Lex chats with Anthony Cimino, the head of policy at Carta - an equity management company that builds the infrastructure for innovators, supporting approximately 35,000 companies, over 2.2 million stakeholders, and more than 5,000 funds. Cimino discusses his background in government and policy in the financial services industry and how he got involved in finance and policy. He explains the role of policy in the fintech industry and the importance of engagement with policymakers. Cimino also talks about Carta's core business of cap table management and valuation services, as well as their fund administration business. He discusses the challenges and opportunities in the private markets industry, including the barriers to entry for investors and the need for more access and standardization. Cimino also mentions Carta's focus on supporting founders and their plans to expand globally. He emphasizes the role of policy in unlocking capital and creating access to private markets. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION Carta's Website: https://bit.ly/3U92K0w Anthony's LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3J6u5db Topics: fintech, regulation, policy, private markets, fund administration Companies: Carta, SEC, Committee on Financial Services ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’23: From Capitol Hill to Financial Crisis Management: Tracing Anthony's Journey through Finance and Policy 6’24: Building Trust in Turbulent Times: The Crucial Link Between Public Engagement and Policy Formation 10’50: Shaping the Future of Finance: The Essential Role of Stakeholder Engagement in Policy and Regulation 14’50: Digitizing Equity: Carta's Impact on Private Markets and the Future of Financial Infrastructure 20’07: Unlocking Private Markets: Navigating Complexity and Challenging Paternalistic Regulations 24’17: Expanding Economic Opportunity: The Imperative of Broadening Access to Private Markets 27’27: Beyond Data: Carta's Vision for Empowering Founders and Investors in the Private Market Ecosystem 31’50: Tailoring Growth: How Carta Supports Founders from Startup to Public Transition 34’39: Navigating the Terrain: The Dynamics of Private Fund Administration in Changing Economic Climates 38’56: Charting the Future: Carta's Vision for Empowering Founders, Revolutionizing Fund Administration, and Expanding Global Footprints 40’57: The channels used to connect with Anthony & learn more about Carta

Lex chats with Malcolm deMayo, Global Vice President for Financial Services at Nvidia. deMayo kicks off the discussion on how Nvidia has been working with financial services firms for over 15 years, providing accelerated compute platforms to help solve compute-intensive challenges in trading, banking, and insurance. DeMayo explains that Nvidia's hardware accelerators, such as GPUs, can execute thousands of instructions at a time, resulting in a significant speedup compared to traditional CPUs. He highlights the use of AI and machine learning in various financial services applications, including fraud detection, sentiment analysis in trading, and process automation in banking. DeMayo also discusses the emergence of Generative AI, which enables the generation of unique content and the potential for human-like engagement in customer service. He emphasizes the importance of collaboration between business and AI teams for successful AI deployment and mentions the role of open-source models and federated learning in the future of AI. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION Nvidia's Website: https://bit.ly/3TwEDXO Malcom's LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3xeimqa Topics: AI, Artificial intelligence, Machine learning, accelerated compute, compute, generative AI, genAI, financial services, Neural networks Companies: Nvidia, OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, EvidentAI, AlexNet ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’35: Beyond Moore's Law: Nvidia's Pioneering Role in Financial Services Innovation 6’56: Revolutionizing Efficiency: The Transformative Impact of GPU-Accelerated Computing in Finance 14’12: Unlocking Efficiency: How Nvidia's Accelerated Compute Platform Revolutionizes Machine Learning in Finance 19’52: Transforming Finance: The Power of Machine Learning in Fraud Detection and Market Analysis 29’15: From Data Custodianship to AI Revolution: Nvidia's Pivotal Role in Transforming Finance with Generative AI 35’03: Beyond Classification: Nvidia's Role in Fueling Generative AI's Impact on Financial Services Innovation 42’04: Shaping the AI Landscape: The Dynamic Between Open Source Innovation and Proprietary Models in Financial Services 47’01: The channels used to connect with Malcom & learn more about Nvidia

