Julien Bouteloup, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Sep 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Stake Capital CEO Julien Bouteloup and ETHGlobal Co-Founder and CEO Kartik Talwar examine how DeFi must change as institutions pursue onchain yield. Bouteloup argues that large financial firms are motivated by profit, market share, and access to new customers more than decentralization narratives. Adoption therefore depends on products that satisfy institutional requirements for confidentiality, risk controls, insurance, and predictable execution while still using open networks. The conversation also contrasts innovation incentives in the United States, Europe, and state-led markets. Bouteloup argues that the institutional narrative must begin with incentives. Banks and asset managers will use decentralized infrastructure when it lowers costs, increases margins, opens markets, or creates differentiated products. Public transparency may help, but it can also expose positions and trading intent. Privacy, KYC, AML, isolated liquidity, insurance, and compliance controls therefore become product requirements rather than compromises added after adoption. They distinguish sustainable “real yield” from temporary token incentives and discuss how higher risk-free rates reset investor expectations. A DeFi product offering seven percent may no longer compensate users for smart-contract, liquidity, or counterparty risk; differentiated strategies may need privacy, exotic yield, or stronger protection. Extremely high returns can exist during ecosystem subsidy cycles, but scalability and durability remain uncertain. For builders, the advice is to solve a specific problem, create something genuinely different, and prioritize distribution. Institutional capital will not arrive simply because infrastructure is onchain, it will follow products that deliver clear value with credible risk management. The yield discussion separates returns generated by real economic activity from emissions funded to attract temporary liquidity. Higher government rates create a baseline, so DeFi strategies must justify each additional layer of smart-contract, counterparty, liquidity, and product risk. Bouteloup sees opportunity in specialized or exotic yield, but warns that headline returns do not automatically scale to institutional ticket sizes. 00:00 Introduction to the DeFi Fireside Chat 00:25 Seven Years of DeFi Experience 01:11 How DeFi Has Evolved 02:01 TradFi Uses the Tools DeFi Built 02:39 What Institutions Actually Want 03:11 Profit, Market Share, and Customers 04:27 US Distribution Versus European Rules 05:35 State-Led Innovation in Asia 07:45 The Maturing DeFi Protocol Layer 08:22 Risk Moves Into Products and Strategies 08:54 Robinhood Yield Built on Morpho 09:31 Insurance, Privacy, and Confidentiality 10:36 Private Versions of Existing Protocols 11:02 Choosing Different Levels of Privacy 11:26 Private Yield Through Existing Liquidity 12:21 KYC, AML, and Isolated Liquidity 12:59 Is Seven Percent Yield Sustainable 13:19 Real Yield From Lending and Borrowing 14:26 Exotic Yield and Higher Risk 15:13 Pricing Risk Above the Baseline Rate 16:28 Better Yield and UX for End Users 17:02 Can Forty to Eighty Percent Scale 17:37 Ecosystem Incentives and Liquidity 18:32 Consolidation Across Major Chains 19:13 Advice for New DeFi Builders 20:19 Distribution and Proprietary Data 20:45 Build Products That Solve Real Problems 21:27 Closing Advice and Final Thanks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇵🇹 *Pragma Lisbon 2026* Pragma Lisbon 2026 was held on June 25th at the Carlos Lopes Pavillion in Lisbon, Portugal and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Lisbon 2026 YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMxB4xW8JYdk ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city

ETHGlobal · Sep 9, 2026

Marius Smith, Co-Founder of Ethereum Institutional, argues that Ethereum needs a clear institutional front door as banks, asset managers, and other financial firms decide which networks will support their future infrastructure. He explains that Ethereum’s neutrality, security, liquidity, and global developer ecosystem remain powerful advantages, but those strengths are harder for institutions to navigate than the coordinated commercial interfaces offered by competing networks. The choices made over the next two years, he says, could shape financial infrastructure for decades. Smith says that, over the next two years, major banks, asset managers, and market infrastructures will begin locking in the platforms and rails they expect to use. Ethereum therefore needs people who can sit with institutions, explain the ecosystem, support deployment, and surface recurring blockers back to builders. He contrasts Ethereum’s decentralized structure with networks that have a single foundation or operating company able to offer a coordinated institutional relationship. That fragmentation can slow adoption even when Ethereum is technically stronger. Ethereum Institutional was created as an independent nonprofit to represent the ecosystem, coordinate institutional engagement, and translate recurring needs into actionable work. Smith outlines priorities including education, research, deployment support, privacy, regulatory and operational compliance, clearer materials, regional representatives, and forums for senior leaders. His central message is that technical excellence alone will not secure adoption: Ethereum must pair its values with organized outreach, useful materials, and consistent support for institutions evaluating production deployments. The organization plans to gather recurring questions from hundreds of institutional conversations and convert them into public resources, ecosystem priorities, and direct support. Topics include privacy, transaction execution, regulatory requirements, operational controls, roadmap clarity, and the practical details of deploying on Ethereum. Smith also describes institutional forums that place senior banking and asset-management leaders alongside Ethereum founders. 00:00 Introduction to Ethereum Institutional 00:43 Why a Dedicated Institution Is Needed 01:27 Defining an Institutional Front Door 01:54 A Critical Two-Year Adoption Window 02:15 Rewiring Global Financial Systems 02:38 Where Institutions Choose to Build 03:14 Ethereum Foundation Focus Changes 03:41 A Multi-Node Ethereum Ecosystem 04:34 Fragmented Commercial Interfaces 05:05 A Neutral Interface for Deployment 05:42 Ethereum Security, Liquidity, and Uptime 06:06 Why Technical Strength Is Not Enough 06:36 Competition for Decision-Maker Attention 07:36 Four Forces Shaping Adoption 08:07 Competing Institutional Networks 08:40 Why Other Ecosystems Are Easier to Navigate 09:34 The Window for Ethereum Adoption 09:59 The Need for a Clear Interface 10:28 Launching an Independent Nonprofit 11:21 Scaling the Ethereum Institutional Team 12:08 The Institutional Adoption Mandate 12:34 Lessons From Institutional Conversations 13:18 Research and Ecosystem Intelligence 13:43 Explaining ETH as an Institutional Asset 14:10 Promoting Ethereum Use Cases 14:49 Privacy, Roadmap, and Compliance Needs 15:47 Forums for Institutions and Builders 16:12 Hiring Across Major Financial Hubs 16:59 Deployment Engineering Support 17:27 The Institutional Ethereum Forum 17:58 Building an Institutional Platform 18:44 Invitation to Support the Organization 19:31 Closing Remarks and Next Steps _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇵🇹 *Pragma Lisbon 2026* Pragma Lisbon 2026 was held on June 25th at the Carlos Lopes Pavillion in Lisbon, Portugal and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Lisbon 2026 YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMxB4xW8JYdk ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Marius Smith X: https://x.com/mariuslsmith ✅ Follow Ethereum Institutional X: https://x.com/ethereuminsti ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city

ETHGlobal · Aug 9, 2026

In this welcome and introduction, Aubree Galbiso from the operations team at ETHGlobal opens the third and final day of ETHConf, calling it a full circle moment to be on stage after months of planning the event from behind the scenes. She frames ETHConf as an ambitious but needed event centered around Ethereum in the US, hosted at the Javits Center, the largest convention center in New York, which she thanks along with its team. She explains why ETHGlobal chose New York City, the center of global finance, as the home for its first ever ETHConf: it is where institutions live and where the energy to move the industry forward feels alive. Aubree thanks the event's 2,000-plus attendees, over 600 companies, 150 speakers, and 30 sponsors who made it possible. She previews a day three filled with talks, panels, and firesides touching on three major themes: onchain at scale, institutional adoption, and protocol updates. She stresses the conference is designed to deliver real insights from the companies, founders, and protocols shaping the industry, meaning real things happening right now rather than ideas, since every speaker on stage has already shipped something. She encourages attendees to connect directly with speakers walking the event and with fellow decision makers and key players to network, hear hot takes, and discuss the future, before jumping into the day three schedule. 00:00 Introduction 00:07 A Full Circle Moment on Stage 00:38 Thanking the Javits Center Team 00:59 Why New York City Was Chosen 01:21 Thanking Attendees, Speakers, and Sponsors 01:44 The Three Major Themes of the Day 02:06 Why Every Speaker Has Already Shipped 02:27 A Home for Decision Makers to Connect 02:48 Jumping Into the Day Three Schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Matt Sheffield, CIO of SharpLink, sits down with Robbie Mitchnick, Global Head of Digital Assets at BlackRock, to discuss institutional Ethereum adoption, ETFs, tokenization, and the future of finance. Matt opens by describing SharpLink's strategy of putting roughly $3 billion of Ethereum onto a public company balance sheet last year and progressively moving it onchain. Robbie explains BlackRock's deliberate approach to crypto ETFs, with IBIT for Bitcoin and ETHA for Ethereum, noting the high bar that includes asset maturity, market cap, liquidity, product market fit, and the conviction that an asset belongs in client portfolios on a long term fundamental basis. He emphasizes that Bitcoin sits in category one, Bitcoin plus ETH sits in category two, and there is a meaningful breakpoint after that. The conversation digs into why TradFi firms prefer Ethereum over newer programmable L1s, citing time tested maturity, network effects, and Ethereum's incumbency. Matt argues that Ethereum gets chosen on merit rather than economic incentives, which builds trust with the community. Robbie details BlackRock's launch of ETHB as a staking focused product alongside ETHA for liquidity sensitive investors, reaching half a billion in AUM out of the gate. They discuss why tokenized money market funds have been the breakthrough tokenization category at over 10 billion dollars (including BUIDL), since they break the historical tradeoff between full US Treasury yield and perfect liquidity when paired with stablecoins. Matt outlines SharpLink's onchain allocations including a $200 million LRT deployment, bridging to Linea, and a $125 million private fund with Galaxy. Robbie shares BlackRock's four pillar tokenization framework around asset class focus, custody, regulation, and exchange listing. They close by discussing agentic finance and the intersection of AI and digital assets as the most exciting theme for the next 5 to 10 years. 00:00 Introductions 01:21 Why BlackRock Launched IBIT and ETHA but Paused After 02:23 The High Bar for an iShares Crypto Product 02:57 Bitcoin Category One, Bitcoin and ETH Category Two 03:22 Why TradFi Prefers Mature, Battle Tested Assets 04:24 Network Effects and Ethereum's Incumbency Advantage 05:12 SharpLink's Inflection Point: Stability Over Headline Chasing 06:25 Picking Ethereum on Merit, Not Economics 07:02 Utilization Without Economic Incentive as a Signal 07:42 Why BlackRock Created ETHB Separately for Staking 08:49 Catering to Liquidity Sensitive vs Yield Focused Investors 09:32 No Switching Between ETHA and ETHB 09:53 The Impact of Crypto ETFs on Industry Access 10:14 Why Tokenized Money Market Funds Came First 11:02 Breaking the Yield vs Liquidity Tradeoff 12:00 BUIDL and the 10 Billion Dollar Tokenized MMF Category 13:06 What Needs to Happen for Ethereum to Stay the Tokenization Hub 13:50 Liquidity Begets Liquidity: Ethereum's Pole Position 14:10 RWAs Need to Become More Valuable Onchain Than Off 14:55 Tokenized Stock Loans and the GameStop Example 15:35 Only 0.1% of Global Assets Are Tokenized 15:57 SharpLink's Onchain Deployments and Regulatory Process 17:02 Building Infrastructure While Pioneering Each Deployment 17:51 BlackRock's Four Pillar Tokenization Framework 18:46 Why Money Market Funds Became the Coalescence Point 19:14 The Race Between TradFi and Crypto Exchanges 20:04 Custody Hurdles for Institutional Adoption 20:58 Regulatory Clarity vs Tokenization Specific Rules 21:23 The iShares Tokenization Opportunity 21:46 Looking Ahead: Agentic Finance That Adds Value 22:16 The AI as Guardian Angel for Onchain Transactions 23:31 Ethereum's Immutability and Agentic Payments 23:58 AI Plus Digital Assets as the Defining Intersection 24:22 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Andrej Bencic, co-founder and CEO of Tenderly, makes the case that the next decade of crypto requires shifting focus from building the rails to operating them safely. He opens with a story of a routine protocol upgrade where tests passed, the audit was clean, governance approved, and the time lock executed normally, yet within four minutes of mainnet deployment an asset valued at $2,200 dropped to $0, triggering cascading liquidations and nearly $2 million in bad debt. The smart contracts behaved exactly as intended. The failure wasn't in the code, but in everything around it. Andrej argues that the industry has hyperfocused on getting protocols from idea to mainnet while neglecting operational risk in production with live state and live dependencies. He uses the analogy that the map is not the territory: smart contracts are the map, but mainnet is the territory full of traffic, congestion, and population density. He outlines four categories of risk that must be managed together. Process risk covers operational mishaps like signing transactions, treasury management, and deployment workflows, where he cites that process exploits now outnumber code exploits by 6 to 7 times. Dependency risk covers second, third, and fourth order failures across the interconnected web of DeFi protocols. Market risk recognizes that DeFi lacks trading hours, circuit breakers, and human checkpoints that traditional finance relies on, so multi day unwinds can happen in an instant. Code risk remains essential as ever but needs to test onchain dynamics, not just isolated sandboxes. He closes by introducing the concept of blockchain operations and pointing to simulation against live state as the unique advantage blockchain offers, comparing it to pilots in flight simulators or banks running stress tests. 00:00 Introduction 00:11 A Routine Upgrade Gone Wrong 01:04 $2 Million in Bad Debt in Four Minutes 01:33 The Smart Contracts Behaved as Intended 01:51 Andrej's Background at Tenderly 02:38 Why None of the Checks Triggered 03:03 Hyperfocusing on Reaching Mainnet 03:26 The Work Doesn't Stop at Launch 04:10 The Map Is Not the Territory 05:38 Smart Contracts Are Half the Equation 06:38 Crypto Becoming Finance Itself 07:11 Risk Management as the Next Decade's Discipline 07:47 Four Categories of Risk 08:20 Process Risk and Operational Mishaps 09:37 Six to Seven Times More Process Exploits Than Code Exploits 09:59 Dependency Risk and the DeFi Lego Tradeoff 11:18 Knowing the Blast Radius of Dependencies 11:53 Market Risk Without Circuit Breakers 13:19 Modeling Comfort with Exposure 13:36 Code Risk Remains Essential 14:23 Testing Onchain Dynamics, Not Just Isolated Sandboxes 14:52 Correct at Launch Doesn't Mean Correct at Scale 15:22 Frameworks From Traditional Finance 15:49 Simulation Against Live State as the Tying Piece 16:23 No Undo Buttons on Blockchain 16:48 Pilots, Banks, and Stress Testing 17:43 Blockchain Operations as a Category 18:16 Closing: Operating at the Level Global Attention Requires _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Yana Prikhodchenko from Cointelegraph interviews Chaeho Shin, CEO of 1inch, on the state of DeFi liquidity, the convergence of TradFi and DeFi, regulatory clarity, and 1inch's plans for shared liquidity. Chaeho frames the core problem facing DeFi today: roughly 80 to 90% of liquidity is sitting idle because of fragmentation across separate liquidity pools. He explains that 1inch is solving this by introducing a shared liquidity protocol that allows assets in users' wallets to be shared across different liquidity pools without ever leaving self custody, which he positions as the next major DeFi innovation since the original liquidity pool concept from 2019 to 2020. The conversation moves into RWAs, where Chaeho identifies the two biggest barriers to real adoption: compliance and regulatory issues, and liquidity fragmentation that prevents efficient trading at TradFi comparable rates. He notes the disconnect between roughly $30 billion in RWAs onchain and only $2.5 billion actively used in DeFi, and explains that 1inch is positioning to be the most regulatory ready DeFi protocol and a partner swap engine for RWA platforms. He argues the real breakthrough for RWAs in DeFi is the ability to generate additional yield from liquidity pool trading fees on top of the underlying security's dividends. On geographic differences, Chaeho explains that APAC markets including his native Korea remain much more retail focused than the US, but they all benchmark against Wall Street and are waiting for US regulatory clarity (especially the Clarity Act addressing questions he started asking nine years ago) before institutional adoption accelerates. He closes by predicting that shared liquidity will be the dominant DeFi narrative in 2026 and 2027, replacing speculation with fundamentally supported higher yields driven by better capital efficiency. 00:00 Introduction 00:08 Thanks to the Organizers 00:47 Chaeho's TradFi to Crypto Journey 01:10 The TradFi DeFi Convergence Since 2024 01:46 Why 80 to 90% of DeFi Liquidity Sits Idle 02:36 Introducing 1inch Shared Liquidity Protocol 03:13 Self Custody While Sharing Across Pools 03:46 Are AMMs the Bottleneck for the Next Phase 04:59 No Real DeFi Innovation Since 2019 2020 05:36 RWAs: Why 30 Billion Onchain but Only 2.5 Billion in DeFi 06:27 Compliance and Liquidity as the Two RWA Hurdles 07:14 1inch as the RWA Swap Engine 07:52 The Real RWA Breakthrough: Extra DeFi Yield on Top of Dividends 09:28 APAC vs US Capital Allocation 10:01 Why APAC Remains Retail Focused 10:48 APAC Benchmarking Against Wall Street 11:52 Waiting for US Regulatory Clarity 12:26 Key Learnings From the Clarity Act 13:52 What's Next for DeFi Liquidity 14:16 The Yield Problem in Bear Market DeFi 15:32 Better Capital Efficiency as the Solution 16:00 Bonus Round: Morning Routine and Personal Strategy 16:26 Bull or Bear: Building Through Cycles 16:46 1inch's Big Goal for 2026 to 2027 17:17 Predicting the Hottest DeFi Narrative 17:49 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Mark Tyneway

