Empire

This week, the Hivemind team discuss the upcoming $1.3 billion Pump ICO, ETH’s potential comeback, crypto treasury companies, the GMX exploit fallout, prediction markets reshaping information flows, free markets vs state direction, and more. Enjoy!

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Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from Katherine Ross and David Canellis.

Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire 

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Follow Ceteris: https://x.com/ceterispar1bus 

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Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ 

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Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction

(1:40) Market Overview

(4:07) Bitcoin Whale Wallet

(5:23) Treasury Companies

(15:48) ETH Comeback?

(21:30) Pump.Fun Sale

(34:13) Impact on Solana?

(40:47) Crypto Hacks

(43:26) Pump Demand

(46:58) Prediction Markets

(58:53) Free Markets vs State Direction

(1:16:16) EthCC

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, the Hivemind team, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

Gm! This week Yano is joined by Steven and AJ from OffChain Labs to dive into all the behind-the-scenes happenings of one of the biggest deals in recent crypto history - the collaboration between Arbitrum and Robinhood to tokenize both public and private US stocks for European markets. 

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Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from Katherine Ross. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire?utm_source=podcasts

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Follow Steven - https://x.com/sgoldfed

Follow AJ - https://x.com/ajwarner90

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SKALE is the next evolution in Layer 1 blockchains with a gas-free invisible user experience, instant finality, high speed, and robust security. SKALE is built different as it allows for limitless scalability and has already saved its 50 Million users over $11 Billion in gas fees. SKALE is high-performance and cost-effective, making it ideal for compute-intensive applications like AI, gaming, and consumer-facing dApps. Learn more at https://skale.space and stay up to date with the gas-free invisible blockchain on X at @skalenetwork

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Katana is a DeFi-first chain built for deep liquidity and high yield. No empty emissions, just real yield and sequencer fees routed back to DeFi users. Pre-deposit now: Earn high APRs with Turtle Club [https://app.turtle.club/campaigns/katana] or spin the wheel with Katana Krates [https://app.katana.network/krates]

Mantle is evolving into the premier on-chain financial hub, supercharging the ecosystem that bridges blockchain with banking. The 2025 roadmap introduces three transformative products: - Enhanced Index Fund (launching Q1) offering optimized crypto exposure to BTC, ETH, SOL and USD with built-in yield optimization - targeting $1B AUM - Mantle Banking for seamless financial services - MantleX for AI-powered innovationBacked by a $4.5B treasury, Mantle is building the future of on-chain finance – accessible for everyone.Learn more: https://x.com/Mantle_Official/status/1882017058680086805

Zenrock is a permissionless, decentralized custody network backed by 1RoundTable Partners, 10T, Maven11, and Spartan. Live on Jupiter, $ROCK is the native token for transactions within the Zenrock ecosystem and secures Zenrock’s decentralized custody network.The first application launching on Zenrock is zenBTC – yield-bearing Bitcoin on Solana. zenBTC is now live.

Ledn is the leading platform for Bitcoin-backed loans, offering a secure and transparent way to unlock liquidity without selling your Bitcoin. Ledn has issued over $9 billion in loans since 2018 and has never lost a single satoshi of client assets, earning a reputation as the name you can trust in the crypto space.Visit https://www.ledn.io to learn more.

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CHAPTERS:

00:00 Intro

02:45 BTS Of Robinhood X Arbitrum Collab

07:25Launch & Migrate Strategy

19:01 Ads (Skale, Katana)

20:49 What Did Robinhood Want The Most Out Of Arbitrum

24:03 Business Model Breakdown

38:22 Ads (Skale, Katana)

40:09 The Largest Digital Nation

42: OpenAI Tokens

46:56 Next Up To Work With Arbitrum

51:57 Ads (Mantle, Zenrock, ,LEDN)

54:26 Mistakes Around L1s and L2s

01:13:16 Corporate Treasuries

01:16:53 Acquisitions

01:20:13 Stablecoins

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

Happy 4th of July to our stateside followers! On this episode, Rob Hadick joins Santi to review the biggest news of the week focusing in on stablecoins, Circle IPO butterfly effects, robinhood’s arbitrum tokenization announcement at Cannes at ECC, 12 month outlook and the biggest opportunities today in crypto.