Lex chats with Nelson Chu, founder and CEO of Percent - the modern credit marketplace. Nelson kicks off the discussion b by walking through his inspiration for building the private credit marketplace and the challenges of operating in the fintech industry. He explains that Percent aims to provide a better alternative investment platform for credit investors by offering shorter durations and lower minimum investments. Nelson also discusses the importance of infrastructure in the private credit market and the need for technology to streamline processes. He highlights the different types of investors and borrowers that use Percent's platform and the challenges of building a three-sided marketplace. Nelson also touches on the impact of macroeconomic factors, such as interest rates, on the private credit market and the role of data and AI in the industry. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION Percent's Website: https://bit.ly/3x3w8Mg Nelson's LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/4a5Nwym Topics: Private credit, lending, borrowers, underwriting, AI, artificial intelligence, investment, alternative investment, fintech, marketplace Companies: Percent, Lending Club, LendIt, Prosper, Blackstone ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’12: From FinTech Consulting to Revolutionizing Private Credit: The Genesis of Percent 4’33: Unveiling the Void: The Journey to Establishing Essential Infrastructure in Alternative Investments 6’55: Decoding Private Credit: Navigating Yields, Risk, and Investor Dynamics in Short-Duration Fixed Income 14’01: Investor Trends and Platform Evolution: The Shifting Terrain of Private Credit Investments 19’15: Building the Bridge: Crafting the Infrastructure to Power a Tripartite Financial Marketplace 26’15: Mastering Multi-Sided Markets: Strategies for Bootstrapping Borrowers, Investors, and Underwriters 31’26: Tech as the Catalyst: Navigating the Fusion of Traditional Finance and Innovative Infrastructure in Private Credit 36’49: Adapting to Shifts: The Impact of Changing Interest Rates on the Private Credit Landscape 40’16: Unlocking Potential with AI: How Proprietary Data Sets Are Shaping the Future of Finance 43’15: The channels used to connect with Nelson & learn more about Percent

Lex chats with Richard Ma, CEO of Quantstamp -a leading blockchain security company. Richard kicks off by discussing the origins of the company and the importance of security in the blockchain space. He explains that the idea for Quantstamp came after he invested in Ethereum and witnessed the hack of the DAO, which prompted him to focus on the security side of Ethereum. Richard describes how Quantstamp conducts audits of blockchain projects, identifying vulnerabilities and providing recommendations for improvement. He emphasizes the importance of reading audit reports and understanding the risks associated with projects. Richard also discusses different types of adversaries in the blockchain space, including nation-state actors, developers seeking recognition, and financially motivated hackers. He believes that while established projects will become more secure over time, new experimental projects will always carry some level of risk. Richard suggests that AI-based debuggers could help improve security auditing in the future. He highlights EigenLayer, ZK-rollups, and the development on Solana as exciting sectors to watch in the coming years. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION Quantstamps's Website: https://bit.ly/3Iv6zX4 Richard's LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3IvaxyO Topics: blockchain, security, audit, hacking, hacks, crypto, cryptocurrency, digital assets, Web3, DeFi Companies: Quantstamp, Ethereum, MakerDAO, Compound, EigenLayer ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’30: From High-Frequency Trading to Fintech Innovator: The Journey to Creating Quantstamp 9’26: Demystifying the Audit Process: Inside Quantstamp's Approach to Securing Blockchain Projects 15’04: The Art and Challenge of Blockchain Audits: Navigating the Complex World of Code Review 19’37: The Nomad Hack: A Case Study in Preventability and the Importance of Diligence in Code Auditing 24’39: Web3's Adversarial Landscape: Unpacking the Motivations Behind Crypto Hacks and Security Breaches 29’13: The Ethical Dilemma of Crypto Hacking: Navigating the Fine Line Between Exploitation and Market Manipulation 34’59: Exploring the Frontier: Key Innovations Shaping the Future of Blockchain in 2024 and Beyond 36’34: The channels used to connect with Richard & learn more about Quantstamp

