Bankless

Is crypto building a freer financial system, or giving Wall Street and Washington new ways to control it? Former CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo returns to Bankless to unpack crypto's political battles, why he believes Wall Street will move onto digital rails by 2040, and what the 2008 financial crisis taught him about the limitations of traditional finance. Plus, the evolution of Bitcoin futures and perpetuals, the debate over stablecoins and CBDCs, and why financial privacy may matter more than the technology itself. His new book, The New Adventures of CryptoDad, brings these questions into focus.

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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 CryptoDad's New Mission
04:36 How Crypto Became Political
12:16 Why the SEC Crackdown Failed
17:09 Bitcoin Futures, Perps, and Regulation
27:54 Passing the CFTC Baton
33:52 Who Controls Digital Finance?
39:40 The 2008 Banking Blind Spot
45:31 Wall Street Moves Onchain
50:52 Privacy and the Digital Dollar

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RESOURCES

Christopher Giancarlo
https://x.com/giancarloMKTS

The New Adventures of CryptoDad
https://www.amazon.com/New-Adventures-CryptoDad-Digital-Century/dp/1394431228

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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

Could Bitcoin be signaling the next liquidity recovery before the rest of the market sees it? Global liquidity expert Michael Howell returns to Bankless to revisit his 2027 outlook, explain why Bitcoin's $70K level matters, and examine whether the next market rebound could arrive sooner than expected. Ryan and David dig into rising Treasury yields, the Fed and Treasury's evolving relationship, Michael's "Treasury QE" thesis, and the four phases of the liquidity cycle.

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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Is Bitcoin Signaling an Early Liquidity Recovery?
07:35 The $70K Bitcoin Level That Could Change Everything
11:08 What's Really Driving Treasury Yields Higher?
19:55 Michael Howell vs. Ray Dalio on the Future of Bonds
28:48 Inflation, Economic Growth, and the Liquidity Squeeze
35:02 The Four Phases of the Liquidity Cycle and What to Own
41:07 Can the AI Boom Defy the Market Cycle?
51:08 Treasury QE and the Fed's New Liquidity Playbook
1:01:06 Why China's Liquidity Could Be Driving Gold
1:06:19 Bitcoin vs. Gold as Monetary Inflation Hedges
1:11:08 How Much Could Global Liquidity Grow?

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RESOURCES

Michael Howell’s Substack
https://capitalwars.substack.com/

Global Liquidity Index
https://www.glindexes.com/

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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
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Is AI turning the entire internet into a dark forest? Security experts Hari Mulackal and Odysseas Lamtzidis join David Hoffman to unpack Black October, why AI-powered hacking is becoming cheaper and more scalable, how defenders are falling behind, and what it means for your crypto and personal data.
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TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Intro
0:08 Black October: Cybersecurity’s New Reality
1:01 Why Cyber Incidents Are Surging
4:06 AI Makes Hacking Cheap and Scalable
6:46 The Real-World Cost of Data Breaches
11:00 AI, Personal Data, and Targeted Scams
15:32 Is Mass Data Exposure Inevitable?
18:02 What the CVE Explosion Reveals
20:50 Can AI Defenders Keep Up?
23:22 Why Crypto May Be Better Prepared
27:34 Are Crypto Assets Still Safe?
31:41 A Silver Lining After the Cyber Turbulence
34:18 Practical Security Advice for Individuals
36:05 Redundancy, Self-Custody, and Limiting Risk
38:02 Simple Steps to Protect Your Wallet
40:39 What Crypto Custodians Should Do
41:29 Security Startups and How They Can Help
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RESOURCES
Hari Mulackal
https://www.linkedin.com/in/hari-mulackal
Odysseas Lamtzidis
https://www.linkedin.com/in/odysseaslamtzidis
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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

Uptober lasted four hours. Now comes Black October: rising war fears, AI-powered cyber threats, and a market on edge. Ryan and David debate whether crypto is next, JPMorgan’s bullish Bitcoin forecast, fusion-made gold, and a major stablecoin win.

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🎯THE DEFI REPORT | ONCHAIN INSIGHTS

https://thedefireport.io/bankless

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TIMESTAMPS & RESOURCES

0:00 Intro

0:08 Black October, Uptober & Market Jitters

https://www.coingecko.com/

https://apnews.com/article/mideast-yemen-saudi-israel-october-22-2026-dde5b98a8bf961224514994b02babce9

https://x.com/TrustlessState/status/2113252218568679571

https://x.com/coinbureau/status/2113215401983152439

5:38 Bitcoin's Early Bull Case

https://thedefireport.io/research/cycle-awareness-update-3e75

9:26 JPMorgan's Bitcoin Forecast & Ethereum's Struggles

https://am.jpmorgan.com/us/en/asset-management/adv/insights/portfolio-insights/ltcma/

https://x.com/saylor/status/2112587713060757820

https://x.com/Matt_Hougan/status/2112387154923983105

https://imgur.com/8j76G5h

20:23 Crypto Movers: Pearl, Lighter, Venice & Monero

https://x.com/zoomerfied/status/2112970717591748767

https://x.com/TrustlessState/status/2112966535744544859

https://www.21shares.com/en-eu/product/venc

https://www.coingecko.com/en/coins/monero

28:31 Black October: Cyberattacks, AI & Banking Risks

https://x.com/takaichi_sanae/status/2112890642590564386

https://x.com/NSACyber/status/2112903220209098897

https://x.com/Mudit__Gupta/status/2112938784392163779

https://x.com/devmuzzammil/status/2113042127039164663

https://x.com/nic_carter/status/2113064786556592250

https://x.com/jachiam0/status/2112968705240109558

https://x.com/eastdakota/status/2113079352682570051

https://x.com/MadisonMills22/status/2113251043173683683

42:53 Fusion Gold: Bitcoin's Unexpected Advantage?

https://x.com/MarathonFusion/status/2113001073019662481

https://x.com/MarathonFusion/status/2113001085912895846

https://x.com/nic_carter/status/2113054840595390792

50:23 Stablecoin Rewards, Solana Upgrade & Aero Merger

https://x.com/EleanorTerrett/status/2112871300079161630

https://cointelegraph.com/news/american-bankers-association-occ-genius-rules-stablecoins

https://x.com/solana/status/2112906742585512150

https://aero.xyz/articles/aero-launches-today

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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:

https://www.bankless.com/disclosures

Could American crypto traders finally get the same features available on offshore exchanges? CFTC Chair Mike Selig joins David Hoffman to unpack Reg CTX and Reg CAM, two proposed rules that could bring retail spot margin trading and a new federal framework for crypto exchanges to the US.

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TIMESTAMPS

00:00 CFTC Chair Mike Selig Returns
03:09 Why Financial Markets Need Federal Regulation
11:13 Who Actually Regulates Spot Bitcoin?
17:27 The CFTC, FinCEN, and State Regulators
22:29 The New Crypto Regulatory Trilogy
27:16 Reg CTX: Bringing Margin Trading Onshore
29:22 Reg CAM: A New Federal Exchange Framework
31:11 The Problem with 50 State Licenses
35:11 What Retail Crypto Leverage Could Look Like
39:24 Ending the SEC and CFTC Turf War
42:58 The Risks of Combining Financial Businesses
54:04 What Other Products Could This Unlock?
56:35 Where the CFTC Gets Its Authority
1:01:05 Can These Rules Survive Without the CLARITY Act?
1:05:05 Prediction Markets and the Supreme Court
1:08:11 How the Crypto Industry Can Respond

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RESOURCES

CFTC Chair Mike Selig
https://x.com/ChairmanSelig

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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
https://www.bankless.com/disclosures