MoneyNeverSleeps

This week, Eoin Fitzgerald and Pete Townsend riff on the latest US regulatory crackdown in crypto markets, how NBA Top Shot on the Apple app store is a leading indicator of our wider society’s digital asset adoption whether we realize it or not, trouble in Banking-as-a-Service land with Solaris, Nova Credit’s entry to the UK market, and Revolut’s Irish Trojan Horse.

STORIES COVERED:

Crypto markets on edge as U.S. regulatory crackdown on industry intensifies (CNBC, 14-Feb-23)

NBA Top Shot Will Let Users Buy NFTs via Apple, Android Mobile Apps (Decrypt (via Pet Berisha @ Sporting Crypto) 16-Feb-23)

Solaris Setback Spells Trouble For European Fintech Scene (Meaghan Johnson in Forbes, 15-Feb-23)

Nova Credit wins FCA authorisation (Finextra, 19-Jan-23)

Revolut rolls out credit cards in Ireland (Finextra, 20-Feb-23)

NatWest to buy workplace savings fintech Cushon for $174 mln (Reuters (via Lex Sokolin's Fintech Blueprint) 13-Feb-23)

LINKS:

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Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Eoin Fitzgerald  |  Pete Townsend

In this special segment, we’re featuring web3 investors, founders and mentors such as Joey Krug from Pantera Capital, Matthew Graham from Sino Global Capital, Teana Baker-Taylor from Circle, Sam Williams from Arweave, John Wu from Ava Labs, Clarisse Hagege from Dfns, Sean Lee from Odsy, Tim Bos from ShareRing and Michelle Tsing from GRI.

Included in this episode are some of the most helpful insights that these web3 leaders have shared with us over the past year and a half. The common thread you’ll hear from all of them is that the things that make a great web3 project or startup focus a heckuva lot more on humanity than technology.

FEATURED VOICES:

Teana Baker-Taylor, now VP of Policy & Regulatory Strategy at Circle, on ep 163

John Wu, President of Ava Labs, on ep 164

Michelle Tsing, web3 governance advisor, on ep 161

Matthew Graham, CEO of Sino Global Capital, on ep 165

Joey Krug, co-CIO of Pantera Capital, on ep 166

Tim Bos, founder and CEO of ShareRing, on ep 169

Clarisse Hagege, co-founder and CEO of Dfns, on ep 202

Sean Lee, co-founder of Odsy Network, on ep 201

Sam Williams, co-founder and CEO of Arweave, on ep 205

LINKS

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Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Eoin Fitzgerald  |  Pete Townsend

Dee Coakley is the co-founder and CEO of Boundless, the operating system for your international team, which she co-founded with Emily Castles in Ireland in 2019. Boundless is ‘global employment made simple, with benefits, share options and payroll in one neat platform’.

In this episode, Dee riffs with Eoin Fitzgerald and Pete Townsend on the snowball effect of the diverse international experiences and relationships that made Boundless such a no-brainer for her to co-found, the shifting mindsets, societal changes and competitive landscape that have made remote working and distributed international teams a scalable reality, the benefit of tight alignment with your seed investors, and how Dee is thinking about the next steps to grow the Boundless business.

LINKS

Learn more about Boundless and follow Boundless on Twitter

Connect with Dee Coakley on LinkedIn and follow her on Twitter

Episode title inspired by ‘Sure Shot’ by the Beastie Boys

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Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Eoin Fitzgerald  |  Pete Townsend

Sam Williams is co-founder and CEO of Arweave, a blockchain protocol allowing us to remember and preserve valuable information, apps, and history indefinitely. Pete Townsend interviewed Sam last month on the Techstars GiveFirst podcast, so thanks to David Cohen and Techstars for letting us share the interview for this episode of MoneyNeverSleeps.

In this episode, Sam shares the inspirational story of how Arweave got started, their life-changing experience with Techstars Berlin in 2018, and how their long-term vision, hope, and resilience have been the foundation of their successes to date.

LINKS:

Learn more about Sam Williams and follow Sam on Twitter

Learn more about Arweave and follow Arweave on Twitter

Episode title inspired by ‘Memory Lane (Sittin’ in da Park)’ by Nas

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Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Eoin Fitzgerald  |  Pete Townsend

This week, Eoin Fitzgerald and Pete Townsend riff on Eoin’s new role at Enterprise Ireland, the final nail in the coffin for Meta’s former crypto project Diem, the next steps for Ant Group now that Jack Ma is formally out, the back and forth on the environmental impact of crypto and bitcoin’s role, some new ideas on agri-finance thanks to past guest Nik Milanovich, and some details on an event Pete’s co-hosting for Techstars Web3 with Genesis Block and Union Square Ventures in New York City on 17-Jan-23.

