The Breakdown

A daily analysis of macroeconomics, bitcoin, geopolitics and big picture power shifts, hosted by Nathaniel Whittemore @nlw. The Breakdown is part of Blockworks.

Business
Investing
501
Regulators Only Have Themselves to Blame for Cr...
On Tuesday, the Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on the “Crypto Crash.” NLW discusses the opening statements of the ranking committee member and chairman, as well as the regulatory proposals put forward by witnesses. He also discusses the...
17 min
502
Slightly Hot Inflation Print Probably Won’t Cha...
On today’s episode, NLW updates on the Paxos situation. Paxos made a statement that it is willing to fight the Securities and Exchange Commission in court over whether BUSD is a security. The main part of the episode is focused on January’s...
15 min
503
The Latest Front in the Crypto Wars Is Binance-...
Last week, rumors swirled that Paxos was the next target for regulatory action. On Sunday, the Wall Street Journal reported the Securities and Exchange Commission was preparing a suit accusing the company of issuing an unregistered security. Then on...
15 min
504
Are Ordinals Sneakily a Boon to Bitcoin Security?
On this week’s “Long Reads Sunday,” NLW reads:   “” by Jesus Rodriguez  “” by George Kaloudis  Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  Spotify: Google:   Join the discussion:  ...
18 min
505
‘A Paternalistic and Lazy Regulator’: What the ...
On this edition of the “Weekly Recap,” NLW goes over the latest front in the crypto wars. On Thursday, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced a $30 million settlement with Kraken over their staking-as-a-service program. The move is...
19 min
506
Python Politics Part 2: Operation Choke Point 2...
The crypto industry is increasingly facing a U.S. banking system that has been weaponized against it. In this second part of a two-part special, NLW looks at the post-Brian Brooks era at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and examines how...
23 min
507
Python Politics Part 1: The US Government's Slo...
Operation Choke Point was an Obama-era initiative that put political pressure on banks and financial institutions to deny service to out-of-favor industries. Something similar is happening again with intense pressure being exerted for banks not to...
21 min
508
Here Comes ‘Britcoin’
On today’s episode, NLW looks at the news that the U.K. has released a public consultation paper on a digital pound. While the British government hasn’t fully greenlit a U.K. central bank digital currency, the announcement argues “the Bank of...
18 min
509
The Fed’s Hawkish Walk Back
At last week’s FOMC meeting, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell surprised many market watchers with a more doveish than expected FOMC speech and Q&A. On Friday, however, the January non-farm payrolls report came in with 517,000 new jobs added...
15 min
510
Would a Genesis/DCG Deal With Creditors End the...
Today on “The Breakdown,” NLW catches up on 2022 fallout, including: The White House letter about crypto from last week FTX hearing on whether to appoint an independent examiner Binance temporarily suspending USD deposits and withdrawals ...
13 min
511
Why Crypto Fundraising Could Be in for a Painfu...
On this week’s “Long Reads Sunday,” NLW reads: “” – Regan Bozman “” – Scott Fitsimones  “” – Don Phan  Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  Spotify: Google:   Join the...
19 min
512
The Tragedy of Lebanon’s Currency Devaluation
This week, the Lebanese pound (or lira) was devalued from 1,500 lira per U.S. dollar to 15,000 lira per USD. At the same time, the black market price of a dollar is 64,300 lira. In this episode, NLW gives the story behind the headlines and tweets, and...
13 min
513
Is the Narrative Around ESG and Bitcoin Mining ...
Bitcoiners are no stranger to environmental FUD. NLW argues, however, that there are more and more examples of mainstream media telling the story of bitcoin mining’s potential for positive environmental impact. What’s more, some of that thinking...
14 min
514
Jerome Powell Finally Believes He Might Actuall...
On today’s episode, NLW breaks down the Federal Open Markets Committee rate hike decision, as well as Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s comments on inflation, the labor force, the debt ceiling and loosening financial conditions. While many commentators...
15 min
515
A Primer on the Debate Around Ordinal Inscripti...
For the last week, the Bitcoin community has been locked in fierce debate around Ordinal Inscriptions, a type of Bitcoin-native NFT that allows people to associate data like JPEGs with individual sats. Some find it an interesting, novel experiment....
21 min
516
Independent Examiner Excoriates Celsius as a Ponzi
On today’s episode, NLW breaks down the newly filed report from the Celsius Network bankruptcy court’s independent examiner. The extremely thorough document argues that not only was Celsius engaged in extremely problematic practices, but that...
14 min
517
Hawks vs. Bulls: The Fed Clashes With Optimisti...
On today’s episode, NLW previews the Federal Open Markets Committee meeting this week. While most still believe the Federal Reserve will raise rates by just 0.25%, there is a growing sense the hike will be accompanied by some harsh talk for a market...
18 min
518
Is 2023 the Year the US Gets Serious About Prot...
On this week’s “Long Reads Sunday,” it’s all about privacy. NLW reads: “” - Mark Lurie “” - Lia Holland, Eseohe Ojo   Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  Spotify: Google:   Join the...
17 min
519
What’s Next for NFTs?
On this edition of the “Weekly Recap,” NLW looks at a number of stories from the non-fungible token (NFT) industry this week that suggest where the industry might be headed, including Doodles’ acquisition of an animation studio and Porsche’s...
15 min
520
Commingling Customer Funds? Binance Under Scrut...
On today’s episode, NLW catches up on the continued fallout of Crypto 2022, including: Scrutiny around wallet balances that suggest Binance has had commingled user funds and company reserves around B-tokens  The latest from the FTX bankruptcy,...
15 min
521
‘We Want to Make Sure America Is the Place for ...
On today’s episode, NLW examines recent interviews with Republican congressional leaders including Representatives Patrick McHenry, Tom Emmer, Warren Davidson and French Hill, around the state of crypto in Washington, D.C. NLW argues that the key...
14 min
522
Here Comes Nuclear-Powered Bitcoin Mining
Today is a mining day on “The Breakdown” as NLW looks at: News of nuclear-powered bitcoin-mining coming to the U.S. A new report on the state of mining from Galaxy Digital  The impact of Kazakhstan’s miner exodus on the global bitcoin...
15 min
523
Up 40% YTD, Bitcoin Is 2023’s Best-Performing A...
On today’s episode of “The Breakdown,” NLW looks at bitcoin’s impressive January rally and discusses what’s driving it. Specifically, he explores claims of market manipulation versus simple mean reversion. Finally, he looks at whether it is...
15 min
524
Does Crypto Have a Banking Problem?
On today’s episode, NLW breaks down the latest news from the weekend, including: Signature Bank limiting services, and what it means for the industry as a whole U.S. government seizing $700 million of assets associated with Sam Bankman-Fried ...
15 min
525
The Future of Crypto Isn’t With Wall Street
On this week’s “Long Reads Sunday,” NLW reads: “” by Michael J. Casey “” by Daniel Kuhn  - Enjoying this content?   SUBSCRIBE to the Podcast Apple:  Spotify: Google:   Join the discussion:   Follow on...
13 min