In Episode 8 of Layer One, The Block’s Kelvin Sparks and Hypha founder Steven Gates were joined by Santiago R. Santos of Inversion Capital. He explains why many crypto token valuations are structurally flawed and outlines his framework for investing in durable, cash-flow-supported adoption, with a focus on B2B stablecoin use cases.

The group debates how to value crypto beyond tribal narratives, arguing that many token prices overpay for a future that still requires regulatory clarity and real demand for blockspace. 

OUTLINE
00:00 - Intro
00:00:27 - Scope and disclaimer
00:01:41 - FDV and investor framing
00:04:02 - Valuation bias
00:12:23 - Investing through cycles
00:21:44 - Choosing Avalanche infrastructure
00:28:29 - Retrofitting real businesses
00:35:46 - Who’s building this model
00:41:52 - Writing, thinking, first principles
00:50:16 - Fieldwork beats theory
00:52:53 - Asking the right questions
01:00:23 - TGE and FDV reality
01:07:30 - Final takeaways

Host/Guest links:
Santiago R Santos - twitter.com/santiagoroel
Inversion Capital - twitter.com/inversion_cap
Steven Gates - ⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/stvngts⁠⁠⁠
Kelvin Sparks - ⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/imyoungsparks⁠⁠⁠
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In Episode 7 of Layer One, The Block’s Kelvin Sparks and Hypha founder Steven Gates were joined by Charles Yoo-Naut, co-founder of Rain, and John Gomez, co-founder and former CEO of Uptop.

The group discussed the convergence of stablecoin payments and on-chain loyalty infrastructure, why rewards plus payments are becoming table stakes, and how sports and IP are driving real-world adoption.

OUTLINE
00:00 - Intro
03:58 - What is Rain
04:30 - Uptop + acquisition fit
06:01 - Fundraise & M&A lessons
12:43 - Why rewards matter
16:29 - Stablecoin “aha” moment
25:26 - Regulation, timing, builders
33:53 - Lifestyle banking & IP
41:59 - Marketplaces, on-ramps, costs
47:35 - Why raise $250M
50:11 - Stablecoins in 3 years
51:56 - Proliferation of issuers
53:59 - Closing remarks

Host/Guest links:
Charles Yoo-Naut - twitter.com/cnaut
Rain - twitter.com/raincards
John Gomez - linkedin.com/in/john-timoney-gomez-a64b669b/
Uptop - twitter.com/uptop_xyz
Steven Gates - ⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/stvngts⁠⁠⁠
Kelvin Sparks - ⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/imyoungsparks⁠⁠⁠
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In episode six of Layer One, The Block's Kelvin Sparks and Hypha Founder Steven Gates were joined by Ava Labs's VP of Business Development of Onchain Finance, Morgan Krupetsky and VanEck's Head of Digital Asset Research Matthew Siegel. Together, the group discussed what actually drives institutional conviction in crypto. Siegel explained why VanEck chose Avalanche for its first alt-L1 ETF, citing product-market fit, economic clarity, and an active BD team onboarding real institutions. The conversation covers DATs vs ETFs, the innovator's dilemma facing banks, and why market downturns are exactly when serious builders separate from tourists.

Host/Guest links:
Matthew Siegel - twitter.com/matthew_sigel
VanEck - twitter.com/vaneck_us
Morgan Krupetsky - twitter.com/MorganKrupetsky
Ava Labs - twitter.com/AvaLabs

Steven Gates - ⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/stvngts⁠⁠⁠

Kelvin Sparks - ⁠⁠⁠twitter.com/imyoungsparks⁠⁠⁠

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In episode five of Layer One, The Block's Kelvin Sparks and Hypha Founder Steven Gates were joined by Ava Labs General Counsel Lee Schneider and Plume General Counsel Salman Benaei, to discuss how the Senate bill turns crypto's legal foundation from sand to stone, and what that means for the next generation of builders.