This episode of MoneyNeverSleeps is sponsored by SecuriCentrix. SecuriCentrix is a trusted cyber security company with offices in Dublin, Cape Town and London. SecuriCentrix provides expert advisory services, primarily in the finance and fintech industries, with tailored security solutions to fit your specific needs and regulatory challenges.

STORIES COVERED

Silvergate buries Diem; lays off 200 staff (Finextra & CoinDesk, 6-Jan-23)

Jack Ma out of Ant group (Fintech Blueprint, 9-Jan-23)

Cryptocurrency mining and trading devastating the planet? (Finextra, 6-Jan-23)

GBTC Leverage Death Rattle? With Steven McClurg (What Bitcoin Did, 9-Jan-23)

The Next Fintech Revolution: Agriculture Finance (Nik Milanovic in Forbes, 6-Jan-23)

The Italian Bank Where You Can Use Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese As Loan Collateral (Tasting Table, 7-Jan-23)

LINKS

Leave a review and subscribe on Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Eoin Fitzgerald  |  Pete Townsend

This week, Eoin Fitzgerald and Pete Townsend riff on the latest on Sam Bankman-Fried before diving into a few of the fintech and web3 predictions for 2023 published recently, then we do an experimental walk-through of the AI bot ChatGPT. We finish up with a look at some of the January leadership changes in fintech and crypto and an update on the Techstars Web3 accelerator.

This episode of MoneyNeverSleeps is sponsored by SecuriCentrix. SecuriCentrix is a trusted cyber security company with offices in Dublin, Cape Town and London. SecuriCentrix provides expert advisory services, primarily in the finance and fintech industries, with tailored security solutions to fit your specific needs and regulatory challenges.

STORIES COVERED

What’s in store for European fintech in 2023? (Sifted, 3-Jan-23)

Web3 in 2023 (Life in Color Blog, 2-Jan-23)

Is Binance in Trouble? (Forbes, 14-Dec-22)

Gemini’s Winklevoss accuses crypto mogul Silbert of ‘bad faith stalling tactics’ over frozen funds (CNBC, 4-Jan-23)

This is what the future holds for cryptocurrencies (World Economic Forum Davos blog, 2-Jan-23)

In a banking industry first, neobank Cogni adds noncustodial Web3 wallet (Yahoo Finance, 22-Dec-22)

ChatGPT is Coming for Crypto (Forbes (via CoinDesk), 28-Dec-22)

Goldman Sachs' consumer banking unit head steps down (Reuters, 3-Jan-23)

Zodia Custody Appoints Crypto Exchange Bitstamp’s Julian Sawyer as CEO (CoinDesk, 3-Jan-23)

Techstars Web3 accelerator investment thesis 2.0 (Techstars Newsroom, 26-Nov-22)

LINKS

Leave a review and subscribe on Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Eoin Fitzgerald  |  Pete Townsend

Clarisse Hagege, founder and CEO of Dfns, joins the show this week recorded recently as part of the Techstars Web3 Community Series events organized by the Techstars Web3 Accelerator. Dfns is a cybersecurity company providing wallet infrastructure for web3. From banks to gaming studios, developer teams rely on their decentralized custody network to build seamless applications and deliver smooth experiences for crypto.

This episode of MoneyNeverSleeps is sponsored by SecuriCentrix. SecuriCentrix is a trusted cyber security company with offices in Dublin, Cape Town and London. SecuriCentrix provides expert advisory services, primarily in the finance and fintech industries, with tailored security solutions to fit your specific needs and regulatory challenges.

In addition to Dfns, Clarisse is also a mentor for the Techstars Web3 Accelerator, and a graduate of the ABN Amro + Techstars Future of Finance Accelerator class of 2021.

In this episode, Clarisse Hagege and Pete Townsend riff on the drivers behind why ‘builders are still building' in web3 in the midst of the bear market, getting the right balance between security and freedom when protecting your crypto assets, how the history of custody is informing how we decentralize trust so that we can 'trust the tech' rather than third parties, and the challenges of building in web3.

LINKS:

Follow Clarisse Hagege on LinkedIn and learn more about Dfns

Follow Dfns on Twitter

Leave a review and subscribe on Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Pete Townsend |  Eoin Fitzgerald

Sean Lee, co-founder of Odsy Network, joins the show this week recorded recently as part of the Techstars Web3 Community Series events organized by the Techstars Web3 Accelerator. Sean is the former CEO of the Algorand Foundation, he is an accomplished executive in web3 innovation and fintech, and is a senior advisor for the Crypto Council for Innovation.