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Optimism co-founders Mark Tyneway and Jing Wang take the stage to address rumors of Optimism's demise, defend the L2 thesis, and preview what's shipping next. They open by joking about Jing's intense treasury management discipline (Mark slept in a tent on the roof of the office for two years) confirming Optimism has years of runway. On the broader L2 sentiment, they reject the narrative that L2s are interested in forking away to become L1s, with Jing explaining that despite frustration with shipping speed inside the EF, Optimism continues to choose Ethereum L1 as its DA because of the properties it offers. They both express strong support for the controversial CROPS roadmap (censorship resistance, capture resistance, open source, privacy, security), arguing the backlash was more about communication than content. Mark and Jing share lessons from Optimism's own struggles with decentralized development during the token pump era, which made every idea feel like a good one. They remerged all companies back into one entity and have shipped more in the last six months than the previous two and a half years combined. They argue Ethereum needs quantifiable success metrics to unify the community, and float the idea of building the largest anonymity set in crypto larger than Zcash. The conversation pivots to enterprise demand for L2s, with Jing explaining their sequencer policy work as the strongest form of compliance: institutions can stake tokens for top of block access, halt trading of equity tokens at the sequencer level across all DeFi protocols simultaneously, and avoid concerns about sanctioned validators processing their transactions. They preview the long awaited reduction of withdrawal windows from 7 days to 1 day, work with privacy partners on private contracts and transfers, and confirm Optimism is hiring with new feature announcements every two weeks. 00:00 Introduction 00:11 Addressing Rumors That Optimism Is Dead 00:40 Treasury Discipline and the Tent on the Roof 01:10 L2s Forking Away to Become L1s 01:37 Why Optimism Stays on Ethereum L1 02:10 Supporting the Controversial CROPS Roadmap 02:38 What CROPS Actually Stands For 03:11 Communication Was the Problem, Not the Content 03:42 Optimism's Own Struggles with Decentralized Development 04:08 Remerging Into One Company 04:27 Gelatinous Cheeks and Growing Up in Crypto 05:01 Why Zcash Gets Love for the Same Roadmap 05:30 Ethereum Needs Quantifiable Success Metrics 06:05 ETH as Money vs Bitcoin 06:35 Building the Largest Anonymity Set in Crypto 07:00 Institutions Still Prefer Ethereum for Trustlessness 07:23 L2 Pedantry vs Real UX Impact 07:55 Sequencer Policies as the Strongest Form of Compliance 08:39 Trading Halts Across All DeFi Protocols at Once 09:39 Why L1 Will Never Match L2 Customization 10:58 Why a Single Sequencer Is a Superpower 11:31 Avoiding Sanctioned Validators on Your Network 12:03 Smart Contract Logic as Sequencer Policy 12:29 Reducing the Withdrawal Window From 7 Days to 1 12:55 From Hoodies to Suits 13:17 Closing: Optimism Is Not Dead _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Ansgar Dietrichs

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Ansgar Dietrichs from the Ethereum Foundation, who has been in Ethereum core research for seven years, currently leads scaling work and co-leads the Okodas governance process, shares personal reflections on Ethereum's role in what he calls the decade of adoption. He frames the first 10 years of blockchains (2014 to 2024) as the infrastructure era requiring countless zero to ones across wallets, transaction supply chains, and the entire tech stack. He argues 2024 marked the ChatGPT equivalent moment for crypto, but unlike AI's single inflection point, it was a perfect storm of the tech stack reaching maturity, the US regulatory environment shifting from open hostility to a friendly stance, and stablecoins finally hitting product market fit beyond crypto native use cases. Ansgar contrasts two possible futures for crypto. The bad outcome is a fragmented world of independent chains (general purpose, app chains, privacy chains, permissioned chains) all linked by brittle custom bridges that have repeatedly failed and require each user to reason about every chain's security model independently. Ethereum's answer is a singular foundational framework that embraces all that customization but routes everything back to a shared settlement layer, enabling trustless interoperability between any pair of chains or assets, propagated security guarantees from Ethereum L1, full customizability at each layer, a single entry point for users, and ETH as the one native asset across the onchain economy. He explains the EF's pivot toward being one node among many ecosystem stewards rather than the center of Ethereum, then defends Ethereum's values as deeply practical rather than overly ideological. He cites security through redundancy across 10+ Ethereum clients being especially crucial during the coming AI driven cyber security arms race, Ethereum's principled postquantum planning while other chains scramble, and neutrality and strategic reliability under what he calls the Amazon test: would a big tech company comfortable trust putting its business flows on Ethereum knowing it could never be rugged. 00:00 Introduction 00:11 Ansgar's Background at the Ethereum Foundation 00:52 Why ETHCom Is Emblematic of a New Time Period 01:16 The First Decade of Blockchains: 2014 to 2024 02:11 The ChatGPT Moment for Crypto 02:41 Three Forces: Tech, Regulation, and Stablecoins 03:24 Entering the Decade of Adoption 03:48 The Bad Outcome: A Fragmented Future 04:51 Why Brittle Bridges Are the Bigger Problem 05:41 Ethereum's Answer: A Singular Foundational Framework 06:18 Why a Shared Settlement Layer Wins 06:47 Trustless Interoperability Across All Chains 07:35 Aspirational Today, Priority for Adoption Era 07:57 Propagating Ethereum's Security Guarantees 08:31 Full Customizability with Ethereum as Entry Point 09:12 ETH as the Native Asset of the Onchain Economy 09:43 The EF as One Node Among Many Stewards 10:48 Embracing the Ethereum Way of Decentralization 11:52 Why Ethereum's Values Are Misunderstood 12:11 Why Principled Equals Practical 12:34 Security: 10 Clients and 100% Uptime 13:03 The Coming AI Cybersecurity Arms Race 13:52 Quantum Resistance and the Beam Chain 14:54 Neutrality and Credible Neutrality 15:23 Why Censorship Resistance Matters for Institutions 16:31 Strategic Reliability and the Amazon Test 17:58 Useful Across the Spectrum 18:29 The Four Step Plan for Ethereum 19:51 Closing: Ethereum's Best Time Is Yet to Come _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Shannon Corless, former Treasury Department official, interviews Ruben Amenyogbo, founder and CEO of Architect, a Swiss regulated global investment firm active in digital assets since 2017 with backings including Kiki, Privy, Worldcoin, and Zama. Ruben opens by explaining why Architect made the deliberate choice to be licensed rather than unregulated, framing it as both strategic and economic. Strategically, most of the world's capital sits behind regulated walls (large pension funds, endowments, insurance companies), and those institutions can only face regulated counterparties. Economically, an institutional grade setup commands a higher price point and management fees than offshore prop shops can charge. Ruben walks through the reality of billion dollar institutional due diligence, describing the structured progression from informal team conversations through deep diligence on business continuity planning, deputization, reserves, and insurance against long tail risks. On AML and compliance, he distinguishes firms that structure around compliance from those that structure within it, advocating for KYC at both capital formation level (knowing who is investing in the vault) and market level (ensuring capital isn't commingled with illicit assets when flowing into the market). On the geopolitical question of whether dollar backed stablecoins extend or erode US dominance, Ruben notes that while 95% plus of stablecoin flows are USD denominated, the fact that assets are dollar pegged does not mean the rails serve US interests, which is why figures like Jamie Dimon have publicly called out Brian Armstrong. He explains Architect's relocation to Switzerland during the Gensler era due to hostile regulatory conditions in the US. He closes with his three wave thesis: continued education and proof of concepts now, competitive dynamics among asset managers next, and osmosis bringing the largest balance sheets last, urging builders to avoid shortcuts that would compromise their reputations with institutional diligence teams. 00:00 Introduction 00:31 About Ruben and Architect 01:19 Why Architect Chose to Be Regulated 02:27 Strategic Reasoning: Capital Behind Regulated Walls 03:23 Economic Reasoning: Institutional Cost Base and Fees 03:50 What a Billion Dollar Due Diligence Process Looks Like 04:52 The Shift From Foreplay to Deep Diligence 05:20 Questions Cryptonative Founders Don't See Coming 06:24 AML, Sanctions, and Source of Funds as the Real Objection 06:47 The Two Levels of KYC 07:14 Structuring Around vs Within Compliance 08:02 KYC at the Capital Formation Level 08:22 KYC at the Market Level and Commingling Risk 09:16 Risk Management as a Risk Adjusted Returns Function 09:41 Mapping the Universe of Risk 10:14 Tools, Policies, and Screening Partners 10:51 Does Crypto Extend or Erode US Dollar Dominance 11:49 Stablecoin Flows Are 95% Plus USD Denominated 12:18 Who Controls the Rails Is the Contested Question 13:00 Capital Pools and the Politicization of Asset Management 14:00 Why Architect Incorporated in Switzerland 14:48 Operating Out of Palo Alto During the Gensler Era 15:19 The Global Mandate and Distributed Team 15:51 What Grown Up Looks Like for Digital Assets 16:26 The First Wave: Continued Education 17:02 BlackRock Bitcoin ETF and Securitize as Proof Points 17:33 Competitive Dynamics Among Large Asset Managers 18:07 Osmosis at the Allocator Level 18:54 What Five Year Winners Will Have Built 19:32 Avoiding Shortcuts That Get You on Treasury's Radar 20:00 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar, Joe Lubin

