Ryan Selkis on the Existential Struggle for Crypto in the U.S.
In this episode, Jason and Mike are joined by Ryan Selkis, Founder and CEO of Messari Crypto, for a discussion on the intersection of crypto and US politics. They discuss the recent presidential debate, Ryan’s journey into the political arena, and Sam Bankman-Fried’s impact on crypto regulatory policy. They also dive into the importance of political engagement from the crypto community, and Selkis’ strategic initiatives. Finally, they cover why Democrats took an anti-crypto stance, the best case outcome for crypto regulatory policy, and how U.S. political parties evolve over time.
Thanks for tuning in!
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(00:00) Intro
(02:18) The Presidential Debate
(11:37) Focusing on Politics as a Crypto Founder
(27:19) SBF's Impact on Regulatory Policy
(33:15) How Important is Crypto in the Presidential Election?
(36:200 Lead up to Ryan's Mar-a-Lago Visit
(43:37) Marinade Ad
(44:43) Polygon Ad
(45:52) Mantle Ad
(46:41) Ryan's Perspective on the Blockworks Op-ed
(54:39) Should Crypto Be Apolitical?
(01:05:29) The Democrats Motivation for Being Anti Crypto
(01:21:05) What's the Best Case Outcome for Crypto Regulatory Policy?
(01:32:09) Addressing Common Issues Voters Have With Trump
(01:38:02) How U.S. Political Parties Change Over Time
(01:45:33) Why RFK Jr. Should Drop Out and Endorse Trump
—--
Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
Ryan Selkis Shares His 2024 Crypto Predictions
Joining us today is Ryan Selkis, who is here to walk us through his crypto thesis for 2024.
We cover big investment themes, people to watch, the future of stablecoins, policy takes and so much more in this wide ranging episode.
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------ TIMESTAMPS
00:00:00 Intro 00:05:11 Recapping 2023 00:07:50 Are We In A Bull Market? 00:12:09 Investment Trends 00:16:48 BTC ETF Winners 00:20:03 Ether 2024 Predictions 00:26:57 BTC Security Model 00:33:06 Investment Strategy 00:36:56 VC and Private Markets 00:42:28 IPO's and M&A's 00:45:04 People To Watch 00:50:56 Why Does Elizabeth Warren Hate Crypto? 00:57:54 Grayscale 01:04:55 Products to Use in 2024 01:07:00 USDC Flips USDT? 01:11:32 Coinbase and BASE 01:15:46 Crypto Money 01:21:17 Privacy 01:27:54 How Crypto Wins In The US 01:40:07 The Political Bull Case 01:44:42 What's Most Exciting
------ RESOURCES
Ryan Selkis https://twitter.com/twobitidiot
------ Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here: https://bankless.com/disclosures
100M$ Fight for Crypto in D.C. with Ryan Selkis
Today we're joined by Ryan Selkis, the Founder and CEO of Messari and an outspoken political advocate for the crypto industry. We explore the current state of Crypto Regulation and how Ryan plans to fight in Washington with the Digital Freedom Alliance.
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🛞MANTLE | MODULAR LAYER 2 NETWORK https://bankless.cc/Mantle
------ Topics Covered
0:00 Intro 9:34 Does Washington Want to Kill Crypto? 15:45 How the US Affects Global Regulation 27:54 Ryan Selkis Proposal 43:10 What we can learn from SBF 51:20 The Digital Freedom Alliance 59:08 Why we have to Play Politics 1:03:49 What’s Next 1:08:00 Closing and Disclaimers
----- Resources:
Ryan Selkis https://twitter.com/twobitidiot
Join the Digital Freedom Alliance https://joindfa.org/
----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
Crypto Thesis for 2023 | Ryan Selkis
✨ THESIS FOR 2023:
https://messari.io/crypto-theses-for-2023
—— Ryan Selkis is presenting his Crypto Theses for 2023 on today’s State of the Nation.
Every year, Ryan publishes a massive document that wraps up the year in the industry, and looks forward to what’s coming next.
After an insane 2022, what does 2023 hold in store? Ryan Selkis of Messari brings the answers.
