Lyn Alden joins Gwart to talk about the Coldcard security incident, changing self-custody heuristics, game theory behind Bitcoin soft forks, and the true addressable market for stablecoins. She shares insights on MicroStrategy's reserve guidance, her new private equity holding company Orange Juice, early-stage venture thesis, and whether Bitcoin can outperform gold as the ultimate store of value. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:34 ColdCard hack 04:06 Future of Self Custody 11:14 ETF margin is easier 16:19 Stablecoins 23:16 Strategy 26:49 Strategy's game plan 29:28 Treasury companies are cooked 33:20 Strategy: when BTC becomes money 40:12 Orange Juice 44:38 Orange Juice plan 47:06 Investable verticals 51:30 Where' the new Bitcoin buyer? 55:53 Is the bottom in? 56:42 BTC as store of value? The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz/careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lucas V. Schuermann, Co-Founder of Variational, joins us to talk about building a high-performance crypto brokerage model on Arbitrum. Lucas explains how Variational routes execution to TradFi venues, eliminates external market maker extraction through its in-house LP, introduces flat-rate swaps to fix funding rate volatility, and builds isolated smart contracts to protect user capital. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com --- ## Notes: * Variational sees $1B daily volume on platform. * Platform holds $1.4B in total open interest. * Swaps feature a flat carry cost around 4% to 5%. * LP takes the other side of 100% of platform trades. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:46 Lucas' background 03:20 Hedgefund strategies 05:59 Hedgefund tasks 08:31 Variational founding 10:45 Variational market structure 13:41 RWA 16:32 RWA hedging 19:17 Market neutrality 22:53 "Venue for execution" 26:36 Price discovery on-chain 30:02 Building on Arbitrium 33:52 Liquidity pool 37:08 Users depositing to OLP 39:52 A Prop AMM for Perps? 42:23 Future of Order Flow 46:18 Order book theater? 50:50 Incentive programs 55:09 Swaps 57:06 Wrap up The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz/careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Wang, Lead of Crypto & Perps at Kalshi, joins us to talk about bringing CFTC-regulated crypto perpetual futures and prediction markets to the US. John shares insights on growing Kalshi's crypto business, expanding across 140 countries, institutional liquidity, standardized compute indices, and why regulatory compliance scales better than offshore exchanges. The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz/careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christian Catalini, Co-founder of Lightspark joins us to talk about his journey from the MIT Bitcoin experiment to co-founding Libra. Christian breaks down why regulators killed Libra, the limits of the Lightning Network, and why Bitcoin needs new opcodes. He also shares his framework for AI value accrual, the power of verifiable open-source models, and the reality of agentic payments. Subscribe to the newsletter! [https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com](https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com) --- ## Notes: * Lightning Network is capital inefficient. * AI models are commoditizing intelligence. * Open-source AI catches frontier models fast. * Bitcoin scaling requires a new opcode. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:28 Christain's background 02:50 What's up with AI? 05:15 AI conclusions 07:12 The core insight (verification) 11:37 Is there start up value left? 15:24 Do large LLMs still have moat? 20:15 NVIDIA open source models 23:05 Is the future about LLMs or other tech? 26:00 Libra history 29:19 Lightspark 33:36 Scaling Bitcoin 39:02 Does "neutrality " have value? 46:09 Why would stablecoins stay on-chain? 49:55 Bitcoin promise land 55:26 WTF are "agentic payments"? The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz/careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ivo Crnkovic-Rubsamen, Co-Founder of Pascal Trading joins us to talk about building the next generation of prediction markets. Ivo shares insights from his time at Bridgewater, D.E. Shaw, and dYdX, explaining how Pascal is solving major capital efficiency issues in DeFi. We dive deep into oracle-free price discovery, order book design, and how to scale robust leverage extension outside the core matching loop to protect trading venues. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Notes: * Ivo worked as a quant at Bridgewater and D.E. Shaw. * Joined dYdX in late 2021 as an early trader. * Focuses on robust leverage outside matching loop. * Enables price discovery for oracle-free assets. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:24 Ivo's background 02:27 Pascal design 05:08 Traders as target audience 07:05 Polymarket & nonces 13:30 Building order management system 14:25 testing the markets 21:18 Prediction markets 31:58 "Insider trading" 36:50 Wall St. & sports betting 44:55 Prediction markets as insurnace 50:43 Removing "house edge" & fees 58:17 Markets on Pascal The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz/careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ethan Marcus, CEO of Flashnet joins us to talk about how Flashnet is building a global pool of liquidity for Bitcoin. Ethan explains why the Lightning Network falls short for multi-asset scaling and how Spark's state-chain architecture enables instant, zero-fee swaps. We dive into Flashnet’s B2B integrations with neobanks and merchant platforms, the trend toward on-chain retail execution, and their upcoming expansion into liquidations and Bitcoin-denominated financial services. Subscribe to the newsletter! [https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com](https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com) Notes: * Bitcoin trades over $30 trillion annually.* System requires one honest operator.* Much of Cash App's revenue is Bitcoin-based. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:49 Ethan's background 03:09 Spark 04:15 State chains 05:12 Spark design 07:22 State chain unlocks 09:07 Flashnet design 10:26 B2B clients 12:03 Comparing Spark vs other L2 13:42 What form does USD take? 15:08 Self custody 20:05 The problems that Spark solves 21:42 Spark ecosystem 24:03 Solana is so good! 26:41 Stablecoins 29:25 Assets other than BTC 33:16 Swaps landscape 36:57 Other Flashnet opportunities 41:33 Spark update 44:01 Roxom 47:09 Flashnet & retail The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz/careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Udi Wertheimer, Founder of Taproot Wizards joins us to talk about the shifting narratives of Bitcoin, the structural flaws of layer-2 scaling solutions, and how stablecoins enable Hyperliquid and Polymarket. He critiques Michael Saylor’s aggressive financial engineering tactics, explaining why MicroStrategy stopping its Bitcoin buying spree is a far greater systemic risk to the market than Saylor actually selling his bags. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Notes: * Udi missed his $400k 2025 BTC forecast. * Saylor's treasury is worth $55 billion. * Saylor not buying for one quarter poses major risk. * Treasury value could drop to $20 billion. * MSTR holds a $2 billion cash reserve limit. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:10 "I was wrong" - Udi 03:02 Layer 2 04:08 Recent Bitcoin history 07:56 On-chain activity will be fringe behavior 13:10 True believers & this cycle 17:37 narrative changes 21:02 Stablecoins 26:00 Agentic payments 27:26 Stablecoins & prediction markets 36:32 STRC selling BTC 43:22 Saylor thought experiment 47:05 Saylor BTC supply overhang 50:05 Saylor "folding" 57:48 10% of Gold supply 1:00:14 Is ANYTHING bullish now? 1:04:14 AI vibe coding The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz/careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alexander Leishman, CEO and Founder of River, joins us to talk about his vision for building a Bitcoin bank. We dive deep into why Coinbase pursued a local maximum with altcoin trading, the stickiness of traditional banking despite 0.01% yields, and why stablecoins lack product-market fit for Americans. Alex also shares his perspective on the limits of Lightning Network for global commerce, the necessity of proof of reserves after the FTX collapse, and why Bitcoin's terminal state is to become a boring treasury asset.Subscribe to the newsletter! [https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com](https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com)Notes:* River started in 2019 as a Bitcoin bank.* Coinbase charged retail 2% for altcoin trades.* Major banks pay 0.01% interest on savings.* Proof of reserves adopted after FTX collapse.* Zombie nodes have near-zero running costs.Timestamps:00:00 Start00:34 Starting River01:51 Before River02:59 From altcoins to Bitcoin05:15 Save in BTC08:17 Coinbase trajectory10:13 Stablecoins14:10 Yield, and other fun distractions17:45 Lightning24:24 Proof of reserves26:39 Paper BTC28:08 10/10/25 fallout?33:19 Current cycle vibes36:10 Portfolio allocation39:47 Self custody42:06 Self custody unlocks45:07 Hyperliquid & others50:44 Admitting you were wrong56:05 Quantum The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz slash careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rahul Jain, Head of Trading at Ellipsis Labs, joins us to talk about the reality of market making on Solana. Rahul breaks down why spot order books fail against toxic makers, how transactional introspection protects liquidity, and the economics of running modern prop execution systems. He dives into the mechanics of Phoenix's new perps platform, managing oracle attacks on illiquid tokens, the structural advantages of owning user flow on-chain, and whether decentralized perps are a winner-take-most game. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Notes: * Firm held 20-25% crypto options market share. * Toxic takers pick off makers for tens of K a day. * Basic prop contracts can make around $1,000/day. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:50 Rahul's background 02:45 Why move from spot trading? 06:50 Future of Prop AMMs 09:21 Order book games 14:07 Innovations on the horizon 16:17 RFQ 18:14 On-chain price dislocations 20:04 Why Perps? 25:35 Taker speedbumps 26:29 Market making in TradFi vs Crypto 28:30 MEV 29:39 Deciding assets to quote 31:43 Managing risk 33:16 MCP or bust 34:57 MPC problems 38:00 Why use Pheonix? 40:36 Composability 42:22 Splines 45:22 Scaling the market 47:51 "king making" on Solana 53:58 Are perps "winner take all"? The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs.xyz slash careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tarun Chitra, Co-Founder & CEO of Gauntlet, joins us to talk about the evolution of DeFi lending, the shift toward active vault management, and recent high-profile security exploits like Resolve and KelpDAO. We dive into the hidden risks of restaking protocols, the friction between DAO ideologues and risk curators, open-source versus closed-source infrastructure vulnerability, and how AI agents are shaping both cyberattacks and defensive measures in Web3. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Notes: * North Korea stole $800M from Bangladesh bank. * Some re-staking protocols had LTVs up to 0.98. * DAO parameters often update only once a week. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:16 DeFi vibe check 01:44 Vaults in DeFi 06:13 Actively managed vaults 14:21 Collateral risks 19:00 Attack learnings 21:37 KelpDAO 29:11 Transperency 30:15 Composibility risks 37:47 Should finance be open source? 43:02 Timelocks 49:28 Clawbacks are the future! The Gwart Show is sponsored by Ellipsis Labs. Ellipsis Labs builds the most efficient on-chain markets. Their orderbook and Prop AMM products have delivered price improvement to hundreds of billions of dollars in retail volume. Now, they are bringing their expertise to build Phoenix, the best on-chain perpetuals platform. Ellipsis Labs is hiring New York-based engineers. If you're an engineer looking to work with a proven team in making DeFi better, go to ellipsislabs dot xyz slash careers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices