1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:16,720 Music. 2 00:00:16,567 --> 00:00:20,667 Welcome in to This Week in Bitcoin, episode 56. My name is Chris, 3 00:00:20,887 --> 00:00:24,307 chrislas.com, jupiterbroadcasting.com. 4 00:00:24,507 --> 00:00:28,207 Well, as I'm getting ready for a road trip, packing my gear, 5 00:00:28,427 --> 00:00:34,027 I see that a major controversy has broken loose in the Bitcoin core development community. 6 00:00:34,827 --> 00:00:37,927 Hotly debated, and this time it seems to be reaching new levels, 7 00:00:38,007 --> 00:00:41,807 with some trying to say this would end Bitcoin as distributed money, 8 00:00:41,887 --> 00:00:45,127 and others arguing the changes you fear have already happened. 9 00:00:45,127 --> 00:00:48,867 And at the heart of this debate is really a fundamental question. 10 00:00:49,667 --> 00:00:52,847 How exactly should we be using Bitcoin's blockchain? 11 00:00:53,427 --> 00:00:58,587 What really belongs on the blockchain? And you need to have a little bit of context. 12 00:00:58,807 --> 00:01:03,347 So just really briefly, Bitcoin Core, it's the most widely used software that 13 00:01:03,347 --> 00:01:05,427 enforces the Bitcoin consensus rules. 14 00:01:05,747 --> 00:01:09,727 Typically, when you're running a node, you're most often using Bitcoin Core. 15 00:01:09,987 --> 00:01:13,727 There's also a well-known alternative called Bitcoin Nots. We'll talk about that more later. 16 00:01:14,287 --> 00:01:19,907 And the last time I checked, it had around 2% of the node network. 17 00:01:20,207 --> 00:01:26,847 So this battle around storing arbitrary data on the blockchain has been raging forever. 18 00:01:27,307 --> 00:01:30,327 I mean, classically, from the beginning, everybody always likes to cite this. 19 00:01:30,507 --> 00:01:34,587 The Genesis block in 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto embedded a message in there saying 20 00:01:34,587 --> 00:01:37,447 the Chancellor is on the brink of the second bailout for banks. 21 00:01:37,447 --> 00:01:40,727 Which did demonstrate that you 22 00:01:40,727 --> 00:01:44,507 could store arbitrary data along with financial data on the blockchain. 23 00:01:44,907 --> 00:01:48,187 So this is something that's been around for years. And developers have been 24 00:01:48,187 --> 00:01:53,007 split between those who view arbitrary data as spam and those who see that the 25 00:01:53,007 --> 00:01:58,167 blockchain could hold data along financial transactions in perhaps a censorship-resistant 26 00:01:58,167 --> 00:02:00,487 way, you know, time chain attributes and whatnot. 27 00:02:00,887 --> 00:02:04,467 And I vaguely remember in 2013, this was really raging. 28 00:02:04,987 --> 00:02:09,147 And it was all about like the technical means of doing it, the consent of the 29 00:02:09,147 --> 00:02:13,027 node operators having to store this stuff, the legal risk because some illegal 30 00:02:13,027 --> 00:02:14,507 things were put into the blockchain. 31 00:02:15,087 --> 00:02:18,247 And then of course, just everybody talking about is this good or bad? 32 00:02:18,587 --> 00:02:21,407 And so by 2014, after a lot of debate, 33 00:02:21,567 --> 00:02:24,947 OpReturn was introduced to sort of formalize and limit data storage. 34 00:02:25,387 --> 00:02:27,307 There was some debate after it was put in. 35 00:02:29,089 --> 00:02:33,429 It is there. However, that has not stopped users from continuing to store media 36 00:02:33,429 --> 00:02:36,569 spam and other non-financial data outside of Operaturn. 37 00:02:36,749 --> 00:02:41,709 There's places like script-sig fields and unspendable outputs that they can stash stuff in. 38 00:02:42,189 --> 00:02:46,669 Others have just simply bypassed the 83-byte limit of Operaturn in script-pub-key 39 00:02:46,669 --> 00:02:50,049 by privately sending transactions directly to minor mempools, 40 00:02:50,069 --> 00:02:52,869 there's a few of them, that just don't enforce size restrictions. 41 00:02:53,529 --> 00:02:57,509 So that's kind of the background and the context here. the debate around storing 42 00:02:57,509 --> 00:03:00,589 data outside of financial transactions in the blockchain. 43 00:03:01,469 --> 00:03:05,589 Okay, so fast forward to the last couple of weeks. You might remember Peter Todd. 44 00:03:06,049 --> 00:03:12,049 He was recently outed as Satoshi Nakamoto in that silly HBO documentary we covered in the show. 45 00:03:12,409 --> 00:03:16,709 He submitted a change request to Bitcoin Core. It's also supported by others like James Lopp. 46 00:03:17,029 --> 00:03:20,109 And a similar PR request was submitted a couple of years ago, 47 00:03:20,289 --> 00:03:25,589 but didn't go very far. In this new poll request, it's number 32359, 48 00:03:26,169 --> 00:03:30,869 Peter Todd suggests eliminating the current restrictions on op return. No restrictions. 49 00:03:31,369 --> 00:03:36,249 So if accepted by Bitcoin core maintainers, this change would allow miners and 50 00:03:36,249 --> 00:03:41,229 node op users basically to store large amounts of data directly on-chain. 51 00:03:41,769 --> 00:03:46,069 That is, as you can imagine, provoking a pretty big response. 52 00:03:56,829 --> 00:03:59,809 Anything that's going to allow arbitrary data to go on the blockchain, 53 00:04:00,129 --> 00:04:05,649 increased blockchain size, cost of node operations, etc., it's going to get a lot of pushback. 54 00:04:06,129 --> 00:04:10,089 Jason Hughes, he's a longtime Bitcoin contributor. He warned that this proposed 55 00:04:10,089 --> 00:04:15,109 Bitcoin core change could undermine Bitcoin's core value by allowing excessive 56 00:04:15,109 --> 00:04:16,869 non-financial data on the blockchain, 57 00:04:17,109 --> 00:04:18,329 potentially bloating it with 58 00:04:18,329 --> 00:04:22,049 gigabytes of unrelated content and making it harder to use as a currency. 59 00:04:22,949 --> 00:04:28,429 Bitcoin podcasting's own Guy Swan added, Not only is this an issue deeply that's controversial, 60 00:04:28,869 --> 00:04:34,809 and the standard has been since the beginning to not force or push changes that are controversial, 61 00:04:35,109 --> 00:04:38,409 and this is a horrible look and will create pointless distrust in core, 62 00:04:38,609 --> 00:04:42,269 but continuing to spend time on this issue and making changes for the sake of 63 00:04:42,269 --> 00:04:46,549 making changes when nobody asked for this is such a profound waste of time and resources. 64 00:04:47,309 --> 00:04:51,209 Luke Dasher, a strong critic, of course, of Operaturn and some of its uses, 65 00:04:51,289 --> 00:04:55,189 such as inscriptions and ordinals, also criticized the idea as, quote, utter insanity. 66 00:04:55,629 --> 00:04:58,889 Others joined him with him with upvotes, supportive comments. 67 00:04:59,029 --> 00:05:03,049 He added, quote, the bugs should be fixed, not the abuse embraced. 68 00:05:04,018 --> 00:05:08,738 So, strong reaction, this is going to decentralize Bitcoin, or this is going 69 00:05:08,738 --> 00:05:11,038 to hurt Bitcoin's decentralization, I should say. 70 00:05:11,258 --> 00:05:13,498 But there has been some response to the pushback. 71 00:05:14,158 --> 00:05:18,058 Developers in favor of removing the arbitrary limits on OpReturn argue that 72 00:05:18,058 --> 00:05:21,258 the existing limit has proven ineffective. 73 00:05:21,738 --> 00:05:26,018 Users are using the blockchain to store non-financial data already through various 74 00:05:26,018 --> 00:05:30,738 methods, such as taproot unspendable outputs, private memory pools like Mara's Slipstream. 75 00:05:31,198 --> 00:05:34,258 So, in other words, it's already happening. so let's 76 00:05:34,258 --> 00:05:37,238 just remove the limits and because it's already happening 77 00:05:37,238 --> 00:05:41,538 removing the limits don't really change anything which it's 78 00:05:41,538 --> 00:05:44,498 an interesting argument i thought guy had a pretty reasonable response 79 00:05:44,498 --> 00:05:48,458 to that too saying quote that's like saying it's easy for someone to jump over 80 00:05:48,458 --> 00:05:53,638 my fence thus why should i be allowed to put up a fence the point is i'm deciding 81 00:05:53,638 --> 00:05:57,938 whether or not i want a fence and when you push a change that removes the option 82 00:05:57,938 --> 00:06:02,418 you're gonna make people furious over nothing and per your own argument, 83 00:06:02,598 --> 00:06:03,658 it wouldn't change anything. 84 00:06:03,678 --> 00:06:07,478 If it doesn't change anything, then it's clearly not needed for any reason. 85 00:06:07,658 --> 00:06:10,778 The only reason to even suggest it would be to argue that it does, 86 00:06:10,938 --> 00:06:13,118 in fact, change something. 87 00:06:24,218 --> 00:06:27,938 So here we are once again. We have a group of folks that think there could be 88 00:06:27,938 --> 00:06:32,738 future potential and use cases for the blockchain outside just monetary use cases. 89 00:06:33,018 --> 00:06:38,398 And you have several groups of people that are opposed to non-monetary uses of the blockchain. 90 00:06:38,738 --> 00:06:43,538 And they both argue their points. Now, that's the facts that we have today around 91 00:06:43,538 --> 00:06:46,358 Bitcoin Core and the dispute you might be hearing about. 92 00:06:46,458 --> 00:06:48,858 Now, I want to introduce some speculation and opinion. 93 00:06:49,278 --> 00:06:55,798 So here we go with that. I think, in my opinion, it's sort of reasonable to think we should wait. 94 00:06:56,438 --> 00:06:59,338 I can't really understand the benefits of doing this right now, 95 00:06:59,678 --> 00:07:04,578 especially with Bitcoin in its price discovery phase, which it will be in for a very long time. 96 00:07:05,138 --> 00:07:08,958 The stability and purity as a store of value is critical for this phase of adoption. 