What Bitcoin Did

“They’re saving all their money in Bitcoin and they’re doing all the right things. They’re self-custodying it. And then overnight, it’s just gone.”

Frostsnap’s Lloyd Fournier and Nick Farrow join me to break down the catastrophic Coldcard vulnerability that made supposedly secure Bitcoin keys guessable and allowed attackers to drain more than 1,700 BTC without ever touching the devices.

We discuss how a five-year failure in Coldcard’s randomness generation went undetected, why every safeguard failed and the role AI played in discovering and exploiting the bug. Nick also explains how he reproduced th...

“The reason it goes up is because you get to seller exhaustion. No one wants to sell anymore.”

Checkmate is a Bitcoin analyst and founder of Checkonchain. In this episode, he explains why Bitcoin may be entering the final stage of the bear market, even after $8.2 billion of ETF outflows, Strategy selling, the Coldcard attack and the failure of BIP110.

We discuss whether $58k marked the bottom, why a fall to $45k would inflict damage comparable to the brutal 2015 bear market, and the key levels that would signal Bitcoin is turning bullish again. We also get...

“We’ve already fucking won.”

Bitcoin went from a weird internet experiment to an asset that Wall Street, corporations and governments can no longer ignore. But as the suits pile in, is Bitcoin losing the culture that made it matter?

Recorded live at PubKey in New York City, American HODL, Junseth and Erik Cason & Thomas Pacchia are on the show for an unfiltered conversation about Bitcoin’s conquest of Wall Street, why everyone still thinks they’re late, the promise of $100 million Bitcoin and whether Bitcoin needs a new narrative.

We also discuss the rise o...

“The people who are truly productive are going to be on a rocket ship.”

AI is about to split society in two: those who learn to command it and those whose value it destroys.

Zack Shapiro, Head of Policy at the Bitcoin Policy Institute, explains why AI could dismantle the traditional white-collar career ladder while creating millions of millionaires. He argues that judgment, agency and decisive thinking will become exponentially more valuable, while simply working hard may no longer be enough.

We discuss why most people are using AI incorrectly, how it could tran...

“There’s no balance sheet in the world that can cough up a trillion dollars.”

In this episode, Mauricio Di Bartolomeo explains why he believes Bitcoin-backed loans could become a $1 trillion market within the next five to ten years, and why traditional lender balance sheets cannot finance that growth alone.

Mauricio breaks down Ledn’s $188 million Bitcoin-backed securitisation, the significance of its investment-grade senior notes, and how institutional capital could transform Bitcoin lending into a global credit market. He also explains partial liquidations, auto top up, tokenised gold and the potential for hybrid Bitcoin-and-gold collateral.

Th...

“I would give myself 95% confidence that the bottom is in.”

Mitchell Askew and John Haar are on the show to get into whether Bitcoin’s price bottom is already in, and why this drawdown looks different.

In this episode we discuss the disconnect between record global liquidity and a Bitcoin price that has fallen 50%, the selling by OG holders, miners pivoting toward AI, and the potentially self-fulfilling nature of the four-year cycle. Selling pressure is becoming exhausted and we're now facing time pain, not price pain.

We also get into AI stealing Bitcoin’s bull r...

“Who is left now that wants to sell at $65K?”

Bitcoin has gone through the price pain. Now comes the time pain.

Alex Thorn, Head of Firmwide Research at Galaxy, is back on the show in New York to get into whether Bitcoin has already found its bottom, why sellers may finally be exhausted, and how the next rally could begin before the wider market notices.

We discuss the on-chain signals around $58K, the changing shape of Bitcoin’s market cycles, and how the enormous debt funding the AI boom could revive the curren...

“The companies are bubbles, but I don’t think the technology is a bubble.”

Luke Gromen is back on the show to explain why the debt-fuelled AI boom may have become too big to fail, why slowing investment and valuations could threaten the wider financial system, and how even a small move from the Fed could trigger the unwind.

