Empire

Crypto's window for regulatory clarity is about to close while Robinhood raises questions about who actually captures the value created onchain.

This week, we unpack Clarity’s narrowing path through Congress and what failure could mean for crypto markets and institutional adoption.

We also debate Ethereum’s economics, Coinbase’s Base reset, the Ostium hack vs instant settlement, and Stripe’s reported PayPal bid. Enjoy!

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Intro

01:50 Clarity Act’s Closing Window

08:40 Trump’s Crypto Ethics Roadblock

14:07 What Clarity Means For Markets

18:13 Robinhood Exposes Ethereum’s Value Problem

28:14 Coinbase Resets Base’s Strategy

39:28 Ostium Hack Challenges Instant Settlement

50:50 Stripe’s Bid To Reinvent PayPal

01:04:57 AI Trades And Biohacking

01:10:20 Content Of The Week

FOLLOW THE SHOW

› Empire – https://x.com/theempirepod

› Jason – https://x.com/jasonyanowitz

› Santiago – https://x.com/santiagoroel

› Rob – https://x.com/HadickM

› Telegram – https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh

› Blockworks – https://x.com/Blockworks

EVENTS

› Join us at Digital Asset Summit 2026 Asia October 7th & Digital Asset 2026 London November 10-11th

https://blockworks.com/events

DISCLAIMER

Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only. Any views expressed are opinions, not financial advice. Hosts and guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

What happens when crypto finally builds a trading experience for everyone, not just crypto natives?

This week, Jason sits down with fomo co-founders Paul and Se to discuss why consumer crypto has struggled, how fomo is approaching onchain trading differently, and why they believe social finance is the next major platform.

They explore building for mainstream users, the future of tokenized assets, product design tradeoffs, creator-driven distribution, and why transparent onchain data could redefine how investors discover ideas. Enjoy!

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Intro

03:35 Why Consumer Crypto Keeps Failing

09:32 Selling The Social Finance Vision

15:57 From Niche App To Breakout

22:22 How Fomo Acquires Users

27:57 Building The Social Trading Layer

34:44 Fees, Perps, And Onchain Competition

43:37 Expanding Beyond Trading Fees

49:12 Funding Growth Through Market Cycles

53:14 Robinhood, X, And Copy Trading

58:00 Media And Frictionless Onboarding

01:04:03 The Everything Trading App

01:09:00 Crypto, Tokens, And Going Public

FOLLOW GUESTS

› Se – https://x.com/seyong

› Paul – https://x.com/paulerlanger

› fomo – https://x.com/fomo

FOLLOW THE SHOW

› Empire – https://x.com/theempirepod

› Jason – https://x.com/jasonyanowitz

› Telegram –https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh

› Blockworks – https://x.com/Blockworks

EVENTS

› Join us at Digital Asset Summit 2026 Asia October 7th & Digital Asset 2026 London November 10-11th

https://blockworks.com/events

DISCLAIMER

Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only. Any views expressed are opinions, not financial advice. Hosts and guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

AI and distribution moats are forcing investors to separate real business transformation from crypto’s unresolved value-capture problem.

This week, Jason and Santi discuss what months of researching crypto adoption taught Inversion, why the firm's investment strategy is evolving, and what it reveals about where value is actually being created today.

They also explore Robinhood's onchain strategy, whether AI is delivering stronger returns than crypto in traditional businesses, the debate over token versus equity value capture, and how the next generation of consumer finance is taking shape. Enjoy!

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 Intro

03:15 Inversion’s Crypto Thesis Reset

06:17 Where Crypto ROI Breaks

11:58 The Distribution Quality Trap

17:12 Inversion Broadens Its Mandate

22:02 Crypto’s Value Capture Problem

28:00 AI Rewrites Company Workflows

31:45 Ads (Peaq)

33:01 AI Pricing Hits The Limit

39:09 Robinhood Chain Takes Off

48:07 Regulatory Arbitrage Goes Onchain

52:35 Finance For The Next Generation

57:02 The Token Equity Debate

FOLLOW THE SHOW

› Empire – https://x.com/theempirepod

› Jason – https://x.com/jasonyanowitz

› Santiago – https://x.com/santiagoroel

› Telegram – https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh

› Blockworks – https://x.com/Blockworks

Robots will soon outnumber humans onchain. peaqOS turns them into a new trusted liquid asset class, with yield tied to real-world workloads. It gives robots all they need to do business on any chain — and lets humans earn from automation.

Explore the Machine Economy: https://peaq.xyz

EVENTS

› Join us at Digital Asset Summit 2026 Asia October 7th & Digital Asset 2026 London November 10-11th

https://blockworks.com/events

DISCLAIMER

Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only. Any views expressed are opinions, not financial advice. Hosts and guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, we’re back with another weekly roundup to discuss the announcement of OUSD and what it means for the future of Circle. We then deep dive into Robinhood’s recent product launches, Venice’s $65M raise, crypto’s continued discussion around tokens vs. equity, and more. Enjoy!

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

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

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

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Robots will soon outnumber humans onchain. peaqOS turns them into a new trusted liquid asset class, with yield tied to real-world workloads. It gives robots all they need to do business on any chain — and lets humans earn from automation. Explore the Machine Economy: https://peaq.xyz

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(02:52) Did Saylor End Strategy’s Sell Off?

(10:15) The Launch of OpenUSD

(17:49) Should Everyone Launch A Stablecoin?