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Kartik Talwar sits down with Joe Lubin, founder of ConsenSys and co-founder of Ethereum, to discuss the state of the ecosystem nearly 12 years in. Joe frames Ethereum's slow but steady adoption curve as an inevitability now reaching critical mass, arguing that the fundamental reason Ethereum matters to mainstream society is that the world is composed of platforms users can be deplatformed from, and decentralized trust offers a new model where this cannot happen. He points to Hyperliquid and the agentic economy as forcing functions pushing financial institutions to be online 24/7/365. Joe addresses the recent reorganization around the Ethereum Foundation, explaining that rumors of its demise are exaggerated. He outlines an emerging architecture of multiple credibly neutral nonprofit organizations working in parallel: the Ethereum Foundation focused on cypherpunk core protocol work, a separate platform scalability group, a third group serving as the institutional user interface having spoken with around 200 financial institutions and governments, and the institutional privacy task force. He explains how value will accrue across all three layers, with Ethereum mainnet getting busy as Layer 2s, app chains, and private permissioned Besu networks proliferate, unified through synchronous composability technology being built by Linea and ZISK. Joe also announces the MetaMask agent wallet launching today in a command line version, with insurance up to $10,000 per transaction when users stay within policies. He closes with advice for Wall Street institutions on getting onchain quickly and the role of agentic interfaces in the user centric web. 00:00 Introduction 00:33 12 Years In: Are We On Track or Off Track 02:19 Why Should the World Care About Ethereum 03:12 Platforms, Deplatforming, and Decentralized Trust 04:52 Hyperliquid as a Forcing Function for 24/7 Finance 05:49 Tokenization Moving Everything Onchain 06:36 How the Ethereum Foundation Is Evolving 08:32 Credible Neutrality vs Slightly Decentralized Companies 09:47 Specializing into Multiple Nonprofit Stewards 11:36 Institutional Privacy Task Force and Other Groups 13:13 Decentralized Stewards of Ethereum 13:39 Value Accrual Across L1, L2, and Applications 14:39 Why Ethereum Pursued the Rollup Centric Roadmap 15:37 L1 Getting Busy: App Chains and Permissioned Networks 16:23 Synchronous Composability with Linea and ZISK 17:40 Unifying Fragmented Liquidity Pools 18:22 MetaMask Agent Wallet Launch 19:29 Beta Program with 200 Trading Users 20:00 Best in Class Security and Transaction Insurance 20:48 Same Product for Humans and Machines 21:31 Will UX and UI Still Matter in the Future 21:59 Voice Interfaces and Subvocalization 23:25 The Agentic Future and Digital Twins 24:31 User Centric Web Three Vision 24:50 What Wall Street Still Misunderstands 25:37 Citi, JP Morgan, and Long Time Ethereum Users 26:17 Forcing Functions Pushing Institutions Onchain 27:05 Why Banks Want Layer 1 for Bearer Instruments 27:33 ConsenSys Helping Institutions Set Up Settlement Layers 28:07 Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Young Kim from BitMine presents the case for why Ethereum is positioned at the center of finance and agentic AI. Drawing on his background as an MIT-trained engineer turned institutional investor managing emerging markets capital for over two decades, Young frames his analysis around two questions: does the technology work, and does it make money? He argues Ethereum's answer to both is now yes, pointing to factors that could break ETH out of its four to five year price consolidation range, including the winding down of the Iran war and falling oil prices, the pending Clarity Act with 56% odds on Polymarket, a crypto friendly administration with positive implications for US dollar policy, and favorable US demographics. Young explains how the impossible trinity in international finance is forcing countries that watch their citizens flee inflation through USD stablecoins (Argentina at 74% annual inflation, Turkey at 94% deposit deflation) to either ban crypto or launch their own stablecoins, extending US dollar dominance into the digital realm. He outlines three structural drivers of ETH demand: agentic AI and robots that will need money on rails better suited than traditional ones (citing Xiaomi's dark factory producing one smartphone per second), Wall Street tokenization of 300 trillion in assets, and Ethereum as a monetary unit for compute and energy. He covers the Ethereum Foundation's evolving role, noting EF holdings dropped from 17% to 0.1% while Ethereum treasury companies including BitMine now hold around 7% collectively generating roughly 500 million in annual yield. He closes with BitMine updates: investments in Tools for Humanity behind Worldcoin, the launch of Maven as the world's largest single staking operation with 154 billion staked, the MrBeast investment positioning for Gen Z and Gen Alpha financial services, the NYSE big board uplisting, and pending inclusion in the Russell index. 00:00 Introduction and Background 00:38 Two Questions: Does the Tech Work and Does It Make Money 01:33 ETH Price Consolidation and the Coming Breakout 02:02 The Iran War Ending and Oil Price Tailwind 02:47 The Clarity Act and Global Policy Direction 04:13 Crypto Friendly Administration and USD Policy 04:46 The Impossible Trinity and Stablecoin Adoption 06:22 New Fed Chair and US Demographics 06:49 Future of Money: Mass, Energy, and Compute 07:15 Agentic AI and Robots: A Half Century in the Making 08:17 Smarter AI, Dark Factories, and Onchain Agents 09:53 Wall Street Tokenizing 300 Trillion in Assets 10:43 Ethereum as Monetary Unit and the Amazon Analogy 11:32 Ethereum Foundation's Evolving Role 12:26 Treasury Companies Holding 7% of Supply 13:00 Pre-2024 Foundation Activities 13:27 The 2026 Evolution of the Foundation 14:00 Ethereum's Scale: 11K Nodes, 15K Developers 14:41 Lessons from Telecom, Semis, and Broadcasting Consortiums 15:37 BitMine Building During the Mini Crypto Winter 16:00 Investment in Tools for Humanity and Worldcoin 16:24 Launching Maven: The World's Largest Single Staking Operation 16:50 MrBeast Investment and Gen Z Financial Services 17:15 Uplisting to NYSE and Russell Index Inclusion 18:08 4.6% Ethereum Holdings and Outperformance vs Underlying 18:47 Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Jill Malandrino moderates a discussion with Declan Fox and Rob Dawson from Consensys on the role of neutral governance in institutional blockchain adoption. They argue that while open source software has been foundational for technology companies, it is not sufficient on its own for enterprises making decade long bets, since the technology could be swept from under their feet without credible neutral stewardship. Declan compares open source without neutral governance to a building where you can peek in the door and inspect the code, but the house could still be demolished. The conversation positions governance not as ideology but as a practical procurement decision. Declan and Rob detail Besu's success as the institutional Ethereum client, running 15% of Ethereum mainnet but 80 to 90% of all blocks on enterprise blockchains, largely because of its Apache 2 license and Hyperledger and LFDT hosting. They explain that Consensys has now made the same bet on Layer 2 by contributing Linea technology to the Linux Foundation. The discussion covers tradeoffs in the EF's CROPS mandate (censorship resistant, open source, private, secure), how zero knowledge proofs enable confidential blockchains to interoperate without revealing sensitive information, the risk of digitizing fragmentation across chains, and atomic cross chain delivery versus payment as a recently unlocked use case. They close on the holy trinity of decentralized trust (blockchains), decentralized identity, and decentralized AI, with discussion of how ERC-7804 helps manage non human identities in a future of machine to machine blockchain interaction. 00:00 Introduction 00:29 Why Governance Is Becoming Central to Institutional Adoption 00:52 Open Source Is Not Enough: The Building Analogy 01:51 Why Technologists Should Care About Governance 02:37 Besu's Adoption Through Apache 2 and Linux Foundation 03:15 Besu as the Institutional Ethereum Client 03:41 Donating Linea Technology to the Linux Foundation 04:26 The Linux Foundation as a Trusted Brand 04:47 Does Governance Quality Match Technical Quality 05:40 Competitors Coming Together for Shared Standards 07:07 Governance as a Component of Scalability 07:26 Challenges and Friction Points in Governance 08:35 Maintaining Innovation Velocity Under Stewardship 09:55 Governance Improves Product Practices 10:00 The CROPS Mandate and Its Tradeoffs 11:40 Privacy and Security as Institutional Adoption Blockers 11:58 How Privacy Is Achieved Technically with ZK Proofs 12:50 Avoiding Digitized Fragmentation Across Chains 13:58 LFDT as a Forum for Interop Standards 14:16 No One Size Fits All Chain Solution 14:51 Interoperability as the Remaining Pillar 16:04 Cross Chain Delivery Versus Payment Now Possible 16:35 Security as a Critical Conversation 17:36 Challenges with Legacy Enterprise Blockchain Infrastructure 19:08 Ethereum's 10+ Years of Continuous Uptime 19:52 What's Next: Progressive Decentralization 21:16 Integration, Not Us Versus Them 22:22 How Rough Consensus Works in Practice 23:30 Selectivity in Onboarding Projects to Foundations 24:48 The Maturation of Governance, Security, and Privacy 25:25 Closing Thoughts on Institutional Adoption 25:44 The Holy Trinity: Decentralized Trust, Identity, and AI 26:26 Governing Non Human Identities and AI Agents 27:21 ERC-7804 and Machine to Machine Infrastructure 27:37 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Ishan Singh from Google Cloud's digital asset team sits down with Christian Crowley, partner on the A16Z crypto go to market team, to discuss the pending Clarity Act, the future of tokenization, agentic commerce, and lessons for crypto founders selling into institutions. Christian draws on his background as a former founder who built DeFi and AI startups and the first Ethereum analytics company under the Consensys umbrella, plus his time at AWS, to explain that good go to market advice often sounds great in theory but is much less compelling in execution. His central principle for the founders he advises is reducing user friction at every step. The conversation digs into the parallel tracks of stablecoins and tokenized deposits. Christian explains that banks want the 24/7 interoperability and composability benefits but want to maintain deposit relationships and fit into existing compliance frameworks, which is why tokenized deposits will persist alongside stablecoins. Ishan previews Google Cloud's Universal Ledger product built at the protocol level for interoperability between onchain money assets. On RWAs, Christian argues tokenization itself is not the product since what matters is what the asset gains (24/7 trading, collateral mobility, interoperability), with money markets and treasuries leading early. Ishan emphasizes collateral mobility as the real killer use case for eliminating reconciliation across TradFi books and records. They debate the rails for agentic commerce, with virtual cards up 6x year over year offering an easier behavior shift while X2X and direct stablecoin payments make more sense for net new behaviors like real time compute adjustments. On the AI security tension, Christian notes that until frontier models have comprehensively reviewed existing code bases there is an unknowable set of risks in production, and the same tools attackers use are available to defenders. Ishan covers Google Cloud's MPC wallet using key shares with sub second signing across Ethereum, Bitcoin, Solana, and Universal Ledger. Christian closes with the most consistent founder mistake: assuming Web2 go to market lessons don't apply to Web3, when enterprises buy for clear measurable benefits, not decentralization. 00:00 Introductions 01:22 What Christian Brings to Founder Conversations 02:15 Reducing Friction as a Core Mental Model 03:14 The Clarity Act and Tokenized Deposits vs Stablecoins 04:00 Why Banks Want Tokenized Deposits 05:14 From Bank Issued Stablecoins to Integration Focus 05:56 Google Cloud Universal Ledger and Interoperability 06:26 The Trouble with the Term RWA 07:12 Tokenization Itself Is Not the Product 07:53 Why Collateral Mobility Is the Real Killer App 08:39 Eliminating Reconciliation Across TradFi 08:57 Money as Internet Packets 09:50 Legacy Distribution vs Better Technology 10:34 Rails for Agentic Commerce 11:00 Virtual Cards vs X2X and Stablecoins 11:36 Why Virtual Cards Are Easier Behavior Shifts 12:26 When Net New Behaviors Call for Open Rails 13:05 The Dark Side of AI for Web3 14:00 Founders Have Always Cared About Security 14:21 The Race Between Frontier Models and Attackers 15:14 Google Cloud MPC Wallet 15:59 Sub Second Signing Across Multiple Chains 16:41 Common Mistakes Founders Make Selling to Institutions 17:54 Why Best Technology Doesn't Always Win 18:11 The Champion's Asymmetric Risk Inside Enterprises 18:40 TradFi Budget Constraints and Quantifiable ROI 19:24 Knicks or Spurs Tonight 19:43 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Sam Jain, founder of Fluid, walks through how his team has been building DeFi infrastructure since 2018 and how Fluid is now positioned to scale tokenized assets through unified liquidity, utility, and distribution. He frames the team's origin story from an ETH Global hackathon when total DeFi TVL was below $100 million, building Instadapp which invented smart wallets, was the first user of flash loans, did extensive composability work on money Legos, and pioneered the looping strategy that now powers roughly 50% of DeFi. Constrained by being middleware on top of other protocols, the team launched Fluid in February 2024 to own the protocol layer and drive deeper algorithmic innovation. Fluid became the second largest DEX on Ethereum within 3 months of launch and the fastest DEX to reach $100 billion in volumes (in 326 days), with a peak market size of $6.5 billion. Sam positions Fluid not as just a lending market but as a capital efficient meta protocol that is already a DEX, vault, and money market and will host anything finance has to offer over the next 5 to 10 years. Every dollar on Fluid works extra mile because the total borrow to total deposits ratio has been the highest in DeFi since launch. For asset issuers facing the bootstrapping challenge of tokenizing, securing DEX liquidity, dealing with liquidity providers, and integrating with lending protocols, Fluid offers all of these at once including liquidity as a service where Fluid itself provides hundreds of millions in DEX liquidity at minimal cost without counterparty risk for the issuer. He explains how Fluid is 4 to 5x more capital efficient than competitors for liquidity depth. He shares two major partnerships: Jupiter Lend on Solana (powered by Fluid, leveraging Jupiter's distribution while Fluid provides the tech), Etherealize and Bitwise Jupiter integration that grew to half a billion within a week, and Venus Flux on BNB Chain. Sam closes by explaining that institutions can use Fluid to own their own lending protocol, DEX, and users with bespoke solutions including KYC, permissioned access, fixed rates, and credit markets, with announcements coming for both crypto centralized and TradFi onboarding partnerships. 00:00 Introduction 00:11 From 2018 Hackathon to Instadapp Origins 00:57 Inventing Smart Wallets, Flash Loans, and Looping 01:26 Why the Team Built Fluid to Own the Protocol Layer 01:55 Launching Fluid in February 2024 02:26 What Fluid Is Today and Tomorrow 02:52 Fastest DEX to $100 Billion in Volume 03:22 Highest Borrow to Deposit Ratio in DeFi 03:52 The Trillion Dollar Tokenization Opportunity 04:28 Eight Years From One Stablecoin to Thousands 05:06 The RWA Bootstrapping Challenge 05:27 Why Fluid Offers Everything at Once 05:54 Asset Issuers Already on Fluid 06:31 Liquidity as a Service for Asset Issuers 07:03 No Counterparty Risk for Issuers 07:26 Building Toward Credit Markets, Fixed Rates, Forex, Perps 08:22 What Fluid Provides Institutions 08:45 Helping TradFi Institutions Navigate DeFi 09:51 Why an Eight Year DeFi Team Matters 10:18 Partnership: Jupiter Lend on Solana 11:13 What Fluid Asks From Partners: Distribution 11:38 Partnership: Etherealize and Bitwise Jupiter 11:38 Partnership: Venus Flux on BNB Chain 12:12 Institutions Owning Their Own Lending Protocols 12:41 Bespoke Solutions: KYC, Permissioned, Fixed Rate 13:01 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Yi Sun, co-founder and CEO of Axiom, presents how zero knowledge proofs are becoming ready for production and serving as the key to forward looking Ethereum scaling. He frames the institutional moment Ethereum is having in 2026 around payments, tokenization, and trading, all gravitating to Ethereum for its security, neutrality, and reasonable scalability. The core scaling challenge is that naively raising the gas limit forces validators to take on higher hardware requirements, eroding the very decentralization that makes Ethereum attractive. Every validator currently has to re-execute every transaction, and Ethereum's unique answer is to prove execution with zero knowledge proofs so validators only verify proofs at constant cost rather than re-executing entire blocks. This decouples gas limits from validator hardware requirements. Yi explains the ZK virtual machine breakthrough of the last two to three years, which abstracts away cryptographic complexity and lets developers verify execution of arbitrary programs written in normal programming languages. He walks through Axiom's OpenVM across three institutional pillars: performance, security, and generality. On performance, OpenVM now proves Ethereum block execution in real time, with an average of 4.7 seconds across a full day of blocks (well within the 12 second slot time), and general purpose computation at 964 MHz, meaning if your application runs on a 1GHz processor it can be proven. Performance is also scaling rapidly, with OpenVM today being 75x faster than at the start of last year. On security, Axiom built a new proof system called Swirl with provable security based on mathematical theorems rather than conjectures, with post quantum design, 100 bits of provable security today, and 128 bits expected by year end. They've layered defense including audits with Cantina and ZK Security, a continuous AI auditor scanning updates for vulnerabilities, and formal verification in the Lean theorem checker as the only way to get correctness guarantees that cannot be hacked by AI. He closes with applications including the Lighter EVM partnership combining a high performance ZK verified perpetuals exchange with Ethereum programmability, and Scroll becoming a Type 1 ZK rollup through OpenVM integration. 00:00 Introduction 00:12 Ethereum's Institutional Moment in 2026 00:40 Why Institutions Choose Ethereum 01:18 The Validator Re-Execution Bottleneck 01:46 Ethereum's Unique Road to ZK Proven Execution 02:24 How ZK Decouples Gas Limits from Validator Hardware 02:50 The ZK Virtual Machine Breakthrough 03:26 Why ZKVMs Make ZK Accessible to Developers 03:53 ZK Becoming Institutional Ready 04:17 OpenVM's Three Pillars: Performance, Security, Generality 04:41 Proving Ethereum in Real Time 05:06 4.7 Second Average Proving Time 05:33 General Purpose Computation at 964 MHz 06:08 75x Performance Gains in One Year 06:35 How ZK Performance Translates to Ethereum Throughput 07:01 Why Security Matters More Than Performance Now 07:23 Swirl: A Proof System With Provable Security 07:46 Post Quantum Foundations 08:14 100 Bits Today, 128 Bits by Year End 08:46 Defending Against AI Powered Attacks 09:18 Continuous AI Auditor and Lean Formal Verification 09:50 Applications of OpenVM 10:19 Partnership: Lighter EVM 10:40 The Best of Both Worlds for Programmability 10:40 Powering Scroll as a Type 1 ZK Rollup 11:17 Why Developers Can Focus on Logic, Not Cryptography 11:51 Institutional Use Cases: Trading, Bridging, Rollups 11:51 Privacy: Confidential Payments and Identity 12:48 Two Takeaways _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Artem Brazhnikov from Octant declares Cypherpunk dead and immediately revives it, framing crypto's institutional era as the beginning rather than the end of the movement that started in the 80s and 90s around privacy and cryptography. Drawing on Buckminster Fuller's quote that you never change things by fighting reality but by building a new model that makes the existing one obsolete, Artem argues the path forward is building bridges to institutions rather than burning them. He acknowledges nostalgia in the community for the 2018 era of hoodies and Berlin hard forks while insisting Ethereum is the same substrate whether you wear a hoodie or a collar shirt. Artem identifies architectural vulnerabilities in security, privacy, and identity as the central problem, citing 2025's $292 million Kelp DAO exploit, $13 billion withdrawn from Aave in 48 hours, and over $800 million stolen across the year. He warns that AI is rewriting the threat model with bugs being found exponentially faster (including a Zcash bug sitting since 2022 only recently found by AI), and that traditional institutions built for human attackers cannot keep up with billions of agents executing trillions of transactions at light speed. The only answer he sees is zero knowledge cryptography that proves computation without revealing inputs. He argues paradoxically that the architectural decisions Cypherpunks have made for decades (decentralization, credible neutrality, verifiability, operational resilience demonstrated by Ethereum's 11 years of zero downtime) are exactly what institutions now need. He closes by presenting Octant's model: a self sustaining funding engine where the Golem Foundation's 100,000 staked ETH generates yield to fund ecosystem grants (over 130 projects and $18 million distributed in 3 years) without ever spending the principal. He introduces Octa Vaults built on ERC-4626 as perpetual endowments enabling yield powered giving, Octa Grants as the allocation layer using quadratic funding and other models, and the V2 launch coming next week. He reframes web3 as not about ownership but co-ownership of shared state, since users own keys not assets, and that public infrastructure must stay funded for everyone to keep 24/7 access. 00:00 Introduction 00:08 What Is Cypherpunk 00:33 Cypherpunk Is Dead, Long Live Cypherpunk 01:23 Build a New Model Instead of Fighting the Old 01:52 Adoption Is Not the End of Cypherpunk Ethos 02:26 Nostalgia for the 2018 Berlin Hard Fork Era 02:50 Security and Privacy Are Architectural Problems 03:14 Honeypots and Bridge Vulnerabilities 03:38 2025's Exploits: Kelp, Aave, $800M Stolen 04:11 AI Is Rewriting the Threat Model 04:40 The Zcash Bug Found by AI After Three Years 05:07 Why Institutions Built for Human Attackers Will Fail 05:33 The Old Model: Service Agreements and Legal Recourse 05:57 Why Old Institutions Cannot Keep Up With Agents 06:22 Zero Knowledge Cryptography as the Answer 06:52 Cypherpunk Tech Is What Wall Street Needs 07:16 Credible Neutrality and Counterparty Risk 07:41 Verifiability and Ethereum's 11 Years of Uptime 08:20 Why the Ethereum Foundation's Role Is Narrowing 08:41 The Need for New Coordination Models 09:18 Digital Asset Treasuries as Long Term Funders 09:46 Octant: A Self Sustaining Funding Engine 10:11 How 100,000 Staked ETH Powers Grants 11:00 130 Projects, $18 Million Distributed in 3 Years 11:29 Octa Vaults as Perpetual Endowments 12:32 Yield as Insurance Against Loss 12:56 Yield Power Giving Without Spending Principal 12:56 Octa Grants and the Allocation Layer 13:54 V2 Launch Next Week 14:20 Web3 Is About Co-Ownership, Not Ownership 14:50 You Own Keys, Not Assets 15:20 Preserving the Properties We Built On 15:45 ZK-EVM and Verifiable AI Inference 16:14 The Moment Is Ripe for Institutions 16:48 Closing: Building Together for the Next Thousand Years _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Ashley Stanhope from Hardfork Media sits down with Vivek Raman, founder of Etherealize, to discuss the institutional case for Ethereum, the Ethereum versus permissioned chain debate, and his firm's ambitious ETH price thesis. Vivek frames the current moment as the strongest blockchain bull market he's seen even amid a token bear market, arguing that the value proposition of public blockchains has never been stronger. When he launched Etherealize in 2025, Ethereum was still in proof of concept mode on Wall Street with a missing narrative, but adoption, regulation, and institutional readiness have since converged. He points to the legacy architecture of the financial system (COBOL, Excel, faxes, wires) as ripe for an upgrade, and identifies three unlocks that made institutions comfortable: Ethereum's 10 year track record with no downtime, institutional proof points like BlackRock's BUIDL and 60% of stablecoins living on Ethereum, and a favorable regulatory environment marked by the Genius Act becoming the starting line. Vivek explains Etherealize's dual mandate of educating Wall Street on why Ethereum's neutrality and decentralization matter while building the missing building blocks (bespoke tokenization reaching back offices, privacy infrastructure layered on top rather than embedded, and applications). He reframes decentralization for institutions as security, resilience, and the absence of single points of failure, noting the irony that institutions are the biggest customers of decentralization because centralized chains carry counterparty risk and lower profitability. He argues Solana never comes up in institutional conversations, and that the real debate is public permissionless versus permissioned consortium chains, where Ethereum's modularity lets institutions have their cake and eat it too through specialized L2s and app chains. He walks through his Productive Money report and its $250,000 ETH target, explaining that markets misprice blockchains by valuing them on fees like companies rather than recognizing ETH as the monetary asset securing the network, with the real repricing coming when ETH is valued alongside gold and Bitcoin. He closes noting you don't have to hold ETH to use Ethereum, and that while the Clarity Act would be welcome, Ethereum already transcends the political cycle thanks to the Genius Act being law. 00:00 Introduction 00:11 A Token Bear Market but a Blockchain Bull Market 00:29 Why Etherealize Launched in 2025 00:55 The Value Proposition Is Stronger Than Ever 01:45 What Banks Are Saying About Ethereum 01:52 Upgrading Legacy Financial Architecture 02:52 Why Regulation Gave Institutions Confidence 03:14 Three Unlocks: Track Record, Pilots, Regulation 03:51 The Genius Act as the Starting Line 04:31 Etherealize's Dual Mandate 04:54 Why a Neutral Platform Wins 05:32 Educating Wall Street on Decentralization 05:56 Building the Missing Building Blocks 06:27 Bespoke Tokenization for Back Offices 06:54 Privacy as a Layer on Top 07:13 Applications and Use Cases 07:45 Does Decentralization Resonate With Wall Street 08:10 Why Institutions Are the Biggest Customers of Decentralization 08:55 Why Not Just Use AWS 09:11 Supporting the EF's CROPS Focus 09:48 Ethereum vs Solana in Institutional Conversations 10:44 Permissionless vs Permissioned Consortium Chains 11:12 Can You Have a Hybrid Approach 11:37 Ethereum's Modularity and the Internet Analogy 12:12 Why the Layer 2 Model Is Not Dead 12:32 Institutions Choosing Layer 2s vs Their Own Chains 13:26 Abstracting Away the L1 vs L2 Distinction 13:54 One Hop to Liquidity on the Base Layer 14:13 The Productive Money Report 14:39 Why People Value Blockchains Incorrectly 15:31 Why Every Blockchain Needs a Core Asset 15:49 ETH as the Best Money in the Ecosystem 16:28 Repricing ETH Alongside Gold and Bitcoin 16:47 A Call Option on Money 17:10 Do You Have to Hold ETH to Support Ethereum 17:42 Something in It for Everyone 18:17 Clarity Act Predictions 18:38 Why Ethereum Transcends the Political Cycle 18:59 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Nick Stoev

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Nick Stoev from Mellow addresses what he calls the idle trillion: the gap between how much capital sits on chain and how little of it is actually working. Drawing on 10 years building in the space, he traces the industry's evolution from an isolated world with few on-ramps and off-ramps and almost no real world use cases, through DeFi summer as the kickstarter, to today's landscape of on-chain settlement, tokenized products, and real world assets. He cites over $300 billion in stablecoins on chain now with BCG projecting more than $18 trillion by 2033, then polls the audience on how much of that capital is truly working. The answer is only around 10%, and he argues two forces are changing that: shifting regulations that, while limiting some asset classes, enable banks and institutions to hold stablecoins on their balance sheets, and the rise of payments and settlement as the main driver since on-chain settlement is atomic, cross border, and 24/7. Nick frames the opportunity in two parts: settlement, which is already solved with custodians, stablecoin settlement, and bridging infrastructure live today, and management, which is still being built and involves not just technology but business processes, strategy construction, compliance, NAV reporting, and strategy isolation. As sophisticated asset managers arrive from TradFi and fintech, the industry needs more guardrails and tech stack pieces to route capital between assets (stablecoins, money market funds, commodities) and distribution channels (wallets, exchanges, brokers, issuers). He stresses that yield is a liability with very different risk characteristics for retail versus institutions, where APY is the last question asked after transparency, risk, and structure. He covers the same yield stack serving AI agents that need guardrails since models hallucinate, DeFi products being baked invisibly into fintechs like Deel and Stripe, and Mellow's vault stack that deploys strategies on chain in hours without smart contract development. He emphasizes on-chain enforced risk management removing the need to trust asset managers, and the faster pace of updating strategies as RWAs make the market more dynamic, closing that the coming year will bring far more capital on chain and deeper DeFi and TradFi convergence. 00:00 Introduction 00:12 The Idle Trillion and an Invisible Industry 00:51 How the Industry Has Changed in 10 Years 01:17 The Numbers: 300 Billion in Stablecoins 01:57 Audience Poll: How Much Capital Is Working 02:26 Why Only 10% of Capital Is Active 02:26 First Driver: Changing Regulations 02:53 Second Driver: Payments and Settlement 03:16 Why Settlement Is Naturally On-Chain 03:44 The CFO Question About Treasury Stablecoins 04:17 Two Parts: Settlement and Management 04:42 Why Management Is More Than Technology 05:16 How the Asset Manager Landscape Is Changing 05:47 Assets and Distribution Already Solved 06:16 The Missing Middle: Strategies and Routing 06:48 Why Yield Is a Liability, Not Just a Number 07:25 Why Institutions Ask About Risk First 07:55 The Yield Stack for AI Agents 08:20 Why Agents Need Guardrails 08:20 DeFi Products Baked Into Fintechs 09:08 Invisible Deposit Buttons for End Users 09:39 Mellow's Vault Stack 10:08 On-Chain Enforced Risk Management 10:37 Transparency and Trust Without Trusting Managers 10:59 Why Speed of Updates Matters 11:29 Reallocating Capital Almost Instantly 12:03 Summing Up: DeFi and TradFi Convergence 12:32 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Camila Russo from The Defiant sits down with Carlos Domingo, co-founder and CEO of Securitize, just days after the SEC approved their S-4 filing, clearing the path for Securitize to go public through a SPAC merger with Cantor Equity Partners II. Carlos explains that after 8 years building the company and landing major partnerships with BlackRock, Apollo, and VanEck, the successful Circle IPO signaled that if there's investor demand for tokenized dollars (stablecoins), there should be demand for tokenizing everything else too. The SPAC merger gets shareholder approval June 29th and Securitize begins trading on the NYSE around July 2nd under the ticker SCC ("sexy"), with roughly half a billion dollars in cash from the trust and PIPE for acquisitions and expansion. Beyond capital, going public gives the credibility large financial institutions need to work with Securitize. Carlos explains why Ethereum has emerged as the leading blockchain for tokenization: Securitize has been an EVM shop since 2017 when Ethereum was the only credible option, they now have around 30% of assets on Ethereum making it their largest chain, and BlackRock specifically chose Ethereum for BUIDL. Gas fees aren't a problem for their use cases, and Ethereum wins on decentralization, security, ecosystem, and liquidity. On permissioning, Carlos explains they use permissionless infrastructure but issue permissioned assets by whitelisting KYC'd wallets in smart contracts, allowing peer to peer transfers to still happen decentrally. He distinguishes between real privacy (layers on top of Ethereum transactions) versus "database privacy" that just restricts access. On DeFi composability, Securitize built vault technology that lets permissioned assets serve as collateral in permissionless lending protocols (integrated with Aave Horizon, Euler, and others) while controlling liquidation. He addresses the Citi $5.5 trillion RWA projection by 2030, arguing tokenized equities and ETFs are the asset class that will move the needle since only 2-3% of that $150 trillion market moving onchain would nearly get there. He announces Securitize partnerships with the NYSE for 24/7 equity trading with instant settlement and Computershare for onchain equity movement. Carlos strongly criticizes competitors offering derivative wrappers instead of actual equity, praising Superstate, Centrifuge, and Bullish for doing it correctly. He points to BlackRock's BUIDL being the only cash product that pays daily dividends (making it the best performing) as proof that tokenization creates net new utility. He closes by predicting traditional and onchain markets will coexist and consolidate, with Ethereum remaining the multi-purpose leader. 00:00 Introduction 00:07 The SEC Approved Securitize's S-4 00:40 Why Securitize Decided to Go Public 01:28 Why a SPAC With Cantor 01:51 What the S-4 Filing Involves 02:17 The Path to Listing on the NYSE 02:35 The New Ticker: SEC 02:59 What Going Public Enables for Securitize 03:43 Why Ethereum Leads for Tokenization 05:12 Why Gas Fees Are Not a Problem Here 05:28 Why BlackRock Chose Ethereum First 05:48 Permissioned Assets on Permissionless Rails 06:51 Two Types of Privacy 08:01 Making RWAs Composable With DeFi 08:46 Integrations With Aave, Euler, and Horizon 09:05 Trading RWAs via Uniswap X 10:02 What It Takes to Reach $5 Trillion by 2030 10:35 Why Tokenized Equities and ETFs Matter 11:27 Partnerships With NYSE and Computershare 11:44 The Right Way to Do Tokenized Equities 12:31 Why Most Are Just Derivatives 13:44 Why the Token Must Be the Real Share 14:36 What Still Needs Solving: Utility 15:22 The BlackRock BUIDL Example 15:44 Why Tokenized BUIDL Pays Daily Dividends 17:06 Where the Demand Comes From Today 18:15 Are Institutions Waiting on Regulation 18:55 Why There Is Already Clarity 19:45 The Dial-Up Internet Analogy 20:37 When Blockchains Become Invisible 21:14 Financial Markets in Five Years 21:51 A New Parallel Market on Blockchain Rails 22:30 Securitize as the Conduit for TradFi 22:52 Where Ethereum Sits in That Future 23:56 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this brief opening, Kartik Talwar, co-founder of ETHGlobal, welcomes over 2,000 attendees to day two of ETHConf at the Javits Center. He reiterates that ETHConf is the first and biggest institutional Ethereum event in America, run by ETH Global with the goal of promoting the Ethereum ecosystem and getting the smartest people in the world building on the hardest problems in the space. New York was chosen intentionally to bring together the finance world with the broader crypto community, connecting DeFi and TradFi founders alongside builders working on cryptography and distributed systems so both sides can readily collaborate. Kartik previews day two's structure across three continuing themes: how institutions are thinking about adopting stablecoins and DeFi in their day to day flows, how protocols are evolving from an engineering perspective (what's still outstanding, what's being worked on, what to expect in the coming months and years), and how these two threads connect to make it easy for everyone else to come on chain by simplifying UX, technical, and regulatory hurdles at scale. He emphasizes that speakers coming on stage will talk about work they've already shipped rather than work they're just thinking about, and encourages attendees to interact directly with founders throughout the day since decisions happen faster when you can chat with the people building the products. 00:00 Welcome to Day Two of ETHConf 00:30 Why New York and Why Institutional Focus 00:58 Bringing DeFi and TradFi Together 01:23 2,000 Attendees and 150 Speakers 01:51 Day Two Themes: Institutions, Protocols, Adoption 02:20 Real Stuff on Stage, Not Concepts 02:39 Meet Founders Throughout the Day 02:57 Kicking Off the First Talk _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Shadman Sakib, founder of Flex Global, argues that fintech and banking have missed the real economy by building almost exclusively for customers who already have world class financial infrastructure. Through interactive audience polling, he illustrates that while most attendees use Robinhood and major banks, 99% of the world operates with a patchwork of obscure local banks, stablecoin wallets, FX platforms, manual checks, and separate debit cards just to complete a single transaction. Drawing on nine years at JP Morgan and City plus three years at Mercury, he explains that fintech was built in San Francisco for AI agents, NASDAQ listed companies, and large multi-million dollar deposit holders, while ignoring local manufacturers, middle market businesses, and exporters in places like Colombia hedging against currencies that fluctuate 20 to 30%. He notes even crypto foundations struggled to bank anywhere from 2020 to 2025, relying on patchwork setups across the Cayman Islands, BVI, Singapore, and Switzerland. Shadman contends that while stablecoins solved money movement, they don't solve operations for most companies, and 90% of stablecoin adoption happens overseas precisely where the complex use cases live. He details what's actually missing: invoices and ISO memos attached to payments, FX conversion to local currencies, local bank delivery, 30-day payment terms, and credit, which the US takes for granted but barely exists elsewhere. He critiques neo banks spinning up without true banking DNA or real compliance teams, chasing Solana treasuries and crypto companies with hundreds of millions rather than serving the businesses that drive the global economy. Using a Singapore tire manufacturer on HSBC as an example, he outlines the real needs: multicurrency accounts, multi-entity management, trade finance to borrow against receivables, local off-ramps, real credit, and compliance that understands industries rather than labeling crypto high risk. He explains Flex Global treats stablecoins not as a product to sell but as an augmentation of years of banking rails and credit expertise from servicing over 20,000 middle market customers, offering local currency accounts in 100 plus countries with invoicing, treasury, FX, and native credit. He closes urging the industry to stop building for people already on chain and instead serve those for whom simply holding US dollars is a luxury. 00:00 Introduction 00:12 Interactive Audience Poll 00:38 The One Transaction Nightmare 01:18 How Fintech Missed the Real Economy 01:47 Why the US Has World Class Infrastructure 02:12 How Things Break Outside the US 02:34 The Luxury of Using the US Dollar 03:02 Why Even Crypto Foundations Couldn't Bank 03:32 Who Fintech Has Been Building For 03:54 Building for Large Deposit Holders 04:18 The Neo Bank Cluster Chasing Crypto Treasuries 04:39 Why Regular Businesses Dwarf Crypto 05:02 Serving Crypto After SVB at Mercury 05:24 Why No Compliance Is a Death Sentence 05:45 How Banks Made Money on FX and Fees 06:10 Why the Fastest Money Movement Is Not Moving It 06:43 Why We Keep Building for the Same Customers 07:00 Why 90% of Stablecoin Adoption Is Overseas 07:35 What Is Missing From Stablecoin Payments 07:54 Why Credit Doesn't Exist Outside the US 08:42 Why Real Businesses Have Amplified Needs 09:09 Local Currency and Everyday Bills 09:45 The Singapore Manufacturer on HSBC 10:04 Trade Finance and Borrowing Against Receivables 10:22 Why Real Compliance Must Understand Industries 10:42 Why Neo Banks Lack Banking DNA 11:18 Why the Full Stack Is Hard to Build 11:44 Understanding Invoicing and User Permissioning 12:04 Why Business Payments Need Approval Layers 12:30 Serving the Customers Everyone Ignores 12:55 What Flex Global Is Building 13:25 Stablecoins as Augmentation, Not a Product 13:50 Serving the Customers Actually Moving Money 14:17 Local Accounts, Credit, and Native Rails 14:46 Talking to Design Partners 15:09 Building for People Who See This as Luxury 15:32 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Rajeev Bamra, who oversees global strategy and operations for the digital economy at Moody's Ratings, addresses the question beneath every institutional capital markets discussion: not which stablecoin is fastest, but which ones are safer, and how you would ever know. He identifies three expensive, measurable problems in traditional financial infrastructure: a mobility problem ($240 trillion in liquidity trapped across hundreds of siloed ledgers designed not to talk to each other), a volume problem (over $100 billion spent every year reconciling data across those ledgers), and a speed problem (over $10 trillion in daily FX turnover exposed to settlement risk because execution and settlement speeds are mismatched). He argues markets are already responding: tokenization can unlock collateral and stablecoins can settle it, shared ledgers can solve reconciliation, and atomic or T+0 settlement can solve speed. US dollar stablecoins are already driving de facto digital dollarization, some issuers hold more US treasury debt than midsize sovereigns, and incumbents are integrating rather than fighting them, so stablecoins have crossed into core infrastructure regulators now signal reserve, redemption, and operational requirements for. Rajeev explains why a credit rating agency cares about stablecoins with a house-buying analogy: you would not hand over your life savings without an independent structural survey, and a credit rating is exactly that, a forward-looking independent opinion of how an issuer performs over time under stress. He lays out four risk buckets for assessing a stablecoin: underlying collateral and reserve quality (bankruptcy-remote segregation, stress scenarios like 30% simultaneous redemption), transaction structure and legal enforceability across jurisdictions, operations and counterparties (who runs the chain, minting and burning, governance, systemic interdependency as stablecoins embed into treasuries and agentic commerce), and technology risk (oracles, smart contract audits, key management, custody, validator concentration). Since no rigorous framework existed, Moody's built one, launching in March 2026 the industry's first cross-sector stablecoin credit rating methodology, applicable to all fiat-backed stablecoins globally and portable across jurisdictions, assessing whether a stablecoin can be redeemed at par on demand under stress. He notes Ethereum stands out as the settlement chain in a future multi-chain economy, and closes on Moody's Token Integration Engine, which turns static credit opinions into programmable onchain signals, making Moody's the only credit rating agency with native onchain presence. 00:00 Introduction 00:12 The Question Beneath Every Capital Markets Debate 00:46 Three Expensive Problems in Financial Infrastructure 01:00 The Mobility Problem: $240 Trillion Trapped 01:15 The Volume Problem: Reconciliation Costs 01:29 The Speed Problem: FX Settlement Risk 01:46 How Markets Are Already Responding 02:17 Stablecoins Driving Digital Dollarization 02:39 From Parallel Ecosystem to Core Infrastructure 03:06 How Regulators Have Noticed 03:46 Why a Rating Agency Cares About Stablecoins 03:56 The House Survey Analogy 04:38 What a Credit Rating Really Is 05:07 The Four Risk Buckets 05:38 Underlying Collateral and Reserve Quality 06:03 Transaction Structure and Legal Enforceability 06:40 Operations and Counterparties 07:15 Technology and Oracle Risk 07:43 Launching the First Stablecoin Rating Methodology 08:14 Redeeming at Par Under Stress 08:39 Why This Is About More Than Stablecoins 09:14 Why This Moment Is Different 09:46 New Asset Types and New Risk Layers 10:14 What Digital Bonds Proved 10:37 What Tokenized Funds Confirmed 11:01 Why Stablecoins Are Growing So Fast 11:24 Why Ethereum Stands Out 11:54 Why the Future Is Multi-Chain 12:07 The Missing Credit Intelligence Layer 12:55 Coming On Chain With Public Ratings 13:20 Introducing the Token Integration Engine 13:56 Moody's Native Onchain Presence 14:22 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Azeem Khan, co-founder of Miden, cuts through the headlines to address the reality of the missing pieces for institutional adoption of crypto. Drawing on his experience as a UNICEF Crypto Fund consultant, a Forbes Crypto contributor, and a CoinDesk writer, he introduces Miden as a next-generation ZK blockchain that raised $25 million last year from a16z crypto, 1kx, and others. He frames the core problem: blockchains have been either fully public (creating dystopian financial surveillance) or fully private (making illicit activity easy), and while permissioned chains are one attempted fix, the average person cares less about decentralization than about counterparty risk. Miden aims to give privacy and compliance to individuals and institutions at once, focused on onboarding institutions. He argues institutional adoption matters because the billion users will not come from meme coins but from people with real money in financial institutions going on chain, noting the 2024 bull run was kicked off by BlackRock's ETF, yet most activity remains stuck in pilots rather than full deployment. Azeem shares insights from speaking with leaders like the head of digital assets at Invesco and Amy Oldenburg who leads digital asset strategy at Morgan Stanley, both $2.5 trillion firms, and buckets the obstacles into four categories. Technical barriers include compliant privacy, interoperability and fragmentation, settlement delays, too few custody and stablecoin providers, weak institutional risk tooling, and shallow liquidity depth (large players would move price charts). Regulatory and compliance barriers include token classification and tax uncertainty (he has not created a US onshore entity for fear the SEC could freeze accounts and block payroll), weak auditing and reporting, insurance shortages, cross-border tax complexity, and reputational risk (the New York Knicks closed off crypto after nearly signing FTX). Operational and governance barriers include counterparty risk, DAO decentralization theater run by whales, and broken token economic models where airdrops create sell pressure rather than demand. Cultural and organizational barriers include quarterly earnings pressure, talent shortages, risk-averse conservatism, and internal knowledge gaps where crypto evangelists are not the decision makers (Invesco needs 50 teams to sign off on a product). He ends optimistically on progress in privacy tech, stablecoin regulation, and institutional DeFi (which he thinks will simply become onchain finance), arguing crossing the chasm requires regulators, builders, and institutions collaborating on trust, compliance, and usability, with long-term vision over short-term hype. 00:00 Introduction 00:11 The Reality Behind the Headlines 00:29 About Azeem 01:02 What Is Miden 01:32 The Problem With Fully Public or Private Chains 01:56 Why Counterparty Risk Matters More Than Decentralization 02:18 Why Institutional Adoption Matters 02:38 Why the Billion Users Will Come From Institutions 03:02 Still in Pilots, Not Full Deployment 03:32 The Three Institutional Perspectives 03:59 Why Adoption Has Stalled 04:21 Technical Barrier: Compliant Privacy 04:42 Interoperability and Fragmentation 05:00 Settlement Delays and Inefficiency 05:21 Too Few Custody and Stablecoin Providers 05:44 The Problem of Liquidity Depth 06:02 Regulatory and Compliance Barriers 06:26 Why He Has No US Onshore Entity 06:40 Auditing, Reporting, and Insurance Shortages 07:16 Cross-Border Tax and Reputational Risk 07:44 Operations and Governance Barriers 08:02 DAO Decentralization Theater 08:36 Why Token Models Are Broken 08:57 Cultural Barriers: Quarterly Earnings Pressure 09:26 Talent Shortages and Risk-Averse Culture 10:13 Why Evangelists Are Not the Decision Makers 10:49 Why Invesco Needs 50 Teams to Sign Off 11:07 Where the Industry Is Making Progress 11:29 From DeFi to Onchain Finance 11:56 What It Takes to Cross the Chasm 12:16 Long-Term Vision Over Short-Term Hype 12:34 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Rodrigo Coelho, CEO of Edge & Node, explains why banks are racing onchain in 2026, covering what is working in production today and what is not, and what infrastructure moving production financial workloads on chain actually requires. He opens on how most of the world's money still moves on software written in the 1970s, likening institutions going on chain to a dial-up to broadband moment, or streaming music forced through record players. In 2026 the pilots of past years are moving into production: the New York Stock Exchange is working on 24/7 tokenized trading and tokenized assets are becoming collateral, all converging because the regulatory clock is ticking with the Genius Act, Clarity Act, and MiCA turning compliance frameworks from white papers into laws. Having spent eight years shipping blockchain infrastructure (from the first commit at The Graph to running Edge & Node, serving 1.8 trillion queries), Rodrigo says the Genius Act taking effect January 27th is a forcing function, and given long procurement cycles, institutions that wait for tooling will miss the window. Rodrigo argues banks are bringing the wrong assumptions on chain: their data stacks assume finality, append-only ledgers, overnight batch windows, and ACH and wire transfers, treating reorgs as edge cases when reorgs are normal, and off-the-shelf warehouses like Snowflake, Postgres, and BigQuery do not work out of the box with on-chain data, which is rarely cryptographically verifiable. Using the wrong tools breaks data freshness, auditability, and verifiability, and bad data puts capital at risk through stale collateral, blown liquidations, and compliance violations, with 24/7 markets that never pause. He lays out five non-negotiables for institutional data infrastructure: sub-second data freshness (block to query in under a second), verifiable cryptographic lineage, multi-chain access (The Graph indexes over 90 chains), on-prem deployment for data sovereignty in jurisdictions like the Middle East, Brazil, and Japan, and SQL-native querying that engineers and AI both speak. He gives vendor-evaluation questions and introduces Amp, Edge & Node's SQL-native, on-prem-capable blockchain data platform with verifiable extraction and full lineage across 100 chains that bridges into existing stacks. He shares production numbers (747 millisecond freshness, 100x pipeline improvement, 4,350x faster backfills), contrasts pay-per-query versus flat-fee licensing, and closes that the institutions moving now will own the next decade of financial infrastructure. 00:00 Introduction 00:41 Money Still Runs on 1970s Software 01:05 Why 2026 Is When Pilots Go to Production 01:35 Why the Regulatory Clock Is Ticking 01:57 Rodrigo's Background at The Graph 02:16 Why Now: Genius Act, MiCA, and Global Momentum 02:44 Why Waiting for Tooling Misses the Window 03:13 The Genius Act as a Forcing Function 03:42 What Institutional Conversations Revealed 04:11 Banks Bringing the Wrong Assumptions On Chain 04:34 Why Reorgs Break TradFi Assumptions 04:56 Why Off-the-Shelf Warehouses Fail 05:28 Why On-Chain Data Is Rarely Verifiable 05:40 The Three Things That Fail 06:01 Why Bad Data Puts Capital at Risk 06:33 Why 24/7 Markets Reward First Movers 06:56 The Five Non-Negotiables for Data 07:23 Multi-Chain Access and On-Prem Deployment 07:47 Why SQL Native Is a Requirement 08:07 Questions to Ask Every Vendor 08:30 Red Flags in Data Vendors 08:57 Introducing Amp 09:21 Joining On-Chain and Off-Chain Data 10:30 Amp's Production Numbers 11:00 Pay Per Query vs Licensing the Platform 11:50 How Compliance Becomes Provable 12:18 Why Amp Was Built for Tokenized Deposits 12:41 What Rodrigo Tells Every Institutional CTO 13:36 Why the Future of Finance Is Multi-Chain 14:13 Why Infrastructure Choices Decide the Leaders 14:39 The Rise of Heads of Digital Assets 15:02 Consulting to Navigate the Vendor Landscape 15:29 Building the New Way Money Moves 16:07 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Hart Montgomery

