Blockchain Value

Kadeem Clarke is an entrepreneur, blockchain expert, and venture capitalist investing in the top cryptocurrency companies of the future. In addition to being a freelance digital consultant for tech startups and small businesses, Kadeem is Head of Labs of Momentum 6, a value-add-focused VC fund in the crypto space. Momentum 6 invests in early-stage cryptocurrency startups and provides incubation services, from marketing to tokenomics, to help grow portfolio companies. At Momentum 6, Kadeem leads a research team that publishes educational content about blockchain projects and related topics. Kadeem also works with recording artists to launch NFT drops.

Most current NFT projects target crypto investors and the wealthy with ultra-expensive PFP NFTs that gate access to communities and protocols. In P2E games, NFTs are used to power in-game economies. These use-cases have grown to large markets, but don't address the mass. NFTs are gradually disrupting the media and entertainment industry, tune in to learn more about Kadeem's predictions on how this will happen.

Lewis Cohen is the co-founder of DLx Law, a law firm founded in 2018 to serve the needs of a new, technology-driven economy.  Lewis and the DLx Law team provide in-depth legal counsel to startups, growth companies, major enterprises, and governmental entities on a broad range of matters involving the use of blockchain, cryptocurrencies and other disruptive technologies.  Passionate about the ability of innovative technologies to change the way businesses and individuals work together, Lewis has become a major advocate for the potential of emerging technologies to benefit and transform industries around the globe.

Lewis brings more than 25 years of experience advising major clients in capital markets and finance transactions.  Lewis is a frequent public speaker on the topic of blockchain and distributed ledger technology.  Lewis served on the Board and Executive Committee of the Structured Finance Industry Group (SFIG). Lewis is also recognized by Chambers Global as one of only three lawyers in “Band 1” for Legal: Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies – USA. Follow Lewis on Twitter: @NYCryptolawyer.

We’ve spoken a lot about digital assets and regulation so far, but there are still a few topics we have yet to cover. In this episode, we discuss stablecoins. What makes a digital asset a stablecoin? Are all stablecoins more or less the same? What regulatory issues do stablecoins pose? What exactly is an “NFT”? From a securities regulatory point of view, what should we know about NFTs? Last but by no means least, it seems like every country is talking about developing a “central bank digital currency”. Is the Fed really going to issue crypto!?

Dr. Thibault Schrepel, LL.M., is an Associate Professor of Law at VU Amsterdam University where he co-directs the Amsterdam Law & Technology Institute, and a Faculty Affiliate at Stanford University CodeX Center where he has created the “Computational Antitrust” project that brings together over 60 antitrust agencies. Thibault also holds research and teaching positions at the University Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Sciences Po Paris. He is a Harvard University Berkman Center alumnus, a member of the French Superior Audiovisual Council’s scientific board, also, a blockchain expert appointed to the World Economic Forum and the World Bank.

In 2018, Thibault was granted the “Academic Excellence” Global Competition Review Award, which recognizes “an academic competition specialist who has made an outstanding contribution to competition policy.” He has published a first manuscript (Bruylant ed.) on the subject of “predatory innovation in antitrust law” and articles at Harvard University, Stanford, MIT, Oxford, NYU, Berkeley, and Georgetown, among others.

These last couple of years, Thibault has been focusing most of his research on blockchain antitrust and computational antitrust. He has written the world’s most downloaded antitrust articles of 2018 (“The Blockchain Antitrust Paradox”), 2019 (“Collusion by Blockchain and Smart Contracts”), 2020 (“Blockchain Code as Antitrust”), and 2021 (“Computational Antitrust: An Introduction and Research Agenda”). His latest book, “Blockchain + Antitrust”, was published in September 2021.

In this episode, Prof. Thibault Schrepel will explore the dynamics between blockchain and big tech companies. What is the state of the relationship between blockchain and big tech companies?  Is Web 3.0 truly decentralized? Why should antitrust agencies pay particular attention to this relationship? Can the law influence this relationship?