(32:42) peaq Ad

(33:28) Cloudflare's Monetization Gateway

(38:35) Robinhood Launches A Chain

(56:00) Venice Raises $65M & Crypto’s Token vs Equity Problem

(01:16:14) Content of The Week

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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, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, Vishal Garg joins the show to discuss how crypto and AI are reshaping the mortgage market. We deep dive into Better’s business model, why the mortgage market is so inefficient today, how to leverage tokenization and AI, partnering with Coinbase and OpenAI, and more. Enjoy!

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Follow Vishal: https://x.com/vishal_better

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

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

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Robots will soon outnumber humans onchain. peaqOS turns them into a new trusted liquid asset class, with yield tied to real-world workloads. It gives robots all they need to do business on any chain — and lets humans earn from automation. Explore the Machine Economy: https://peaq.xyz

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Timestamps:

(00:00) What’s Wrong With The Mortgage Market Today

(03:10) The Better Business Model

(20:35) peaq Ad

(21:21) Launching Crypto Backed Mortgages

(30:04) Partnering With Sky

(35:10) The Opportunity For Tokenization & AI

(44:21) Running a Public Company

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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, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, we’re back with another weekly roundup to discuss the current state of markets as worries around Strategy drag crypto lower. We then deep dive into the competition in prediction markets, the state of crypto venture, Kraken’s pursuit of a stake in Aave, Fomo’s $75M raise, and more. Enjoy!

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

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

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

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

--

Robots will soon outnumber humans onchain. peaqOS turns them into a new trusted liquid asset class, with yield tied to real-world workloads. It gives robots all they need to do business on any chain — and lets humans earn from automation. Explore the Machine Economy: https://peaq.xyz

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(02:33) State of The Market

(07:01) State of Crypto Venture

(21:57) peaq Ad

(22:43) The Prediction Market Wars

(38:07) Kraken Pursuing 15% Stake in Aave

(48:18) Fomo Raises $75M at $550M Valuation

(50:35) Content of The Week

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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, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, Ben Jones and Karl Floersch join the show to discuss what happened to the L2s. We take a deep dive into Optimism's new strategy for 2026, the current state of Ethereum, why companies need to launch a chain, having a token, and more. Enjoy!

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Follow Karl: https://x.com/karl_dot_tech

Follow Ben: https://x.com/ben_chain

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

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

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Robots will soon outnumber humans onchain. peaqOS turns them into a new trusted liquid asset class, with yield tied to real-world workloads. It gives robots all they need to do business on any chain — and lets humans earn from automation. Explore the Machine Economy: https://peaq.xyz

--

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(03:43) What L2s Got Right vs Wrong

(12:46) peaq Ad

(13:42) Optimism’s Strategy in 2026

(32:36) What’s Optimism’s Moat?

(40:02) Who Needs To Build a Chain?

(51:20) The Current State of Ethereum

(59:39) Launching a Token

(01:03:10) What Defines Success in Crypto?

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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, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, we’re back with another weekly roundup to discuss why the US government placed export controls on Anthropic's Fable model. We then deep dive into open vs close sourced models, will Microstratgey blow up, structuring a portfolio in 2026, Coinbase's new product announcement and more. Enjoy!

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Follow Jordi: https://x.com/gametheorizing

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

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

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

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

--

Robots will soon outnumber humans onchain. peaqOS turns them into a new trusted liquid asset class, with yield tied to real-world workloads. It gives robots all they need to do business on any chain — and lets humans earn from automation. Explore the Machine Economy: https://peaq.xyz

--

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(07:16) Anthropic's Fable Banned by US Government

(20:10) peaq Ad

(20:57) Open vs Closed Source Models

(26:42) Structuring A Portfolio Post 10/10

(40:07) Will Microstrategy Blow Up?

(59:12) Coinbase's Product Announcement

(1:05:40) Content of The Week

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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, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

This week, Ryan Watkins join the show to discuss the current state of crypto and where he sees the most opportunity in 2026. We deep dive into running a crypto fund in 2026, do four year cycles still exist, the Hyperliquid thesis, token unlocks and more. Enjoy!

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Follow Ryan: https://x.com/RyanWatkins_

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

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

--

Robots will soon outnumber humans onchain. peaqOS turns them into a new trusted liquid asset class, with yield tied to real-world workloads. It gives robots all they need to do business on any chain — and lets humans earn from automation. Explore the Machine Economy: https://peaq.xyz

--

Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(04:02) Running A Crypto Fund In 2026

(09:55) Do Four Year Cycles Exist?

(16:36) peaq Ad

(17:22) How To Find A Trade

(25:52) The Hyperliquid Thesis

(49:44) Is The Hyperliquid Trade Overcrowded?

(53:28) Opportunities In Crypto, Token Unlocks & The L1 Trade

(01:02:16) Zcash & Privacy

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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, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this special episode, Blockworks announces its acquisition of Messari and unpacks what it means for crypto’s next phase. Michael and Jason explore why Messari’s breadth of data, APIs, and research complement Blockworks’ deep on-chain analytics, investor relations, and disclosure products. They also address crypto’s trust problem, the need for standardized data and disclosures, and how Blockworks aims to become the trusted data layer connecting issuers, investors, exchanges, regulators, and AI agents in on-chain markets.

Learn more: https://blockworks.com/insights/blockworks-acquires-messari

Follow Blockworks on X: https://x.com/Blockworks

Follow Messari on X: https://x.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Michael on X: https://x.com/MikeIppolito_

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