullying through FATF decision making.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nako interviews David Gerard, a Bitcoin critic. They talk about the technological superiority complex of some Bitcoin maximalists; Bitcoin's energy inefficiencies and whether crypto mass adoption is a pipe dream or closer to becoming a reality because of the Lightning Network.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week Faisal Khan sits down with Dr. Mara Wesseling (our newest co-host) and we discuss the world of compliance. This show offers a first introduction to AML/CFT compliance (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism). It touches upon what compliance stands for and who needs to do it. How big and relevant is today's compliance industry? What to make of the unhappy marriage of placing AML and CFT under one legal umbrella? The show also looks into the history of the AML/CFT legal framework and what makes it important now. By reflecting upon the past 30 years of AML regulation and almost 20 years of the War on Terrorism Financing, the effectiveness question remains on the table and the call for a new approach - AML/CFT 2.0 - becomes louder.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Around The Coin, Faisal & Nako get on the air to continue with their BTC (Behind The Coin) series. We discuss the very basics of the Lightning Network and what it means for normals folks like you and I (not to mention Bitcoin enthusiasts). We try to cover this without getting technical. Let us know how we did?Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Faisal and Malini discuss financial inclusionbeyond its basic definition, and talk through the fundamentalbuilding blocks required for a more financially 'inclusive'world.Sponsors:Otter Labs www.hireotter.com- Hire great and inexpensive developer with staff augmentation through Otter.Redeeem https://redeeem.click/qdza- Redeeem is a decentralized peer-to-peer exchange that lets you save 15% or more on gift cards using Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices