Talking Tokens: Crypto, Onchain Finance, Investing

On today's Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn sits down with Asheesh Birla, CEO of Evernorth, the Ripple-backed digital asset treasury firm holding roughly 473 million XRP tokens, to talk about why he thinks we've finally hit the inflection point that blockchain has been building toward for over a decade. 

Asheesh breaks down why most digital assets sit idle the same way cash sits in a bank account, how Evernorth is building a real-time agentic risk engine to change that, and why he believes the winners in this space will be the ones who develop the three pillars of tech, commercialization and liquidity.

TIMESTAMPS:

02:00 - The best use case for blockchains

04:16 - The pace of blockchain adoption vs expectations

08:15 - How Evernorth is creating liquidity for XRP and digital assets

10:00 - Industry misconceptions: tech vs adoption focus

11:33 - The Evernorth report findings for RLUSD and XRP 

14:11 - The significance of stablecoins for institutional markets

21:01 - The importance of asset optimization and real-time capital management

25:28 - How stablecoins strengthen crypto ecosystems rather than compete

30:33 - Idle capital as an overlooked signal and how to put assets to work

33:00 - Building trust and institutional confidence in blockchain

37:46 - The maturation of DeFi vaults and institutional-grade protocols

40:11 - Preparing Evernorth for listing and success metrics

46:42 - Long-term vision and advice for blockchain enthusiasts

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokens, we're sharing Jacquelyn’s Proof of Talk chat with Stani Kulechov, founder and CEO of Aave Labs, to break down why Aave V4 moved away from a single monolithic protocol toward a hub and spoke model that works more like a central bank. Stani gets into why a lot of centralized lenders didn't hold up through both the FTX collapse and last October's market unwind.

Then Stani explains why he thinks the next real growth phase for DeFi comes from financing things like AI infrastructure, tokenized equity, and credit for businesses that have never had access to capital this efficient before.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction to Aave and Stani Kulechov

03:09 Evolution from Aave V3 to Aave V4

06:03 Risk Management in DeFi

08:45 Building Network Resilience

11:58 Aave V4 and Corporate Treasury Management

14:48 Tokenized Assets and Aave Horizon

18:11 Institutional Interest in Tokenization

20:52 Mainstream Adoption of DeFi

24:02 Future Vision for Aave

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn sits down with MoneyGram CEO Anthony Soohoo to talk about MGUSD, the company's new dollar-backed stablecoin built on Stellar with help from Bridge, Fireblocks, and M0.

Anthony explores why launching MoneyGram decided to have its own stablecoin and breaks down how its 60 million active customers and nearly 500,000 retail locations across 200 countries play a role in it. Jacquelyn and Anthony also discuss why the real winners in this space might be the ones who make stablecoins disappear into the background entirely and how the asset can have a dual role in finance.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction to MGUSD and MoneyGram's Vision

03:04 The Complexity of Cross-Border Payments

06:31 Leveraging Existing Infrastructure for Adoption

10:15 The Role of Cash in a Digital Future

12:35 Stablecoins as a Preferred Payment Method

14:09 Self-Custody and User Education

18:22 The Future of Stablecoins and Consumer Adoption

21:33 Navigating Regional Differences in Adoption

24:07 Stablecoins vs. Traditional Banking

25:52 Choosing the Right Partners for MGUSD

28:40 The Dual Role of Stablecoins in Finance

31:21 Lessons from the Crypto Industry

34:51 Advice for Success in the Financial Space

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

Follow us on X Jacquelyn:   / jacqmelinek   

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokenization, Jacquelyn sits down with Kean Gilbert, Head of Institutional Relations at the Lido Ecosystem Foundation, to talk about how liquid staking is finally breaking into traditional finance. 