97 00:07:09,458 --> 00:07:14,658 And I think what Bitcoiners haven't really been able to culturally accept is 98 00:07:14,658 --> 00:07:15,678 we don't get to have it all. 99 00:07:16,358 --> 00:07:21,058 We're probably not going to live in a hyper Bitcoin utopia where world banks 100 00:07:21,058 --> 00:07:24,238 are trading Bitcoin, world governments are trading Bitcoin, and users are trading 101 00:07:24,238 --> 00:07:28,018 Bitcoin to buy their coffee. I just don't think we may never see it. 102 00:07:28,078 --> 00:07:29,258 I don't think we'll ever see it in our generation. 103 00:07:29,438 --> 00:07:32,978 I think humanity moves too slow. Price discovery moves too slow. 104 00:07:33,578 --> 00:07:36,478 There will be incredible gains for our generation. Stories will be told, 105 00:07:36,618 --> 00:07:38,278 good and bad, just like the gold rush. 106 00:07:38,418 --> 00:07:42,118 But humans take a long time to incorporate technology into society. 107 00:07:42,518 --> 00:07:43,878 Look how long the internet's taking. 108 00:07:44,398 --> 00:07:48,798 And I think Bitcoin needs 25 years of this just being rock solid. 109 00:07:49,438 --> 00:07:53,498 And it's possible that allowing arbitrary data on the blockchain could be something 110 00:07:53,498 --> 00:07:55,878 that's beneficial down the road. I mean, hear me out. 111 00:07:56,736 --> 00:08:00,976 Maybe it does help the security budget in the future. Maybe it can make mining 112 00:08:00,976 --> 00:08:03,416 profitable after all the Bitcoin has been mined. 113 00:08:03,716 --> 00:08:06,936 But we're not there right now. We're still in discovery phase. 114 00:08:07,416 --> 00:08:11,996 So what I believe is beneath all of this and has been for so many years is it's 115 00:08:11,996 --> 00:08:14,236 not really a software problem. It's a human problem. 116 00:08:15,056 --> 00:08:19,516 Bitcoin doesn't really have any firm lines that separate it's a financial project 117 00:08:19,516 --> 00:08:21,816 or it's a do-whatever-you-want project. 118 00:08:22,396 --> 00:08:26,696 Taproot and Ordinals, BRC20, they're all just things that are following their 119 00:08:26,696 --> 00:08:31,636 incentives trying to use Bitcoin for their particular use cases and incentives. 120 00:08:32,296 --> 00:08:36,236 So if the Bitcoin community doesn't realign some of these incentives, 121 00:08:36,436 --> 00:08:42,776 maybe through relay rules or minor guidelines or whatever it might be, maybe even a soft fork, 122 00:08:43,336 --> 00:08:47,716 it seems like Bitcoin is going to become harder and harder to defend as a global 123 00:08:47,716 --> 00:08:50,976 financial foundation that all these other things could be built into a layer too. 124 00:08:51,816 --> 00:08:54,156 And that's where I would prefer to see these innovations. If you want to do 125 00:08:54,156 --> 00:08:58,916 an EVM, if you want to do smart contracts, do it in a layer two or a side chain. 126 00:08:59,396 --> 00:09:03,716 Make Bitcoin the source of truth on the blockchain, but do that extra computation 127 00:09:03,716 --> 00:09:08,816 and complexity, maybe non-financial stuff in a different chain or in a layer two. 128 00:09:09,756 --> 00:09:12,216 And node operators are going to have to make a decision here. 129 00:09:12,736 --> 00:09:15,316 I think, you know, they're going to have to watch and see where this goes. 130 00:09:15,696 --> 00:09:19,476 The adoption of node nodes could be an indicator of their decision. 131 00:09:20,256 --> 00:09:23,716 And it's just hard for me to understand why this change has to happen right now. 132 00:09:24,556 --> 00:09:29,076 I think there are companies involved in this scene that would like to see this change. 133 00:09:29,316 --> 00:09:31,896 I don't think it necessarily makes the change inherently bad, 134 00:09:31,936 --> 00:09:35,636 but I feel like everyone's incentive should be on the table here. 135 00:09:36,016 --> 00:09:41,376 And Citreya is working on, quote, the first roll-up, it's a ZK roll-up for Bitcoin 136 00:09:41,376 --> 00:09:45,656 that enhances the capability of Bitcoin block space with zero-knowledge technology, 137 00:09:45,916 --> 00:09:49,236 making it possible to build everything on Bitcoin. 138 00:09:49,476 --> 00:09:54,456 Now, Citreya uses Bitcoin as a settlement layer via its BitBM-based, 139 00:09:54,636 --> 00:09:57,116 trust-minimized two-way program, Clementine. 140 00:09:57,596 --> 00:10:03,156 They also note that Citreya is fully EVM-compatible, that's the Ethereum virtual 141 00:10:03,156 --> 00:10:07,936 machine, which, quote, enables all the EVM developers to easily build on Bitcoin. 142 00:10:08,516 --> 00:10:12,016 And this is the type of use case that would benefit from the proposed change. 143 00:10:12,576 --> 00:10:15,676 Is there use cases for EVMs and smart chains? Maybe. 144 00:10:16,336 --> 00:10:19,656 I don't think the altcoins have successfully made that case yet. 145 00:10:20,036 --> 00:10:25,176 I don't see it. Not yet. I'm willing to say maybe in 5-10 years it'd maybe be 146 00:10:25,176 --> 00:10:28,856 nice to have that on Bitcoin but why couldn't I have that on Lightning or Liquid 147 00:10:28,856 --> 00:10:31,216 or some other sidechain or layer too? 148 00:10:31,896 --> 00:10:36,176 I just don't understand why it has to be on Bitcoin itself when block space is so precious. 149 00:10:36,376 --> 00:10:39,856 I mean, yes, right now fees are low but if you start doing the math and you 150 00:10:39,856 --> 00:10:45,076 look at corporate adoption even if a few percentage of corporations buy and 151 00:10:45,076 --> 00:10:48,356 hold and transfer Bitcoin, the blockchain gets real busy real quick. 152 00:10:49,390 --> 00:10:54,110 And I have not seen the benefits of an EVM long term. 153 00:10:54,330 --> 00:10:57,350 I mean, I've seen short term gains, but I have not seen the benefits long term, 154 00:10:57,590 --> 00:11:01,130 at least not the complexity when that can be solved with other systems. 155 00:11:01,290 --> 00:11:03,830 But maybe I'm wrong here. I don't know. If you're listening, 156 00:11:03,910 --> 00:11:05,030 I'd like to hear your opinion on this. 157 00:11:10,970 --> 00:11:14,450 So if this debate between how to use bitcoin's block 158 00:11:14,450 --> 00:11:17,770 space either just for financial transactions or 159 00:11:17,770 --> 00:11:23,010 just any way we want if this concerns you and you fall on the side of you don't 160 00:11:23,010 --> 00:11:27,430 want arbitrary data well then you can vote with your feet this is where bitcoin 161 00:11:27,430 --> 00:11:32,810 knots comes in this is an alternative Bitcoin daemon that you can run on your 162 00:11:32,810 --> 00:11:36,450 node that is already designed to filter this out. 163 00:11:36,650 --> 00:11:39,770 So if this becomes a concern for you as a node operator, you could take action that way. 164 00:11:40,310 --> 00:11:44,710 It's already probably available on Start9 and Umbral and a lot of the platforms 165 00:11:44,710 --> 00:11:47,810 out there. I think for me, my route will be somewhere in the middle. 166 00:11:48,330 --> 00:11:52,090 I'm going to watch how this goes. If this PR gets merged, I'm going to hang 167 00:11:52,090 --> 00:11:55,630 back on upgrading my Bitcoin node for a little bit, 168 00:11:56,350 --> 00:11:59,090 see how things go and then make a decision of course 169 00:11:59,090 --> 00:12:03,010 report back to you but what we have here is a fundamental disagreement of how 170 00:12:03,010 --> 00:12:07,290 bitcoin should be used and there's no central authority that makes the decision 171 00:12:07,290 --> 00:12:10,850 it has to be done through a period of time and consensus and we've been trying 172 00:12:10,850 --> 00:12:16,550 to work this out for many many years this is this was at the core of the operaturn 173 00:12:16,550 --> 00:12:18,210 debate back in 2013-2014. 174 00:12:19,404 --> 00:12:23,064 And I guess I fall on the side of keep it for financial data right now, 175 00:12:23,404 --> 00:12:27,784 just simply because we do have the experience of all the altcoins and their mistakes. 176 00:12:28,724 --> 00:12:32,344 I do worry about holding Bitcoin's potential back because it is software. 177 00:12:32,344 --> 00:12:36,204 It should evolve. It should enable other use cases as we discover them. 178 00:12:36,664 --> 00:12:39,084 You know, we did certain things in development to enable lightning. 179 00:12:39,284 --> 00:12:40,184 I think that was a real benefit. 180 00:12:40,664 --> 00:12:45,924 So I guess I want to ask you, where do you stand on this issue as you've heard about it so far? 181 00:12:46,524 --> 00:12:49,884 Boosting your thoughts on arbitrary data storage in the blockchain. 182 00:12:50,384 --> 00:12:54,084 Here's an example. Would you inscribe something like a wedding or childbirth 183 00:12:54,084 --> 00:12:56,884 or some other memo moment on the blockchain? Would you like to be able to have 184 00:12:56,884 --> 00:13:01,024 access to put certain arbitrary data like some sort of legal document on the 185 00:13:01,024 --> 00:13:02,804 blockchain? And, of course, you'd pay for that. 186 00:13:03,324 --> 00:13:05,724 Or do you think this would be an awful use case for Bitcoin? 187 00:13:06,204 --> 00:13:08,464 I'd like you to boost it. Tell me where you stand on this. 188 00:13:08,664 --> 00:13:13,964 I'm not 100% firm on either direction, but I feel like, at least for now, I'm against it. 189 00:13:24,484 --> 00:13:28,644 All right, I think we should look outside the community for a moment. 190 00:13:28,844 --> 00:13:30,204 Look outside the debates. 