Lex chats with Christian Catalini, co-founder and chief strategy officer of Lightspark - a company aiming to break down global payment barriers, throwing its weight behind a new standard intended to make payments as easy as sending an email. Christian kicks off by discussing his career in blockchain and academia, as well as the challenges and opportunities in the fintech industry. He explains how he became interested in crypto through his research on crowdfunding and how he later focused on Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. Catalini also discusses the importance of decentralized governance and the potential of Bitcoin as a global payment network. He introduces Lightspark's products, including Lightspark Predict and Universal Money Addresses (UMA), which aim to make Lightning Network more efficient and user-friendly for cross-border money movement. He emphasizes the need for compliance and regulatory clarity in the crypto industry and highlights the role of various partners in facilitating on and off-ramps between digital assets and traditional payment systems. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION Lightspark's Website: https://bit.ly/3uQ0Nw1 Christian's LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3UVwBu3 Topics: blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, Digital Assets, AI, cross border, payments, lightning network Companies: Lightspark, Diem, Libra, Meta Fintech, MIT, MIT Cryptoeconomics Lab ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’22: Bridging Worlds: From Academic Inquiry to Entrepreneurial Action in the Crypto and Crowdfunding Era 7’12: Innovating at the Intersection: From the Creative Destruction Lab to the Cryptoeconomics Lab at MIT 13’00: Designing Stability: The Economic Architecture and Vision Behind the Diem Experiment 18’37: Governance and Trust in Crypto: Navigating the Complex Landscape from Diem to Bitcoin 25’42: Money as a Public Good: The Evolutionary Path of Bitcoin and Digital Assets in the Global Economy 31’57: Unleashing Potential: Crypto and AI's Complementary Forces in Shaping the Future of Open Source Technology 37’02: Universal Money Addresses: Revolutionizing Global Transactions with Seamless, Compliant, and Real-Time Payments 41’31: UMA and Bitcoin: Simplifying Cross-Border Payments with a Global, Liquidity-Driven Settlement Layer 46’49: Integrating Innovations: How UMA Partners Enable Smooth Cross-Border Payments Through Bitcoin Liquidity and Local Infrastructure 50’14: The channels used to connect with Chris & learn more about Lightspark

Lex chats with Shelby Austin, co-founder and CEO of Arteria AI - Arteria AI is an AI-focused company that develops a contract lifecycle management platform for end-to-end digital contracting. Shelby kicks off by discussing her career journey and the development of her company, which focuses on solving documentation challenges in the financial services industry using artificial intelligence (AI). Shelby explains that Arteria AI uses a combination of people and technology to streamline document management processes, such as onboarding, contract generation, and data organization. The company leverages a variety of AI models, both open-source and proprietary, to analyze and generate documents. Shelby emphasizes the importance of user-centric design and practical application of AI in solving real problems for financial institutions. She also discusses the challenges and opportunities of working with large financial firms, including data security and integration with existing infrastructure. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION Arteria AI's Website: https://bit.ly/3SLtWAr Shelby's LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3I11568 Topics: AI, Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, documentation, finance, analytics, contract processing Companies: Arteria AI, Arteria, Deloitte, OpenAI ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’23: From Law to Innovation: Shelby Austin's Journey Through Legal Grind to Tech Entrepreneurship 6’41: Digitizing Diligence: Pioneering Data Management in Legal Workflows 9’10: From Legal Documents to AI Frontiers: Navigating the Transition into Technological Leadership at Deloitte 17’27: Reimagining Documentation: The Genesis of Arteria and the Evolution of Financial Services Solutions 22’32: Simplifying Complexity: Arteria's Solutions for Streamlining Documentation and Compliance Processes 26’44: Transforming Documentation: Arteria's Multimodal Approach to Financial Services Paperwork 32’03: Crafting AI Solutions in Finance: Navigating the Landscape of Models Beyond the Hype 36’16: Building Bridges in Finance: Exploring the Complex Landscape of AI Integration with Major Financial Firms 39’25: The channels used to connect with Shelby & learn more about Arteria AI