OUTLINE

00:00 - Introduction

01:28 - Salman's Path: CFTC to Crypto

05:52 - Lee on Token Sales & Legal Structures

08:17 - RWA Rights & Disclosures

12:26 - What Buyers Should Care About

15:15 - Pre-IPO Tokenized Shares

18:49 - The Governance Token Question

22:03 - The Decentralization Test Debate

28:13 - What Clarity Means for Builders

36:41 - TradFi's Crypto Play

44:31 - Open vs Closed Networks

51:20 - Outro

Host/Guest links:

Salman Banaei - https://x.com/banamlas

Lee Schneider - https://x.com/leelaughs5x

Steven Gates - ⁠⁠twitter.com/stvngts⁠⁠

Kelvin Sparks - ⁠⁠twitter.com/imyoungsparks⁠⁠

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In episode four of Layer One, The Block's Kelvin Sparks and Hypha Founder Steven Gates were joined by Kite AI's Head of Business Development and Strategy, Lei Lei, to discuss why AI agents need dedicated blockchain infrastructure rather than general purpose blockchains. The trio also touch on the recent hype around Claude Code, why enterprise giants are panicking about AI disruption, and how the X-402 payments protocol did $600M in volume last year.

OUTLINE

00:00 - Introduction

01:13 - Claude Code

04:26 - Why Avalanche

09:40 - X-402 Explained

13:01 - General Purpose Chains

19:37 - Swarms Gone Rogue

26:53 - Crypto-Native Enterprises?

30:03 - $600M & Counting

37:04 - Big Name Backers

42:07 - Winners & Losers

47:30 - Outro

Host/Guest links:

Lei Lei - https://x.com/lei_lei0904

⁠KiteAI - ⁠https://x.com/GoKiteAI

Steven Gates - ⁠twitter.com/stvngts⁠

Kelvin Sparks - ⁠twitter.com/imyoungsparks⁠

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In episode three of Layer One, The Block's Kelvin Sparks and Hypha Founder Steven Gates were joined by The Arena CEO Jason DeSimone to discuss the platform’s revival and two-year growth, creator monetization via ticket rails, and the future of SocialFi, M&A, and AI-driven content.

Host/Guest links:

Jason DeSimone - x.com/jasonmdesimone
The Arena - x.com/TheArena
Steven Gates - twitter.com/stvngts
Kelvin Sparks - twitter.com/imyoungsparks

00:00 - Introduction

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In episode two of Layer One, The Block’s Kelvin Sparks and Hypha Founder Steven Gates, were joined by guest co-host and Ava Labs President John Wu, and Skybridge Founder and Managing Partner, Anthony Scaramucci to discuss we are in the crypto cycle, how Avalanche is positioned to facilitate institutional adoption, and how upcoming U.S. regulation like the Clarity Act could unlock the next wave of onchain finance.

Host/Guest links:

Anthony Scaramucci - https://x.com/Scaramucci

John Wu - https://x.com/John1wu

Steven Gates - https://x.com/stvngts

Kelvin Sparks - https://x.com/imyoungsparks

00:00 - Introduction

01:05 - Scaramucci’s Background

04:25 - FTX, Abu Dhabi & Leadership Lessons

08:58 - Why Avalanche Wins Institutions

12:24 - Project Crypto, Policy & Partisanship

17:04 - The Clarity Act & Tokenization Boom

25:39 - Stablecoins vs Traditional Payments

32:24 - DeFi, RWAs & Liquidity

47:23 - Where We Are in the Cycle

49:41 - Fed, Macro Outlook & Closing

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The Block is proud to introduce our newest podcast: Layer One — created in collaboration with Avalanche.

Hosted by The Block’s Kelvin Sparks and Hypha Founder Steven Gates, Layer One explores the people, ideas, and technologies shaping the future of crypto.

In this inaugural episode, Kelvin and Steven are joined by Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly, and Sean Lippel, General Partner at Fintech Collective.

Together, our dive into their origins in the world of poker — and how the decision-making frameworks, risk management skills, and psychological insights they developed at the table carry over into crypto, trading, and investing.

Host/Guest links:

Haseeb Qureshi - https://x.com/hosseeb

Sean Lippel - https://x.com/seanlippel

Steven Gates - https://x.com/stvngts

Kelvin Sparks - https://x.com/imyoungsparks

00:00 Introduction

1:07 Poker-to-Crypto Pipeline

5:36 Biggest Risks & Bad Beats

11:38 Poker Brains, VC Games

17:08 Reading the Market Regime

21:54 Betting on 2029

25:09 DeFi Growing Pains

31:44 Institutions Meet DeFi

37:17 Stablecoins, RWAs, Alts

46:13 DATs, Staking & Yield

54:47 The Avalanche Thesis

1:00:44 Vertically Integrated Moments

1:06:52 Pump.Fun & Sign-Off

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