191 00:13:30,964 --> 00:13:35,144 And if we look at how many positive changes have been happening in the wider 192 00:13:35,144 --> 00:13:37,064 market, behind the scenes, 193 00:13:37,364 --> 00:13:41,984 regulations and legal changes and enforcement changes that are basically ensuring 194 00:13:41,984 --> 00:13:46,544 Bitcoin's path to wider adoption over the long term, assuming we don't blow it up ourselves. 195 00:13:47,144 --> 00:13:51,624 Things have really, really shifted in the last few weeks across the West. 196 00:13:52,397 --> 00:13:56,297 The U.K. and the U.S. announced today they're going to work together to help 197 00:13:56,297 --> 00:13:59,237 crypto adoption, whatever that means. 198 00:13:59,557 --> 00:14:04,717 But really starting, I think, during the U.S. election, we saw a big shift with 199 00:14:04,717 --> 00:14:07,837 their money involvement and the way politicians were cozying up to them. 200 00:14:07,937 --> 00:14:11,577 And then specifically, in the last 100 days since the election here in the States, 201 00:14:11,797 --> 00:14:16,137 there has been a lot of positive behind-the-scenes shift that are setting Bitcoin 202 00:14:16,137 --> 00:14:19,577 and quote-unquote crypto up for long-term positive gains. 203 00:14:19,577 --> 00:14:23,257 I mean, we're talking enforcement changes, of course, but also, 204 00:14:23,417 --> 00:14:25,357 more importantly, oversight changes. 205 00:14:25,597 --> 00:14:30,017 A top priority of my chairmanship will be to provide a firm regulatory foundation 206 00:14:30,017 --> 00:14:35,677 for digital assets through a rational, coherent and principled approach. 207 00:14:35,677 --> 00:14:40,757 We will work to ensure that the United States is the best and most secure place 208 00:14:40,757 --> 00:14:42,977 in the world to invest and to do business. 209 00:14:43,137 --> 00:14:49,057 That was the new SEC chair, Paul Atkins, a.k.a. Paul Atkins died. That was last week. 210 00:14:49,277 --> 00:14:53,117 And then this week, we got another big announcement in terms of enforcement and regulation. 211 00:14:53,597 --> 00:14:56,517 Welcome back to Squawk Box. This morning, banking regulators pulling back some 212 00:14:56,517 --> 00:14:58,037 U.S. cryptocurrency guidance. 213 00:14:58,177 --> 00:15:02,377 This is interesting, guys, because the Fed said it was withdrawing supervisory 214 00:15:02,377 --> 00:15:06,197 letters that said that banks should seek advanced approval from authorities 215 00:15:06,197 --> 00:15:09,577 before engaging in crypto asset and stablecoin activities. 216 00:15:09,577 --> 00:15:13,637 In addition, the Fed, the FDIC and the Office of the Controllers of the Currency 217 00:15:13,637 --> 00:15:18,577 pulled back statements from 2023 that urged banks to be careful when it comes 218 00:15:18,577 --> 00:15:19,797 to crypto related risks. 219 00:15:20,057 --> 00:15:24,137 During the 2020, excuse me, 2024 campaign for the White House, 220 00:15:24,337 --> 00:15:28,757 President Trump promised crypto investors that he would have their backs if he was reelected. 221 00:15:28,877 --> 00:15:32,317 In a statement announcing the latest changes, the Fed said that regulators would 222 00:15:32,317 --> 00:15:37,397 look into whether new guidance to support crypto asset innovation was appropriate. 223 00:15:37,397 --> 00:15:41,957 But it means effectively that I think a lot of those letters has scared the 224 00:15:41,957 --> 00:15:45,777 banking system sort of out of getting meaningfully involved in crypto. 225 00:15:45,777 --> 00:15:46,557 And now they're saying... 226 00:15:47,725 --> 00:15:51,905 You know, do what you like. Immediately following this, SoFi announced that 227 00:15:51,905 --> 00:15:55,685 they would be getting back into Bitcoin lending within a few months. 228 00:15:56,005 --> 00:15:59,645 They were, they said in the interview, in progress and then held off due to 229 00:15:59,645 --> 00:16:02,045 concerns around crypto regulation enforcement. 230 00:16:02,425 --> 00:16:07,565 And now that that seems to be easing up, they're going to get into Bitcoin-backed collateral loans. 231 00:16:07,725 --> 00:16:11,785 For better or worse, but it's an indication that wider banks are thirsty and 232 00:16:11,785 --> 00:16:17,285 ready to get in here. And this has all been really extremely positive for the 233 00:16:17,285 --> 00:16:19,385 long term, then they fight you narrative. 234 00:16:19,665 --> 00:16:23,925 Everyone expected to have this long, protracted fight with Western governments 235 00:16:23,925 --> 00:16:26,665 in general and probably particularly with the United States government. 236 00:16:26,845 --> 00:16:31,165 And instead, they seem to be opening the pearly gates, perhaps because of the 237 00:16:31,165 --> 00:16:36,925 wider, greater macro issues. that doesn't necessarily mean this is trickling down to normies. 238 00:16:37,325 --> 00:16:41,365 And this is an interesting thing that we're watching, I think. 239 00:16:41,665 --> 00:16:45,685 And I wonder how many times this cycle has been repeated throughout history 240 00:16:45,685 --> 00:16:50,205 as some new innovation, some new market force change was being developed. 241 00:16:50,485 --> 00:16:53,785 And a few people that followed it closely understood. 242 00:16:54,245 --> 00:16:59,905 And they were diehards for years. And then shortly after them, the banks figure it out. 243 00:16:59,905 --> 00:17:04,025 And then the banks come in, the bankers buy up all the goods and they buy up 244 00:17:04,025 --> 00:17:07,965 the companies involved and they buy up the product and the stock and then once 245 00:17:07,965 --> 00:17:11,785 they've got their bags full, they start marketing to the normies, 246 00:17:12,065 --> 00:17:16,525 to the no-coiners and then they get them to buy at incredibly marked up prices and from them. 247 00:17:16,985 --> 00:17:20,785 And you have to wonder how many times this has happened throughout history. 248 00:17:21,345 --> 00:17:23,985 And then people are, oh, the banks, oh, they blame the banks, 249 00:17:24,145 --> 00:17:29,065 they blame the rich but in reality, opportunity was knocking on your door this 250 00:17:29,065 --> 00:17:30,185 entire time, in this case, Bitcoin. 251 00:17:31,296 --> 00:17:34,436 But the reputation is so bad that most no-coiners dismiss it immediately. 252 00:17:34,576 --> 00:17:37,976 I've had several conversations with normals in the last couple of weeks. 253 00:17:38,636 --> 00:17:41,316 And when they ask what I do, inevitably we get to this week in Bitcoin, 254 00:17:41,316 --> 00:17:43,516 and then the conversation always takes a turn there. 255 00:17:44,296 --> 00:17:47,676 And there's a real brand problem here. In fact, I'm reminded of an old exchange 256 00:17:47,676 --> 00:17:50,116 between Andro and Andro. Andro. 257 00:17:50,616 --> 00:17:54,956 That's Joe and Andrew put together when they're doing Andro. 258 00:17:55,116 --> 00:17:59,036 When Andro are arguing on CNBC. This is from a couple of months ago. 259 00:17:59,116 --> 00:18:03,376 I played a little bit of this before on the show. But just as a reminder, that's not true. 260 00:18:03,436 --> 00:18:05,196 I don't appreciate it because I'm 261 00:18:05,196 --> 00:18:08,216 using it for ransomware. I appreciate it because it's a store of value. 262 00:18:08,996 --> 00:18:11,476 I don't appreciate it. You're considering it a store of value or an estimate 263 00:18:11,476 --> 00:18:14,256 that goes up? If it was a store of value, it would stay one price. 264 00:18:14,916 --> 00:18:19,076 No, no. Like gold was $300 not too long ago. 265 00:18:19,296 --> 00:18:23,516 It's now $2,000. It doesn't stay at the same price. It goes up as you print 266 00:18:23,516 --> 00:18:25,896 more money. It's more of a speculative message. 267 00:18:26,276 --> 00:18:31,056 No, I don't think that's like Michael Stale or another. You know, 268 00:18:31,156 --> 00:18:34,756 for so long, it was regulatory uncertainty or the government's going to kill 269 00:18:34,756 --> 00:18:36,996 it or the banks don't know how to engage with it. 270 00:18:37,276 --> 00:18:40,556 All of those excuses for not engaging with Bitcoin are gone. 271 00:18:40,716 --> 00:18:44,436 But yet the reputational harm has been done. So that was from, 272 00:18:44,596 --> 00:18:48,056 you know, a couple of months ago, might have even been late 2024. 273 00:18:48,816 --> 00:18:53,116 This is from just under 24 hours ago. This is a modern take. 274 00:18:53,336 --> 00:19:00,836 And while some of this might be true, there is so much additional loaded language 275 00:19:00,836 --> 00:19:02,196 when discussing the topic. 276 00:19:02,416 --> 00:19:07,936 This is how everyday people view crypto in general, and they lump Bitcoin in 277 00:19:07,936 --> 00:19:09,856 with that. And this is MSNBC. 278 00:19:10,924 --> 00:19:14,644 Almost four years after Donald Trump called a, quote, a disaster waiting to 279 00:19:14,644 --> 00:19:17,084 happen, the president is now all in on crypto. 280 00:19:17,464 --> 00:19:22,664 The New York Times has this unbelievable piece out about how Trump has become 281 00:19:22,664 --> 00:19:28,584 a monster player and a policymaker in one of the least transparent industries out there. 282 00:19:28,864 --> 00:19:32,404 Crypto. With me now to discuss one of the authors of that piece, 283 00:19:32,584 --> 00:19:35,204 Eric Lipton, investigative reporter for the New York Times. I do think it's 284 00:19:35,204 --> 00:19:39,344 kind of ironic to call crypto the least transparent industry out there because, 285 00:19:39,684 --> 00:19:43,124 I mean, obviously, first point, everything's on the blockchain, right? 286 00:19:43,304 --> 00:19:46,124 So we're always seeing where the money is getting transferred. 287 00:19:46,124 --> 00:19:49,504 We're always seeing when scammers scam and rug pull. We know immediately. 