Posts in exchanges / cap mkts
Maturation of institutional crypto custody and prime brokerage with BitGo's Mike Belshe
Maturation of institutional crypto custody and prime brokerage with BitGo's Mike Belshe

In this conversation, we talk with Mike Belshe, CEO of BitGo and expert technologist about custody, prime brokerage, and the evolution of the institutional digital asset industry.

I often mention that crypto is still all about capital markets trading (i.e., manufacturing) and not about wealth management (i.e., distribution). This conversation touches on where we are in the maturity of market infrastructure, the role of fiduciaries, and the path forward. If you are sitting in a RIA, investment fund, or other asset manager, pay attention!

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crypto, exchanges / cap mkts, decentralized finance, regulation & complianceLex SokolinBitGo, Lumina
Slowing GDP growth by 1.5% is like another 10 million people getting infected with coronovirus, and other analysis on financial fragility
Slowing GDP growth by 1.5% is like another 10 million people getting infected with coronovirus, and other analysis on financial fragility

I hope that you and yours are OK, socially distanced and stocked on essentials. Whether you feel it yet or not in daily life, the world is bracing for coronovirus impact. In this week's analysis, I look at the difficult trade-offs between health and economy, and try to quantify the impact of the likely slow-down. We look at some grim but useful concepts, like (1) the value of a statistical life, (2) what happened to the Soviet economy and life expectancy after perestroika, and (3) how our financial machines (NYSE, Robinhood, Maker DAO) are cracking at the edges. If you can do one thing -- be kind and gracious with each other as some things inevitably break.

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covid pandemic, macroeconomics, philosophy, fixed income, exchanges / cap mkts, decentralized financeLex SokolinValue of Life, Covid, GDP, Robinhood, NYSE, MakerDAO
How Coronovirus impacts Fintech, Financial Markets, and the global Economy
How Coronovirus impacts Fintech, Financial Markets, and the global Economy

I look at how the news about the spread of the coronovirus are cracking the global economic machine. Some may argue that the number of people effected is still low -- but that misses the entire point. The shock of a global pandemic has revealed weakness in the financial machine, sending the stock markets falling 10% year-to-date. Gross domestic product growth is expected to slow by billions of dollars, governments and central banks are unable to implement policy to compensate with rates at historic lows and borrowing at historic highs, public market valuations will tumble arithmetically, and private Fintech companies will lose a path to exit. At least that's what the conspiracy theorists want you to think!

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covid pandemic, narrative zeitgeist, macroeconomics, fixed income, venture capital, exchanges / cap mktsLex SokolinCovid, China, GDP, Credit Karma, Zoom, Mint.com, Bitcoin, Gold
Shifting from Institutions to Retail Clients -- NYSE direct listings and Central Bank digital currencies
Shifting from Institutions to Retail Clients -- NYSE direct listings and Central Bank digital currencies

I look at the similarities between the NYSE building out direct listing products to augment or replace IPOs, and Central Banks considering launching consumer-facing digital currencies. In each case, the value chain of the respective financial sector is compressing, as the underlying manufacturers of financial product move closer to the consumer. I also highlight how a few blockchain-native alternatives to trading and rebalancing software are developing, and the reasons to get excited about things like Set, Uniswap, and Aragon.

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ICO / IEO, stablecoins, central bank / CBDC, exchanges / cap mkts, IPO / SPACLex SokolinNYSE, NASDAQ, Spotify, Slack, E-krona, Bitcoin, Visa, Uniswap, Set Protocol, Wyre, Aragon
Blockchain progress through the lens of Binance's $180MM profit and Greensill's $1.5B SoftBank raise
Blockchain progress through the lens of Binance's $180MM profit and Greensill's $1.5B SoftBank raise

Look at the difference between (1) building out the crypto asset class, and (2) operating infrastruture for a blockchain-based digital economy. There are so many little logic pot holes into which you could fall! There are so many things one could believe that make the whole thing make no sense at all! I am anchoring around two primary data points -- a Multicoin report about Binance's financial progress and its massive (though unaudited) $180 million profit in Q3 of 2019, and a post by supply chain company Centrifuge about marrying cashflow financing with the decentralized web.

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crypto, exchanges / cap mkts, enterprise blockchain, supply chain / trade, regulation & complianceLex SokolinBinance, Greenshill, MakerDAO, Centrifuge, Debitum Network, SoftBank, Vauban, Pirate Bay, BitTorrent, Netflix, komgo