Lex chats with Rachel Lin, the Co-Founder & CEO of SynFutures, a decentralized derivatives trading platform. Lin discusses her background in traditional finance and her transition into the fintech and cryptocurrency industry. She explains her experience working in structured derivative sales and trading at Deutsche Bank, where she interacted with clients such as hedge funds and corporates who used derivatives for speculative purposes, hedging, and arbitrage. Lin then moved to fintech company Alipay, where she learned about blockchain technology and became interested in the potential of decentralized finance. She later joined Matrixport, a centralized platform, before starting her own decentralized derivatives platform, SynFutures. Lin explains that decentralized platforms offer transparency and the ability for anyone to become a market maker or service provider, while centralized platforms require more configuration and rely on market makers. She also discusses the growth potential of decentralized derivatives and the current dominance of speculation in the crypto derivatives market. Lin believes that as digital economies grow, the usage of blockchain and derivatives for economic purposes will also increase. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION SynFuture's Website: https://bit.ly/3OCDRaa Topics: crypto, digital assets, investment, blockchain, AMM, DeFi, CeFi, Liquidity, hedging, arbitrage, derivatives, perps, synthetic Companies: Synfutures, Alipay, Matrixport, DYDX, GMX, Synthetix, Deutsche Bank, Uniswap ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’23: Trading Illusions for Insights: Navigating the Complex World of Financial Derivatives 6’35: Hedging Needs vs. Market Speculation: Deciphering the Derivatives Landscape 10’54: Institutional to Retail: Transitioning Through Chinese Fintech and Cryptocurrency Markets 16’16: SynFutures: Unlocking Decentralized Derivatives Trading for All 20’54: Synthetic Derivatives and Leverage: Amplifying Trades on Decentralized Platforms 26’56: DeFi Derivatives: AMM Liquidity, Competition, and the Future of Synthetic Trading 32’13: The promise of Crypto Derivative Markets: Beyond Speculation - Hedging, Arbitrage, and the Promise of Digital Economies 35’00: The channels used to connect with Rachel & learn more about SynFutures

Lex chats with Stan Miroshnik, founder and managing partner of 10Squared Capital, discusses his early experiences in financial services and his journey into the world of digital assets and crypto. He talks about the challenges of navigating the ICO market and the importance of price discipline in investing. Miroshnik also shares his insights on the current state of the market and the opportunities he sees in sectors such as infrastructure, consumer applications, data analytics, and financial services. He also discusses the potential of security tokens and real-world asset tokenization. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION 10Squared Capital's Website: https://bit.ly/3ShddVm Stan's LinkedIn profile: https://bit.ly/3w8kO0S Topics: crypto, digital assets, venture capital, investment, blockchain, ICO, tokenization Companies: TenSquared Capital, 10THoldings, 10T, 10SQ, Animoca, Coatue, Tiger, Civic ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’28: Navigating the Financial Landscape: From Soviet Childhood to Blockchain Innovation 4’03: Transitioning from Soviet Roots to Global Finance: A Journey Through Capital Markets and the Emergence of Digital Assets 11’07: Emergence of Russian Capital Markets: Navigating the Complexities of Financial Evolution and Integration 15’15: Bitcoin and the Birth of a New Capital Market: Pioneering Digital Asset Investment Banking 19’13: Compliance Complexity in 2024: Navigating the Evolving Landscape of Digital Asset Regulation 23’25: Reflecting on the ICO Market: Balancing Innovation, Speculation, and the Evolution of Digital Assets 27’53: From ICOs to Institutional Investment: Charting the Evolution of Digital Asset Markets with 10T Holdings and TenSquared Capital 32’18: Assessing Growth Stage Investments in the Digital Asset Space: Navigating the Challenges of Valuation and Opportunity in 2021-2022 35’24: Identifying Emerging Leaders in Digital Assets: A Look at Key Sectors and Companies Shaping the 2024 Market Landscape 36’25: Exploring the Future of Digital Assets: Exploring Infrastructure, Consumer Applications, and Financial Services in the Blockchain Ecosystem 43’04: The channels used to connect with Stan & learn more about TenSquared Capital