From the WisdomTree staked ETH ETP in Europe to VanEck's recently filed S-1 for a Lido staked ETF in the US, Kean breaks down why institutions are asking sharper questions than ever before, how depth of liquidity is the single biggest driver behind Lido winning institutional mandates, and why he sees there's no good reason to hold unstaked ETH when you can get the same exposure with 3%.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction to Lido

03:00 Growth of Ethereum Staking and Institutional Interest

05:59 Understanding DAO Structures and Institutional Education

09:05 Tokenization and Its Impact on the Industry

11:58 The Role of Custodians in Institutional Crypto

14:58 Risk Management in Staking and Smart Contracts

17:56 The Role of Staking in Current Markets

19:04 Integration of Staking with Traditional Finance

20:04 Regional Perspectives on Staking Adoption

21:55 Timeline for Global Adoption of Staking

22:22 Market Outlook and Building in Bear Cycles

24:43 ETF Interest and Market Dynamics

25:54 The Importance of Retail in Staking

27:17 Unlocking the Next Wave of Adoption

28:56 Impact of Tokenization on Business Operations

30:41 The Evolution of Institutional Conversations

33:40 Long-Term Thinking in Crypto

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

Follow us on X Jacquelyn:   / jacqmelinek   

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn sits down with Gordon Liao, Chief Economist and Head of Research at Circle, to talk about why traditional financial plumbing is still the biggest bottleneck in money movement globally. 

We discuss Arc, Circle's new institutional blockchain, which is being built from the ground up to handle everything from agentic nano payments to quantum-resistant encryption. Gordon believes that Arc being quantum-ready from day one isn't just a nice-to-have but a decision that could define whether the network and its users survives the next decade of security threats. Gordon also breaks down the three things he thinks the market is underestimating right now and how 99.5% of x402 payment protocol volume is already running through Circle’s USDC.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction to Gordon and His Background

02:45 The Future of Onchain Finance

05:56 USDC and Its Market Position

08:54 Agentic Commerce and AI Integration

11:57 The Launch of Arc and Its Vision

15:00 Challenges in Blockchain Adoption

17:55 Privacy and Security in Blockchain

20:57 Quantum Computing and Its Implications

24:10 Market Perspectives and Economic Insights

30:02 Final Thoughts and Advice

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn sits down with Dakota Campbell, Head of Marketing at Collector Crypt, the platform that generated $165 million in volume in April alone by putting trading cards and physical collectibles onchain with Solana. 

Dakota explains the resurgence of physical collecting is what's actually pulling people toward digital ownership, and why Solana's low fees were the thing that finally made tokenizing a five-dollar card make sense after years of the idea being cost-prohibitive on Ethereum.

He also dives into how he thinks about marketing to everyday collectors vs crypto audiences, what it took to scale the business over the past few years and expansion beyond trading card games.

This episode is a part of the Solana Sessions campaign that Token Relations and the Talking Tokens podcast are doing, diving into founders' journeys and startups building on Solana. Check out the accompanying newsletter on www.token-relations.com 

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 The Evolution of Collectibles

02:55 Digital Collectibles and Nostalgia

06:12 Collector Crypt's Success and Market Dynamics

09:02 The Role of Solana in Collector Crypt

12:02 User Experience: Crypto Native vs. Mainstream Collectors

15:14 Marketplace Dynamics and Price Discoverability

17:45 Attracting Non-Crypto Collectors

21:01 Marketing Strategies for Diverse Audiences

25:21 Understanding Audience Engagement

28:41 Navigating Marketing in the Crypto Space

33:34 Expanding Beyond Trading Card Games

37:18 Rapid Fire Insights on Collectibles

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content.

On this episode of Strata Research, presented by Talking Tokens & Token Relations, Jacquelyn sits down with Institutional Research Analyst Alex Beaudry to dig into crypto neobanks. Apps are rebuilding what Chime and Revolut did a decade ago, but on stablecoin rails and Alex explains how founders can set themselves up for success. Alex’s insights cover why the float and yield model is both the most lucrative and the hardest to sustain through a bear market, and where the real opportunity sits for anyone watching this space over the next 12 to 24 months.