------ 📣 Kraken | The Crypto Exchange for Everyone http://k.xyz/bankless-pod
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------ Topics Covered
0:00 Intro 7:00 Pain 10:05 Crypto is Still Inevitable 16:00 Surviving Winter, Redux 20:10 Who to Watch 26:30 How People Fall 32:20 CeFi Contagion 40:30 Institutional Capital 47:00 SEC vs ETF 51:30 SBF and Crypto Policy 1:03:00 Bitcoin 1:07:40 Smart Contracts 1:11:45 ETH Killers 1:15:00 DeFi Trends 1:19:30 DAOs and NFTs 1:24:00 Back to Crypto 1:26:30 The Block and Crypto Media
------ Resources:
Crypto Theses for 2023 https://messari.io/crypto-theses-for-2023
Ryan Selkis https://twitter.com/twobitidiot
Messari https://messari.io/
----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
Part 2: Brian Armstrong, Erik Voorhees, & Ryan Selkis on Binance’s Acquisition of FTX
In Part 2, Ryan and David are joined by Brian Armstrong, Erik Voorhees, & Ryan Selkis to discuss what transpired today, how it’ll impact our industry, and what it means moving forward.
In case you missed it, we’ve already released Part 1 where Ryan and David recap everything that happened leading up to today, what’s unfolded thus far, what happens next, and what it means for the crypto space writ large.
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NEXO | CRYPTO FINANCIAL HUB https://bankless.cc/Nexo
LEDGER | NANO HARDWARE WALLETS https://bankless.cc/Ledger
️FUEL | THE MODULAR EXECUTION LAYER https://bankless.cc/Fuelpod
----- Timestamps:
0:00 Intro 4:04 Ryan Selkis 11:45 Takes & Prices https://twitter.com/brian_armstrong/status/1590088673726717952 https://www.coingecko.com/ https://ultrasound.money/ 20:32 Erik Voorhees 42:00 Brian Armstrong 1:00:25 New CZ https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1590103159506341888 1:02:45 Ultra Sound Money https://ultrasound.money/ 1:04:45 Closing & Disclaimers
-----
Resources:
SBF Announcement https://twitter.com/SBF_FTX/status/1590012124864348160
CZ Announcement https://twitter.com/cz_binance/status/1590013613586411520
----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
10 Predictions About Crypto in 2022 with Ryan Selkis
Ryan Selkis is the Founder and CEO the data analytics platform Messari. In Ryan's past Bankless appearances, we've debated ETH as money and the Triple Point Asset thesis. We've tackled crypto regulation and taking an aggressive stance on policy.
Now it's time to add it all together and decide what's next—what's important for the industry and the world as we head into 2022. Ryan wrote a 150+ page beast of a report titled 'Crypto Theses for 2022,' which covers the space from top to bottom. From DAOs and DeFi to Regulation and NFTs, there is no stone left unturned in this report.
In this episode, we digest the mountain of information Ryan puts together on an annual basis to answer the question: What's in store for Crypto in 2022?
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------ Topics Covered:
0:00 Intro 7:00 Ryan Selkis & Institutional Trust 14:30 Web3 is Inevitable 22:08 Inflation & Use Cases 32:47 WAGMI 37:45 The Fall of China 42:52 The American Battleground 46:55 The Regulator Side 56:28 The Crypto Coalition 1:02:20 NFTs & Metaverse 1:09:48 ETH's Q3 Earnings Report 1:16:47 ETH Killer Valuations 1:20:41 ETH is Money Debate 1:25:33 Closing & Disclaimers
------ Resources:
Ryan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/twobitidiot?s=20
The Crypto Theses: https://twitter.com/twobitidiot/status/1466438779196039175?s=20
----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here: https://newsletter.banklesshq.com/p/bankless-disclosures
79 - The Crypto Coalition | Ryan Selkis
Ryan Selkis is the Founder and CEO the crypto data analytics platform Messari. Last time Ryan was on the podcast, we debated Ether’s properties as a money and the triple point asset thesis. We revisit many of these topics and explore what has changed in the landscape over the past year.
However, we also discuss a perhaps more pressing issue: the state of regulation for the industry. Ryan is poised to take a strong leadership role in the political side of crypto, and he’s developing offensive strategies for the crypto vs. nation-state conflict. Listen in to learn why he’s now a single-issue voter.
