Anchorage Digital: Serving Institutional Crypto Needs - [Web3 Breakdowns, EP. 12]

Today's episode was originally featured in our Web3 Breakdowns feed. For listeners unfamiliar with Web3 Breakdowns, the concept was inspired by Business Breakdowns but intended to be a place fully dedicated to the emerging ecosystem around blockchains, crypto assets, and everything that makes up Web3. This Breakdown of Anchorage Digital has a foot in both camps, by diving into a business that’s enabling traditional institutions to participate in and profit from digital assets. If you enjoy this episode, be sure to subscribe to Web3 Breakdowns and enjoy our growing catalog of episodes.

My guest today is Diogo Monica, co-founder and President of Anchorage Digital. Diogo started Anchorage in 2017 to meet the growing institutional need to custody and use crypto assets. The business has since grown into a full-service financial platform for institutions, allowing them to securely participate in web3. Our discussion breaks down Anchorage’s business, explores what great digital security looks like, and reveals what new behaviors web3 is unlocking for traditional institutions. Please enjoy this breakdown of Anchorage Digital.

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here.

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Show Notes

[00:02:40] - [First question] - Why he got into the crypto space and what set him down the path that would to founding Anchorage 

[00:05:53] - An overview of digital security, state of it today, and where people should spend their time learning about it

[00:09:16] - A future of perfect authentication and data protection being so core to this space

[00:13:29] - How custody should be considered in the modern world and with digital assets

[00:18:59] - What it means to be a great qualified institutional custodian

[00:25:17] - The business and unit economics of Anchorage

[00:28:07] - What it was like working with their first big institutional client

[00:30:52] - Speed as a component of digital security and its implications writ large  

[00:35:51] - How they’re differentiated from their competitors by expanding beyond custody

[00:39:46] - Different challenges between securing NFTs versus currencies and tokens

[00:42:43] - New behaviors he finds most interesting about institutions due to Anchorage

[00:48:46] - Breakdown of what players and services contribute to and create Anchorage’s clients today

[00:51:24] - The best case scenario for the future of the business

[00:53:37] - What would worry him about Anchorage’s development if it swayed from their original mission

[00:55:55] - Opportunities he finds most interesting that haven't materialized yet 

[00:57:46] - Will we need a public blockchain to create the infrastructure needed to bring the world to a more crypto-fluid place

[01:00:07] - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for him 

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