288 00:19:49,764 --> 00:19:53,584 And then, of course, the price charts are real time, 24-7. So you know even 289 00:19:53,584 --> 00:19:56,324 on the weekend when a scam's happened, unlike in the regular market where you'd 290 00:19:56,324 --> 00:19:57,324 have to wait till Monday morning. 291 00:19:57,724 --> 00:20:01,864 And then additionally, when they talk about how opaque it is, 292 00:20:01,964 --> 00:20:03,484 it's not transparent. Really? 293 00:20:03,784 --> 00:20:06,664 Because what I've seen is every stupid, well, not every stupid, 294 00:20:06,844 --> 00:20:11,944 but many stupid crypto scammers immediately jump on CoffeeZilla with a call. 295 00:20:12,164 --> 00:20:18,224 They get on a Zoom, and they confess the entire plan in their heart out to CoffeeZilla 296 00:20:18,224 --> 00:20:24,064 in an hour-long YouTube video where the entire scheme is laid out bare every single time. 297 00:20:24,784 --> 00:20:30,704 I mean, it seems, or what about Sam Bankman-Fried and how we basically learned 298 00:20:30,704 --> 00:20:32,084 everything there that happened? 299 00:20:33,061 --> 00:20:36,321 I just it's a weird accusation, right? 300 00:20:36,501 --> 00:20:38,601 It's a weird one because there's a lot of things you throw out there, 301 00:20:38,681 --> 00:20:42,121 but not transparent, kind of inherently transparent. It's just a weird one. 302 00:20:42,601 --> 00:20:47,201 The least transparent industries out there. Crypto with me now to discuss one 303 00:20:47,201 --> 00:20:50,781 of the authors of that piece, Eric Lipton, investigative reporter for The New 304 00:20:50,781 --> 00:20:55,201 York Times and Dan Nathan, CNBC contributor and co-host of the Risk Reversal podcast. 305 00:20:55,761 --> 00:20:59,301 You know, before we started, Eric, Dan, Stephanie, you're all over the crypto. 306 00:20:59,721 --> 00:21:04,021 It's not the crypto that I'm all over. It is the massive conflict of interest. 307 00:21:04,221 --> 00:21:07,101 Scott Galloway said it recently. It's like these hundred days. 308 00:21:07,301 --> 00:21:08,721 What have we seen the most of? 309 00:21:09,301 --> 00:21:14,401 Executing pure grift. I want you to walk us through what did you learn about 310 00:21:14,401 --> 00:21:16,081 Trump's platform that he's built? 311 00:21:16,721 --> 00:21:20,861 Right here, I would argue that the brand of Bitcoin and crypto, 312 00:21:21,161 --> 00:21:24,421 Bitcoin unfortunately being a sub-brand of crypto, I would imagine, 313 00:21:24,581 --> 00:21:30,361 in most people's minds, normies, it is now being intrinsically linked to the Trump campaign. 314 00:21:30,641 --> 00:21:34,021 Better or for worse, that's obviously good. I'm sure there's been a lot of Trump 315 00:21:34,021 --> 00:21:36,521 supporters that are now curious about Bitcoin and buying Bitcoin. 316 00:21:37,021 --> 00:21:39,101 Of course, there's a flip side to that coin as well. 317 00:21:40,961 --> 00:21:46,881 And this is the association that's being drawn. He's seen the most of executing pure grift. 318 00:21:47,021 --> 00:21:51,481 I want you to walk us through what did you learn about Trump's platform that 319 00:21:51,481 --> 00:21:54,921 he's built? Because at the same time, he is the chief policymaker. 320 00:21:56,061 --> 00:22:01,161 Yeah, it really is pretty extraordinary that simultaneously Trump is appointing 321 00:22:01,161 --> 00:22:04,201 the top financial regulators in the United States, 322 00:22:04,201 --> 00:22:10,281 and he has built one of the fastest growing and really quickly emerging as one 323 00:22:10,281 --> 00:22:13,621 of the largest stablecoin players in the world. 324 00:22:15,210 --> 00:22:21,650 WorldFi, Liberty, whatever it is, is a tiny stablecoin player compared to Tether and Circle. 325 00:22:22,110 --> 00:22:25,730 They're not even on the same map. Tether is the seventh largest treasury customer 326 00:22:25,730 --> 00:22:26,630 for the U.S. government. 327 00:22:28,430 --> 00:22:32,750 Tether prints money. It's one of the most, it might be the most profitable business in the world. 328 00:22:33,210 --> 00:22:36,810 What? This is like, no, Tether is the big stablecoin. 329 00:22:37,010 --> 00:22:39,790 Trump's Liberty Mutual, whatever, WorldFi, whatever, stablecoin, 330 00:22:39,810 --> 00:22:44,210 it's got like a billion dollars behind it, max. Really, you know, 331 00:22:44,330 --> 00:22:48,950 quickly emerging as one of the largest stablecoin players in the world. 332 00:22:49,190 --> 00:22:54,550 And so he is simultaneously both the regulator and the regulated. 333 00:22:55,370 --> 00:23:00,330 I mean, he appoints a regulator. He just appointed the new SEC chair who is pro crypto. 334 00:23:00,370 --> 00:23:03,370 But there is there is multiple Senate. 335 00:23:03,530 --> 00:23:05,570 There's multiple congressional oversight committees. 336 00:23:05,770 --> 00:23:09,090 I mean, your buddy Elizabeth Warren's on one of them where they're constantly 337 00:23:09,090 --> 00:23:13,670 testifying to Congress and explaining their decisions. So they could be a political actor. 338 00:23:13,890 --> 00:23:17,210 I definitely would be amenable to that argument. 339 00:23:17,730 --> 00:23:23,330 But to say that Trump is the one making the decisions for the regulatory chief, that's not my take. 340 00:23:23,470 --> 00:23:29,010 My take is that he has appointed someone who will essentially execute what Trump 341 00:23:29,010 --> 00:23:32,650 wants done because that's where the person already aligns. They already align 342 00:23:32,650 --> 00:23:35,410 and agree where Trump sees and aligns and agrees. 343 00:23:36,510 --> 00:23:40,170 It's kind of a normal thing for a president to do. In fact, it would be weird 344 00:23:40,170 --> 00:23:45,450 if Trump appointed somebody to the SEC chair that disagreed with him and didn't 345 00:23:45,450 --> 00:23:49,090 want to implement Trump's policies and wanted to implement the opposite and wanted to ban crypto. 346 00:23:49,270 --> 00:23:53,050 That would be weird and incongruent to his promise to voters. 347 00:23:53,650 --> 00:23:57,590 So there's no winning here. There's no winning. really, you know, 348 00:23:57,710 --> 00:24:02,330 quickly emerging as one of the largest stable coin players in the world. 349 00:24:02,610 --> 00:24:07,930 And so he is simultaneously both the regulator and the regulated. 350 00:24:08,150 --> 00:24:14,670 And he has just really historically massive conflicts of interest here that 351 00:24:14,670 --> 00:24:17,650 just don't have very many precedents in American history. 352 00:24:17,950 --> 00:24:21,370 And, you know, the deeper you look at World Liberty Financial, 353 00:24:21,730 --> 00:24:25,870 the more complex and troubling, really, the conflicts are. 354 00:24:26,030 --> 00:24:30,590 And so what we try to do is, this is less of a story about the cryptocurrency 355 00:24:30,590 --> 00:24:35,430 industry and more of a story about this operation and some of the challenges 356 00:24:35,430 --> 00:24:39,090 it presents to being both the regulator and the regulated. 357 00:24:39,090 --> 00:24:44,710 It's possible that they are just banking on the public's distrust of crypto to drive the story home. 358 00:24:45,110 --> 00:24:48,490 Because I don't think, I could be wrong, but I don't think Donald Trump directly 359 00:24:48,490 --> 00:24:52,590 owns World Liberty Phi, crypto crap, whatever it is. I think the Trump kids do. 360 00:24:53,398 --> 00:24:57,738 So if that's our standard, if to say, well, if the Trump kids benefit, 361 00:24:57,958 --> 00:25:02,098 then Donald Trump benefits, well, then we could hold that same standard to the Bidens. 362 00:25:02,278 --> 00:25:04,238 And I think we know how that conversation would go. 363 00:25:04,718 --> 00:25:09,078 I do think it's awkward, gross, and weird that the president is directly mingling 364 00:25:09,078 --> 00:25:11,138 in a new evolving market while he's president. 365 00:25:12,138 --> 00:25:15,218 If you want to make that kind of a – if that's the grounds you want to play 366 00:25:15,218 --> 00:25:16,238 on, then I'll agree with that. 367 00:25:16,498 --> 00:25:19,378 Yeah, I don't think either one of the families should be benefiting, 368 00:25:19,618 --> 00:25:23,458 the Biden kids or the Trump kids. Okay, great. We both agree on that, Ben. 369 00:25:23,878 --> 00:25:26,678 So here we are anyways. And I think the way that Trump's look at it is, 370 00:25:26,738 --> 00:25:28,918 look, this is going to be a huge, this is the new, what did he call it? 371 00:25:28,958 --> 00:25:31,578 The new gold oil or something? The new something like that? 372 00:25:31,878 --> 00:25:33,878 The new gold oil or something? Silly. 373 00:25:34,498 --> 00:25:37,938 Yeah, I think they do see it as that. And they have conviction around it. 374 00:25:38,018 --> 00:25:39,278 And that's why they're placing their bets. 375 00:25:39,998 --> 00:25:44,778 But it does associate it with a certain political party. It does look bad. 376 00:25:45,118 --> 00:25:47,818 It's a bad look. The launch of the Trump coin was a bad look. 377 00:25:48,478 --> 00:25:52,858 And I don't think it helps with the image of Bitcoin. And there was a comprehensive 378 00:25:52,858 --> 00:25:57,738 essay written by Mike Dye that explores this very topic that I'm going to link you to. 379 00:25:57,978 --> 00:26:00,218 And it's Bitcoin has a brand problem. 380 00:26:00,498 --> 00:26:03,898 And he writes, despite its technological strengths and financial performance, 381 00:26:04,098 --> 00:26:06,338 struggles with widespread public acceptance remain. 382 00:26:06,578 --> 00:26:09,798 While institutions and government are increasingly embracing Bitcoin, 383 00:26:10,278 --> 00:26:13,198 many average people remain skeptical or outright resistant. 