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Rob's Stablecoin Article - https://x.com/HadickM/status/1934680037795705133

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Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from Katherine Ross. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire?utm_source=podcasts

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Follow Rob: https://x.com/HadickM

Follow Santi: https://x.com/santiagoroel

Follow Jason: https://x.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

GEODNET is the world’s largest RTK network, delivering real-time, centimeter-level precision for drones, robots, farmers, and first responders. Recognized by the U.S. Congress, this blockchain-powered network supports mission-critical applications across a wide range of industries. Discover how GEODNET is changing the world: [https://geodnet.com]

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Get up to speed on the biggest stories in crypto each week. In five minutes. Get the Bitwise Weekly CIO Memo delivered directly to your inbox at bitwiseinvestments.com/ciomemo/empire

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Ledger, the global leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors Expansion! As Ledger celebrates 10 years of securing 20% of global crypto, it remains the top choice for securing your assets. Buy a LEDGER™ device now, and build confidently, knowing your BTC, ETH, SOL, and more are safe.Buy now on https://shop.ledger.com/?r=1da180a5de00.

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Citrea is the first zero-knowledge rollup to enhance the capabilities of Bitcoin blockspace and enable Bitcoin applications (₿apps). Citrea is optimistically verified by Bitcoin, offering the most Bitcoin-secured and native way to extend BTC’s utility to DeFi. Learn more about Citrea: https://citrea.xyz/?utm_source=bellcurve&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=website_promo Follow Citrea on X/Twitter for the latest on its journey to mainnet: https://x.com/citrea_xyz

This week, we're excited to share with our community a bonus episode from PERMISSIONLESS IV, which just took place this past week in Brooklyn, NY. This is a Fireside Chat with Yano and Ivan Soto-Wright, the CEO of MoonPay, and Sherri Haymond of MasterCard who dive in and discuss the fusion of DeFi and TradFi.

01:00 - Mastercard's Web3 Journey

02:53 - Stablecoins + MoonPay

05:08 - MoonPay + MasterCard Partnership

07:28 - Katana Ad

08:28 - Beneficiaries Of The Future Of DeFi + TradFi

12:25 - Global Stablecoin Adoption

15:25 - Stablecoin Backed Cards

16:31 - Katana Ad

20:12 - Future Industry Thesis For Tokenization

This week, we're excited to share with our community a bonus episode from PERMISSIONLESS IV, which just took place this past week in Brooklyn, NY. This is a Fireside Chat with Yano and Konstantin Richter of Blockdaemon and it brings all the alpha for builders and investors in the space!

This week, we're excited to share with our community a bonus episode which recaps PERMISSIONLESS IV, which just took place this past week in Brooklyn, NY. While Santi and Jason are not in this episode, the episode does feature some of the biggest names in the Blockworks podcast family and we hope you enjoy all the alpha!

Follow Boccaccio: https://x.com/salveboccaccio

Join Michale, Mike, Yano and Santi on stage and LIVE from PERMISSIONLESS IV as they break down crypto's breakout moment for this week's roundup!

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Follow Michael - https://x.com/im_manderson

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Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

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Join the Empire Telegram: https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh

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Get up to speed on the biggest stories in crypto each week. In five minutes. Get the Bitwise Weekly CIO Memo delivered directly to your inbox at bitwiseinvestments.com/ciomemo/empire

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Ledger, the global leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors Expansion! As Ledger celebrates 10 years of securing 20% of global crypto, it remains the top choice for securing your assets. Buy a LEDGER™ device now, and build confidently, knowing your BTC, ETH, SOL, and more are safe.Buy now on https://shop.ledger.com/?r=1da180a5de00.

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Citrea is the first zero-knowledge rollup to enhance the capabilities of Bitcoin blockspace and enable Bitcoin applications (₿apps). Citrea is optimistically verified by Bitcoin, offering the most Bitcoin-secured and native way to extend BTC’s utility to DeFi. Learn more about Citrea: https://citrea.xyz/?utm_source=bellcurve&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=website_promo Follow Citrea on X/Twitter for the latest on its journey to mainnet: https://x.com/citrea_xyz

Chapters:

(00:00) Intro

(01:25) The Growth of Prediction Markets

(04:11) Polymarket vs Kalshi's Business Models

(09:32) Ads (Geodnet, Bitwise)

(11:08) Is Crypto Forming Its Own Mag 7?