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Hart Montgomery from the LFDT (Linux Foundation Decentralized Trust) explains why open source matters for institutional adoption, sharing lessons from the Linux Foundation. He covers open source background, table-stakes items institutions expect (software licensing, IP protections, and security best practices), and open governance. He pushes back on the perception, common in the blockchain community, that open source is purely a cypherpunk ideal championed by Vitalik and the Ethereum Foundation. In reality open source is everywhere: even in a typical closed-source enterprise codebase, around 90% of a modern application is open source, assembled as an open source hamburger of frameworks, custom glue code, and libraries. He describes the virtuous flywheel where open source projects power commercial products whose profits flow back into the projects, amplified when a real community forms (illustrated by Kubernetes, where Google's share of contributions shrank proportionally even as its absolute contributions grew). The Linux Foundation exists to solve collaboration when multiple parties want shared code but trust no single owner, and it hosts many Ethereum projects including Besu (around 15 to 20% of mainnet). Hart walks through the table stakes. On licensing, he covers three types: BSL (source-available, not truly open source, like Arbitrum Nitro), copyleft (requires derivative works be made public, principled but commercially hard since companies fear forced disclosure), and permissive (do-what-you-want, easiest for adoption), recommending Apache 2 for its explicit patent grants and warning about dependency pitfalls like LGPL. On IP protections, he explains contributors may add code with patent restrictions, which is why the Linux Foundation created the Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO), and urges every project to use a DCO or CLA. On security, he highlights vulnerability disclosure, software bills of materials (SBOMs) to track dependencies (citing a Black Duck audit where 81% of codebases had high-risk or critical vulnerabilities), and artifact signing via tools like Sigstore against impersonation, plus AI contributor policies and OpenSSF resources like the scorecard for verifiability. He closes on governance, distinguishing open source (code), open development (building in the open), and open governance (transparent roles and roadmap), ranging from a code dump to open product to benevolent dictatorship to true open governance (a do-ocracy where those who do decide). He argues institutions are far more likely to adopt openly governed projects since it avoids vendor lock-in and signals long-term health. 00:00 Introduction 00:34 What the Talk Will Cover 00:58 Why Open Source Is Not Just Cypherpunk 01:30 The Open Source Hamburger 01:54 The Value of Open Source to Enterprises 02:20 The Virtuous Flywheel of Open Source 02:46 The Kubernetes Community Example 03:19 Why the Linux Foundation Exists 03:39 The Breadth of the Linux Foundation 04:38 The Ethereum Projects at the LF 05:06 Why Institutions Trust Open Source 05:27 Defining Open Source Software 05:48 The Three Types of Licenses 06:11 BSL: Source Available, Not Open Source 06:37 Copyleft Licenses and Their Caveats 07:31 Permissive Licenses and Apache 2 08:19 Common Licensing Pitfalls 09:08 Other Legal and IP Protections 09:33 The Risk of Patent Lawsuits 09:58 The Developer Certificate of Origin 10:50 Moving On to Security 11:10 The Open Source Security Foundation 11:40 Making Bug Reporting Easy 12:32 The Software Supply Chain Problem 12:53 Why 81% of Codebases Have Vulnerabilities 13:30 Software Bills of Materials 13:58 Minimizing Dependencies 14:17 Signing and Authenticating Artifacts 14:37 AI and Security 15:34 Why Verifiability Matters 15:57 Talking About Governance 16:27 Open Source vs Development vs Governance 17:12 Four Categories of Governance 17:44 From Benevolent Dictatorship to Open Governance 18:32 Why Open Governance Wins Adoption 19:15 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Clare Adelgren, global blockchain leader at EY, explores the institutional path from pilot to production onchain, arguing the title captures exactly where the market sits today and why she is optimistic. She opens with a historical analogy: at the dawn of railroads people fixated on the trains (speed, cargo, destinations), but the bigger story turned out to be the rail network and how that infrastructure reshaped entire economies. Similarly, the car alone did not create modern transport; that took roads, safety standards, and institutions around the rules. She draws the parallel to blockchain, where for years attention centered on cryptocurrencies and tokenomics as the first vehicles on the rails, but the biggest shift now is toward the rails themselves, the infrastructure for moving assets, settling value, and coordinating trust in a programmable way, plus the rules and standards needed to operate at scale. Clare contrasts earlier institutional conversations (framed as experimentation, pilots, proofs of concept, consortia, and controlled off-chain or hybrid models that let institutions explore without full commitment) with 2026, where outlooks from the World Economic Forum onward describe a broad shift from experiment to enterprise-grade deployment, with major banks shipping products, regulators drawing clearer lines, and a growing pipeline of real world assets queued for issuance and servicing. The question has shifted from whether the technology works to whether institutions can operationalize it at scale in a trusted, governable, compliant, and valuable way. She argues this moment feels different not just because of regulation reducing uncertainty, but because technology maturity, workable economics, improving privacy, and serious interoperability are aligning at once. Framing technology as table stakes and institutional readiness as the real unlock, she says the next wave will be defined by industrialization rather than innovation, embedding blockchain into real operating models. She lays out five pillars of production readiness: trust and governance (accountability and aligned participants), compliance and controls (auditability, risk management, regulatory scrutiny), interoperability with legacy systems, privacy and confidentiality (selective disclosure and privacy on public blockchains, a major EY investment), and measurable business value rather than innovation theater. She closes that the next phase belongs to institutions that move from curiosity to capability and from experiments to execution. 00:00 Introduction 00:46 Why Clare Is Optimistic About the Path 01:00 The Railroad Analogy 01:32 Why the Car Alone Did Not Create Transport 02:18 Parallels to Blockchain Today 02:45 The Shift Toward the Rails Themselves 03:13 How Institutional Conversations Used to Look 03:51 Why That Caution Made Sense 04:38 How the Conversation Changed by 2026 05:18 Banks, Regulators, and the RWA Pipeline 05:51 The Question Has Shifted From Can It Work 06:25 Why This Moment Feels Different 07:01 Why Regulation Is Not the Whole Story 07:22 How Maturity, Economics, and Interoperability Align 08:01 EY's Long-Held View on Scale Adoption 08:39 Why Technology Is Only Table Stakes 09:27 From Technical Feasibility to Institutional Operability 10:03 Why the Next Wave Is Industrialization 10:30 What Production Readiness Really Means 11:01 Pillar One: Trust and Governance 11:26 Pillar Two: Compliance and Controls 11:57 Pillar Three: Interoperability With Legacy Systems 12:25 Pillar Four: Privacy and Confidentiality 13:08 Pillar Five: Measurable Business Value 14:03 Institutional-Grade Onchain Infrastructure 14:32 What It Means for Institutional Leaders 15:05 Why This Is an Execution Phase 15:31 Why Operationalizing Beats Talking About Innovation 15:57 Why This Is Just the Beginning 16:35 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Jan Gorzny

