A daily analysis of macroeconomics, bitcoin, geopolitics and big picture power shifts, hosted by Nathaniel Whittemore @nlw. The Breakdown is part of Blockworks.
On this week’s “Weekly Recap,” NLW digs into the theory of the bitcoin supercycle. Are we in the same sort of four-year, halving-driven, boom-bust cycle that has characterized bitcoin so far, or are the new institutional participants breaking us...
9 min
1327
Liberty Mutual and State Street Are the Latest ...
Today on the Brief: Crypto Climate Accord Robinhood crypto trading The decentralization of venture capital Our main discussion: This week was absolutely chock-full of institutions getting into the bitcoin space, yet barely anyone noticed. From...
13 min
1328
Is Bitcoin a Chinese Financial Weapon? Peter Th...
Peter Thiel is nothing if not good at igniting controversy. For the last 24 hours or so, Bitcoin Twitter (and really, FinTwit and TechTwit and Politics Twitter as well) have been hotly debating his assertion in recent remarks that bitcoin had become a...
20 min
1329
$400,000 Bitcoin in 2021? The Best of Bloomberg...
Today on the Brief: Coinbase’s monster Q1 numbers 150 million evaporate from the global middle class Jamie Dimon’s shareholder letter comments on crypto Our main discussion: Bloomberg’s latest crypto outlook is out. In this episode, NLW looks...
15 min
1330
From Dinosaur Altcoins to the Kimchi Premium, 1...
On today’s episode, NLW provides a whistle stop tour of some of the most interesting and illuminating numbers from crypto and traditional markets, including: The pop in Jurassic Park altcoins Archegos fallout US vaccine distribution Outflows from...
17 min
1331
How Will the Coinbase IPO Affect Bitcoin's Price?
Today on the Brief: The 88th anniversary of Executive Order 6102 Former SEC Jay Clayton on bitcoin regulations GBTC intends to become an ETF Our main discussion: NLW breaks down the potential implications of the Coinbase IPO. He looks at...
16 min
1332
The Future of Bitcoin Lies with Renegades and M...
On this week’s “Long Reads Sunday,” NLW reads CoinDesk journalist Brady Dale’s “.” NLW argues this topic is even more important in the context of bitcoin institutionalization. -- Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP,...
8 min
1333
For Bitcoin and Crypto, a Week of Mainstreaming...
On this edition of “The Breakdown” Weekly Recap, NLW looks at a set of mainstream moments including: “SNL” doing a song about NFTs Visa accepting USDC on Ethereum as a native settlement currency PayPal opening crypto checkout to 29 million...
8 min
1334
An Interview With Cathie Wood on Bitcoin, Tesla...
This episode is a replay of NLW’s conversation with Cathie Wood from October 2020. In it, they discuss: Why she had conviction in Tesla before the market caught up Why her fund offered the first bitcoin investment opportunities to Wall...
78 min
1335
Corruption, Leverage and Cheap Money: Archegos ...
The financial world has been rocked by the Archegos scandal. A family office managing at least $10 billion and betting with $50 billion-$80 billion on leverage that was completely undone, literally overnight. In this episode, NLW breaks down: ...
17 min
1336
Goldman Sachs To Offer Bitcoin to Wealthy Clien...
As the old saying goes: “First they ignore you, then they mock you, then they fight you, then you win.” Ten months ago, Goldman Sachs declared that “cryptocurrencies including bitcoin are not an asset class.” Today, CNBC broke the news...
13 min
1337
PayPal Opens Crypto Payments for Millions of Me...
Today on the Brief: BTC micro futures coming to CME Michael Jordan is now an NFT investor Bitcoin doesn’t care about Treasury yields Our main discussion: PayPal has begun rolling out its crypto checkout tools to millions of merchants. NLW breaks...
15 min
1338
Visa Just Supercharged Stablecoin Legitimacy
Today’s episode of “The Breakdown” is an extended brief with five different topics: NFTs make it to “SNL” “Green” bitcoin mining Square’s CFO thinks all companies should hold bitcoin in their treasuries Crypto M&A doubles in 2020...
14 min
1339
Can NFTs & Crypto Create Cultural Revolutions?
On this edition of “Long Reads Sunday,” NLW reads David Hoffman’s essay “” from Bankless. The essay argues that culture, more than economics, will be the most important long-term beneficiary of the rise of crypto. -- Earn up to 12% APY...
29 min
1340
Soros Breaks Into Bitcoin
On this week’s Weekly Recap, NLW: Highlights the four most important happenings around regulation and central bank digital currencies in the U.S. Updates the macro inflation narrative for a “new normal” era Digs into what we’ve learned...
13 min
1341
Worried About Bitcoin's Price Action? Here's Wh...
Today on “The Breakdown,” NLW digs into bitcoin and crypto markets. He argues that despite two weeks of sideways-down price action, there are a set of reasons to be optimistic: Historically bad March months versus historically good Aprils...
12 min
1342
The Fed Chair and the Treasury Secretary Come O...
Today on the Brief: Fidelity files a bitcoin ETF application Stimmies to China The situation in the Suez Our main discussion: In response to a question from Illinois Democrat Bill Foster during a House hearing earlier this week, Federal Reserve...
15 min
1343
Bears Fuming as Elon Opens Tesla Purchases With...
Today on the Brief: Robinhood IPO incoming Competing bitcoin price predictions Yellen and Powell’s latest testimony on economic growth Our main discussion: Elon Musk announced this morning Tesla’s program for buying its cars with...
14 min
1344
Stablecoins in the Hot Seat: Powell Calls Bitco...
Three major moments over the last couple days help provide insight into the future of the U.S. government’s relationship with bitcoin, stablecoins and digital currencies. The first was Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments on...
19 min
1345
When Currencies Fail: ‘Bitcoin’ Google Searches...
Today on the Brief: Nigeria central bank reversing stance on crypto ban? “The least responsible fiscal policy of the last 40 years” Scaramucci’s firm files fifth bitcoin ETF application Our main discussion: the crash of the Turkish lira....
14 min
1346
Hal Finney’s ‘Bitcoin and Me’
On this edition of “Long Reads Sunday,” NLW reads a BitcoinTalk forum from exactly eight years ago - Hal Finney’s “.” The piece is about the origins of Bitcoin, and more broadly, life’s treasures. -- Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin,...
8 min
1347
Why Kentucky Is Trying to Become a Crypto Minin...
On this week’s Breakdown Weekly Recap, NLW looks at: The beginning of the next institutional bitcoin wave NFT bubble signals Central bank policy changes Kentucky’s new pro-crypto legislation -- Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR,...
9 min
1348
How CBDCs Give ‘Absolute Control’ to Central Banks
Today on the Brief: China-U.S. talks U.S. spending coming back A virtual casino hiring IRL people Our main discussion looks at central bank digital currencies and why they’re so appealing for bankers, especially compared to cash. NLW...
15 min
1349
Why a Norwegian Billionaire Is Betting on Bitco...
Today on the Brief Followup on the FOMC meeting $3.1M for an anonymous team Could we finally see a bitcoin ETF? Our main discussion: Aker ASA’s new Seetee bitcoin division. NLW explores: Why a Norwegian billionaire is buying into bitcoin...
15 min
1350
Morgan Stanley Is First Big Bank Offering Bitco...
Today on the Brief: What markets want from the Federal Reserve’s FOMC meeting eToro’s $10B SPAC The latest on Coinbase’s IPO Our main discussion: Morgan Stanley set to become the first big bank to offer wealthy clients access to bitcoin. ...