(19:16) Ads (Geodnet, Bitwise)

(20:53) Global Capital Pools and the State of Venture

(30:21) Bitcoin Dominance Is Up Only

(36:21) Ads (Ledger, Citrea)

(37:52) Verifiable Apps and the Effectiveness of the DAO

(40:56) How to Play the Stablecoin Boom

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, the Hivemind team explains why crypto feels stagnant despite rising prices, the ongoing failure of real-world asset (RWA) narratives, and how on-chain credit markets are quietly gaining traction. They also dive into the explosion of new token launches, the misguided obsession with “real yield,” what the success of Ethena and Pendle says about crypto's evolution, and more. Enjoy!

--

Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from Katherine Ross and David Canellis.

Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire 

--

Follow Ceteris: https://x.com/ceterispar1bus 

Follow Jose: https://x.com/ZeMariaMacedo 

Follow Yan: https://x.com/YanLiberman 

Follow Duncan: https://x.com/FloodCapital 

Follow Empire: https://x.com/theempirepod 

Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/4jYEkBx 

Subscribe on Apple: https://bit.ly/3ECSmJ3 

Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/4hzy9lH 

--

Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ 

--

Timestamps:

(0:00) Introduction

(1:26) WW3 Averted

(6:33) Institutional Inflows and Treasury Plays

(8:44) Bitcoin and Altcoin Performance

(15:59) Crypto Innovations, Bitcoin DeFi & Yield Farming

(25:28) Crypto Sentiment vs Fundamentals

(33:45) Proof of Governance Over Staking Inflation

(44:32) HyperLiquid

(57:24) Reflections on Crypto Innovations

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, the Hivemind team, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, Marc Boiron (CEO, Polygon Labs) and Sandeep Nailwal (CEO, Polygon Foundation) joined Yano to dive into all the happenings at Polygon, their comeback plan, how the industry has shifted since last cycle, the best business models currently for chains and how Katana and the Agglayer will push not only the project, but crypto forward.

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Follow Marc - https://x.com/0xMarcB

Follow Sandeep - https://x.com/sandeepnailwal

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

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Join the Empire Telegram: https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh

Learn more at https://skale.space and stay up to date with the gas-free invisible blockchain on X at @skalenetwork

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Crypto never sleeps. So we built an Al analyst that never blinks.Meet Focal by FalconX: a GenAI insights engine built for institutional crypto.Already used by 80+ funds managing $10B+ in AUM.- Screen, chart, and analyze 1300+ tokens- Summarize market-moving news instantly- Integrates data from CoinGecko, Kaito, Token Terminal, Tokenomist, The TieGet started today: https://askfocal.com

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Ledn is the leading platform for Bitcoin-backed loans, offering a secure and transparent way to unlock liquidity without selling your Bitcoin. Ledn has issued over $9 billion in loans since 2018 and has never lost a single satoshi of client assets, earning a reputation as the name you can trust in the crypto space.Visit https://www.ledn.io to learn more.

Happy Saturday! On this bonus episode sponsored by our partners at Supra, Josh Tobkin joins Yano to share all about the new and exciting advances that Supra are making when it comes to combining AI, oracles and blockchain to create TAOs (Threshold AI Oracles) and AutoFi - the new frontier of decentralized finance!

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Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from Katherine Ross. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire?utm_source=podcasts

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Follow Joshua - https://x.com/JoshuaTobkin

Follow Jason: https://x.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

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Join the Empire Telegram: https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh

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Chapters:

(00:00) Intro

(02:08) What's Supra?

(08:04) Modular Approach Limitations

(10:34) Supra’s L1 Approach

(18:44) Solana, Base, Hype

(21:43) AutoFi

(35:49) Super Treasury

(43:49) Evolution Of Revenue Models

(47:47) MEV

(55:41) The Crypto Cool Kids

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.