The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Congressman and House Majority Whip Tom Emmer.

In this episode, Chaparro and Emmer discussed President Trump's first weeks in office, the Democrat's missteps with voters in general and on crypto, and alleged waste and fraud in government spending.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction and Super Bowl Recap

02:13 Crypto Policy and Political Dynamics

07:11 Identity Politics and Crypto Perception

10:18 Democrats' Missteps and Voter Alienation

12:40 Speed of Policy Changes and Potential Risks

15:27 Fraud in Government Agencies

17:19 Congressional Oversight and Budget Issues

20:32 Ensuring Long-Term Crypto Regulation

22:33 Promises to the Crypto Industry

25:46 Malice in Crypto Regulation?

28:11 Stablecoin Legislation

30:29 Closing Remarks and Farewells

GUEST LINKS

Rep. Tom Emmer - https://emmer.house.gov/

Rep. Tom Emmer on X - https://x.com/tomemmer

GOP Majority Whip on X - https://x.com/GOPMajorityWhip

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by VP of Product at QuickNode, Josh Neuroth.

In this episode, Chaparro and Neuroth explored the rapid growth and increased adoption of blockchain by traditional financial institutions. They also unpacked QuickNode’s role in providing high-performance infrastructure to support both emerging blockchain projects and enterprise adoption.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction and Quick Node's Journey

03:14 Trends in Blockchain and Enterprise Adoption

07:38 Financial Institutions and Blockchain Scaling

12:54 Developer Activity Surge on Solana and Base

18:11 Emerging Ecosystems and Quick Node's Focus

21:30 Future Plans and Tokenization of Real-World Assets

25:38 Conclusion and Farewells

GUEST LINKS

Josh Neuroth - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshneuroth/

Josh Neuroth on X - https://x.com/EastofETH

QuickNode - https://www.quicknode.com/

QuickNode on X - https://x.com/QuickNode

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Custodia Bank Founder and CEO Caitlin Long.

In this episode, Chaparro and Long discussed the state of crypto banking, the potential restructuring of regulations under the Trump administration, and the Federal Reserve's stance on crypto.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

1:39 Powell’s crypto remarks

3:02 Custodia and the Fed

7:19 Trump’s crypto executive order

8:34 Banks’ path to crypto custody

12:12 12 month forecast

17:51 State of crypto banking

24:34 The Crypto Vote

30:15 Trump’s meme coin

32:50 Privatising fed wire

38:40 Crypto in Wyoming

41:25 Closing thoughts

GUEST LINKS

Caitlin Long - https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlin-long-/

Caitlin Long on X - https://x.com/CaitlinLong_

Custodia Bank - https://custodiabank.com/

Custodia Bank on X - https://x.com/CustodiaBank

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Cambrian Asset Management President Tony Fenner-Leitão.

In this episode, Chaparro and Fenner-Leitão discussed his firm's approach to the crypto market, which involves using machine learning and data-driven models. They also touched on the impact of increased institutional participation and regulatory changes in the crypto space and how these developments have affected the overall market dynamics.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

03:29 Lack of liquid participants

08:25 Cambrian’s perspective on the Trump meme coin

13:31 Shifting market dynamics

17:18 Regulatory changes

22:56 Cambrian’s requirements for entering a market

29:16 Active management vs VC allocation

35:39 Conclusion

GUEST LINKS

Tony Fenner-Leitão - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tonyfennerleitao/

Cambrian Asset Management - https://www.cambrianasset.com/

Cambrian Asset Management on X - https://x.com/CambrianAsset

This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot

Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

The Scoop's host, Frank Chaparro, was joined by Story Protocol Co-Founder Jason Zhao.

In this episode, Chaparro and Zhao discussed the inefficiencies and challenges in the current IP landscape, and how Story aims to address these by allowing creators to monetize and license their IP in a more open and efficient manner, especially in the context of the rise of AI.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

05:29 Philosophy meets Crypto

09:08 The world of intellectual property

12:49 The financialization of IP

16:55 AI and ownership of IP

20:20 Getting started with AI and IP

24:40 Standing out in a sea of Picassos

27:45 Gen AI platforms

31:49 Story Protocol looking ahead

34:03 Conclusion

GUEST LINKS

Jason Zhao - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonjinzhao/

Jason Zhao on X - https://x.com/jasonjzhao

Story Protocol - https://www.story.foundation/

Story Protocol on X - https://x.com/StoryProtocol

The Scoop's host Frank Chaparro was joined by LMAX Group CEO David Mercer.

