Coming soon: When nerdy gamer Sam Bankman-Fried rocketed to fame as the world’s richest 29-year-old, he pledged to donate his billions to good causes. But then his crypto exchange FTX collapsed Billions of dollars were missing, and Sam was in handcuffs. Those who knew him were left wondering — who was Sam really? A well-meaning billionaire who made a mistake? Or a calculating con man? From Wondery and Bloomberg, the makers of The Shrink Next Door, comes a new story of incredible wealth, betrayal and what happens when “doing good” goes really really bad. Learn more here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spellcaster-the-fall-of-sam-bankman-fried/id1685258534

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It’s been another wild week of financial mayhem connected to crypto. But this time the crisis focused on banks.

It started earlier this month [March], when Silvergate Capital shut down operations. The California-based bank serviced various crypto companies like Coinbase and Gemini. But its most notorious clients included the now-bankrupt crypto exchange FTX and its sister firm Alameda. As these two giants faltered, Silvergate suffered a series of financial difficulties and fell under intense regulatory scrutiny, leading to its eventual shut down.

Then, last Friday, one week ago now, the tech and startup-focused Silicon Valley Bank collapsed. It was the largest bank failure since 2008, and incited investor panic.

By late last Sunday, another domino had fallen: New York State regulators announced they were taking possession of Signature Bank. It was moving to retreat from crypto, but was still known for having some ties to the digital asset industry, at one point even launching a crypto-payments platform. This was the third-largest bank failure in the US to date. Bloomberg reported that regulators took action after they “lost faith in management.”

This trio of recent closures is another blow to crypto - leaving the industry nearly cut off from the fiat banking sector. All the while a Bitcoin rally ensued, but has since cooled a bit.

So. In the aftermath of one of the biggest weeks in finance so far this year, how has the crypto industry fared? And how does it move forward?

Bloomberg senior executive editor Chris Nagi joins this episode.

Listen to Bloomberg Crypto on the iHeartRadio App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Subscribe to the Bloomberg Crypto Newsletter at https://bloom.bg/cryptonewsletter

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Listen to Bloomberg Crypto on the iHeartRadio App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Last year, just before the crypto winter had hit in earnest, Princeton University opened up “The Center for the Decentralization of Power Through Blockchain Technology”.

The Center was funded in part by a $20 million gift from prominent Princeton alumni including Mike Novogratz, CEO of Galaxy Investment Partners, and Joe Lubin, co-founder of the Ethereum crypto platform.

The university says the Center focuses on the software engineering that makes blockchain technology work, finds innovative uses for decentralized systems and considers how it might affect our collective future.

One year on, as the crypto winter persists, what’s the Center up to these days?

Bloomberg reporter Francesca Maglione joins this episode to discuss the role universities are playing in studying blockchain.

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Some might argue that the popularity of NFTs faded as quickly as it rose. NFTs boomed in early 2022 when the crypto mania was at fever pitch. But a steep decline in sales and prices quickly followed, as 2022’s crypto winter set in, and digital asset bankruptcies piled up, culminating with the collapse of FTX late last year. But as we move into 2023, some crypto traders and NFT owners are cautiously optimistic, eyeing a Bitcoin bump despite the last year.

Former bond traders Ovie Faruq and Mike Anderson recently sold 72 iconic Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs for around 78 Eth each, which translated to roughly $9.25 million at the time.

Bloomberg reporter Abhinav Ramnarayan and Ovie Faruq, Co-founder at Canary Labs, join senior editor Anna Irrera to discuss the ins and outs of trading NFTs.

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The last 12 months or so have been a particularly grueling season for crypto. And as we head into the spring months of 2023, we’re getting a better sense of what the slump in crypto prices has meant for the companies that shape the fledgling industry.

One of the biggest consequences digital asset firms are now finding is the need to make job cuts. Since the start of 2023, more than 15 crypto companies have posted labor force cuts including big names like Galaxy Digital, Genesis Global, and Chainanalysis. Some - like Silvergate Capital and crypto lender Amber Group - have cut as much as 40% of their workforce.

While that trend is not universal – Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire spoke with Bloomberg a few weeks ago, and said Circle is actually hiring people –what do these cuts say about the general health of crypto?

Bloomberg reporter Hannah Miller joins to discuss the latest in the crypto workforce.

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Argentina is one of the countries with the highest rates of inflation in the world - currently hovering at close to 100%.

The nation is also one of the countries with the biggest population of crypto enthusiasts. In this environment, digital currencies can be perceived as a safer bet than the peso.

This popular enthusiasm for digital tokens has faced pushback from the country’s central bank. But ever since the crypto winter has stepped up volatility, and exchanges like FTX collapsed, many Argentinians likely feel squeezed: with fewer ‘safe’ places to protect their life savings from inflationary pressures.

Bloomberg’s Nacho Olivera Doll reported on a recent study by Buenos Aires-based Wunderman Thompson - it found that nearly two-thirds of the nation’s crypto investors use digital currencies as a way to protect their savings. He joins this episode to discuss.

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Legal battles, circling regulators and a troubled bank. It's all happening in crypto this week.

Court is in session as Grayscale challenges the SEC over the prospects for a Bitcoin ETF, while themselves facing a lawsuit filed by FTX’s Alameda Research.

Voyager won a key court ruling that would a proposed sale to to Binance US to proceed despite the objections of multiple federal and state regulators.

And speaking of regulators: US officials showed up at Silvergate’s California headquarters as the troubled crypto-friendly bank tries to salvage what’s left of its business.

Bloomberg reporters Justina Lee & Emily Nicolle join senior editor Anna Irrera to discuss the biggest stories in crypto this week.

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Bloomberg’s stacy-marie ishmael interviewed Jeremy Allaire, Chief Executive Officer of Circle Internet Financial Ltd. to discuss stablecoins and his views on crypto regulation.

The CEO of the Boston-based firm behind the second-largest stablecoin, USDC, told Bloomberg that the US Securities and Exchange Commission is “not the right regulator” for the tokens. So who should regulate them? Listen to this episode to find out.

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