Check out the associated newsletter for more details: https://www.token-relations.com/p/the-neobank-playbook

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction to Crypto Neobanks

02:59 Revenue Models and Market Dynamics

06:02 Challenges and Risks in Crypto Neobanking

08:04 Future Trends and Considerations

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn sits down with Morgan Krupetsky, VP of Onchain Finance at Ava Labs, to break down where institutional adoption of blockchain actually stands right now. 

They discuss why Morgan thinks the industry has officially crossed the chasm from experimental pilots to in-production deployments. Morgan deep dives into the embedded finance stack she's seeing resonate across global markets, why private credit and asset-backed finance are better suited for blockchain rails than equities, and why the deals being announced today were quietly in the works 12 to 18 months ago.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 The Shift in Institutional Crypto Adoption

10:08 Understanding Institutional Strategies

20:22 Tokenization and Its Impact on Financial Markets

30:07 Stablecoins: The Gateway to onchain Finance

40:54 Future Innovations in onchain Finance

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

Follow us on X Jacquelyn:   / jacqmelinek   

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokenization, Jacquelyn sits down with Brett Redfearn, President of Securitize and former SEC Director of Trading and Markets, to trace how tokenization has evolved from floor-based trading rooms to onchain capital markets. Brett explains why he thinks we're entering the most transformative market structure shift in 20 years, why tokenized stocks might be the next major frontier, what the SEC's expected innovation exemption could unlock, and why there are conversations happening right now with bulge bracket banks about bringing tokenized IPOs to onchain investors within the next year or two.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Understanding Tokenization

02:44 The Evolution of Capital Markets

05:09 Regulatory Landscape and Innovation

09:11 Institutional Adoption of Tokenization

13:22 Brett's Transition to Leadership at Securitize

16:15 Growth Opportunities for Securitize

20:12 Advice for Traditional Firms Entering Digital Assets

21:56 The Importance of Networking in Crypto Events

24:26 The Shift of Tokenization from Disruption to Integration

27:09 Bridging Traditional Finance and Blockchain

30:07 Understanding the Landscape of Tokenization

32:33 The Future of Tokenized Assets

39:42 Regulatory Perspectives on Tokenization

42:47 Envisioning the Future of Tokenization

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guest may have financial interests in discussed content. 

On today's Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn sits down with Torab Torabi, CEO of Move Industries, to discuss Movement’s strategic reorientation toward becoming a stablecoin settlement and yield layer for emerging markets. 

Torab shares what he learned from sitting down with the Ethiopian president and Ministry of Finance, why governments in these markets don’t want an unchecked flight to dollars, and why he thinks most teams chasing emerging markets with tokenized stocks or T-bill yields are headed straight for a brick wall.

Torab also discusses the Movement Network Foundation repurchasing approximately 19% of MOVE tokens previously allocated to investors and what it means for the tokenholders going forward.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Introduction to Move Industries and Torab Torabi

02:07 Evolution of Move Industries and Market Dynamics

05:07 Why the Foundation Bought Tokens Back

08:12 Focus on Emerging Markets and Government Engagement

12:12 Security Concerns in DeFi and User Fund Protection

15:19 Differentiating Markets: Developed vs. Emerging

19:04 Stablecoins and Gold in Emerging Markets

23:09 Sharia Compliance and Financial Products for Emerging Markets

24:30 Tokenization and Emerging Markets

26:24 Understanding Compliance in Financial Products

28:34 The Role of Government in Financial Scalability

31:48 Challenges in Currency Exchange and Adoption

34:09 Key Metrics for Success in Emerging Markets

36:10 Institutional Adoption vs. Emerging Market Focus

40:58 Strategic Reorientation and Future Plans

You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you enjoy the show, please leave a review — it really helps. 

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ 

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TalkingTokens 

Follow us on X Jacquelyn:   / jacqmelinek   

Talking Tokens:   / _talkingtokens   

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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Views shared are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have financial interests in discussed content.