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------ 📣 TracerDAO | Building DeFi Infrastructure. Join the Discord! https://bankless.cc/TracerDAO ------
Topics Covered:
0:00 Intro 4:00 Ryan Selkis of Messari 6:44 Ryan’s Broad Approach 12:41 Why Do They Hate Us? 18:13 “Protecting Us” 27:30 Single Issue Voters 35:49 It’s a Team Sport 45:00 Aligning with Regulators 54:00 Institutional Reactions 57:23 What the Markets Say 1:01:01 Ether as an Asset 1:08:40 The Flippening 1:10:44 Ethereum’s Narrative 1:13:53 Market Cap vs Money 1:17:37 Institutional Demand 1:19:55 Hot Sectors for Analysis 1:23:24 The Network State 1:26:41 Closing & Disclaimers
------ Resources:
Ryan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/twobitidiot?s=20 Ryan’s Tweet Thread: https://twitter.com/twobitidiot/status/1426020410370449410?s=20 Mainnet Event: https://mainnet.events/ Messari: https://messari.io/
----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here: https://newsletter.banklesshq.com/p/bankless-disclosures
"There is No Political Voice to the Millions of Crypto Users in the US:" Ryan Selkis
In this week’s episode we speak with Ryan Selkis, CEO and founder of Messari, one of the most popular crypto data and research companies. Recently, Ryan has been very vocal about crypto regulation in the US. We talk about how he believes the infrastructure bill was a catalyzing event for the whole American crypto ecosystem. He believes while there are think tanks and corporate-led lobbying groups, the space is missing a grassroots entity that gives a voice to the millions of crypto users in the US that so energetically came to life against this bill. That’s why he’s creating a group to help mobilize voters in the crypto community to support pro-crypto candidates.
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SotN#27: Is ETH Money? w/ Ryan Selkis (2020 Recap & 2021 Horizon)
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SotN#27: Is ETH Money? w/ Ryan Selkis (2020 Recap & 2021 Horizon)
Every year, Ryan Selkis does a round-up of the themes that powered the industry as well as some predictions of the year to come.
It covers the movers and shakers that steered the industry for the year. Among Ryan's list are people like Hayden Adams of Uniswap and Danny Ryan from the EF.
Yet, Ryan Selkis is still pessimistic on ETH as Money, and believes the tailwinds of the industry point elsewhere.
We bring on his points to the show, and go through them to discuss!
Ryan's Crypto Theses for 2021:https://messari.io/crypto-theses-for-2021
------
Don't stop at the video!
Subscribe to the Bankless newsletter programhttp://bankless.substack.com/
Visit the official Bankless website for resourceshttp://banklesshq.com/
Follow Bankless on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/BanklessHQ
Follow Ryan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/ryansadams
Follow David on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/TrustlessState -----Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time we may add links in this channel to products we use. We may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. We'll always disclose when this is the case/merch.banklesshq.com/
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https://bankless.cc/monolith
🤖YEARN - YIELD-SEEKING MONEY ROBOT THAT FARMS DEFI FOR YOU
http://bankless.cc/yearn
------
SotN#27: Is ETH Money? w/ Ryan Selkis (2020 Recap & 2021 Horizon)
------
Don't stop at the video!
Subscribe to the Bankless newsletter programhttp://bankless.substack.com/
Visit the official Bankless website for resourceshttp://banklesshq.com/
Follow Bankless on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/BanklessHQ
Follow Ryan on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/ryansadams
Follow David on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/TrustlessState
-----
Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time we may add links in this channel to products we use. We may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. We'll always disclose when this is the case
Ryan Selkis - The Crypto Barbell and Token Curated Registries - [Invest Like the Best, EP.98]
Ryan Selkis - The Crypto Barbell and Token Curated Registries - [Invest Like the Best, EP.98]
This week’s conversation is for those interested in the nitty gritty of cryptocurrencies and for those who, like me, are fascinated by that world but more than a bit skeptical of the investing prospects for the many cryptocurrencies now in existence. My guest is Ryan Selkis, who I met at an event hosted by Union Square Ventures and Blocktower Capital. At that event, in a crowd of many brilliant people, Ryan was consistently asking hard questions and raising counterpoints. I love his perspective because he is both passionate, but realistic, excited about crypto, but worried about many aspects of the ecosystem. We discuss many new topics like his barbell analogy for thinking about different kinds of coins, token curated registries, and the need to better transparency around decentralized projects.