A list of open-access resources to learn computer science https://leconcurrentialiste.com/computer-science-resources/

Blockchain + Antitrust The Decentralization Formula book https://www.elgaronline.com/view/9781800885523.xml

Blockchain + Antitrust The Decentralization Formula book https://www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/blockchain-antitrust-9781800885523.html

Claudia Olah is the Director of Marketing for Metajuice, a subsidiary of the first and largest social metaverse platform, Together Labs (formerly IMVU). She's been in the crypto industry managing global marketing teams in Shanghai for over 5 years and is now back in Silicon Valley leading a team that is building digital assets for the metaverse.

Today we'll be talking about what industry leaders are doing in the Metaverse, how blockchain is a part of that whole system and what companies today are doing to utilize this to enhance their marketing strategy. What got her into Crypto industry? What made her join MetaJuice? What is the future of Brands and Marketing in the Metaverse?

Dirk Lueth is a serial entrepreneur and an early adopter of blockchain and related technologies, based in Silicon Valley. He co-founded European and US-based companies in the FinTech and digital media spaces, including the Financial Times Deutschland and Forbatec which has been acquired by SunGard (today NYSE:FIS). Dirk mentored over 30 startups through his work at international startup accelerators in Silicon Valley and is a frequent speaker/panelist focusing on topics about the metaverse, blockchain, and platform economics.

He has studied Business Administration in Frankfurt and Paris and received a Ph.D. from the European Business School in Germany where he wrote his doctoral thesis about private and state-controlled currencies.

Like the Internet before it, the metaverse is a virtual space bringing people, companies, and products together in both digital and real environments to create new economic opportunities. The groundwork is already laid. People and organizations jumping in are gaining invaluable experience, meeting customers, developing revenue streams, and even shaping metaverse culture. This episode delivers a groundbreaking discussion of how to find the right opportunities in this fast-moving universe. You’ll explore everything from the metaverse basics, to strategy, to launching your first metaverse project.

Ari Redbord is the Head of Legal and Government Affairs at TRM Labs, the blockchain intelligence company. TRM provides next generation blockchain analytics software to governments, financial institutions and cryptocurrency businesses.

Prior to joining TRM, Ari was the Senior Advisor to the Deputy Secretary and the Undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence at the United States Treasury where he worked with teams from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and other Treasury components to use sanctions and other regulatory tools effectively to safeguard the financial system from illicit use. Prior to Treasury, Ari was an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia for eleven years.

2021 was the year of the NFT and it looks like 2022 might be a repeat! From Bored Apes to CryptoPunks, Top Shot to SNL, non-fungible tokens have exploded into pop culture, sports, and finance. But like anything that allows for value transfer at the speed of the internet, NFTs present unique risks from illicit actors who want to use emerging technology for money laundering and other illicit activity. Ari Redbord of TRM Labs joins us to talk about the NFT regulatory landscape, illicit finance risks and ultimately the power and promise of NFTs to solve complex problems way beyond art and collectibles.

Miko Matsumura is a General Partner with gCC Gumi Cryptos Capital, a Silcon Valley investment fund with over $400M in assets including early-stage investments in unicorns like OpenSea, Yield Guild Games, Celsius Network, VEGA Protocol, Qredo and 1Inch Network.

Miko fell in love with open source software 25 years ago as chief Developer Evangelist for the Java Programming Language and Platform at Sun Microsystems. Since then he has been building open source software startups in Silicon Valley including raising over $50 million in venture capital for developer platform companies such as Gradle and financial infrastructure companies like Hazelcast and has participated in multiple exits including INFRAVIO, webMethods, and Db4O. He is an advisor in successful startups like Celsius (CeFi Lending), Idle Finance (DeFi Yield Aggregator), Pundi X (Payments), and KEYLESS (ID infrastructure). He holds a Master’s degree in Neuroscience from Yale University where he worked on abstract computational neural networks.

In this episode, we discuss the state of the union speech and a conversation about where we are in the blockchain journey and why this matters. Where are we in crypto? What have we achieved? What worked? What hasn't worked? Where do we go next?

Lewis Cohen is the co-founder of DLx Law, a law firm founded in 2018 to serve the needs of a new, technology-driven economy.  Lewis and the DLx Law team provide in-depth legal counsel to startups, growth companies, major enterprises, and governmental entities on a broad range of matters involving the use of blockchain, cryptocurrencies and other disruptive technologies.  Passionate about the ability of innovative technologies to change the way businesses and individuals work together, Lewis has become a major advocate for the potential of emerging technologies to benefit and transform industries around the globe.

Lewis brings more than 25 years of experience advising major clients in capital markets and finance transactions.  Lewis is a frequent public speaker on the topic of blockchain and distributed ledger technology.  Lewis served on the Board and Executive Committee of the Structured Finance Industry Group (SFIG). Lewis is also recognized by Chambers Global as one of only three lawyers in “Band 1” for Legal: Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies – USA. Follow Lewis on Twitter: @NYCryptolawyer.

At present, with some notable exceptions, like the DAO Report in 2017, much of our understanding of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s approach to digital assets has been derived from enforcement actions.  Unsurprisingly, many of these actions have resulted in settlements with the alleged offender, for which little can be gleaned.

The relatively few cases which have gone to litigation have been instructive—if not illuminating.  For example, a brief in the Ripple Labs matter from earlier this year revealed that the SEC’s position is that the digital asset that was sold, XRP, is not itself a security but rather the “embodiment” of an investment contract.  Whether this position is one which the SEC and other regulators will continue to adopt and maintain—as opposed to the more common perception that many digital assets are in and of themselves securities—and whether such a concept would stand up to judicial scrutiny, is representative of the existential uncertainty which persists, despite the current corpus of regulatory guidance.

In addition, although fewer in number, private litigation continues to play a role.  Finding a way to solve for the gap and alleviate some of the legal uncertainties which persist, in a way which drives innovation forward while protecting investors and participants, will likely be one of the greater challenges that practitioners, regulators, and legislators face in the coming years.

Daniel Spuller is the Head of Industry Affairs for the Blockchain Association in Washington, DC. He was appointed Co-Chair of the North Carolina Blockchain Initiative by the Office of the Lieutenant Governor in 2019. Since 2012, Spuller has been an advocate of decentralized digital assets, bitcoin, and blockchain-based technologies.

From 2016-2020, Spuller led membership and growth at the Washington-based Chamber of Digital Commerce growing it from 38 to over 200 members at its peak. He previously worked for North Carolina’s Department of Commerce and was instrumental in facilitating negotiations between the Commissioner of Banks and industry, successfully driving a multi-stakeholder campaign leading to the legislative passage of America’s first comprehensive blockchain-related legislation through the North Carolina Money Transmitters Act of 2016.

In 2013 Spuller co-founded the Cryptolina Bitcoin Expo, and has since driven blockchain thought leadership as a heavily sought after resource sharing insights with corporate and governmental agencies, lawmakers on Capitol Hill and regulators at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Department of State, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), George Washington University, and Johns Hopkins University, among others.

The crypto ecosystem continues to revolutionize many of the most important and regulated functions of our society. Naturally, no other industry of comparable size and age has so quickly captured the focus of policy makers and regulators. This attention creates unique challenges and significant opportunities. Join us as we explore industry trends, discuss job growth and investment, and where things may be headed.

Lewis Cohen is the co-founder of DLx Law, a law firm founded in 2018 to serve the needs of a new, technology-driven economy.  Lewis and the DLx Law team provide in-depth legal counsel to startups, growth companies, major enterprises, and governmental entities on a broad range of matters involving the use of blockchain, cryptocurrencies and other disruptive technologies.  Passionate about the ability of innovative technologies to change the way businesses and individuals work together, Lewis has become a major advocate for the potential of emerging technologies to benefit and transform industries around the globe.

Lewis brings more than 25 years of experience advising major clients in capital markets and finance transactions.  Lewis is a frequent public speaker on the topic of blockchain and distributed ledger technology.  Lewis served on the Board and Executive Committee of the Structured Finance Industry Group (SFIG). Lewis is also recognized by Chambers Global as one of only three lawyers in “Band 1” for Legal: Blockchain & Cryptocurrencies – USA. Follow Lewis on Twitter: @NYCryptolawyer.

In this podcast, we will look at the origins of the initial coin offering (ICO) and how digital assets came to be used as a fundraising tool. We will then walk through how ICOs were conducted and some of the misaligned incentives involved.  Following that, we will look at the enforcement response, from the SEC as well as from state regulators.  Finally, we will look at the popping of the ICO bubble and its rebirth in initial exchange offerings and other alternative approaches to fundraising through the sale of digital assets.