384 00:26:13,978 --> 00:26:17,318 Then Dye argues in this piece that it isn't just about technical misunderstandings. 385 00:26:17,318 --> 00:26:21,218 Or volatility, although I think volatility is a big piece of it. 386 00:26:21,338 --> 00:26:22,158 They're just scared of it. 387 00:26:22,298 --> 00:26:25,598 He says it's branding and a perception crisis. 388 00:26:26,118 --> 00:26:29,358 His article highlights how Bitcoin's cultural narrative has become dominated 389 00:26:29,358 --> 00:26:33,318 by controversial figures like Trump, McKellie, and Musk, making it hard for 390 00:26:33,318 --> 00:26:37,978 newcomers to disassociate the protocol from toxic politics, authoritism, and grifting. 391 00:26:38,358 --> 00:26:40,198 I don't necessarily agree with this last take. 392 00:26:40,738 --> 00:26:44,218 I think maybe with crypto because of Doge and the Trump coin. 393 00:26:45,098 --> 00:26:48,258 The core here is that Bitcoin needs to separate from those things. 394 00:26:49,038 --> 00:26:53,458 Bitcoin has, Musk never talks about Bitcoin, right? That never happens. 395 00:26:53,658 --> 00:26:56,058 And they're painting everything with a broad brush. 396 00:26:56,478 --> 00:26:59,378 He says there's really four groups out there. There's early adopters, 397 00:26:59,618 --> 00:27:03,038 newcomers, I guess I'd be in the early adopter, and the skeptics, 398 00:27:03,138 --> 00:27:07,178 and then the vocal Bitcoiners who often fail to address the third group concern, 399 00:27:07,418 --> 00:27:08,918 which would be skeptics. 400 00:27:09,298 --> 00:27:14,298 I don't know about that. But he argues that if we don't see a change around 401 00:27:14,298 --> 00:27:15,298 perception, we're going to 402 00:27:15,298 --> 00:27:19,238 have a real adoption problem, and that ultimately will be bad for Bitcoin. 403 00:27:19,678 --> 00:27:24,338 Things like Noster intended to be onboarding ramps are too insular for most, he says. 404 00:27:24,738 --> 00:27:28,558 Even Bitcoin's technical layer is too intimidating, requiring a degree of literacy 405 00:27:28,558 --> 00:27:32,078 that most people aren't ready for, especially when living paycheck to paycheck. 406 00:27:32,758 --> 00:27:35,498 He says, through analogies to Crock, American Peril, and Apple, 407 00:27:35,658 --> 00:27:39,598 it illustrates how even great ideas need the right cultural messengers and branding 408 00:27:39,598 --> 00:27:40,798 to reach mass adoptions. 409 00:27:40,898 --> 00:27:45,098 Then he concludes that while Bitcoin itself is sound, it may never scale if 410 00:27:45,098 --> 00:27:46,118 its image doesn't change. 411 00:27:46,338 --> 00:27:48,878 And he says the answer isn't marketing in the traditional sense, 412 00:27:49,018 --> 00:27:54,558 but new voices, cultural translators who can speak to real people free of politics or posturing. 413 00:27:55,078 --> 00:28:00,238 Is that true? Has the Bitcoin message gotten too political? Do we have a perception crisis? 414 00:28:02,058 --> 00:28:05,178 Adoption is life for Bitcoin. So what can we do to improve the perception? 415 00:28:05,298 --> 00:28:07,818 There clearly is some bad perception out there. 416 00:28:08,258 --> 00:28:11,898 I think some of it comes down to separating Bitcoin from the rest. 417 00:28:12,578 --> 00:28:15,398 Maybe some of it comes down to messaging. I don't know about that. 418 00:28:15,578 --> 00:28:18,978 I think this is a hard problem. And I'd like you to boost in and tell me if 419 00:28:18,978 --> 00:28:20,478 you think Bitcoin has a perception problem. 420 00:28:21,558 --> 00:28:25,798 Maybe it's just price. Can it be something as simple as price? 421 00:28:26,338 --> 00:28:29,638 You know, if Bitcoin gets to $500,000, does that change perception? 422 00:28:30,338 --> 00:28:33,758 Or will we always have people fighting it? I used to think it came down to price. 423 00:28:33,918 --> 00:28:38,258 I'm not so sure I do anymore. Nowadays, I think there'll always be people that fight it. 424 00:28:39,218 --> 00:28:43,098 They've just built an identity around it to some degree. Boost in. Tell me what you think. 425 00:28:45,840 --> 00:28:57,840 Music. 426 00:28:56,482 --> 00:29:00,482 You can support the show just by doing what you do stack sats when you buy your 427 00:29:00,482 --> 00:29:04,862 sats on river use my link jupiterbroadcasting.com river it's one of the best 428 00:29:04,862 --> 00:29:08,102 ways to stack sats in the u.s they have a bunch of great features like their 429 00:29:08,102 --> 00:29:14,002 3.8 interest in sats on your cash balance also great for stacking some cash 430 00:29:14,002 --> 00:29:15,222 and then smash buying some Bitcoin. 431 00:29:15,582 --> 00:29:20,462 If you're all about self-custody, the Bitcoin well is here to rock you in the States and in Canada. 432 00:29:20,662 --> 00:29:24,882 Self-custody first. It buys and sells directly to your wallet. 433 00:29:25,062 --> 00:29:28,922 If you're ready to spend some Bitcoin via Lightning, the Bitcoin company makes 434 00:29:28,922 --> 00:29:32,742 it fast, cheap, and easy. I signed in with Lightning. I don't even have a user account. 435 00:29:32,942 --> 00:29:36,462 I can load up a gift card in seconds and then go spend it at hundreds of companies. 436 00:29:36,802 --> 00:29:39,582 Link to that in the show notes. If you want to stack stats while you pay your 437 00:29:39,582 --> 00:29:42,542 bills, run your debit card, do the things you do to live day to day. 438 00:29:42,802 --> 00:29:46,322 The Fold Card, super popular in our audience. I use it every single day. 439 00:29:46,502 --> 00:29:47,582 Link to that in the show notes. 440 00:29:47,782 --> 00:29:52,002 And last, but not least, you know it, Salt Lending. 441 00:29:52,122 --> 00:29:56,482 Get access to your Bitcoin value without selling it. Get fiat from a loan. 442 00:29:56,762 --> 00:29:59,522 That's Salt Lending. Link to that in the show notes. 443 00:30:14,542 --> 00:30:18,442 And we do have some boosts this episode. This, of course, is a value for value podcast. 444 00:30:18,722 --> 00:30:22,602 I put it out there for free. I try to help with a high signal podcast to help 445 00:30:22,602 --> 00:30:23,822 you navigate the Bitcoin world. 446 00:30:24,102 --> 00:30:28,822 If you get some value, you send it back this way. It really is the purest way to produce a podcast. 447 00:30:29,102 --> 00:30:33,082 There's no secret deals behind the scenes. It's value from the audience directly. 448 00:30:33,602 --> 00:30:36,942 These boosts incentivize me to work harder. It gets a better show for you. 449 00:30:37,102 --> 00:30:42,042 It's a real nice circle of podcast life. And our first boost this week is a 450 00:30:42,042 --> 00:30:49,242 baller boost coming in from OBL918 with 53,456 sats. 451 00:30:54,022 --> 00:30:57,962 Just a little boosty McBoosterson to say that while I agree that we don't need 452 00:30:57,962 --> 00:31:01,982 to worry about MiningPool attacking the network for the obvious reason they 453 00:31:01,982 --> 00:31:05,122 have no incentive to destroy the value in the system, there's still entities 454 00:31:05,122 --> 00:31:07,702 out there who might just want to do exactly that. 455 00:31:07,702 --> 00:31:11,462 The same governments who can print money to buy mining hardware just may decide 456 00:31:11,462 --> 00:31:14,882 it's a good investment to destroy fiat's only real competition. 457 00:31:15,722 --> 00:31:19,482 I don't necessarily think it'll happen, but it is a possibility. 458 00:31:20,022 --> 00:31:22,842 That is an interesting attack factor. 459 00:31:23,835 --> 00:31:27,455 I've sort of let my nation-state attack guard down recently. 460 00:31:27,955 --> 00:31:32,695 And that's a good reminder to stay skeptical and stay aware. I like that. 461 00:31:33,355 --> 00:31:36,455 Thank you, OBL. He says, last week Fountain didn't get my boost through, 462 00:31:36,555 --> 00:31:39,215 so I'm doubling up this week. Thank you very much for doing that. 463 00:31:39,935 --> 00:31:42,235 You asked me what I think about buying Bitcoin adjacent stocks. 464 00:31:42,375 --> 00:31:45,995 Personally, I think one of Bitcoin's strengths is it doesn't have a CEO. 465 00:31:46,395 --> 00:31:50,575 Does Bitcoin become better when you add a CEO to it? As much as I like Maulers 466 00:31:50,575 --> 00:31:55,115 and Saylor, the answer for me is obviously Nopi McNoperson. 467 00:31:55,895 --> 00:31:58,295 Maulers promised to increase Bitcoin per share is interesting. 468 00:31:58,295 --> 00:32:01,835 But in the end, I just don't see why I would buy one of those stocks when I 469 00:32:01,835 --> 00:32:02,835 can hold the asset myself. 470 00:32:03,355 --> 00:32:06,835 So this is one of the things I think is underappreciated about Bitcoin. 471 00:32:06,915 --> 00:32:12,715 And you just touched on it, Obi, is you don't have a company that can screw up, right? 472 00:32:12,895 --> 00:32:16,415 Like you can have a company that's kicking ass for 20 years and then the CEO 473 00:32:16,415 --> 00:32:20,535 dies and And the new guy comes in and they just tread water or go on, go under. 474 00:32:21,095 --> 00:32:24,435 Bitcoin doesn't have that risk. And so if you're looking for something you can 475 00:32:24,435 --> 00:32:28,815 truly hold for your life and not have to manage it, nothing beats Bitcoin. 476 00:32:29,155 --> 00:32:35,935 I think where, you know, this 21 Capital or your MSTRs are incentivized or I'm 477 00:32:35,935 --> 00:32:38,295 not sure what the right term is there, but I guess I'll say tempting to people 478 00:32:38,295 --> 00:32:41,595 is short term higher returns. 479 00:32:41,595 --> 00:32:47,135 So maybe Bitcoin does, you know, 30, 40% this year, let's just say return, right? 