Hash Power is presented by Fidelity Investments
Please enjoy our conversation.
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Learn more and sign up at alphaarchitect.com/mftf.
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub.
Follow Patrick on Twitter at @patrick_oshag
Show Notes
2:55 - (First Question) – how he best explains blockchain technology
4:12 – How does he categorize each cryptocurrency
9:11 – How Numeraii is valued
10:04 – Explaining token curated registries (TCR)
12:58 – How Token Curated Registries are being applied
15:05 – Innovations that will protect against nefarious actors in the crypto space
16:37 – How do you convince investors to commit to TCR’s
18:40 – Biggest headwinds to this industry
22:12 – What are the quality filters to root out the bad actors
25:42 – Thoughts on the ICO market as an alternative to capital raising
29:23 – Litmus test for who should use an ICO to raise capital
34:28 – What is unique about creation of a token vs the normal exchange of cash to determine if a company needs a token
36:21 – How many ICO projects are really necessary
38:28 – How should people form an investment opinion about this space
41:35 – Core mission of his company
44:28 – What are some of the reasons his goals won’t happen
49:30 – Lessons learned while working at Coindesk
49:58 – What is he most excited about for the future of this space
52:56 – Kindest thing anyone has done for Ryan
Learn More
For more episodes go to InvestorFieldGuide.com/podcast.
Sign up for the book club, where you’ll get a full investor curriculum and then 3-4 suggestions every month at InvestorFieldGuide.com/bookclub
Follow Patrick on twitter at @patrick_oshag
Ripple's XRP: Why Its Chances of Success Are Low - Ep.58
In this show, recorded without the participation of Ripple (explanation included in the show), Ryan Selkis, CEO and founder of Messari and Matt Leising, Bloomberg reporter, discuss Ripple's XRP, the third-largest coin by market cap. We go over whether or not it plays an essential role in Ripple's products, why banks are unlikely to adopt it, and why it's centralized. We also discuss whether or not it's an unregistered security (although the class-action lawsuit alleging XRP is an unregistered security being sold in a "never-ending ICO" came out after we recorded -- link below). We also discuss recent attempts by XRP to get it listed on top crypto exchanges, and how, as Selkis puts it, there's a fine line between some of its business activity and bribes. We also ponder the question: If XRP is meant for banks and financial institutions, why should everyday people own XRP?
Ryan Selkis: https://messari.io/
https://twitter.com/twobitidiot
Matt Leising: https://twitter.com/mattleising
https://www.bloomberg.com/authors/AGfq0QVqo0I/matthew-leising
Full text of class-action lawsuit against Ripple: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5938711a9de4bb74f63b4059/t/5aebc4112b6a28e0ef4a0381/1525400594617/Coffey+v+Ripple+Labs+Complaint.pdf
Bloomberg article on lawsuit: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-05-04/ripple-hit-with-class-action-suit-over-never-ending-ico
Matt's article on why big banks have no interest in using XRP: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-01-25/ripple-wants-xrp-to-be-bitcoin-for-banks-if-only-the-banks-wanted-it
How Ripple tried to buy its way onto crypto exchanges: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-04-04/ripple-is-said-to-struggle-to-buy-u-s-listing-for-popular-coin
Ryan's post on XRP: https://medium.com/@twobitidiot/i-still-see-you-xrp-815369a539ea
Izabella Kaminska's article on XRP: https://ftalphaville.ft.com/2018/01/05/2197220/the-ripple-effect/
CoinDesk article on XRP: https://www.coindesk.com/ripples-xrp-giving-third-largest-cryptocurrency-second-look/
XRP chat post by David Schwartz: https://www.xrpchat.com/topic/5280-valuation-models-xrp-the-digital-currency-vs-ripple-the-company/?tab=comments#comment-50182
Another post by David Schwartz on how XRP is not required: https://www.quora.com/Is-XRP-not-required-for-the-Ripple-Swift-replacement/answer/David-Schwartz-9
Bitmex post on XRP: https://blog.bitmex.com/the-ripple-story/
The dueling lawsuits between Ripple and R3 over XRP: https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurashin/2017/09/08/blockchain-enterprise-firms-r3-and-ripple-sue-each-other-over-1-billion-of-cryptocurrency/
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