Luke also explains why he still hasn’t bought back most of the Bitcoin he sold near $96,000. He believes Bitcoin could trade lower alongside tech over the next few months, but his long-term thesis has not changed...

“This is as code red as it can get for Bitcoin self-custody.”

Rob Hamilton joins me for an emergency episode on the catastrophic Coldcard entropy bug that has exposed Bitcoin held in wallets generated on affected firmware.

A firmware change introduced in 2021 prevented Coldcard devices from generating the level of randomness users believed they were getting. The result is that attackers may be able to reconstruct seed phrases and drain wallets, even when the device was air-gapped and the seed words never touched the internet. Rob explains which Coldcard models and setups are at risk, why...

“The company that I co-founded and wanted to build and the company Twenty One was becoming were no longer the same.”

Jack Mallers is back on the show for his first interview since stepping down as CEO of Twenty One Capital.

Jack explains why he walked away from the Bitcoin treasury company he built with Tether and took public on the New York Stock Exchange. We discuss where his vision began to diverge from the board’s, why merging Strike into Twenty One was never part of the original plan, and the expectations he regrets settin...

“We don’t need a new narrative. We just need to buy the bear, turn it around and smash it.”

Cory Klippsten is back on the show to explain why Bitcoin’s last bull market failed to deliver, why institutional adoption created weak hands rather than conviction, and why the next major move depends on bringing a new wave of people into Bitcoin.

In this episode, we discuss Swan’s campaign to bring the energy back to Bitcoin, the return of Café Bitcoin, 50 Days for Freedom and lower buying fees. Cory explains why ETFs made Bitcoin eas...

“Bear markets are actually more about survival.”

Matt Odell is back on the show to explain why Bitcoin bear markets grind people down, why the fundamentals have not changed, and why he has never been more bullish on Bitcoin.

In this episode, we discuss Jack Mallers stepping down from XXI, the risks of Bitcoin treasury companies, and why profitable businesses should save in Bitcoin rather than make financial engineering the product.

We also get into Nostr’s failure to replace X, the continued need for open identity and private communications, and how open-source AI cou...

“Cycles have no respect for trends.”

Michael Howell is on the show to explain why global liquidity, not Bitcoin’s four-year cycle, is the force driving Bitcoin, gold and global markets.

Michael argues that the liquidity cycle has already peaked and may not bottom until the second half of 2027. He warns that tighter liquidity could create further downside before the next major monetary expansion begins.

We get into the five-to-six-year debt refinancing cycle, why central banks are ultimately forced to keep supplying liquidity, China’s influence on the gold market, the growing debt maturity...

"Bitcoin treasury companies are not the equivalent of altcoins, but there’s a very similar lesson that has to be learned: they’re a great way to get less Bitcoin."

Parker Lewis is back on the show to explain why Bitcoin treasury companies such as Strategy (MSTR) may underperform Bitcoin, and why the digital capital narrative gets Bitcoin wrong.

Parker argues that investors buying treasury company stocks are often paying a premium to take on more risk: leverage, dilution, corporate expenses, execution risk, counterparty exposure and potential tax drag. While the company may accumulate more Bitc...

“In my opinion, not just Bitcoin, but the direction of society for our lifetimes and our kids’ lifetimes will be decided in the next five to ten years.”

Brandon Quittem is back on the show to get into whether Bitcoin can survive its transition from a countercultural movement into a global financial asset without losing the qualities that make it revolutionary.

We discuss the growing concentration of bitcoin in custodians and ETFs, the threat of paper Bitcoin, the importance of protecting self-custody, and why cultural apathy may be Bitcoins biggest danger.

We also get in...

“I think in ten years, the financial system and the Bitcoin system are going to collide.”

Matthew Mezinskis is a macroeconomic researcher, host of Crypto Voices and one of the leading voices on Bitcoin's power law and global money supply data.

In this episode, we get into whether the Bitcoin power law has finally broken, why the four-year cycle still appears intact, and what the data suggests about the current market and a possible $500,000 Bitcoin in 2029.

