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Empire

Empire

By: Blockworks
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About this listen

Empire features interviews with top crypto founders to get the real stories that aren’t shared elsewhere. Empire is your look behind the curtain of the crypto industry. We release two episodes per week: guest interviews on Monday and a weekly roundup on Friday.384141 Blockworks 2021-2023 Economics Personal Finance Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Are DATs Sustainable, Stripe Launches Tempo & WLFI’s Token Launch | Weekly Roundup
    Sep 5 2025
    Gm! This week we're back to discuss the latest news of the week. We deep dive into the mechanics behind DATs, the WLFI token launch, Stripe's announcement of Tempo, onchain equities & more. Enjoy! -- Follow Rob: https://x.com/HadickM Follow Santi: https://x.com/santiagoroel Follow Jason: https://x.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod -- Join the Empire Telegram: https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from David Canellis. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire?utm_source=podcasts -- Get up to speed on the biggest stories in crypto each week. In five minutes. Get the Bitwise Weekly CIO Memo delivered directly to your inbox at bitwiseinvestments.com/ciomemo/empire -- "Mantle is pioneering ""Blockchain for Banking"" as a revolutionary new category that sits at the intersection of TradFi and web3. Key elements for Mantle as the ""Blockchain for Banking"": - Transactions posted to the blockchain - Compatibility with TradFi rails - Integrated DeFi features Mantle Network, the access layer — transforms Mantle Network into a purpose-built vertical platform — the blockchain for banking — that enables financial services on-chain. Mantle leads the establishment of Blockchain for Banking as the next frontier. Follow Mantle on X (@Mantle_Official) for the latest updates on Mantle as the 'Blockchain for Banking'." -- Is your treasury losing value to inflation? Learn how to make digital assets like ETH and SOL productive with uncorrelated, protocol-driven staking rewards. A new report from Liquid Collective and EigenCloud outlines a practical guide for CFOs to integrate institutional-grade staking and restaking. Read The Productive Treasury Report: https://liquidcollective.io/corporate-treasury-staking/ -- Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (04:24) Are DAT Mechanics Sustainable? (16:23) Do DATs Actually Unlock Token Access? (21:48) Ads (Bitwise) (22:34) Breaking Down The $WLFI Token Launch (33:46) Stripe Launches Tempo (49:12) Ads (Bitwise, Mantle, Eigenlayer) (51:27) Onchain Equities & Tokenization -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
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    1 hr and 8 mins
  • Hivemind: Where Do Crypto Markets Go Next?
    Sep 4 2025
    This week, the Hivemind team discusses post-Jackson Hole conditions, Bitcoin seasonality, and rate cut expectations. They analyze DATs and liquidity dynamics, MicroStrategy’s S&P potential, Solana versus Base adoption, Pokémon TCG crypto experiments, and creator coin streaming models. They also unpack Plasma’s TGE, World LibertyFi, stablecoin and institutional chain use cases, and Tom Lee’s ETH commentary. Enjoy! -- Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from Katherine Ross and David Canellis. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire Follow Ceteris: https://x.com/ceterispar1bus Follow Jason: https://x.com/3xliquidated Follow Yan: https://x.com/YanLiberman Follow LTR: https://x.com/0xLTR Follow Empire: https://x.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/4jYEkBx Subscribe on Apple: https://bit.ly/3ECSmJ3 Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/4hzy9lH Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ —-- Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (02:25) Market Outlook (09:53) The State of DATs (17:07) Streaming % Creator Coins (36:28) Plasma's TGE & World LibertyFi (39:51) Stablecoins & the Tempo Announcement (48:48) Tom Lee's ETH Saga —-- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, the Hivemind team, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
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    1 hr and 9 mins
  • Kraken’s 10 Year Plan With Arjun Sethi
    Sep 1 2025
    Gm! In this episode, Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Kraken, joins Yano to dive into how his background in tech, growth and IPOs makes him the perfect candidate to join Kraken and take the company to the next level. Arjun dives into how his compensation plan and overall approach to Kraken paves the way for a decade long growth trajectory that will take Kraken global and one of the most recognized brands in crypto for retail, traders and beyond. -- Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from David Canellis. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire?utm_source=podcasts -- Follow Arjun: https://x.com/arjunsethi Follow Jason: https://x.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod -- Join the Empire Telegram: https://t.me/+CaCYvTOB4Eg1OWJh -- Katana is a DeFi-first chain built for deep liquidity and high yield. No empty emissions, just real yield and sequencer fees routed back to DeFi users. Pre-deposit now: Earn high APRs with Turtle Club [https://app.turtle.club/campaigns/katana] or spin the wheel with Katana Krates [https://app.katana.network/krates] -- Is your treasury losing value to inflation? Learn how to make digital assets like ETH and SOL productive with uncorrelated, protocol-driven staking rewards. A new report from Liquid Collective and EigenCloud outlines a practical guide for CFOs to integrate institutional-grade staking and restaking. Read The Productive Treasury Report: https://liquidcollective.io/corporate-treasury-staking/ -- GEODNET is the world’s largest RTK network, delivering real-time, centimeter-level precision for drones, robots, farmers, and first responders. Recognized by the U.S. Congress, this blockchain-powered network supports mission-critical applications across a wide range of industries. Discover how GEODNET is changing the world: [https://geodnet.com] -- (00:00) Intro (01:10) Arjun’s Background (14:08) Culture + Product Velocity (16:45) Arjun’s Incentives (18:03) Ads (Katana) (18:50) 1st month at kraken (21:56) Prioritizing What To Build (26:00) Future Onchain Trading (31:20) Kraken Stablecoin (33:38) Crypto Market Structure (35:16) Competitor Analysis (40:17) Hyperliquid (42:25) X Stocks (44:58) Ninja Trader Acquisition (49:33) IPO? (52:39) Long term Leadership (53:53) Ads (Eigenlayer, Geodnet) (55:32) Prediction Markets + Perps (59:16) Tokenization / Onchain IPOs (01:04:18) What's Obvious to Arjun (01:09:46) 4 Year Cycle -- Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, Rob and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
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    1 hr and 13 mins
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