In this episode, Chaparro and Mercer discussed the accelerating institutional adoption of crypto, with major banks entering the market and driving stability, maturity, and significant capital inflows. They also explored how improved interoperability between tradfi and crypto could increase adoption by enabling more seamless asset movement between the two ecosystems.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

02:43 Bullish vs Bearish narratives

06:23 Improving regulatory environment

09:24 This ain’t mania

14:54 Competent credit offering  

18:55 The necessary infrastructure 

24:04 Capitalising on future growth

33:35 Good tech solutions will win

35:19 Conclusion

GUEST LINKS

David Mercer - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mercerdavid/

David Mercer on X - https://x.com/mercerdavid

LMAX Group - https://www.lmax.com/

LMAX Group on X - https://x.com/LMAX

The Scoop's host Frank Chaparro was joined by Dragonfly Partner Tom Schmidt.

In this episode, Chaparro and Schmidt discussed the cryptocurrency market acting as an institutional asset class moving into 2025, and how this cycle has been different for venture captial operating within the space.

OUTLINE

00:00 Introduction

01:39 Crypto as an institutional asset

11:47 Crypto market idiosyncrasies

18:20 Opportunities in 2025

22:28 Application in 2025

25:59 Anti-VC backlash

30:37 Customer acquisition

35:36 Closing thoughts

GUEST LINKS

Tom Schmidt - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomhschmidt/

Tom Schmidt on X - https://x.com/tomhschmidt

Dragonfly - https://www.dragonfly.xyz/

Dragonfly on X - https://x.com/dragonfly_xyz

The Scoop's host Frank Chaparro was joined by The Block's CEO Larry Cermak, Editor-in-Chief Tim Copeland, and Foresight Centures Co-Founder Forest Bai for a year-end special.

In this episode, Chaparro, Copeland, Bai and Cermak covered a myriad of pertinent topics  in the crypto market, including the factors that lead to a successful ecosystem, underexposure to bitcoin relative to memecoins, AI, and what they both expect and hope to see in the year ahead.

OUTLINE

00:00 End-of-Year drawdown

5:56 Memes vs fundamentals

08:25 Importance of community

11:47 Shifting investment landscapes

14:34 AI x Blockchain

18:54 Newsroom expectations for 2025

23:48 Telegram games and improving UX

26:37 Standing out in the market

34:19 2025 expectations

41:50 Microstrategy’s Bitcoin bet

47:30 AGI & Quantum attacks on encryption

48:29 Conclusion

GUEST LINKS

Forest Bai - https://x.com/ForestBai1

Larry Cermak - https://x.com/lawmaster

Tim Copeland - https://x.com/Timccopeland

This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot

Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Jeff Garzik is the CEO of Hemi Labs, a modular Layer 2 protocol that integrates Bitcoin and Ethereum.

In this episode, Garzik and The Block's Frank Chaparro discuss Hemi and its "proof-of-proof" security model, and Garzik shares his views on the future of multi-chain interoperability and the evolution of decentralized governance models.

OUTLINE

00:00 - Introduction and Hemi overview

03:17  - The endangered Bitcoin maximalist

05:33 - Proof of proof 

10:01 - Lessons from testnet

13:32 - ETH vs. Bitcoin in the multi-chain future 

19:05 - Envisioning the multi-chain future

24:14 - Darwinian trial by fire

33:34 - Main net plans and closing remarks

GUEST LINKS

Jeff Garzik - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffgarzik/

Jeff Garzik on X - https://x.com/jgarzik

Hemi Labs - https://x.com/hemi_xyz

Hemi Labs on X - https://hemi.xyz/

This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot

Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network

Edan Yago is the co-founder and CEO of BitcoinOS, a Layer 2 platform and "operating system" for Bitcoin.

In this episode, Yago and The Block's Frank Chaparro discuss BitcoinOS and how Bitcoin can evolve from being just “digital gold” into a fully programmable, global ledger for ownership and financial innovation.

OUTLINE

00:00 – Introduction


02:17 – Bitcoin and digital property rights


04:40 – Bitcoin’s spirit of innovation


08:17– Bitcoin smart contracts vs. rival chains 


15:29 – Bitcoin DeFi’s value add


20:44 – Solving scalability


25:12 – Bitcoin, AI, and the next Trillion in assets


28:28 – The next five years


35:07 – Short term shifts

37:42 - Conclusion

GUEST LINKS

Edan Yago - https://www.linkedin.com/in/edanyago/

Edan Yago on X - https://x.com/edanyago

BitcoinOS - https://www.bitcoinos.build/

BitcoinOS on X - https://x.com/BTC_OS

This episode is brought to you by our sponsor: Polkadot

Polkadot is the blockspace ecosystem for boundless innovation. To discover more, head to polkadot.network