480 00:32:47,295 --> 00:32:53,915 But maybe MSTR does 62 or maybe 21 Capital does, you know, 65 or something. 481 00:32:54,055 --> 00:32:57,635 So you can get a little bit more and then you could go maybe stack some more Bitcoin. 482 00:32:57,995 --> 00:33:01,035 I'm skeptical that people actually take those earnings and turn around and buy 483 00:33:01,035 --> 00:33:03,415 Bitcoin. I think they tell themselves they're going to do that. 484 00:33:03,815 --> 00:33:05,715 And I'm kind of skeptical they actually do it. 485 00:33:06,315 --> 00:33:11,055 But we'll see. We'll see. Hey, another baller boost from the Podfather himself, 486 00:33:11,295 --> 00:33:13,335 Mr. Adam Curry with 50,000 sats. 487 00:33:14,115 --> 00:33:20,035 I hoard that which your kind covet. B-O-O-N. He says the index note typically does well with Breeze. 488 00:33:20,215 --> 00:33:23,355 Love the show. You know what? I need to make sure I have a channel still open, Podfather. 489 00:33:23,555 --> 00:33:26,535 I think I don't have a channel to the index anymore. I did for a while. 490 00:33:26,855 --> 00:33:29,355 And then, you know, you know how it goes with lightning channels. 491 00:33:30,235 --> 00:33:33,215 You know how it goes. I'm sure you know just as well as I do. 492 00:33:33,535 --> 00:33:34,495 It's kind of, you know... 493 00:33:35,394 --> 00:33:38,094 Oh, yeah, no, totally. It's all under control. Thank you for the boost, 494 00:33:38,214 --> 00:33:42,794 Podfather. Nice to hear from you. So Achilles is here with 2,500 sats. 495 00:33:43,974 --> 00:33:50,814 And he just says boost. Boost. Thank you, Achilles. The Muso is here with 4,000 sats. 496 00:33:56,034 --> 00:33:59,334 All right, so I was asking y'all, you know, who you have channels with for your 497 00:33:59,334 --> 00:34:00,314 lightning node and how it's all 498 00:34:00,314 --> 00:34:03,234 going. He says, I have channels open with Megalith and Olympus by Zeus. 499 00:34:03,694 --> 00:34:06,594 I'll never buy shares in a company. Stacking Bitcoin is good enough for me. 500 00:34:06,794 --> 00:34:09,594 Boom. Look at him answering both questions in two sentences. 501 00:34:09,874 --> 00:34:12,474 As per your previous question about donations to NixBitcoin, 502 00:34:12,574 --> 00:34:15,394 they have a section on the front page at NixBitcoin.org, which has a link to 503 00:34:15,394 --> 00:34:19,034 their BTC pay server where they do accept donations. 504 00:34:19,634 --> 00:34:21,574 Yeah. Do they have a lightning note? I think is my question. 505 00:34:22,554 --> 00:34:26,274 NixBitcoin.org, a big shout out to them. If you would like to, 506 00:34:26,874 --> 00:34:32,254 if you're a member, if you're a Jupiter Party member or a member of Linux Unplugged, 507 00:34:32,294 --> 00:34:36,314 we did an extended post show where we talked about our Bitcoin node setup. 508 00:34:37,074 --> 00:34:42,034 And I think we will probably do additional content on that in the future when 509 00:34:42,034 --> 00:34:43,634 we have like a sanitized config to share. 510 00:34:44,054 --> 00:34:46,054 Really like NixBitcoin for just a good appliance. 511 00:34:46,634 --> 00:34:50,954 On the topic of wallets, I also like the combination of Zeus and AlbiGo. 512 00:34:51,214 --> 00:34:54,754 Zeus is able to dig an info channel, yeah, as well as look at the route taken 513 00:34:54,754 --> 00:34:56,854 when I send a payment. Zeus is so great. 514 00:34:57,134 --> 00:35:00,654 I find AlbiGo useful to dive into the details of boost, messages sent, 515 00:35:00,654 --> 00:35:04,834 etc. It's been useful to identify failed boost payments when starting with AlbiHub. 516 00:35:05,114 --> 00:35:09,554 If it's just me, or has Podverse's node been down, I always get no route when 517 00:35:09,554 --> 00:35:12,974 attempting to send a payment to Podverse when boosting via the Podverse website. 518 00:35:13,614 --> 00:35:17,294 Oh, hmm. Might be worth pinging them on Mastodon or Matrix. 519 00:35:18,094 --> 00:35:22,694 The AlbiGo and AlbiHub setup are really pretty sweet and simple, 520 00:35:22,714 --> 00:35:28,334 and I was just experimenting with Unraid 7.1 this week, and in the Unraid App Store, 521 00:35:28,514 --> 00:35:31,214 or whatever you want to call it, the community apps they got an albi hub 522 00:35:31,214 --> 00:35:34,094 and it was pretty straightforward to set up so i got albi 523 00:35:34,094 --> 00:35:37,054 hub running on unrate in like 10 minutes it's pretty 524 00:35:37,054 --> 00:35:40,414 nice thank you for the boost appreciate it the muse so good to hear from you 525 00:35:40,414 --> 00:35:48,394 baked potato is here with 10 000 sats it's over 9 000 no message though just 526 00:35:48,394 --> 00:35:54,574 the value appreciate it very much mk ers i'm going to say markers is here with 10 000 sats. 527 00:35:55,470 --> 00:35:58,710 Pump the brakes right there. He says, first time booster. Well, 528 00:35:58,710 --> 00:36:02,090 I'll be dead. Was taken aback by the amount of last episode's boost. 529 00:36:02,250 --> 00:36:04,870 Decided it was time to return some of the value. 530 00:36:05,350 --> 00:36:07,890 Thank you very much. I really do appreciate that. 531 00:36:08,590 --> 00:36:14,790 Boost! Last week was a little weak. And this week, hopefully a little stronger, I will be off next week. 532 00:36:14,910 --> 00:36:17,710 So I'm a little nervous they'll dip because we'll miss a week. 533 00:36:17,710 --> 00:36:19,250 So we'll see how that goes. 534 00:36:20,010 --> 00:36:25,810 Hey, another 10,000 sat boost with no message. It comes from Marius February. 535 00:36:26,610 --> 00:36:30,030 He's a good guy. He's a real good guy. No message, just send in some value. 536 00:36:30,210 --> 00:36:31,370 Always appreciate that. 537 00:36:31,910 --> 00:36:35,110 We have 5,000 sats from user 47. 538 00:36:35,950 --> 00:36:38,870 Says, big fan of the show. Well, I'm a big fan of you sending some value this 539 00:36:38,870 --> 00:36:41,130 way. Thank you for coming in and sending a boost. 540 00:36:42,030 --> 00:36:45,290 User 74 comes in with also 5,000 sats. 541 00:36:46,050 --> 00:36:48,890 Still the best Bitcoin show. I look forward to it every week. 542 00:36:49,070 --> 00:36:51,130 Please keep it up. Well, thank you. 543 00:36:52,410 --> 00:36:55,370 Ace ackerman's back nice to see you with a row of ducks. 544 00:36:57,030 --> 00:37:00,270 2222 sats says i like the bitcoin adjacent investment 545 00:37:00,270 --> 00:37:04,470 products i think it increases adoption and allows profit from price swings without 546 00:37:04,470 --> 00:37:10,070 selling any of your long-term stash man's got to eat okay ace you bring up a 547 00:37:10,070 --> 00:37:14,470 good point it does allow you to play in the market a little bit without having 548 00:37:14,470 --> 00:37:18,270 to actually give up your your bitcoin there is some logic to this, 549 00:37:19,030 --> 00:37:21,830 Additionally, you know what? I'm going to give you also some points. 550 00:37:22,190 --> 00:37:25,450 It might not be a product for me and some of the listeners, but it could be 551 00:37:25,450 --> 00:37:29,370 a product for a lot of next generation adopters, and they don't need to run 552 00:37:29,370 --> 00:37:31,630 a Bitcoin node. They don't need a Bitcoin wallet. 553 00:37:32,130 --> 00:37:35,290 They can just use derivative products. I know it seems gross to us, 554 00:37:35,390 --> 00:37:38,090 but Wall Street loves this stuff, and it does increase adoption. 555 00:37:38,550 --> 00:37:43,670 So, Ace, some sound wisdom there. Thank you for sharing that with us. 556 00:37:44,530 --> 00:37:49,010 Tapatango comes in with a 5,000 sat boost. That is a Jar Jar Boost. 557 00:37:49,990 --> 00:37:53,390 No message, just the value. Always appreciate that very much. 558 00:37:53,770 --> 00:37:55,430 Hello there comes in with a row of ducks. 559 00:37:56,170 --> 00:37:59,790 It just says quack. Things are looking up for old ducks. Thanks, 560 00:37:59,890 --> 00:38:00,970 hello there. Nice to hear from you. 561 00:38:01,830 --> 00:38:05,910 Oh, Nico the Geek's back with 7,007 cents. 562 00:38:06,630 --> 00:38:09,110 Oh, my God. This drawer is filled with blue. It says goodbye, 563 00:38:09,290 --> 00:38:11,250 digital gold. Hello, physical Bitcoin. 564 00:38:11,950 --> 00:38:14,950 I can't believe I'm first hearing that from mainstream media. 565 00:38:14,950 --> 00:38:19,910 I recently acquired a BitX solo miner and have been looking at options of how 566 00:38:19,910 --> 00:38:21,510 and how I want to set it up. 567 00:38:21,710 --> 00:38:25,430 I'm doing in doing so. I came across Bitcoin knots. 568 00:38:25,990 --> 00:38:28,930 Simultaneously, I've been seeing some infighting regarding Bitcoin core, 569 00:38:29,130 --> 00:38:32,950 which I currently run. Maybe it's too big of a topic during the boost segment. 570 00:38:33,170 --> 00:38:37,550 Could you shed some light on the issue or the possible solutions? 571 00:38:37,810 --> 00:38:41,370 Lastly, the show is always on point. Fellow Bitcoiners boost in those sats. 572 00:38:42,182 --> 00:38:47,502 Well, I hope, Nico the Geek, that the top of the show was useful for you. 573 00:38:47,822 --> 00:38:51,942 Your boost was one of the inspirations for doing that right there in the show 574 00:38:51,942 --> 00:38:55,342 where I had some room for it. Because you were right. It was a little too big for the boost segment. 575 00:38:55,662 --> 00:39:00,022 And I also would appreciate any additional questions or corrections to that. 576 00:39:00,122 --> 00:39:02,642 I feel like it's a topic I'll probably be following for a while. 577 00:39:03,102 --> 00:39:06,362 So that's just kind of my opening salvo on the topic. 