The Breakdown

With a set of recent actions, the FDIC has completely reversed its aggressive anti-crypto campaign, nearly two years to the day after Nic Carter first termed it "Operation Chokepoint 2.0." In this episode, a recently voice losing NLW turns to OpenAI's Deep Research and Google's NotebookLM to do a history of the campaign against crypto.

Read the original research paper: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F_zV0uyI5MRa5TNN3fh8X7EQPKDoD_zOT6JUZi1ryQY/edit?usp=sharing

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Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today.Buy now on Ledger.com.

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SEC Commissioner Hester Pierce, long a holdout stalwart for the crypto industry, is now empowered to lead policy via the SEC's new Crypto Task Force. In a recent speech, she laid out the group's specific priorities.

Sponsored by:

Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today.Buy now on Ledger.com.

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.....or is that just insane wishful thinking? NLW explores the latest Trump executive action. Once again, mainstream economic wisdom is skeptical, but should we reserve judgement until we see the specific proposal?

Sponsored by:

Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today.Buy now on Ledger.com.

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The Trump Tariffs broke absolutely everyone's mind this weekend. Most, frankly, didn't see the logic and even those with a pro-Tariff bent were surprised at the direction and scale of the move. NLW argues that the one thing that's for sure is that these weren't primarily economic moves; they were all about geostrategic realignment.

Sponsored by:

Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today.Buy now on Ledger.com.

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A reading and discussion inspired by:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/01/28/investing-crypto-tech-robinhood-stock-market/

https://www.coindesk.com/opinion/2025/01/30/put-securities-on-chain

Sponsored by:

Ledn

Need liquidity without selling your Bitcoin? For 6+ years, Ledn has been the trusted choice for Bitcoin-backed lending. With transparency, security, and trust at our core, we help you access your BTC’s wealth while HODLing. Discover what your Bitcoin can do at ledn.io/borrowing.

Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today.Buy now on Ledger.com.

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Recorded live with Scott Melker on Friday 1.31.25

Sponsored by:

Ledn

Need liquidity without selling your Bitcoin? For 6+ years, Ledn has been the trusted choice for Bitcoin-backed lending. With transparency, security, and trust at our core, we help you access your BTC’s wealth while HODLing. Discover what your Bitcoin can do at ledn.io/borrowing.

Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today.Buy now on Ledger.com.

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NLW rattles off a slate of forward-looking news that shows where Bitcoin and crypto are headed in a new regulatory context. He specifically hones in on Robinhood's push for stock tokenization as a way to democratize access to financial investment opportunities.

Sponsored by:

Ledn

Need liquidity without selling your Bitcoin? For 6+ years, Ledn has been the trusted choice for Bitcoin-backed lending. With transparency, security, and trust at our core, we help you access your BTC’s wealth while HODLing. Discover what your Bitcoin can do at ledn.io/borrowing.

Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today. Buy now on Ledger.com.

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It might have been the world's most predictable Fed meeting when it came to interest rates, but there was a decided shift in tone from Fed Chair Jerome Powell when it came to the Fed's stance on crypto and the banks.

Sponsored by:

Ledn

Need liquidity without selling your Bitcoin? For 6+ years, Ledn has been the trusted choice for Bitcoin-backed lending. With transparency, security, and trust at our core, we help you access your BTC’s wealth while HODLing. Discover what your Bitcoin can do at ledn.io/borrowing.

Ledger

Ledger, the world leader in digital asset security, proudly sponsors The Breakdown podcast. Celebrating 10 years of protecting over 20% of the world’s crypto, Ledger ensures the security of your assets. For the best self-custody solution in the space, buy a LEDGER™ device and secure your crypto today.Buy now on Ledger.com.

Enjoying this content?

Everyone everywhere is talking about DeepSeek. It sent Bitcoin down under $100k temporarily and ripped trillions of the US stock market. NLW breaks down what happened and why markets reacted so strongly.

Sponsored by: Ledn

Need liquidity without selling your Bitcoin? For 6+ years, Ledn has been the trusted choice for Bitcoin-backed lending. With transparency, security, and trust at our core, we help you access your BTC’s wealth while HODLing. Discover what your Bitcoin can do at ledn.io/borrowing.

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NLW breaks down the specific language of the Trump crypto executive order, including the controversial lack of "bitcoin." Should bitcoiners be worried?

Sponsored by: Ledn

Need liquidity without selling your Bitcoin? For 6+ years, Ledn has been the trusted choice for Bitcoin-backed lending. With transparency, security, and trust at our core, we help you access your BTC’s wealth while HODLing. Discover what your Bitcoin can do at ledn.io/borrowing.

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