This episode of MoneyNeverSleeps is sponsored by SecuriCentrix. SecuriCentrix is a trusted cyber security company with offices in Dublin, Cape Town and London. SecuriCentrix provides expert advisory services, primarily in the finance and fintech industries, with tailored security solutions to fit your specific needs and regulatory challenges.

In this episode, Sean and Pete riff on his vision for universal access in web3 and some of the web3 scenarios where universal access will make a big difference, how early-stage founders should be thinking about accessibility when they're designing their platforms and roadmaps, how advocacy and collaboration will drive global adoption of crypto and web3, and what Sean looks for in web3 founders.

LINKS:

Follow Sean Lee on Twitter and learn more about Odsy

Follow Odsy on Twitter

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Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Pete Townsend |  Eoin Fitzgerald

Holy Mackenzie, we just hit 200 episodes!  When Eoin Fitzgerald said to Pete Townsend in early 2018, “Hey Pete, I heard you on a couple of podcasts, wanna help me start one?” never in our wildest dreams did we think this would become such an integral part of our week for the past, well, 200 weeks. So, here’s our recap of our Top 10 from the past one hundred episodes, some honourable mentions, the Top 10 all-time by downloads, reflections on flywheels, the good things that come from doing 200 podcast episodes, and a bunch of our past guests sharing their good tidings.

Thanks to all of our fantastic guests, sponsors, supporters and especially to our listeners - we couldn’t have hit 20 episodes, never mind 200, without you!

This episode of MoneyNeverSleeps is sponsored by SecuriCentrix. SecuriCentrix is a trusted cyber security company with offices in Dublin, Cape Town and London. SecuriCentrix provides expert advisory services, primarily in the finance and fintech industries, with tailored security solutions to fit your specific needs and regulatory challenges.

TOP 10 FROM THE LAST 100:

114: Changes | Mick Sweeney on Markets, Society, Leadership and Digital

128: Ten Thousand Hours | Robert Alice, Portraits of a Mind and NFTs 

131: Wings | Fiona Edwards Murphy and ApisProtect

165: Matthew Graham | Sino Global Capital, Web3 and Making Your Hobby Your Job

168: Money Talks #46 | What a Year | Eoin and Pete's Top Stories of 2021

121: Money Talks #28 | GameStop and WallStreetBets | Visa-Plaid Deal Dead | Buying Monzo

136: The Prediction II | Andrew Mullaney and Premind AI

150: Growing Up | Brian Kenny and MiniCorp

175: My Philosophy | Nik Milanović, This Week in Fintech and The Fintech Fund

123: Perfect | Deborah Brock and Nua Fertility

LINKS

Leave a review and subscribe on Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

This week, Eoin and Pete take the inevitable plunge into what to make of the FTX mess, and then resurface with some of the scenarios unfolding on what Elon Musk has in mind for the 250 million daily active users of Twitter.  The guys also look at the hubbub around the control of Tech Nation in the UK, a Digital Dollar pilot in the US, and how the Big Tech layoffs in Ireland may be short-term pain but long-term gain.

This episode of MoneyNeverSleeps is sponsored by SecuriCentrix. SecuriCentrix is a trusted cyber security company with offices in Dublin, Cape Town and London. SecuriCentrix provides expert advisory services, primarily in the finance and fintech industries, with tailored security solutions to fit your specific needs and regulatory challenges.

STORIES COVERED

The Casino and the Genie (Mario Gabriele, The Generalist newsletter, 13-Nov-22, h/t Packy McCormick)

5 More Disturbing Revelations About Sam Bankman-Fried (NY Magazine, 14-Nov-22)

Elon Musk details his vision for a Twitter payments system (TechCrunch, 9-Nov-22)

Startup founders go to war with UK government over its moves to appoint bank into key ecosystem role (TechCrunch, 15-Nov-22)

Global Banks Partner With New York Fed for 12-Week Digital Dollar Pilot (Watcher Guru, 12-Nov-22),

‘I’m doing this 26 years and I’ve never seen anything like it’: Laid-off tech staff hunt for new work (Business Post (paywall), 12-Nov-22)

LINKS

Leave a review and subscribe on Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Check out our MoneyNeverSleeps website and email us at [email protected]

Follow us on Twitter:  MoneyNeverSleeps  |  Eoin Fitzgerald  |  Pete Townsend