CoinDesk Podcast Network

Joseph Lubin, Ethereum co-founder and ConsenSys CEO, explains MetaMask’s shift into a personal neobank users control from their devices. He highlights new features like tokenized equities via Ondo Finance, prediction markets, high-liquidity perps, debit cards, and stablecoin payments. Lubin also touches on distribution scale, TradFi integration, and quantum risk preparedness.

Matt Hougan, CIO of Bitwise and institutional crypto strategist. He discusses why the market still feels like a winter and when institutions might thaw it. He explains central banks’ role in gold’s rally and whether they could buy Bitcoin. He raises the looming Bitcoin security-budget question and how AI agents might turbocharge on-chain activity.

Ding X, founder of Predict.Fun and former anonymous PancakeSwap creator, talks about stepping into public leadership after years pseudonymous. He explains why NFTs shifted toward builders, how meme coins redirected capital, and how Predict.Fun turns prediction wagers into yield-bearing NFT positions. They also touch on privacy, selective disclosure, and the future sustainability of on-chain prediction markets.

Markus Thielen, founder and CEO of 10x Research, a firm specializing in on-chain and market-microstructure analysis. He warns of institutional redemptions and a large liquidity gap driving a deeper bitcoin decline. He explains the post-election liquidity trap and how negative option gamma forced market-makers into selling. He outlines a possible $40–50K summer range and timing factors for a bottom.

Chris Alfano, CEO of 360 Energy, a founder building off-grid gas-to-compute systems for oil and gas sites. He discusses why major oil companies avoid hash-price exposure and prefer simple offtakes. Conversation covers pipeline-scale mining versus single-well taps, technical challenges of dirty fuel gas, and the move toward off-grid power as the sustainable endgame.

They unpack a sudden $16,000 Bitcoin crash and the debate over capitulation. They cover Bitdeer’s legal fight over a 570MW Ohio site and operational headaches. IREN’s upcoming MSCI USA index listing gets attention. They also explore a historic run of negative mining difficulty adjustments and the push for quantum-resistant crypto upgrades.

Tom Masiero, Head of Strategy at Cathedra and bitcoin mining/energy expert, discusses the shift of miners toward AI and HPC compute. He compares this migration to China’s 2021 mining ban. Topics include miners’ power and deployment advantages, risks of bespoke GPU infrastructure, and the rise of sub-50MW sites and battery-backed strategies.

Richard Teng, Co-CEO of Binance and former regulator in Abu Dhabi, discusses Binance’s leap to 300 million users and its push into institutional services. He outlines the Franklin Templeton program using tokenized money market funds as off-exchange collateral. He also covers regulatory competition, global partnerships, and where new retail and institutional activity is coming from.

Jennifer Ilkiw, President of ICE Futures US, returns ICE to regulated crypto derivatives with single-token futures and CoinDesk 5 and 20 multi-token futures. She outlines ICE’s compliant-innovation strategy, data partnerships including PolyMarket, and work with IOSCO‑compliant indices. Discussion covers why institutions prefer futures, demand for multi-asset products, and market infrastructure needed for wider adoption.

Discussion of how a 1% shift of Asian household wealth into crypto could inject nearly $2 trillion into markets. Exploration of ETF adoption and BlackRock’s surge driven by Asian demand. Overview of Hong Kong’s digital asset strategy and competition from the UAE. Notes on Gen Z’s interest in high-leverage crypto products amid housing pressures.