We also explore the coming collision between Bitcoin’s slowing power law growth, a financial system built on exp...

"They will allow inflation to run hotter than they'll admit to."

James Lavish is co-founder of the Bitcoin Opportunity Fund and author of The Informationist newsletter.

In this episode, we discuss Kevin Warsh's first months as Fed chair and whether the Fed is about to change how it measures inflation. We get into the inflation task force, the trimmed mean PCE, why the 2% target was always arbitrary, and how the balance sheet is quietly expanding through treasury buybacks and QE light.

We also cover credit card delinquencies hitting 2008 levels, the K-shaped economy, whether...

“Maybe it’s time to kill your heroes again, and Saylor is now the hero to slay in this cycle.”

Fernando Nikolic is the founder of Perception. In this episode, we get into whether Bitcoin has lost its narrative, why Michael Saylor’s messaging has changed, and how narratives can move markets. Fernando breaks down the shift from Saylor’s early Bitcoin maximalist language to the more recent focus on credit, derivatives and Strategy as a financial product.

We also get into whether Bitcoin’s rebel era is over, why the ETF approval may have marked the e...

“Bitcoin’s value prop remains unchanged and a 50% drawdown isn’t something that should scare you. It should be viewed as an opportunity.”

Joe Consorti is back on the show to break down why he thinks the Bitcoin bottom may be closer than many people expect, why $50k is the key level to watch, and why October or November could mark the final low before Bitcoin begins moving into its next bull market.

We discuss:

– Bitcoin below $60k

– Whether the four-year cycle is still alive

– The role of inflation, oil, midterms...

“The game has changed, it’s very clear.”

Matt Dines is a fixed-income portfolio manager and host of Mind Print Hash. In this episode, we get into why he believes the dollar system has already changed and why Bitcoin may be the endgame.

For decades, global markets have been built around the offshore dollar system: LIBOR, Fed backstops, QE, ZIRP and the assumption that every crisis ends with more liquidity. But Matt argues that world is being replaced by something very different: a Treasury-led dollar system built around T-bills, SOFR, regulated stablecoins and a new set of...

“The market is trying to find a villain right now—and Saylor is that guy.”

Adam Livingston explains the pressure building around Michael Saylor, MicroStrategy and STRC as the preferred stock trades at $88, well below its $100 par value.

Is STRC broken, or is the market mispricing Strategy’s credit risk? Adam explains how STRC works, why its yield has climbed above 13%, whether it can recover to par, and what Strategy’s capital structure means for MSTR shareholders. We also get into dilution, dividend coverage, Strategy’s use of its cash reserve and whether Saylor is now forced t...

“The whole goddamn thing is a charade… finger in the air, wild-ass guess, total gaslighting and bullshit.”

In this episode, Lawrence Lepard is back on the show to explain why the Fed is trapped between persistent inflation, an accelerating sovereign debt crisis and a financial system that cannot withstand genuinely tight monetary policy.

Lawrence breaks down the Fed’s retreat from forward guidance, why its new playbook gives policymakers cover to change course without warning, and why he believes today’s hawkish stance will ultimately give way to rate cuts and more money creation.

We also...

“The real battle is not communism versus capitalism. It’s not the radical left versus the far right… They’re all a different flavour of the same agenda.”

Simon Dixon is an entrepreneur & investor. In this episode we get into the decline of American hegemony, the rise of a multipolar world, the petrodollar, China, BRICS, Iran, Venezuela, energy, AI, surveillance and the institutions that operate above elected governments. He explains why he sees war, debt and political polarisation as mechanisms that move capital, concentrate wealth and reshape the global order.

We also discuss where Bitcoin fits into...

“The dollar endgame is still in play, but it’s going to play out much differently than most people think.”

Peruvian Bull, is a macro analyst and the author of Dollar Endgame.