Lex chats with Jerome Le Luel, founder and CEO of TRIVER - a London-based startup that uses open banking data and AI to provide short-term working capital to SMEs. To kick off, Jerome discusses the application of AI in fintech lending for small businesses. He explains that traditional banks have struggled to automate lending decisions for SMEs due to regulatory constraints and manual underwriting processes. However, with the emergence of open banking and the ability to access transaction-level data, fintech companies like TRIVER can use data science to automate underwriting decisions and provide instant capital to small businesses. TRIVER's platform allows SMEs to apply for short-term financing in a few clicks, using bank data and credit bureau information to make lending decisions. The capital comes from a combination of equity and debt raised by TRIVER, and the company is also exploring partnerships with non-financial institutions to embed its technology and offer instant capital to their SME clients. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION TRIVER's Website: https://bit.ly/3OiT1RN Jerome's LinkedIn profile: https://bit.ly/3ubNWUz Topics: Fintech, lending, SME, SME finance, Open Banking, Underwriting, API Companies: TRIVER, Funding Circle, Barclays, Barclaycard, Capital One ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’29: From analytics to innovation: Pioneering credit card strategies in the UK with Capital One 4’13: Segmentation and innovation: How Capital One's early customer insights revolutionized consumer finance 9’19: Scaling financial services: Lessons in clarity, efficiency, and rigorous execution from Capital One's rapid growth 14’53: From challenger to major player: Navigating the shift to large-scale operations in financial services at Barclaycard 18’59: Risk management in lending: Balancing uncertainty, reward, and scaling in financial services 26’44: Innovating in Fintech: Leveraging flexibility and focus to outpace traditional banking at Funding Circle and TRIVER 31’37: Entrepreneurship and innovation: The impact of organizational culture and talent on Fintech advancements 33’53: Solving short-term SME finance challenges: TRIVER's innovative approach leveraging data science and open banking 40’23: Real-time SME underwriting: Leveraging transaction data and open banking for effective financial decisions at TRIVER 41’53: Empowering SMEs with instant capital: TRIVER's seamless integration of tech, data, and finance for efficient working capital solutions 46’02: The channels used to connect with Jerome & learn more about TRIVER

Lex chats with David Minarsch, co-founder and CEO of Valory - a team focused on providing research, products, and services at the intersection of multi-agent systems (MAS) and distributed ledger technology (DLT), one of them being Autonolas - a platform that offers an open-source software stack and an on-chain protocol, facilitating secure operations and incentivizing autonomous application development. In this episode, David discusses the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and crypto networks. He explains that Valory is focused on building autonomous systems that connect to blockchain networks. David highlights the importance of AI agents in the future, as they can specialize in different roles and provide valuable services. He also discusses the launch of the Autonolas protocol on Gnosis chain, which allows for the creation of prediction markets and the coordination of autonomous services. David believes that autonomous agents will become the primary daily active users of crypto, providing a new user experience and abstraction for humans. MENTIONED IN THE CONVERSATION Valory's Website: https://bit.ly/4b3xuWP David's LinkedIn profile: https://bit.ly/3S5EF8n Topics: DLT, Distributed ledger technology, ai, blockchain, smart contract, game theory, autonomation, DAO, generative AI, crypto, economics Companies: Valory, Autonolas, Fetch.ai, OLAS, Gnosis, Cosmos ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT 🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2 🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV 👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS 1’34: Mathematics to Game Theory: A Journey Through Academia and the Intricacies of Human Behavior 4’03: Network Games and Equilibria: Exploring Graph Theory and Game Theory in Economics at Cambridge 7’31: Quantitative Abstractions and Intuition: Navigating the Complexity of Equilibria in Economic Systems 12’08: From Academic Theory to Real-World Application: The Impact of Crypto Networks on Economic Modeling and Experimentation 16’17: Mathematics in Governance: Transforming Data for Constituency Insights and Political Decision-Making 19’04: From Human Insights to Blockchain Innovation: The Evolution of Fetch.ai and the Role of Autonomous Agents 23’36: Defining Autonomous Agents: The Evolution and Impact of AI-Driven Software Agents in Complex Systems 30’48: Agent Ownership and Automation: Exploring the Spectrum and Implications of Autonomous AI Systems 35’16: Autonolas Protocol and Valory Launch: Revolutionizing Autonomous Services and DAO Governance on the Gnosis Chain 39’44: Governance Through AI: Understanding the Role of Autonomous Agents in DAO Decision-Making and Proposal Analysis 43’34: OLAS Protocol on Gnosis Chain: Pioneering Autonomous Agents in Prediction Markets and DAO Governance 50’15: Envisioning the Future: The Rise of Autonomous Agents and AI in Crypto and Economic Systems 55’01: The channels used to connect with David & learn more about Valory