578 00:39:06,582 --> 00:39:09,582 And if you have any other questions, please do boost them in. thank you 579 00:39:09,582 --> 00:39:12,422 too to everybody who boosts in below the 2000 sat cutoff i 580 00:39:12,422 --> 00:39:15,602 have a 2000 sat cutoff for on air just to save time but i 581 00:39:15,602 --> 00:39:19,122 do save all of them and i appreciate every single boost especially 582 00:39:19,122 --> 00:39:22,202 from some of the newbies out there that are sending their very first boost so 583 00:39:22,202 --> 00:39:25,442 let's bring it all together if we look at the sat streamers 584 00:39:25,442 --> 00:39:28,582 who just sat who just sat back listen to the show and stream sats as 585 00:39:28,582 --> 00:39:31,422 they listened 14 of you this week did a pretty good 586 00:39:31,422 --> 00:39:34,042 lift look at that let me sure i have this 587 00:39:34,042 --> 00:39:36,962 number right 44 of you wow 44 of you 588 00:39:36,962 --> 00:39:40,062 not 14 holy smokes 44 of 589 00:39:40,062 --> 00:39:45,062 you were streaming sats as you listen that's a decent number 67 428 590 00:39:45,062 --> 00:39:48,002 sats by the sat streamers out there i'm pretty impressed 591 00:39:48,002 --> 00:39:50,642 with that thank you everybody that's you know it's a nice way to 592 00:39:50,642 --> 00:39:53,582 just sort of quietly low-key send value you don't get a message but 593 00:39:53,582 --> 00:39:56,582 it's still really much appreciated and then when you combine that 594 00:39:56,582 --> 00:39:59,402 with our boosters that brings a total participants for this week's 595 00:39:59,402 --> 00:40:03,842 episode in value for value to 52 of you out there that's overall 596 00:40:03,842 --> 00:40:06,522 a lower percentage but you know what that makes 597 00:40:06,522 --> 00:40:11,822 52 of you absolutely essential to making episode 56 happen so when we add it 598 00:40:11,822 --> 00:40:19,242 all up this week's episode stacked 233 935 sats not too bad getting in that 599 00:40:19,242 --> 00:40:25,362 comfortable stretch right there and i really appreciate it if you would like to boost the show. 600 00:40:26,258 --> 00:40:29,458 You can use Fountain FM. They host the lightning infrastructure for you. 601 00:40:29,578 --> 00:40:31,598 You just got to get the sats in there over the lightning network. 602 00:40:32,118 --> 00:40:34,698 Strike makes that real easy, but there's other ways you can do it. 603 00:40:34,998 --> 00:40:37,898 Of course, if you want to host it on your own, you hear people talking about 604 00:40:37,898 --> 00:40:41,018 AlbiHub all the time. You compare it with a lot of great apps. 605 00:40:41,558 --> 00:40:43,678 Castamatic is a killer app on iOS. 606 00:40:44,238 --> 00:40:48,298 Podverse is fantastic on Android, along with Fountain on both of those platforms 607 00:40:48,298 --> 00:40:53,778 and other apps listed at podcastapps.com, including web apps like TrueFans and other. 608 00:40:53,878 --> 00:40:57,158 There's lots of solutions out there. so you can get in, get on the fun. 609 00:40:57,338 --> 00:41:02,238 Not only can you boost the show, but a percentage of your boost also goes to 610 00:41:02,238 --> 00:41:06,118 the podcast index to help those great folks out and to the app developer themselves. 611 00:41:06,238 --> 00:41:09,718 It gives a direct path to monetization that isn't creepy, that doesn't require 612 00:41:09,718 --> 00:41:12,418 tracking or advertising integration or other weird schemes. 613 00:41:12,738 --> 00:41:17,658 They just get a small fee of the boost. And as a podcaster, I'm delighted to 614 00:41:17,658 --> 00:41:20,918 let them have it because we want those apps to be healthy and to thrive. 615 00:41:21,058 --> 00:41:25,458 So you're contributing when you boost this podcast, you're contributing to an 616 00:41:25,458 --> 00:41:28,858 entire ecosystem of development and services. 617 00:41:29,078 --> 00:41:32,318 Additionally, with the Podcasting 2.0 app, you get transcriptions. 618 00:41:32,538 --> 00:41:35,758 Every single episode of This Week in Bitcoin is transcribed. 619 00:41:35,818 --> 00:41:38,278 They're available in Podcasting 2.0 apps. 620 00:41:38,438 --> 00:41:42,198 There are chapters also available in Podcasting 2.0 apps. 621 00:41:42,298 --> 00:41:46,018 And when a new episode comes out, you get notified within 90 seconds. 622 00:41:46,118 --> 00:41:50,438 And if and when, which I'm threatening to do one day, if I hold a live stream, 623 00:41:50,598 --> 00:41:53,218 it'll also be live in your Podcasting 2.0 app. 624 00:41:53,218 --> 00:41:58,518 Plus, you're saying to the world, I don't want Apple, I don't want Spotify, 625 00:41:58,518 --> 00:42:03,418 and I don't want Google defining what podcasting and free independent media is. 626 00:42:03,538 --> 00:42:05,638 That's my pitch, podcastapps.com. 627 00:42:08,400 --> 00:42:17,680 Music. 628 00:42:16,838 --> 00:42:21,658 Well, I'm looking at some interesting language coming out of the UN. 629 00:42:21,658 --> 00:42:26,538 They claim that mining is a, quote, powerful tool for money laundering, 630 00:42:26,778 --> 00:42:30,978 which is an obvious and deep misunderstanding of what mining is. 631 00:42:31,158 --> 00:42:34,638 So The Rage, which I've been really impressed with, TheRage.co, 632 00:42:34,778 --> 00:42:39,318 took a closer look at the recent United Nations report on crime in Southeast Asia. 633 00:42:40,358 --> 00:42:44,878 And I agree, it's baffling. They pointed out that the report might be setting 634 00:42:44,878 --> 00:42:50,018 the stage for introducing anti-money laundering measures that directly target Bitcoin mining. 635 00:42:51,077 --> 00:42:54,737 So, I think it goes without saying, but I'm just going to say it. 636 00:42:54,897 --> 00:42:58,457 Money laundering typically requires moving illicit funds through legitimate 637 00:42:58,457 --> 00:43:00,257 channels to disguise their origin. 638 00:43:00,977 --> 00:43:05,177 That's not what mining does. That's not what, quote, illegal mining can achieve. 639 00:43:06,097 --> 00:43:11,057 The report uses unrelated evidence, such as a Thai Electricity Authority report, 640 00:43:11,357 --> 00:43:12,937 which is also questionable. 641 00:43:14,057 --> 00:43:17,597 It's bad, you guys. The piece further challenges, from the rage, 642 00:43:17,837 --> 00:43:20,557 the piece challenges the UN's claim that illegal mining is low cost. 643 00:43:20,557 --> 00:43:24,077 And minimally detectable. I think in reality, it's quite detectable. 644 00:43:24,457 --> 00:43:27,737 There are expensive ASICs you have to buy. 645 00:43:28,157 --> 00:43:31,717 There is maintenance you have to perform, especially in harsh environments like Libya. 646 00:43:32,197 --> 00:43:37,257 And the reality is they produce heat, which is easily spotable by authorities. 647 00:43:38,177 --> 00:43:41,237 So it is actually pretty easy to detect Bitcoin mining. 648 00:43:41,417 --> 00:43:44,677 And the UN even contradicts itself in the report describing these operations 649 00:43:44,677 --> 00:43:48,137 as both off-grid and reasonable for grid-based energy storage, 650 00:43:48,397 --> 00:43:50,337 which how can you be one in the other? 651 00:43:50,557 --> 00:43:54,617 And lastly, the Rage article points out the geopolitical inconsistencies, 652 00:43:54,737 --> 00:43:57,877 noting that fuel smuggling and chaos following the U.N. 653 00:43:58,397 --> 00:44:03,557 Interventions may better explain the energy issues in Libya than Bitcoin mining. But the U.N. 654 00:44:03,837 --> 00:44:07,137 Tries to paint energy issues in Libya as problems related to mining. 655 00:44:07,257 --> 00:44:14,377 And they suggest that regulating crypto mining under anti-money laundering frameworks is necessary. 656 00:44:15,137 --> 00:44:18,997 That's what the U.N. is arguing, that mining will be used for money laundering. 657 00:44:19,137 --> 00:44:24,177 It's being used to disrupt the power grid. We must get our arms around it at a global level. 658 00:44:25,057 --> 00:44:27,757 It's a rather disturbing report, and I'm glad the rage is on it. 659 00:44:28,097 --> 00:44:30,577 I will link to this in the show notes if you'd like to read more. 660 00:44:32,057 --> 00:44:36,537 Now, we are 100 days into the Trump administration, and I told you I wanted 661 00:44:36,537 --> 00:44:39,857 to keep track on how he did to his promise to Bitcoiners during the campaign. 662 00:44:39,857 --> 00:44:46,197 And thankfully, CRDLX has put together a Trump 100-day report card for us, 663 00:44:46,277 --> 00:44:47,877 which I will link to in the show notes. 664 00:44:48,277 --> 00:44:51,977 And he's tracked 10 pledges, which are the same 10 pledges that I had tracked, 665 00:44:52,117 --> 00:44:55,597 and he's been giving them a grade as time goes on. 666 00:44:55,777 --> 00:45:00,417 So pledge number one was to fire SEC Chair Gary Gensler on day one. 667 00:45:00,737 --> 00:45:03,737 I think we can say done. So he gets an A on that. 668 00:45:04,257 --> 00:45:08,777 Pledge two was to commute the sentence of Ross Albrecht on day one. 669 00:45:09,277 --> 00:45:11,077 All right, so he gets an A on that. 670 00:45:11,617 --> 00:45:14,577 Remove capital gains on Bitcoin transactions. 671 00:45:15,237 --> 00:45:20,917 That ain't happening. And he has an F on that. Create and hodl a strategic Bitcoin stockpile. 672 00:45:20,997 --> 00:45:23,257 We're going to give him a C- on that one, according to this chart. 673 00:45:23,777 --> 00:45:26,997 Prevent a CBDC during his presidency. This is number five. He gets an A. 674 00:45:27,617 --> 00:45:30,297 Number six, create a Bitcoin and Crypto Advisory Council. 675 00:45:31,017 --> 00:45:35,217 They're going to give him a C on this one. And he does have explanations for 676 00:45:35,217 --> 00:45:41,577 each one. So for the cryptocurrency, the Trump Bitcoin or crypto team consists of the following. 