In this interview, we discuss why the collapse of the dollar is unlikely to play out the way most people expect, why the dollar remains so dominant despite America’s worsening debt problem, and why Japan may be the clearest warning signal for what comes next.

We get into the eurodollar system, stablecoins, treasury demand, the yen carry trade, QE, yield curve co...

I still believe we've got 100X in front of us in the next 10 years… Bitcoin becomes undeniable."

Peter Dunworth is the co-founder of The Bitcoin Adviser.

Bitcoin is at $62,500, down 50% from the all-time high, and sentiment is the worst it has ever been. So why is the most bullish man in Bitcoin calling this the best buying opportunity in history?

We discuss why the bottom is closer than you think, why the next cycle breaks every model, the wall of AI money waiting to rotate into Bitcoin, how the Clarity Act turns the US...

"We are taught that the state builds our economy, but the reality is that every act of intervention is an act of wealth destruction."

Max Hillebrand joins the show to tear down the Keynesian fallacies that keep us in a cycle of manufactured poverty and systemic theft. We go deep into the Austrian framework to explain why privacy isn't just a tech feature, it is the bedrock of a free economy.

We discuss:\

“In the end, it’s the economic majority of users who decide what Bitcoin is.”

Wicked and MrHodl join the show to break down why BIP110 won’t change Bitcoin.

We get into the fight over arbitrary data on Bitcoin, why they believe BIP110 fails to solve the problem it claims to address, and why miner signalling alone does not define consensus. The conversation covers Bitcoin Core, Knots, the blocksize war, SegWit, BIP148, spam, soft forks, hard forks, nodes, miners, exchanges, and the role of the economic majority in defending Bitcoin’s rules.

Is BIP110...

“We are in the digital gold rush to acquire as much Bitcoin as humanly possible.”

Jeff Walton joins the show to break down the rise of Bitcoin-backed credit, Strive’s SATA instrument, and why perpetual preferred equity could become one of the most important capital market innovations in Bitcoin.

We discuss why SATA is now paying daily dividends, how Strive thinks about risk, reserves, leverage, and Bitcoin coverage, and why these new credit instruments may become a structural buyer of Bitcoin through both bull and bear markets.

We also get into Strategy’s role as...

“Whoever blinks first wins.”

Mechanic joins me to discuss the controversial BIP110 proposal, the fight over spam and inscriptions, and whether Bitcoin users can force a consensus change without support from the major mining pools.

We get into miner power, node enforcement, UASF game theory, soft forks, and whether Bitcoin is drifting away from its original purpose as money. Mechanic argues that Bitcoin’s strength comes from ordinary users enforcing the rules, not corporations, exchanges, or miners.

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“Trust the process. The money will be printed.”

Arthur Hayes returns to the show to explain why he believes the Bitcoin bull market is back on, and why the next move higher will once again be driven by global liquidity.

In this episode, we discuss why war, AI, supply chain fragility, rising bond market stress, and political incentives all point in the same direction: more spending, more debt, and more money printing. Arthur explains why governments are not going to choose austerity, why the inflationary tax is the path of least resistance, and why Bitcoin rema...

“We’re in an era where the monetary system is changing. The world is going to look very different on the other side of this thing.”

Checkmate is back on the show to explain why Bitcoin may already be back in a bull market and why the bigger story is not just the price, but the system beginning to crack.

We get into his case that the bottom is likely in, why the $60k flush looked like a real capitulation event, and the levels that matter now. Checkmate breaks down the on-chain data behind his 80% bull-m...

“The alpha is still in Bitcoin. But it’s just by treating Bitcoin as money.”

Brian De Mint is the head of marketing for Club Orange, a real-world social network for Bitcoiners.

In this episode, we discuss why Bitcoin’s next phase may not just be holding the asset, but building a real economy around it: Bitcoin meetups, IRL community, the case for spending sats, merchant adoption, Lightning payments, Bitcoin mining as a free-market energy solution, and why treating Bitcoin as money can create stronger economic relationships between Bitcoiners.

