The Breakdown

The IRS dropped quite the surprise today: their first new tax guidance since 2014. Unfortunately, it seems to indicate that chains forking and airdropping users coins (whether they want them or not) creates a taxable event. Meanwhile, DevCon5 is cruising along in Osaka, complete with Ethereum scaling debates, the imminent launch of Multi-Collateral DAI, and the announcement of a new, open version of Libra (although it's not exactly clear why people are excited about this). Lastly, the real Libra faced some headwinds as US Senators put pressure on Visa, Mastercard and Stripe to follow suit with PayPal and leave the Libra Association. 

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/nathanielwhittemorecrypto

The IRS dropped quite the surprise today: their first new tax guidance since 2014. Unfortunately, it seems to indicate that chains forking and airdropping users coins (whether they want them or not) creates a taxable event. Meanwhile, DevCon5 is cruising along in Osaka, complete with Ethereum scaling debates, the imminent launch of Multi-Collateral DAI, and the announcement of a new, open version of Libra (although it's not exactly clear why people are excited about this).

First it was the NBA aggressively distancing itself from comments from Rockets GM Daryl Morey in support of Hong Kong protesters. Then it was Blizzard banning a player from competitive Hearthstone play for making a pro Hong Kong statement live on air. On this Narrative Watch, we dig into the uncomfortable tension between China's role in the globe business world and it's tight control over dissent and critique - and more specifically, why it is a reminder of the need for permissionless, decentralized, censorship resistant alternatives in money and technology. 

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/nathanielwhittemorecrypto

First it was the NBA aggressively distancing itself from comments from Rockets GM Daryl Morey in support of Hong Kong protesters. Then it was Blizzard banning a player from competitive Hearthstone play for making a pro Hong Kong statement live on air. On this Narrative Watch, we dig into the uncomfortable tension between China's role in the globe business world and it's tight control over dissent and critique - why it is a reminder of the need for censorship resistant alternatives in money and technology.

Libra is back in the spotlight after the WSJ published reports that Visa, Mastercard and others are getting cold feet after the chilly reception from regulators around the world. David Marcus took to Twitter to defend the project, while simultaneously creating a narrative line to pickup should those companies abandon the Libra Association. A challenger to Nancy Pelosi is discussing how cryptos can be used to break the power monopolies of big tech, while a new advocacy organization is taking on what they call the CA bitlicense. Finally, volume on LocalBitcoins in Hong Kong is up more than any time since the 2017 boom amidst heightened protests. The question is: who's buying? 

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/nathanielwhittemorecrypto

Libra is back in the spotlight after the WSJ published reports that Visa, Mastercard and others are getting cold feet after the chilly reception from regulators around the world. A challenger to Nancy Pelosi is discussing how cryptos can be used to break the power monopolies of big tech, while a new advocacy organization is taking on what they call the CA bitlicense. Finally, volume on LocalBitcoins in Hong Kong is up more than any time since the 2017 boom amidst heightened protests. But who's buying?

The SEC's $24m settlement with EOS has been all anyone has been able to talk about for the last day or so. In this episode, we look at the four camps of reactions: the "they got off easy"; "you're all commies"; "it's about the consistency"; and the pragmatists. We also discuss the "Crypto Rating Council" and the general state of the SEC's securities law determinations. Insider baseball with big implications for the evolution of the industry. 

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/nathanielwhittemorecrypto

The SEC's $24m settlement with EOS has been all anyone has been able to talk about for the last day or so. In this episode, we look at the four camps of reactions: the "they got off easy"; "you're all commies"; "it's about the consistency"; and the pragmatists. We also discuss the "Crypto Rating Council" and the general state of the SEC's securities law determinations. Insider baseball with big implications for the evolution of the industry. 

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/nathanielwhittemorecrypto

Last week saw a 20% drop in the price of Bitcoin - much of coming in a short, 30 minute span. What it didn't see was the usual hand wringing and frantic explanations. In fact, most of last week's conversation was about totally different topics: Libra, central bank digital currencies, troubling developments for surveillance and crypto regulation in the UK. On this Narrative Watch, I explore whether this is simply a matter of the strength of fundamentals, or whether a fundamentally different time preference has taken hold. 

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/nathanielwhittemorecrypto

Last week saw a 20% drop in the price of Bitcoin - much of coming in a short, 30 minute span. What it didn't see was the usual hand wringing and frantic explanations. In fact, most of last week's conversation was about totally different topics: Libra, central bank digital currencies, troubling developments for surveillance and crypto regulation in the UK. On this Narrative Watch, I explore whether this is simply a matter of the strength of fundamentals, or whether a fundamentally different time preference has taken hold. 

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/nathanielwhittemorecrypto