677 00:45:41,717 --> 00:45:44,957 David Sachs is the crypto czar. Bo Hines is executive director of the Presidential 678 00:45:44,957 --> 00:45:47,477 Council on Advisors for Digital Assets. 679 00:45:47,717 --> 00:45:50,577 A White House crypto summit was held on March 7th. 680 00:45:51,447 --> 00:45:54,347 Which was a good sign, but not more than that has been done. 681 00:45:54,507 --> 00:45:57,447 So C grading for the Bitcoin Crypto Council. 682 00:45:58,027 --> 00:46:02,987 Number seven, support the right to self-custody. They're going to give him a B minus on that one. 683 00:46:03,467 --> 00:46:08,047 Okay. Number eight, end the war on crypto. They're going to give him a B plus on that one. 684 00:46:09,007 --> 00:46:15,387 Mine all the remaining Bitcoin in the USA. A seemingly impossible pledge. Number nine, he gets a C. 685 00:46:15,767 --> 00:46:19,387 And number 10, make the U.S. the crypto capital of the planet. 686 00:46:19,387 --> 00:46:22,187 It, he's going to give him a C plus on that one. 687 00:46:22,427 --> 00:46:25,807 This pledge closely aligned with pledges eight and nine. If the war on crypto 688 00:46:25,807 --> 00:46:28,207 ends, the USA becomes more and more crypto and Bitcoin friendly. 689 00:46:28,527 --> 00:46:30,967 And he writes, if the hash rate stays high and even increases, 690 00:46:30,987 --> 00:46:32,327 that puts the USA at the center of it all. 691 00:46:32,467 --> 00:46:36,847 Most of the categories above seem have seen improvements, all of which help this last pledge. 692 00:46:37,227 --> 00:46:41,167 Trump's executive order to help this grade as well as the as they move from 693 00:46:41,167 --> 00:46:43,947 word spoke to actually becoming official policy to get it higher. 694 00:46:44,107 --> 00:46:49,267 The Bitcoin Reserve should move from a name change only to acquiring more Bitcoin. 695 00:46:50,107 --> 00:46:56,187 So the overall grade for the 100 days of Trump's 10 commitments to Bitcoin, 696 00:46:56,387 --> 00:46:59,427 ladies and gentlemen, is a C plus. 697 00:47:00,447 --> 00:47:05,287 Not amazing. But when you look at some of the changes, like the SEC changes, 698 00:47:05,827 --> 00:47:08,967 you know, some of them and Ross, you know, I was really pleased to see that. 699 00:47:09,107 --> 00:47:12,607 But I will link to the full report card with all the explanations in the show notes. 700 00:47:13,047 --> 00:47:16,407 If that's your thing, I'll keep an eye on it. We'll check back in a little while, 701 00:47:16,407 --> 00:47:18,527 We'll see if any of those have changed for the better or worse. 702 00:47:29,347 --> 00:47:33,027 I think Coinbase really should have been the original micro strategy. 703 00:47:33,227 --> 00:47:36,747 They really blew it. So I've always wondered, does Brian Armstrong, 704 00:47:36,987 --> 00:47:41,107 the CEO of Coinbase, does he still get Bitcoin like he did back in the day? 705 00:47:41,207 --> 00:47:45,507 Does he truly still understand it? And he was recently at a big mucky muck event, 706 00:47:45,507 --> 00:47:50,587 and he was asked about big banks and governments holding Bitcoin. 707 00:47:51,187 --> 00:47:52,927 And this is what Brian had to say. 708 00:47:53,647 --> 00:47:57,927 But I think it's clear at this point that, you know, Bitcoin is a better form of money than gold. 709 00:47:58,207 --> 00:48:02,527 It is provably scarce, just like gold, but it's more portable and divisible. 710 00:48:02,767 --> 00:48:06,007 So you can actually use, it has higher utility, I would say. 711 00:48:06,527 --> 00:48:11,587 And it was the best performing asset of the last 10 years. And so for store 712 00:48:11,587 --> 00:48:14,447 of value, I think it's going to be important for governments to hold this over time. 713 00:48:14,647 --> 00:48:18,027 It may not, it might start with being 1% of their reserves, but I think over 714 00:48:18,027 --> 00:48:21,707 time it'll come to be equal to or greater than gold reserves. 715 00:48:28,240 --> 00:48:33,360 Music. 716 00:48:33,244 --> 00:48:39,284 In on the state of the network. As I wrap up, we are at block height 894,637. 717 00:48:39,284 --> 00:48:42,704 The fee rate still two sats per v-byte. 718 00:48:42,944 --> 00:48:47,244 Two sats per v-byte. Two sats still. It's been like that for weeks. 719 00:48:47,944 --> 00:48:52,384 The USD price is 94,150 US dollars. 720 00:48:52,584 --> 00:48:57,984 That means sats per dollar right now is around 1,062 sats to a US dollar. 721 00:48:58,224 --> 00:49:02,644 We're up just 0.2% since the last episode, but an up is an up. 722 00:49:03,244 --> 00:49:10,064 Which means we're just 13.8% off our all-time high, which was exactly 100 days ago as I record. 723 00:49:10,624 --> 00:49:13,884 Of course, January 19th, 2025, 109,160. 724 00:49:14,924 --> 00:49:19,544 Now, I think we're seeing a decrease in the nodes, boys. We need to get out there. 725 00:49:22,004 --> 00:49:23,464 Got to deploy the nodes. 726 00:49:25,924 --> 00:49:29,924 21,364. I don't know what we got to do. 727 00:49:30,704 --> 00:49:33,504 I don't know what we got to do. Maybe you've got to skip a meal and spend that 728 00:49:33,504 --> 00:49:36,404 time setting up a Bitcoin node. Maybe go deploy a not node. I don't know. 729 00:49:36,644 --> 00:49:38,404 We need to see that creep up. 730 00:49:39,624 --> 00:49:43,224 21,364, though. I guess not so bad. Still quite a lot of nodes. 731 00:49:43,324 --> 00:49:44,564 And those are just the ones we know about. 732 00:49:45,324 --> 00:49:49,524 Could be even more than that. All right. So the Bitcoin network ticks right along. 733 00:49:50,984 --> 00:49:52,044 Things are looking really good. 734 00:49:52,944 --> 00:49:57,764 We are just a few days away from the next retarget date. May 3rd, 2025. 735 00:50:07,924 --> 00:50:10,884 Well, if you made it this far, you should probably check out the links in the 736 00:50:10,884 --> 00:50:15,584 show notes at thisweekinbitcoin.show. You could always check out previous episodes as well. 737 00:50:15,944 --> 00:50:20,804 Remember, I won't be here next week. I'm going to be on the road rescuing my buddy Brent's van. 738 00:50:21,124 --> 00:50:26,124 I will have some recording gear with me, so if anything really major breaks, I'll break in. 739 00:50:26,224 --> 00:50:29,584 But I'll probably just use this opportunity to sit back, read, 740 00:50:29,644 --> 00:50:31,404 and think, and come back with a banger. 741 00:50:31,604 --> 00:50:34,524 Now, if you liked the episode, let me know with a boost to try to build something 742 00:50:34,524 --> 00:50:37,684 here that is a high signal, low emotion show that gets you the information you 743 00:50:37,684 --> 00:50:40,024 need and doesn't get distracted by emotions or a bunch of drama. 744 00:50:40,404 --> 00:50:43,764 It's a little tricky in this one because there is a lot of drama to be had, 745 00:50:43,824 --> 00:50:46,184 but I hope I focused on the signal. 746 00:50:46,284 --> 00:50:50,004 Let me know with a boost and of course, boost in with what you'd like to see from the show. 747 00:50:50,104 --> 00:50:54,464 If anything was missed or if perhaps you wanted to hear something else in the 748 00:50:54,464 --> 00:50:57,104 show or would like me to include something in the future, you can include that. 749 00:50:57,304 --> 00:51:00,124 And then I love it when you share the show with somebody who's Bitcoin curious. 750 00:51:00,124 --> 00:51:04,844 Of course, word of mouth is the number one way to market a podcast. 751 00:51:05,364 --> 00:51:09,364 Now, you probably know the game by now. I like to end the show with a value for value track. 752 00:51:09,724 --> 00:51:13,004 But I want to take a moment and just remind you why I do this. 753 00:51:13,284 --> 00:51:18,424 This is an incredible example of what you can do with programmable money with Bitcoin. 754 00:51:18,824 --> 00:51:25,724 So when the music plays in the background, the splits for the lightning boosts 755 00:51:25,724 --> 00:51:28,064 automatically change over to the track artist. 756 00:51:29,122 --> 00:51:34,042 And this enables podcasts like mine to play music when we never could before. 757 00:51:34,162 --> 00:51:37,182 There was never really a way to credit and pay for the music. 758 00:51:37,562 --> 00:51:41,862 But it also has the secondary benefit of discovery. Just like the radio provided 759 00:51:41,862 --> 00:51:46,442 discovery for music artists for so long, now Value for Value Music and podcasts 760 00:51:46,442 --> 00:51:49,322 offer discovery mechanisms for these artists. 761 00:51:49,782 --> 00:51:55,862 And they love your boost. It makes their day to see and hear messages from people 762 00:51:55,862 --> 00:51:57,422 that are enjoying their music. 763 00:51:58,102 --> 00:52:02,262 So we play a Value for Value track on this song because it is an amazing demonstration 764 00:52:02,262 --> 00:52:08,802 of what you can do with Bitcoin and what this type of technology can enable for content creation. 765 00:52:09,062 --> 00:52:14,202 The fact that I can play fantastic music on this show is something that only 766 00:52:14,202 --> 00:52:17,122 the largest radio stations could have access to in the past. 767 00:52:17,302 --> 00:52:22,982 And now, with Value for Value music and the Magic Wallet switching technology, 768 00:52:23,742 --> 00:52:27,622 any show has access to this with just extra data in your RSS feed. 769 00:52:27,862 --> 00:52:29,002 It's really incredible. 770 00:52:29,302 --> 00:52:32,522 And so I love it when you boost the artist. They love it. It's really great. 771 00:52:32,622 --> 00:52:34,822 It brings it to the top of the charts and helps with discovery too. 772 00:52:35,002 --> 00:52:38,602 And so this week, I'm leaving you with a banger and I'll see you. 773 00:52:38,480 --> 00:58:26,740 Music.