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this talk, Jan Gorzny from Zircuit discusses how to bring institutional adoption from Wall Street onto Ethereum, focusing not on ZK but on the barriers institutions and their users face and how crypto-native solutions can overcome them. He motivates the case by cataloging the pain points of TradFi: it is good but not great, with poor settlement efficiency, a lack of transparency (you rarely know who you are dealing with at a bank), and costs and difficulty that scale as you become the institution itself, since it is an old industry not optimized for the last 20 to 30 years of technology, with heavily siloed money. On chain solves much of this: fast and improving settlement, 24/7 trading regardless of bank hours, strong transparency (a double-edged sword given weak default privacy), programmable money enabling automated trading and looping, and composability across asset classes. He argues the value proposition is real, and while early banking-the-unbanked adoption was slow, RWAs and stablecoins have blown up, with FX and other services now being piloted on chain. Jan walks through the barriers. First, regulatory uncertainty: unclear asset classifications, cross-border complications, and technical risks like recurring smart contract exploits (worsened by a bad first quarter) where you cannot simply patch decentralized code, so institutions avoid it not from misunderstanding but because their lawyers will not sign off. Second, infrastructure and chain fragmentation, with around 131 rollups as of last October creating hard choices about which chain, oracle, and bridge to use and forcing new, modular, redundant DApp designs rather than the cookie-cutter patterns of 2022. Third, permissionlessness as a genuine trade-off, where censorship resistance and transparency clash with the whitelisting and controls institutions need. He surveys emerging solutions: permissioned DeFi with KYC and whitelisting, RWA token standards like ERC-3643 and ERC-1400, ZK-based KYC that validates a passport without revealing it, customizable L2s, and safer bridge standards like OFTs and CCIP. He advises builders to design for modularity, understand their trust model, and engage regulators early, and notes users now face far more complex due diligence and unpredictable yield, arguing uncertainty is risk. He closes on his preference for predictable DeFi and Zircuit's product targeting 8 to 11% yield on USDC and USDT with no management fees or minimums, built to work with Wall Street and institutional partners. 00:00 Introduction 00:33 The Barriers Wall Street Faces On Chain 00:52 The Pain Points of Traditional Finance 01:20 Why Costs Scale for Institutions 01:45 Why Money Is So Siloed 02:13 How On Chain Solves These Problems 02:34 Transparency and Programmable Money 03:11 Why the Value Proposition Is Real 03:32 From Banking the Unbanked to Real Adoption 03:44 How RWAs and Stablecoins Blew Up 04:06 Piloting Other TradFi Services On Chain 04:38 Why We Have Only Scratched the Surface 04:56 Why Builders Must Start Agile 05:14 The First Barrier: Regulatory Uncertainty 05:40 Unclear Classifications and Cross-Border Issues 06:02 Why You Cannot Just Fix Exploited Code 06:26 Why Lawyers Will Not Sign Off 06:50 The Second Barrier: Infrastructure and Fragmentation 07:22 Choosing Among 131 Rollups 07:41 Standards, Oracles, and Bridges 08:07 Why the Cookie-Cutter DApp Era Is Over 08:28 Why New DApps Need Redundancy 09:08 The Third Barrier: Permissionlessness 09:30 Choosing Which Permissionlessness Matters 09:59 Emerging Solutions: Permissioned DeFi 10:13 RWA Token Standards Like ERC-3643 and 1400 10:28 ZK-Based KYC With a Passport Scan 10:44 Building Your Own Customizable L2 10:59 How Bridges Have Come a Long Way 11:17 Tokens Built With Legal Barriers in Mind 11:37 What This Means for Builders 11:56 What This Means for Users 12:28 Why Uncertainty Is Risk 12:47 The Case for Predictable DeFi 12:59 Zircuit's Product for Wall Street 13:13 Targeting 8 to 11% Yield With No Fees 13:54 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Joshua Lim, who runs the trading division at prime brokerage FalconX, sits down with Giovanni Vicioso, global head of cryptocurrency products at CME Group, to discuss the state of the derivatives market across both institutional and onchain venues. Giovanni notes CME is the world's leading derivatives marketplace, having entered crypto in 2016 with a reference rate, launched Bitcoin futures in December 2017, Ether futures in January 2021, and now lists futures and options on nine cryptocurrencies. They open on CME's newer volatility indices, 30-day forward-looking products referencing implied volatility from Bitcoin options (analogous to the equity VIX), which let institutions trade volatility directly rather than trading and delta hedging a series of options. Joshua explains these let firms take a view on uncertainty rather than direction, citing how summer option sellers were caught as uncertainty around Michael Saylor's MSTR holdings spiked implied vol from the 30s into the 50s. Giovanni shares striking growth data: Bitcoin futures volume decreased in 2025 for the first time after seven years of growth, while Ether futures volume tripled, now around 40% of Bitcoin futures volume (up from under 20% in 2024) with open interest around 45% of Bitcoin's, which he attributes to Ethereum's proof-of-stake upgrades, staking yield, and the Genius Act driving stablecoin settlement interest. Joshua notes more altcoin tooling (Solana, XRP, Stellar) helps token-picking and long-short funds express dispersion views in a regulated format, and that as the basis trade compressed below 5%, capital still chasing yield moved into options overwriting and onchain farming rather than leaving. On the convergence of DeFi and traditional markets, Giovanni argues it is not winner-take-all but coexistence with hybrid models, noting newer protocols like Hyperliquid remain relatively untested for large institutions who need someone to call when code breaks. He covers CME's new 24/7 trading (closing the CME gap, over $300 million traded on a recent weekend with strong retail microcontract activity), the tokenized cash collateral solution being built with Google Cloud Universal Ledger and BMO to move value on weekends, and how expanding the tradable universe depends on regulatory clarity and customer demand. 00:00 Introduction 00:40 Introducing the Panelists 00:58 Why the Ether Conference Energy Is Different 01:18 CME as the Leading Derivatives Marketplace 01:59 FalconX and the Prime Brokerage View 02:34 What Volatility Indices Are 02:58 CME's Regulated Volatility Product 03:38 How Bitcoin Volatility Futures Work 04:05 Bringing Operational Simplicity to Volatility 04:30 Trading Uncertainty, Not Direction 04:45 How the MSTR Story Spiked Implied Vol 05:21 The Cost of Holding Crypto and Staking Rates 05:55 Is CME Exploring a Staking Rate Product 06:16 Why Bitcoin Futures Volume Fell as Ether Tripled 06:51 The Genius Act and Growing Ether Interest 07:18 Ether Notional Volume Reaches 40% of Bitcoin 07:46 Why Ethereum Upgrades Drive Institutional Demand 08:13 How Altcoin Tooling Helps Token-Picking Funds 08:46 Dispersion and Long-Short Opportunities 09:14 The Basis Trade and Spot ETFs 09:35 Why Basis Compressed Below 5% 10:02 Why Volume and Open Interest Still Grew 10:27 Where Yield-Seeking Capital Is Going Now 11:02 The Convergence of DeFi and Traditional Markets 11:35 How CME Coexists With Hyperliquid 12:38 Why Institutions Need Someone to Call 13:11 Why CME Moved to 24/7 Trading 14:07 Strong Volume on the Second Weekend 14:55 Closing the CME Gap and Arbitrage Opportunities 15:16 A Mix of Retail and Institutional Participants 15:38 The Need for Weekend Collateral Movement 16:23 The Tokenized Cash Solution With Google and BMO 17:06 Why This Benefits Onchain Stablecoin Firms 17:48 Expanding the Universe of Tradable Assets 18:22 Why Regulatory Clarity Comes First 19:05 Why Customer Demand Drives New Listings 19:32 The Rise of Crypto Indices 19:56 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Adam Wozney, senior director of global community at Circle, sits down with Sam Tabar, CEO of Bit Digital and White Fiber, to discuss the state of Ethereum, how TradFi is entering the space, and how physical infrastructure is evolving to power it all. An Oxford and Columbia law graduate and former attorney, Sam leads two publicly traded companies bridging the digital and physical worlds through Ethereum staking and AI high performance computing infrastructure. He opens by reflecting on following intuition over pure logic (a lesson from his tarot-reading mother and car-mechanic father), noting he was a poor lawyer before pivoting to finance. On Ethereum, Sam argues the money frame was always the wrong one. Bitcoin is the mother coin with first-mover advantage but is simply a store of value competing with the roughly $16 trillion gold market, while Ethereum is programmable money that competes with the entire financial system by removing middlemen and friction through smart contracts. He views ETH as a utility settlement layer and watches settlement and development activity as his key metrics, noting a favorable gap between strong fundamentals and current price. He predicts a generational shift as boomer decision-makers who resisted crypto give way to Gen X, millennials, and Gen Z who have normalized it, eventually making crypto a responsible part of family office portfolios and an inflation hedge superior to gold. He distinguishes Bit Digital as a strategic asset company rather than a digital asset treasury: rather than just shoving ETH on a shell balance sheet, Bit Digital sold all its Bitcoin to go all in on Ethereum, holds around 158,000 ETH which it stakes, owns 70% of NASDAQ-listed White Fiber (an AI data center company serving clients like Cerebras and Nscale with billion-dollar contracts), and lends against its ETH to finance White Fiber's buildout for alpha positioning. He frames AI as the third catalyst of the industrial revolution after electricity and the internet, describes the White Fiber IPO as the best day of his life, and closes predicting Wall Street has already chosen Ethereum as its programmable money horse though it is not yet priced in, plus a lightning round where he names government surveillance as his biggest AI fear. 00:00 Introduction 00:26 Setting the Stage: Finance, Networks, and Scale 00:48 Meet Sam Tabar 01:25 A Get to Know You Question 01:40 Growing Up With a Mechanic and a Tarot Reader 02:15 Logic vs Intuition in Leadership 03:03 Why Following Intuition Matters 03:31 Leaving Law to Follow Intuition 04:19 Why the Money Frame Is Wrong for Ethereum 04:57 Bitcoin as a Store of Value vs Gold 05:19 The Generational Shift in Portfolio Construction 06:08 Why Crypto Will Enter Family Offices 06:34 Ethereum as Programmable Money 06:58 Removing Middlemen and Friction 07:21 Ethereum as a Utility Settlement Layer 07:49 Conflating ETH Price and the Settlement Layer 08:10 Why Boomer Resistance Will Fade 08:48 From Bitcoin Mining to 158,000 Ethereum 09:29 Strategic Asset Company vs Digital Asset Treasury 10:08 Going All In on Ethereum 10:28 Taking Digital Tomatoes From Bitcoin Maxis 10:49 How the Strategic Asset Model Works 11:08 The ChatGPT Eureka Moment 11:50 Why AI Runs on Data Centers 12:23 Building Data Centers for Cerebras and Nscale 12:46 Why It Is Called White Fiber 13:12 How Bit Digital Owns 70% of White Fiber 13:43 Lending Against ETH to Finance Data Centers 14:05 Why This Is an Alpha Posture 14:19 What the NASDAQ Launch Day Was Like 14:49 Building Something That Outlasts You 15:04 Why He Would Not Recommend an IPO 15:32 Where Ethereum Goes Next Year 15:59 Why Wall Street Has Already Chosen Ethereum 16:23 Performing Regardless of ETH Direction 16:53 The Third Catalyst of the Industrial Revolution 17:24 The Lightning Round 17:36 Bitcoin or Ethereum 17:52 The Biggest Threat From AI 18:25 Secured or Unsecured Debt 18:32 Oxford or Columbia 19:47 Financial Data or Tarot Cards 20:00 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Jill Malandrino sits down with Andrew McCormick on his third day in a newly created head of institutional adoption role at Chainlink Labs, after nearly two decades inside trading and capital markets, most recently running a NASDAQ listed US brokerage. Andrew, who has been with Ethereum since 2015 (introduced by his dad and his enthusiasm for YouTube videos on it), explains why he left the operator seat at firms like eToro, E*Trade, and Morgan Stanley to build infrastructure now. Inspired partly by his four kids and the Mario Brothers plumbing theme, he says that after 15 years helping people navigate the plumbing of finance, he wants to build and fix it himself, and chose Chainlink Labs because it is the connective infrastructure between traditional finance and blockchain, working with firms like DTCC, UBS, and SWIFT. Andrew explains where onchain makes the most obvious difference: not just efficiency and speed, but freedom, through faster settlement. He shares a personal aha moment when moving houses from DC to New York, where a simple wire took four days, many calls, and a $35 fee, illustrating that money still doesn't move as well as it should. He walks through the settlement evolution from T+3 to T+1 to the dream of T+0, where tokenized assets moving near instantaneously via Chainlink verification reduce risk and collateral requirements while getting users their money faster. He describes his three-part role: helping firms already building (UBS, SWIFT, DTCC, JP Morgan) go deeper, educating institutions ready to start, and educating financial analysts and research writers, drawing on his lifelong passion for teaching. He identifies three blockers to tokenization: regulatory clarity (where the Clarity Act would help enormously), trust and confidence (built each time a firm like DTCC or SWIFT launches with Chainlink), and education. On the Clarity Act, he contrasts today's reliance on 1930s laws, a 1946 Supreme Court orange-grove case, and 50 differing states with a statute purpose-built for the use case. He points to signals of genuine institutional adoption (banks moving on chain, the wave of head-of-digital-assets hires, and more educational events), and closes framing Chainlink as the link connecting blockchains and TradFi, noting the builders and believers led the way and institutions are now following. 00:00 Introduction 00:33 Why Leave the Operator Seat to Build Infrastructure 00:52 With Ethereum Since 2015 01:17 15 Years Inside Regulated Institutions 01:47 The Mario Brothers Plumbing Inspiration 02:04 Why Chainlink Labs 02:27 Where Onchain Makes the Most Difference 02:56 Freedom and Faster Settlement 03:13 The Four-Day Wire Transfer Aha Moment 03:37 From T+3 to T+1 to the Dream of T+0 04:16 The Gap the New Role Fills 04:35 Helping Firms Already Building 05:01 Educating Institutions Ready to Start 05:22 Why Education Is in His Soul 06:00 What Keeps Institutions From Moving Real Money 06:00 Three Blockers: Clarity, Trust, Education 06:27 How Each DTCC or SWIFT Launch Builds Trust 06:46 From Confusion to Skepticism to Excitement 07:33 Why Trillions Are Still Waiting to Move 07:53 What the Clarity Act Could Unlock 08:27 Why Institutions Love Certainty 08:53 Building on 1930s Laws and Orange Trees 09:16 Why a Purpose-Built Statute Matters 09:42 Signals That Institutional Adoption Is Real 10:09 Why Banks Moving On Chain Signals More to Come 10:27 The Wave of Head-of-Digital-Assets Hires 11:07 Why Education Keeps Pushing the Industry 11:26 How Industry Hiring Signals Maturation 11:55 Focusing on User Experience and Policy 12:24 Why the Foundation Will Pay Dividends 12:46 Innovating in the Absence of a Statute 13:11 A Pivotal Moment to Tell the Interconnectivity Story 13:38 Why the Community Gets Chainlink 13:57 Builders and Believers Led the Way 14:24 Day Four: What Excites Him Most 14:48 Education as His Way to Teach 15:07 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Jul 9, 2026

In this fireside chat, Chris Perkins from 250 Digital Asset Management sits down with Maxime Seiler from STS Digital to unpack why crypto feels like such a strange market: record institutional excitement and progress like the Clarity Act, yet weak prices. Maxime explains that over the last two years a strong decoupling has taken place, where capital flows into infrastructure, M&A, and the rails that let institutions upgrade legacy settlement, trading, and clearing into 24/7 systems, rather than into tokens. Every major traditional institution now has a hands-on digital asset strategy building permissionless blockchain infrastructure, and he expects the token-level recoupling is only a matter of time. Chris likens it to the 2016-2017 era at Citi when the story was that the technology was amazing but the tokens were garbage. Maxime argues the missing piece is value accruing to token holders: many projects launched tokens and shipped products, but adoption flows diverged from investor flows, with steady supply pushing prices down. Without clarity on how residual business cash flows back to holders (the equity investor's basic dividend-yield question), capital has migrated out of crypto into AI stocks. On AI, he frames intelligence as having become a commodity deployed to build, while blockchain is the settlement rail and AI the intelligence layer, with recoupling coming when commoditized intelligence starts transacting value between agents on the new 24/7 infrastructure. As a leading options market maker across 400+ tokens, STS sees retail traders migrating to AI equities, a post-October slowdown, and participants now accepting a sideways rather than bull market, selling rallies and buying dips while institutions sell options for yield, compressing ranges in a self-reinforcing slow grind. He predicts the era of all boats rising is over, replaced by a token-picking era with more dispersion based on real adoption and TVL growth. He covers the two sides of structured products (institutions harvesting yield, and wealth managers building tailored products offering Bitcoin upside with limited downside), how binary options price similarly to prediction markets (where STS is active on crypto outcomes but not unhedgeable real-world ones), and closes that slow markets are for building and reward patient investors. 00:00 Introduction 00:11 A Weird Time for Crypto: Excitement vs Prices 00:30 What Is Going On With the Macro 01:32 The Decoupling Into Infrastructure and M&A 02:02 Why Capital Flows Into Building, Not Tokens 02:36 Are We in the Max Blockchain, Not Bitcoin Era 02:57 The 2016 Citi Story: Great Tech, Garbage Tokens 03:30 Is This the Endgame or a Cycle Back to Tokens 04:07 Why Product Flows Diverged From Investor Flows 04:54 Why Tokens Need Real Value Accrual 05:29 The Basic Dividend Yield Question 05:59 Why Capital Migrated to AI Stocks 06:21 Is AI Competing With Crypto for Capital 06:44 Why AI and Crypto Are Symbiotic Long Term 07:08 Intelligence as a Commodity 07:31 Blockchain as Rails, AI as the Intelligence Layer 08:30 When Agents Start Transacting Value 08:58 How AI Is Impacting the Market Maker Business 09:45 Retail Traders Migrating to AI Equities 10:10 The Post-October Mindset Shift 10:42 Why the Market Turned Range-Bound 11:26 How Selling Options Compresses the Range 11:52 Why Slow Markets Slow Markets Further 12:09 What Could Catalyze a Change 12:46 Why the All-Boats-Rise Era Is Over 13:15 The Coming Token-Picking Era 13:51 Why Fundamentals Will Find Value 14:44 Two Types of Structured Product Clients 15:29 Growth in Systematic Yield Strategies 15:56 Wealth Managers Building Tailored Exposure 16:27 Bitcoin Upside With Limited Downside 16:49 Integrating Prediction Markets 17:11 Why Options Add a Non-Binary Dimension 17:34 Why Binary Options Price Like Prediction Markets 17:57 Why Real-World Outcomes Are Not Hedgeable 18:28 How the Market Evolves Over 6 to 12 Months 19:01 Why Slow Markets Are for Building 19:55 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *ETHConf 2026* ETHConf is a 3 day event for founders, industry leaders, and builders who are excited about the possibilities of building on top of Ethereum. Connect with 2,000+ top innovators in crypto, finance, technology, and policy at our inaugural three-day event packed with showcases, demos, partnerships, and conversations shaping the future of the global economy. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHConf* X: https://x.com/ethconf Website: https://ethconf.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎟️ Get your early bird tickets for ETHConf 2027: https://ethconf.com/2027#tickets 🎤 View the full ETHConf 2026 Speaker Schedule: https://ethconf.com/schedule _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Funding the Commons · May 9, 2026

Radio took 36 years to reach 50 million users. The internet took seven. ChatGPT took two months. Cheryl Contee's message is simple: we don't have the luxury of waiting to figure out what we think about this. Cheryl, CEO of Brightworks AI and Change Agent AI, has spent years helping nonprofits and mission-driven organizations navigate technology transitions. She opens with a memory of her grandmother's washboard — kept in the basement just in case the washing machine broke — and builds from there. We are in a moment comparable to electrification and industrialization, but moving faster than either. The institutions collapsing around us are not the destination; they're the precondition for something better. Her argument is that the question is never whether technology will change society. It's who gets to shape that change. Only around 10% of nonprofits she works with have an AI policy. That's a leadership failure. And leadership, not technology, is what she came to talk about. Speaker: Cheryl Contee (Brightworks AI / Change Agent AI) This session was part of Intelligence at the Frontier, held March 14–15, 2026, at Frontier Tower in San Francisco. Learn more at https://www.fundingthecommons.io

Josef Je

ETHGlobal · May 9, 2026

In this talk, Josef Je introduces the European Ethereum Institute, a newly launched task force dedicated to getting Ethereum recognized as strategic public infrastructure by European regulators — comparable to the internet or the electric grid. He argues that after a decade of builders ignoring policy, regulation has now caught up to the point where DeFi, tokenization, and MEV are being discussed in EU papers, and the community must engage proactively or risk being overshadowed by permissioned chain salespeople pitching proprietary tech to uninformed regulators. Josef frames the urgency through Europe's risk of repeating the Web2 pattern where all innovation and business creation migrated to Silicon Valley while the EU could only react through after-the-fact regulation. He outlines the institute's three-pronged approach: producing evidence-based papers and infographics showing regulators the differences between true DeFi and centralized projects, helping regulators understand the full Ethereum technology stack beyond finance (identity, voting, ZK proofs, timestamping), and proactive outreach to bring regulators into crypto events. He announces that André Kvapiš, a former European Parliament member who helped remove DeFi from MiCA's scope, has officially joined the institute, and shares that initial funding comes from Ethereum Foundation, Aave, and Gnosis. 00:00 Introduction 00:29 Why a Builder Started Caring About Policy 02:09 Institutions Coming On-Chain: Now or Never 03:42 Launch of the European Ethereum Institute 04:22 Permissioned Chains Are Back (and Still Wrong) 05:10 Ethereum as the Golden Standard 06:05 "It's Ethereum, Not Blockchains" 07:00 Ethereum's Lindy and Network Effects 07:31 Mission: Ethereum as Strategic Public Infrastructure 08:55 Europe's Risk of Repeating the Web2 Mistake 10:14 Providing Evidence to Regulators 11:39 Tokenization, Stablecoins, and True DeFi 13:10 Ethereum's Stack Beyond Finance: Identity, Voting, ZK 14:22 A Task Force, Not Another Association 15:58 How a Regulator Joined the Ethereum Side 17:11 André Kvapiš and MiCA's DeFi Exemption 18:37 Team, Funding, and How to Get Involved 19:56 Closing _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes 2026* Pragma Cannes 2026 was held on April 2nd at the JW Marriott Hotel in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes 2026 YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5OnsJ95gz7HoI1tLUj3kZr ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Josef Je X: https://x.com/josefje ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city

ETHGlobal · May 9, 2026

In this talk, Adrienne Youngman, head of marketing and comms at Gnosis, presents the practical implications of the Ethereum Economic Zone (EEZ) and frames it within Gnosis's broader mission of restoring digital ownership. She traces how Web3's original promise of self-custody and permissionless systems has been eroded by L2 fragmentation, custodial super apps, and permissioned infrastructure — and argues that EEZ can "unfork" Ethereum by enabling cross-chain calls within a single transaction, unified liquidity pools, and global collateral visibility. Adrienne gives concrete UX improvements: eliminating bridging friction, enabling CowSwap to route trades across all chains as one pool, letting Aave see collateral across multiple chains, and allowing Safe configurations to reflect everywhere from a single change. She highlights new capabilities like private identity verification across chains without data leaving private domains, and institutional use cases where private blockchains interact with the Ethereum ecosystem. She closes by showcasing Gnosis's product suite — Gnosis Pay for self-custodial fintech infrastructure, their consumer app with Visa card and IBAN integration, and the Circles protocol for fair-distribution peer-to-peer money based on trust graphs and social consensus. 00:00 Introduction 00:38 Gnosis: More Than Safe 01:23 Gnosis's Building Legacy: AMMs, Prediction Markets, Cow Protocol 02:21 Gnosis Pay, Consumer App, VPN, and EEZ 02:46 GM The Man, We're Forking You 03:06 Ownership and Power: Why It Matters 04:30 Ownership Through Cultural and Class Lenses 05:17 Losing Ownership in Digital Lives 06:37 Web3's Original Promise and How We Broke It 07:43 L2 Fragmentation and Custodial Drift 08:13 EEZ in Practice: No More Bridging 08:41 Unified Liquidity Pools Across Chains 09:08 Composable Finance: Stake, Borrow, Use in One Transaction 09:32 Global Collateral and Safe Configuration Sync 10:25 New Possibilities: Private Identity Across Chains 11:25 Institutional Use Cases with Private Blockchains 11:57 CTA: Join the EEZ Alliance 12:20 Gnosis Pay: Self-Custodial Fintech Infrastructure 13:19 Circles Protocol: Fair-Distribution Peer-to-Peer Money 14:51 Closing: Bank on Gnosis _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes 2026* Pragma Cannes 2026 was held on April 2nd at the JW Marriott Hotel in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes 2026 YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5OnsJ95gz7HoI1tLUj3kZr ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Gnosis X: https://x.com/gnosischain ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city