We also get into food and...

Harry Sudock and Rory Murray from CleanSpark join the show to explain how Bitcoin miners are building entirely new treasury strategy around Bitcoin.

Instead of simply mining Bitcoin and selling it for cash, companies like CleanSpark are now borrowing against it, generating yield from it, using it as collateral, and turning their Bitcoin balance sheet into a tool for expansion.

We get into why Bitcoin may become the best collateral in global markets, how miners are using treasury strategies like covered calls and basis trades to increase returns, why Bitcoin backed lending markets are rapidly...

Jonathan Pollock is Product Lead for Bitkey.

In this episode, we get into wrench attacks, why physical coercion is a structural weakness of private key ownership, why seed phrases may be creating more risk than they solve, and why most self custody setups rely too heavily on users never making a mistake.

We talk about the trade offs between security, privacy, recovery, inheritance, and ease of use, alongside BitKey’s new hardware update and the company’s plans to build time delayed vaults designed to protect users during violent attacks. We also get into collaborative cust...

“Bitcoin can change the world because the world can’t change Bitcoin.”

Jack Mallers is back on the show to break down his vision for 21, Strike, and the next phase of Bitcoin’s monetisation.

Jack explains why he doesn’t want to build another pure Bitcoin treasury company or another crypto casino, but a full-stack Bitcoin business: financial services, lending, custody, infrastructure, mining, capital markets, and a balance sheet built around Bitcoin. We get into the proposed acquisition of Strike, Bitcoin-backed lending, proof of reserves, why profitability matters, and why he thinks the best Bitcoin company wo...

“If your system can’t survive without inflation, the problem isn’t deflation.”

Allen Farrington and Sacha Meyers return to the show to break down one of the most misunderstood ideas in economics: deflation.

Allen & Sacha are the authors of Bitcoin is Venice, in this episode they get into their latest essay, Number Go Down, where they challenge the core assumptions behind modern macroeconomics. They argue that the idea inflation is necessary for a healthy economy is not grounded in reality, but in flawed models, bad incentives, and a fundamental misunderstanding of how growth actually happens...

“Money on the internet is still broken.”

David Marcus returns to the show to break down why moving money globally is still slow, fragmented, and expensive and how Bitcoin could fix it.

David explains how the current system is built on disconnected networks that extract fees, delay payments, and capture data. His solution is a new kind of global account built on Bitcoin infrastructure that unifies dollars, Bitcoin, and stablecoins into a single system that works instantly across borders.

We get into why platforms like Uber and YouTube could become financial hubs, how stab...

“There’s a reality here that you guys are all asleep to… we are the only alternative path.”

American HODL & Peter McCormack join the show to break down the growing divide across the West, the collapse of trust in institutions, and whether the current political system is already failing.

We’re moving from a high trust to a low trust society, where incentives are broken, democracy is increasingly unstable, and the middle ground between left and right is disappearing. As countries like the UK decline economically and culturally, the risk isn’t just stagnation, it’s escalation...

“Bitcoin has a chance of losing the energy conversation.”

Michael Dunworth joins the show to break down what happens when AI and Bitcoin collide over the world’s most important resource: energy.

Michael argues that as AI demand explodes, governments and corporations will prioritise data centres over Bitcoin mining, potentially rationing energy and pushing Bitcoin to the margins. At the same time, AI is set to drive massive job displacement, reshape global infrastructure, and concentrate power into a handful of dominant players.

We get into whether this is an existential threat to Bitcoin or a h...

“Bitcoin’s values are easy to defend until they become inconvenient.”

Rob Hamilton returns to the show to get into Bitcoin as a hero’s journey, and why its next great test may already be here.

Rob explains how Bitcoin evolved from a cypherpunk rebellion into an institutional asset, and why that shift is creating a new fault line inside the network. As more Bitcoin moves into ETFs and corporate treasuries, the question is no longer just whether Bitcoin succeeds, but who defines what it is.

We get into the debate around quantum computin...