Funding the Commons · Apr 9, 2026

The UN has a pipeline of 150 blockchain initiatives. Getting them to scale means the blockchain industry has to build relationships it hasn't prioritized yet—with governments, UN agencies, and civil society. Teodor Petricevic works at the UNDP Alternative Finance Lab in Istanbul. In this conversation, he talks about why cross-chain, cross-sector collaboration has to happen now, and why builders shouldn't compromise their core principles to make it work. Filmed at Funding the Commons Buenos Aires, November 19, 2025. Learn more at https://www.fundingthecommons.io Relevant Projects UNDP AltFinLab: https://innovation.eurasia.undp.org/altfinlab/ Thank You to Our Sponsors Protocol Labs: https://protocol.ai NEAR Foundation: https://near.foundation Stellar Development Foundation: https://stellar.org human.tech by Holonym Foundation: https://human.tech/ Ethereum Ecosystem Support Program: https://esp.ethereum.foundation/ Drips: https://drips.network Octant: https://octant.app Logos: https://logos.co GoodDollar: https://gooddollar.org Launchnodes: https://launchnodes.com

Funding the Commons · Apr 9, 2026

It’s easy to design for people who already understand blockchain. Getting a government to trust it and deploy it is a different kind of challenge. Aaron Sanchez, Head of Strategy and Partnerships at Exponential Science, runs the Government Blockchain Academy with the UNDP. His work focuses on educating public officials and their teams, then helping them think through real use cases that make sense beyond the crypto ecosystem. The starting point isn’t the technology. It’s the problem. And sometimes the answer isn’t blockchain. Filmed at Funding the Commons Buenos Aires, November 19, 2025. Learn more at https://www.fundingthecommons.io Relevant Projects Exponential Science: https://www.exp.science/ UNDP: https://www.undp.org Thank You to Our Sponsors Protocol Labs: https://protocol.ai NEAR Foundation: https://near.foundation Stellar Development Foundation: https://stellar.org human.tech by Holonym Foundation: https://human.tech/ Ethereum Ecosystem Support Program: https://esp.ethereum.foundation/ Drips: https://drips.network Octant: https://octant.app Logos: https://logos.co GoodDollar: https://gooddollar.org Launchnodes: https://launchnodes.com

ETHGlobal · Nov 9, 2025

Cynthia Wang, co-founder of Primer Pay and Stanford student, discusses the future of e-commerce and payments, focusing on bridging Web2 and Web3 through seamless stablecoin transactions. Primer, developed by a team from three universities, enables users to pay with stablecoins on platforms like Amazon via a Chrome extension. The solution abstracts away complex crypto details, targeting mainstream adoption, especially in emerging markets where stablecoin demand is high. Primer converts stablecoins to gift cards for merchant compatibility, emphasizing user experience and integration with existing consumer habits. The team is exploring AI-driven product discovery and checkout, aiming to create a universal aggregation layer for receipts and payments across credit cards, stablecoins, and tokens. Cynthia highlights industry trends like AI agents, Google’s agent payment protocol, and institutional crypto adoption, positioning Primer at the intersection of e-commerce, crypto payments, and AI. The project continues to iterate, with plans for broader platform integration and a focus on user-centric design. 00:00 Introduction 00:38 Team Background & Motivation 01:02 Crypto UX & Decentralization Debate 01:44 Crypto Payments: US vs Emerging Markets 02:03 Bridging Web2 and Web3 02:33 E-commerce Challenges & Opportunities 03:23 Merchant Infrastructure & Trust Issues 03:50 Vision: Universal Aggregation Layer 04:08 Industry Trends & Inspiration 04:37 Building Primer: ETH Global New York 04:56 Demo: Stablecoin Payments on Amazon 05:36 Improving Gift Card Conversion & Expansion 06:15 Target Markets & Use Cases 06:36 User Flow & AI Integration Plans 07:15 Payments Focus & Institutional Adoption 07:33 AI Agents & Microtransactions 07:53 Future of E-commerce & UX 08:26 Community Engagement & Next Steps 08:46 Iteration, Waitlist, and Future Vision 09:04 Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇮🇳 *Pragma New Delhi* Pragma New Delhi 2025 was held on September 25th at the JW Marriott Hotel in Aerocity New Delhi and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New Delhi YouTube Playlist here: ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Cynthia Wang X: https://x.com/cynthwangg ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Stani Kulechov

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Join Stani Kulechov, founder of Aave and Avara, in this insightful conversation from Pragma Singapore 2024. Stani shares his journey towards achieving product-market fit in DeFi and Web3, exploring Aave’s evolution, the vision behind Avara, the strategic use of account abstraction and ZK stack for Lens Protocol, and crucial advice for crypto founders on building user-centric products. Discover how to effectively respond to user needs, scale products, and drive mainstream adoption. 00:00 Socks & Sandals: The Avara Way 01:50 What Product Market Fit Means in Crypto 02:46 Navigating Reactive vs. User-Driven Development 04:33 Identifying Users for True Product Market Fit 06:17 Challenges in Web3 User Identification 07:21 From Aave to Avara: Expanding the Vision 09:42 Democratizing Financial Access with DeFi 10:17 Building the People-Powered Internet 11:55 Family Wallet & Open Infrastructure Vision 12:29 Introducing Aave V4: Enhancing Efficiency 13:47 Liquidity Layers and Risk Management in Aave V4 15:25 Why Lens Protocol Chose ZK Stack & Validium 17:02 Balancing Security, Scalability, and Decentralization 18:09 Appropriate Security Levels for Use Cases 19:48 Achieving Mainstream Onboarding without Fees 21:19 Key Advice for Crypto Founders in 2024 23:22 When to Launch: MVP vs. Polished Products _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇸🇬 *Pragma Singapore* Pragma Singapore 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place September 19, 2024 at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore. Pragma Singapore 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Singapore playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6z0saYJnVdgXWfz-vaoEYx&si=uavhkhF5Kc8XBoLv ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Stani Kulechov* X: https://x.com/StaniKulechov ✅ *Follow Avara* X: https://x.com/Avara ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sandeep Nailwal

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Sandeep Nailwal, Co-founder of Polygon Labs, joins Kartik Talwar at Pragma Singapore 2024 to discuss the future of the AggLayer, Polygon’s bold thesis for a unified, scalable multichain future. In this engaging fireside chat, Sandeep unpacks the recent transition from MATIC to POL, challenges with exchanges, the vision behind AggLayer, and how Ethereum can evolve into the best possible settlement layer. He critiques the current Ethereum ecosystem’s focus on token price over infrastructure, explains why decentralization and censorship resistance are critical, and makes a compelling case for infinite scalability through interconnected chains. Learn how AggLayer enables seamless value movement, unified liquidity, canonical tokens, and composable apps across thousands of chains, and why it might be the Solana-like UX Ethereum has needed. 00:00 Intro: Fireside Format with Sandeep Nailwal 01:18 Polygon’s MATIC to POL Token Transition Recap 03:00 Why Exchanges Delayed the POL Migration 04:24 Lessons from the Token Migration Process 05:23 Ethereum Community FUD and Token Upgrade Challenges 06:24 Concerns with Ethereum’s Shift in Priorities 08:01 What Makes a Great Settlement Layer? 08:56 Ethereum’s Decentralization, Censorship Resistance 09:56 Other Key Metrics for Settlement Layer Quality 11:00 Precompiles and ZK for Efficient Settlement 12:08 Should L1 Do More or Enable L2s? 13:07 Cycles of Sentiment and Solana’s Rise 14:37 Long-Term Community Retention is the Real Test 15:33 AggLayer Thesis: Fixing Liquidity Fragmentation 16:11 Seamless Interoperability in Web3 17:13 Infinite Scalability via Appchains and L2s 18:43 Appchains Need Custom UX and Gas Models 19:18 AggLayer = Unified Liquidity, Shared Token Mapping 20:20 One Address Across All Chains: Solana-Like UX 21:17 AggLayer as Web3’s Endgame Architecture 21:41 How to Foster L2 Collaboration and Interoperability 22:46 Narrative & Business Model Compatibility for L2s 23:16 Final Thoughts: Collaboration Over Competition _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇸🇬 *Pragma Singapore* Pragma Singapore 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place September 19, 2024 at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore. Pragma Singapore 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Singapore playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6z0saYJnVdgXWfz-vaoEYx&si=uavhkhF5Kc8XBoLv ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Sandeep Nailwal* X: https://x.com/sandeepnailwal ✅ *Follow Polygon Labs* X: https://x.com/0xPolygon ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this high-impact talk at Pragma Singapore 2024, Mike Cahill, founder of Duoro Labs and a core contributor to the Pyth Network, breaks down how we can supercharge DeFi infrastructure to outperform traditional finance (TradFi) by improving cost, speed, and trust. Mike explores why DeFi struggles to compete with TradFi UX, how Pyth’s HiFi data oracle architecture changes the game, and what it means for the future of blockchain applications. Learn how Pyth price feeds, entropy for randomness, and Express Relay for MEV protection are already powering 400+ dApps across 80+ chains, enabling fast, low-cost, and trustworthy on-chain finance. 00:00 Intro and “Why DeFi Sucks” Compared to TradFi 01:29 TradFi Speed, Cost, and Trust Advantage 02:36 Why New Tech Adoption Requires Parity with Incumbents 03:39 Amazon vs Sears: Web Speed Parallels Blockchain Evolution 05:14 Blockchain’s Innovation: Programmatic Trust 06:26 From DeFi Summer to Modern Blockchains 08:04 Pyth Network: Boosting DeFi Infrastructure 08:34 Price Feeds: Solving the Oracle Problem with Speed 10:06 How Pyth Sources Institutional-Grade Market Data 11:04 PythNet: Data Aggregation & Multi-Chain Distribution 12:08 Monetizing Oracle Data Across 80+ Blockchains 13:12 Entropy: Verifiable On-Chain Randomness 14:30 Express Relay: Solving the MEV Problem 15:42 Instant Access to Liquidation & Searchers Network 16:44 Adoption: Pyth Powers 60% of On-Chain Derivatives 17:26 Closing: Beating TradFi with Superior DeFi Infrastructure _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇸🇬 *Pragma Singapore* Pragma Singapore 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place September 19, 2024 at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore. Pragma Singapore 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Singapore playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6z0saYJnVdgXWfz-vaoEYx&si=uavhkhF5Kc8XBoLv ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Mike Cahill* X: https://x.com/mdomcahill ✅ *Follow Duoro Labs* X: https://x.com/DouroLabs ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Join Kartik Talwar, co-founder of ETHGlobal, for the opening remarks at Pragma Singapore 2024. Discover what makes Pragma unique—a conference dedicated to pragmatism, mainstream adoption, and insights directly from founders shaping the crypto and blockchain industry. Kartik introduces the event's goals, structure, and ethos, setting the stage for a weekend of innovation, building, and non-technical discussions that aim to bring crypto to a broader audience. 00:00 Introduction to Pragma Singapore 2024 00:42 ETHGlobal: Conferences and Hackathons Worldwide 01:17 Pragma: Pragmatism & Mainstream Adoption in Crypto 01:40 Single-Day, Single-Track Founder-Focused Format 02:07 Non-Technical Approach to Crypto Discussions _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇸🇬 *Pragma Singapore* Pragma Singapore 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place September 19, 2024 at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore. Pragma Singapore 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Singapore playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6z0saYJnVdgXWfz-vaoEYx&si=uavhkhF5Kc8XBoLv ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sergey Nazarov, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Join Sergey Nazarov, co-founder of Chainlink, in an engaging fireside chat with Kartik Talwar of ETHGlobal at Pragma Singapore 2024. Sergey reflects on Chainlink’s evolution over the past seven years, detailing its early days powering DeFi through decentralized price feeds and exploring its future role in cross-chain interoperability, institutional adoption, and real-world assets (RWAs). Discover how CCIP and Chainlink oracles bridge traditional finance (TradFi) with decentralized finance (DeFi), Sergey’s vision for blockchain beyond crypto, and his predictions on global financial markets moving onto blockchains. 00:00 Introduction & Chainlink's 7-Year Journey 01:55 Early Days: ETH/USD Price Oracle & DeFi Foundations 03:37 Expansion of Chainlink Oracle Networks & Use Cases 05:18 Chainlink Computation: Beyond Price Feeds 05:59 Example: Random Number Generation for Gaming 06:27 Chainlink Functions & Arbitrary Computation 06:59 Cross-Chain Bridging as Data Transmission 07:35 Integrating AI Models with Chainlink Oracles 09:56 Oracle Networks: Consensus Beyond Blockchains 10:28 CCIP Development & Cross-Chain Interoperability 12:14 Bridging Security & Reliability Issues in DeFi 14:02 TradFi Adoption & Institutional Interest in Blockchain 15:44 Asset Management & Institutional Demand for RWAs 17:38 Dedicated Digital Asset Teams in TradFi Institutions 18:44 Real-World Assets (RWAs) vs. Cryptocurrency Market 21:16 Blockchain's Evolution: Beyond Cryptocurrencies 23:44 Timeline Predictions: TradFi & Institutional Adoption 26:00 RWAs Reducing Systemic Risks in Crypto 28:17 The Future Role of Blockchain: Powering Global Economy _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇸🇬 *Pragma Singapore* Pragma Singapore 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place September 19, 2024 at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore. Pragma Singapore 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Singapore playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6z0saYJnVdgXWfz-vaoEYx&si=uavhkhF5Kc8XBoLv ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Sergey Nazarov* X: https://x.com/SergeyNazarov ✅ *Follow Chainlink* X: https://x.com/Chainlink ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Marek Olszewski

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

At Pragma Singapore 2024, Marek Olszewski, Co-Founder of Celo, delivers an engaging and inspiring talk on how crypto can be real—and already is on Celo. Moving beyond meme coins and speculation, Marek showcases real-world use cases like cross-border payments, savings, uncollateralized lending, remittances, and on-chain mobile experiences, all happening on-chain via the Celo platform. Marek reveals how Celo surpassed Tron in daily active stablecoin users, how MiniPay (built into Opera Mini) is unlocking on-chain financial tools for millions, and how projects like Vera and Haraka are making stablecoin savings and microloans accessible to users in Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. He also dives into Celo’s transition from an L1 to an L2 on Ethereum using the OP Stack and EigenDA, bringing Celo’s mobile-first UX, token gas fees, and carbon offset model to Ethereum’s rollup-centric future. 00:00 Intro: Making Crypto Real on Celo 01:32 Real World Use Cases of Crypto 03:28 Savings Use Case with Stablecoins 04:01 Cross-Border Money Transfers 04:34 Splitting Bills Across Borders 05:06 Uncollateralized Loans via Crypto 05:44 Payments as a Core Use Case 06:20 Most Used Blockchain for Payments 06:56 Celo Surpasses Tron in Stablecoin Users 07:39 Overcoming the Bear Market 08:12 Transaction Growth on Celo 09:19 What’s Driving Real Usage 09:56 MiniPay and Opera Mini Wallet 10:30 Year-on-Year Usage Growth 11:03 Saving with Stablecoin Yield (Vera Wallet) 12:29 Crypto vs Traditional Remittances 13:36 Lending Against Future Income (Haraka) 15:15 Why We Need Stablecoins for All Currencies 16:23 Stablecoins on Mento for Local Economies 16:58 Celo’s Transition from L1 to L2 17:31 Unique Features Celo Brings to L2 18:11 The Challenge of a Hard Hard Fork 19:21 Celo L2 Roadmap: Dango, Alpha Horus, Mainnet 20:21 Ethereum as the Settlement Layer 21:00 Final Thoughts and Spirited Away Ending _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇸🇬 *Pragma Singapore* Pragma Singapore 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place September 19, 2024 at the Fullerton Hotel in Singapore. Pragma Singapore 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Singapore playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6z0saYJnVdgXWfz-vaoEYx&si=uavhkhF5Kc8XBoLv ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Marek Olszewski* X: https://x.com/marek_ ✅ *Follow Celo* X: https://x.com/Celo ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Chris Yin

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Join Chris Yin of Plume Network as he breaks down why “Real-World Assets” (RWAs) will eventually fade out – and why the stablecoin model holds the key to bridging on-chain and off-chain value. Learn how Plume’s approach to RWA adoption focuses on crypto-native formats, composable design, and active community-building rather than simply porting legacy “TradFi” products onto blockchains. Discover how institutional headlines (BlackRock, Franklin Templeton) can distract from what truly drives adoption, how stablecoins became the original RWA success story, and why Plume’s ecosystem is thriving by offering a liquid, permissionless user experience. If you’re ready to move beyond the hype and unlock real usage for on-chain assets, this talk explains the next phase of RWA evolution in DeFi. 000:00 Introduction & RWA Hype 01:10 Growth of RWA Market & Headlines 02:45 Why Institutional “Tokenization” Might Mislead 04:02 Comparing Stablecoins vs. On-Chain Treasuries 05:45 Defining RWAs & Crypto-Native Assets 07:18 Public Sector Examples: DMV Titles & Salesforce 09:10 Real Adoption: The Story of Stablecoins as RWA 10:58 On-Chain Assets: Liquid, Permissionless & Composable 12:55 Plume Network: Mission & Ecosystem Overview 14:28 Building for Crypto Natives vs. Traditional Finance 16:11 Plume’s Approach: Liquidity & Community 17:30 Examples: Pokemon Card Derivatives & Real-Yield Assets 18:35 Why “RWAs” as a Category Should Disappear 20:25 Conclusion & Next Steps with Plume _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma San Francisco* Pragma San Francisco 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place October 16th and 17th at The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, CA. Pragma San Francisco 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma San Francisco playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4LcwDpGf_itZrAu7XRNb07&si=3x3y9J3avgNTITUe ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Chris Yin* X: https://x.com/chriseyin ✅ *Follow Plume Network* X: https://x.com/plumenetwork ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Roham Gharegozlou, CEO of Dapper Labs (creators of CryptoKitties and NBA Top Shot), reveals why crypto technology is crucial for consumer experiences of the future. From bridging generative AI concerns with on-chain authenticity to launching a new cross-chain version of CryptoKitties on Telegram, Roham explains how “collecting” quickly evolves into dynamic gameplay, trading, and brand engagement. Learn how Dapper’s partnerships with the NBA, NFL, Disney, and Ticketmaster have onboarded millions of users to blockchain—often without mentioning “crypto” at all. If you’re building consumer dApps, discover how flow’s new EVM compatibility, robust wallet experience, and “white-label” approach let you reach mainstream audiences while still tapping into Web3 composability and bridging across Ethereum. 00:00 Introduction & Dapper Labs Overview 00:49 Why Consumer Crypto Extends Beyond Crypto Natives 02:07 From CryptoKitties to NBA Top Shot & Disney 03:25 The Importance of AI, Authenticity & Provenance 04:20 Telegram as a Social Distribution Platform 05:12 Reimagining CryptoKitties with Cross-Chain Design 06:25 Sports: Massive Gateway for Crypto Adoption 08:02 NBA & NFL Partnerships: Engaging Fans with Digital Collectibles 09:47 Everyday Usage: “Fast Break” & “Playbook” for Real-World Gamification 11:16 Ticketmaster’s Digital Ticket Stubs & Flow’s Role 12:35 Deep Dive: Dapper’s Season Plans & “Daily Gameplay” 13:45 Extending NBA Top Shot & NFL All Day with Third-Party Apps 14:50 Flow Blockchain: EVM Compatibility & Cross-Chain Bridges 16:30 Unlocking Composability & Building DeFi-Like Mechanics 17:48 Partnership with Ethereum Ecosystem & Hackathon Invitation 19:05 Closing Remarks & Future Vision _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma San Francisco* Pragma San Francisco 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place October 16th and 17th at The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, CA. Pragma San Francisco 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma San Francisco playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4LcwDpGf_itZrAu7XRNb07&si=3x3y9J3avgNTITUe ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Roham Gharegozlou* X: https://x.com/roham ✅ *Follow Dapper Labs* X: https://x.com/DapperLabs ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Explore how Web3 can achieve mainstream adoption through native mobile experiences with Denisse Halm, founder at Mobile Stack and Valora. Discover the critical gaps limiting Web3 growth, the vast potential of global smartphone usage, and the necessity for user-centric mobile applications. Learn how Mobile Stack simplifies creating engaging, secure, and accessible Web3 apps, facilitating adoption beyond current crypto users. Featuring insights into app development, UX considerations, and consumer-focused innovations. 00:00 Intro: Making Web3 Mobile for Everyone 00:51 About Denisse Halm, Valora & Mobile Stack 01:35 Global Smartphone Adoption Trends 02:13 Crypto Ownership vs Actual Web3 Usage 03:40 Web2 UX Expectations vs Web3 Reality 04:14 Complex Web3 User Journeys Explained 05:30 Importance of Seamless User Experience 06:55 Infrastructure Exists, but Who Uses It? 07:29 Major Web3 Projects Going Mobile 08:14 Gap Analysis: Mobile Web3 Experiences 08:52 Opportunities for Mass Crypto Adoption 09:37 Challenges of Building Mobile Web3 Apps 10:47 UX & Security Trade-offs in Mobile Apps 11:24 Key User Journeys in Web3 Products 12:05 Increasing Consumer Confidence in Web3 12:42 Introducing Mobile Stack Platform 13:21 Demo: Hypothetical Curve Mobile App 13:56 Customizable Branding & UX in Apps 14:33 Single-App Web3 User Experience Explained 15:10 Mobile Stack Features & Integrations 16:18 Key Plugins for Enhanced User Experience 17:22 Mobile-First Strategies for Global Users 18:03 Case Study: SheFi’s Web3 Education App 19:22 Conclusion & How to Connect _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma San Francisco* Pragma San Francisco 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place October 16th and 17th at The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, CA. Pragma San Francisco 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma San Francisco playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4LcwDpGf_itZrAu7XRNb07&si=3x3y9J3avgNTITUe ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Denisse Halm* X: https://x.com/hola_denisse ✅ *Follow Valora* X: https://x.com/valora ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Matthias Broner, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Join Matthias Broner, Head of Growth at ZKsync, and Kartik Talwar from ETHGlobal for a deep dive into blockchain adoption strategies and the unique growth of crypto in Latin America. Matthias shares insights on how ZKsync scaled their Layer 2 solution with zero-knowledge technology (ZK), emphasizing real-world applications such as stablecoin usage, decentralized digital identities, and practical blockchain solutions in Argentina and beyond. Discover how ZKsync's elastic chain vision fosters interoperability, the role of government-backed digital identities, and effective strategies for attracting blockchain developers. 00:00 Introduction: Matthias Broner & ZKsync Fireside Chat 00:37 Growing Protocols & Lessons from ZKsync 01:13 What is ZKsync & Yearly Achievements 02:09 Measuring Growth: Key Metrics at ZKsync 03:32 Why Latin America is Key for Crypto Growth 04:53 Crypto Adoption Patterns in Latin America 06:20 Popularity & Use of Stablecoins in LatAm 07:41 Demographics & Crypto Usage Stats in LatAm 09:02 Tips for Success Building Crypto in LatAm 10:29 Insights from Argentina's Crypto Ecosystem 11:56 Beyond Payments: Real-World Blockchain Use Cases 12:23 Digital Identity & Buenos Aires Government Initiative 13:51 Self-Sovereign Identity & ZK Technology 14:46 Local Reaction to Blockchain-Based Identity 16:32 How ZKsync Supports Growth & Adoption in LatAm 17:52 Strategies for Effective Developer Engagement 19:20 Activating Community Through Decentralized Governance 20:10 Conclusion & Takeaways from Matthias Broner _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma San Francisco* Pragma San Francisco 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place October 16th and 17th at The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, CA. Pragma San Francisco 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma San Francisco playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4LcwDpGf_itZrAu7XRNb07&si=3x3y9J3avgNTITUe ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Mattias Broner* X: https://x.com/BronerMatthias ✅ *Follow ZKsync* X: https://x.com/zksync ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Join Dieter Shirley, Chief Architect of Flow Foundation, and Kartik Talwar from ETHGlobal, in a deep dive into Flow's major Crescendo upgrade. Learn how Flow now supports EVM compatibility within Cadence, dramatically enhancing blockchain interoperability, developer flexibility, and user experiences. Dieter shares insights from his extensive experience with CryptoKitties, smart contract scalability, and designing blockchains for mainstream adoption. Discover how Flow's architectural innovations offer unmatched speed, scalability, and decentralization. 00:00 Introduction: Dieter Shirley & Flow's Major Upgrade 00:41 Celebrating ETHGlobal's Impact & History 01:58 Exploring Trade-offs in Blockchain Development 02:25 Flow's Major Crescendo Network Upgrade 03:18 How Flow Built an Early Data Availability Layer 03:55 Flow's Improved Speed & Scalability Metrics 04:23 Cadence 1.0: The Next-gen Smart Contract Language 04:52 Introducing EVM Equivalence on Flow Blockchain 06:30 Why Flow Adopted EVM Despite Cadence Advantages 08:06 Technical Approach: Running EVM Inside Cadence 09:49 How Flow EVM Uses Efficient Native State Storage 10:27 Impact on Cross-chain Infrastructure Providers 10:57 New Opportunities for EVM-first Developers 11:27 Enhancing Solidity with Cadence Extensions 12:34 Advanced Features Exclusive to Cadence vs. Solidity 13:38 Example: Atomic Multi-call Transactions in Cadence 15:06 Benefits for Native Cadence Developers from EVM 16:38 How Flow Attracts Mainstream Crypto Adoption 17:40 Advice on Building Consumer-friendly Blockchain Apps 20:03 Balancing User Friction & Motivating Features 20:42 Flow EVM: Implications for Ethereum Ecosystem 22:23 The Superior Developer Experience of Cadence 22:56 Flow Foundation's Long-term Vision & North Star 24:35 Decentralization as Core Promise of Flow Blockchain 25:45 Conclusion: Building Sustainable Apps on Flow _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma San Francisco* Pragma San Francisco 2024 was a special gathering of founders and builders that took place October 16th and 17th at The Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco, CA. Pragma San Francisco 2024 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma San Francisco playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4LcwDpGf_itZrAu7XRNb07&si=3x3y9J3avgNTITUe ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Dieter Shirley* X: https://x.com/dete73 ✅ *Follow Flow Foundation* X: https://x.com/flow_blockchain ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Edwin Aoki

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Discover how PayPal’s digital currency initiative is reshaping global payments in this in-depth conversation with Edwin Aoki, PayPal’s CTO of Blockchain, Crypto, and Digital Currencies. Learn about the launch of PayPal USD (PYUSD), the strategic reasons behind creating a stablecoin, and how blockchain technology is bridging old payment rails (like wire transfers and SWIFT) with modern digital assets. Edwin shares insights on multi-chain adoption (including Ethereum and Solana), confidential transfers, regulatory compliance, and real-world use cases—from B2B crypto payments to everyday consumer transactions. Key topics include: • Why PayPal ventured into crypto and how digital assets improve cost and efficiency • PYUSD design, bankruptcy-remote reserves, and NYDFS greenlisting • Seamless merchant integrations, enabling users to spend cryptocurrency anywhere PayPal is accepted • Exploring confidential transactions on Solana for privacy in business-to-business payments • Future innovations in smart contracts, cross-border payments, and SAP integration Don’t miss this behind-the-scenes look at how a global financial leader embraces Web3, stablecoins, and the next generation of commerce. 00:00 Introduction & Keynote Opening 00:49 Meet Edwin Aoki, PayPal’s Digital Currency CTO 01:57 Why PayPal Entered the Crypto Space 02:26 Bridging Old Payment Rails With Blockchain 03:04 Outdated Systems & Crypto’s Efficiency 04:09 How Stablecoins Improve Global Payments 05:52 Moving from Buy/Hold to Stablecoins 07:31 Seamless Merchant Integration with Crypto 08:37 Launch of PayPal Stablecoin (PYUSD) 09:12 Multi-Chain Approach & Confidential Transfers 10:23 How PYUSD Differs from Other Stablecoins 11:35 Optimizing Smart Contracts for Payments 13:11 Bankruptcy-Remote Reserves & NYDFS Approval 14:17 Compliance & Innovation at PayPal 15:24 Executive Backing & Corporate Challenges 17:42 Expanding PYUSD & Multi-Currency Plans 19:21 Future Focus: SAP Integration & Global Adoption 20:52 Looking Ahead to Payment Innovations _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎤 *Pragma Bankgkok* Pragma Bangkok 2024 closed out a year of exceptional Pragma events held around the world, and offered the global Web3 community a chance to hear from founders and builders as they reflect on the past, and look to the future of Web3. Pragma Bangkok 2024 was held on November 14th at the Hyatt Regency Bangkok Sukhumvit in Bangkok, Thailand. Watch the full YouTube Playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4JNkhnsv5F95OqxT_IjCEl&si=6Tv3CvB6vrQIIjBA ETHGlobal's Pragma series, which began in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, has been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. You can learn more about Pragma and upcoming events in the series here: https://ethglobal.com/pragma _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow PayPal X: https://x.com/PayPal Website: https://www.paypal.com ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

How can DeFi evolve to serve billions of users without breaking the EVM gas limits? In this fireside chat, Anton Bukov, co-founder of 1inch, discusses how protocol design, O(1) complexity, and innovations like 1inch Fusion can create more scalable, non-custodial solutions. From hackathon origins to cross-chain atomic swaps, learn how architectural optimizations, precompiles, and smart-contract best practices can deliver familiar entry points for global DeFi adoption. Topics Covered: • The 1inch journey from hackathon project to DeFi aggregator • Achieving constant-time (O(1)) complexity for mass scalability • Why gas will never be “enough” and how to design around constraints • Credit card integrations for mainstream DeFi • L2 scaling solutions, cross-chain bridging, and atomic swaps • Building with self-custody in mind and the future of Fusion Plus • Stay tuned for Anton’s insights on pushing DeFi UX forward while preserving security and efficiency—plus a preview of what’s next for 1inch in the race to onboard the next wave of crypto users. 00:00 Introduction & Anton Bukov Welcome 00:54 1inch Origins as a Hackathon Project 02:14 Early DEX Aggregation & Growth 03:42 Introducing 1inch Fusion & Intent-Based Swaps 04:45 Credit Card Integration for DeFi 06:20 Designing Protocols for Gas Constraints 08:02 Billions of Wallets & O(1) Complexity 09:05 Architectural Frameworks for Efficiency 11:08 Examples of Constant-Time Algorithms 12:13 EVM Extensions & Precompiles for Layer 2 14:17 Cross-Chain Strategy & Atomic Swaps 19:27 Non-Custodial Fusion Plus & Future Plans 21:28 Closing Remarks & Thank You _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎤 *Pragma Bankgkok* Pragma Bangkok 2024 closed out a year of exceptional Pragma events held around the world, and offered the global Web3 community a chance to hear from founders and builders as they reflect on the past, and look to the future of Web3. Pragma Bangkok 2024 was held on November 14th at the Hyatt Regency Bangkok Sukhumvit in Bangkok, Thailand. Watch the full YouTube Playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4JNkhnsv5F95OqxT_IjCEl&si=6Tv3CvB6vrQIIjBA ETHGlobal's Pragma series, which began in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, has been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. You can learn more about Pragma and upcoming events in the series here: https://ethglobal.com/pragma _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Anton Bukov X: https://x.com/k06a ✅ Follow 1inch X: https://x.com/1inch Website: https://1inch.io YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCk0nvK4bHpteQXZKv7lkq5w ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Jesse Pollak

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Join Jesse Pollak, Head of Base at Coinbase, as he shares how to build L2 networks people actually use, drawing from Base’s milestone of 1 billion+ transactions. In this candid talk from Pragma Bangkok, Jesse reveals how strategic developer tools, global marketing, and an “everyone’s a builder” ethos created unstoppable growth. Learn why L2 synergy with Ethereum is vital—not contentious—and how continuous scaling (a target of “Giga-gas” block space), smoother onboarding for developers, and user-friendly wallets can unlock a billion-person onchain economy. Jesse highlights two breakout categories—payments and social—that he predicts will drive exponential adoption. Discover how to merge viral social experiences with integrated payments, stablecoins, and truly inclusive wallet design to bring the next wave of onchain users. 00:00 Intro & Shoutout to Georgios 01:20 Base Reaches 1B Transactions 02:45 Developer Virality & Community 04:40 Coinbase Synergy & Growth 06:30 L2 vs. Ethereum: Synergy, Not Conflict 08:05 Scaling Approach & Long-Term Vision 10:05 Giga-Gas Concept & Weekly Increments 14:10 Future of Wallets & Smart Accounts 18:20 Onchain Identity & Social Graphs 19:45 Payment + Social for Mass Adoption 22:10 2–3 Year Outlook & Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🎤 *Pragma Bankgkok* Pragma Bangkok 2024 closed out a year of exceptional Pragma events held around the world, and offered the global Web3 community a chance to hear from founders and builders as they reflect on the past, and look to the future of Web3. Pragma Bangkok 2024 was held on November 14th at the Hyatt Regency Bangkok Sukhumvit in Bangkok, Thailand. Watch the full YouTube Playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4JNkhnsv5F95OqxT_IjCEl&si=6Tv3CvB6vrQIIjBA ETHGlobal's Pragma series, which began in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, has been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. You can learn more about Pragma and upcoming events in the series here: https://ethglobal.com/pragma _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Jesse Pollak X: https://x.com/jessepollak Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/jessepollak Website: https://jesse.xyz ✅ Follow Base X: https://x.com/base Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/base Website: https://www.base.org ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Discover why Ethereum should lean into the AI revolution with Shaw from Eliza Labs, recorded live at the Agentic Ethereum 2025 Summit. Explore how LLMs and agentic chatbots can transform DeFi onboarding, streamline crypto user adoption, and bring fresh engagement to Web3 projects. Learn how AI can demystify complex topics like liquidity pooling or yield farming, boost social media presence with interactive Telegram bots, and create entirely new decentralized business models. Whether you’re a developer, founder, or simply excited by the synergy of blockchain and AI, this talk highlights practical use cases, potential pitfalls, and the crucial “fun factor” that can supercharge real-world adoption. Stay tuned for actionable insights, business ideas, and the next wave of agentic innovations within the Ethereum ecosystem. Subscribe for more talks on how AI is reshaping crypto, DeFi, and the future of Web3! 00:00 Intro: Why Ethereum Should Care About AI 00:41 AI & Knowledge Discovery in DeFi 02:13 Teaching Complex Crypto Concepts 04:03 Agentic Wallets & Social Interactions 06:22 AI Hype Cycle vs Practical Use 08:18 Engaging Users via Bots & Social Media 11:02 Fun Factor & Embodiment in AI 13:40 AI for Workflow Automation 15:36 Closing Thoughts & Next Steps _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🤖 *Agentic Ethereum 2025 Summit* Join the official Agentic Ethereum 2025 Summit for an in-depth look at AI agents, smart contracts, and how they converge to power the next era of decentralized intelligence. This is more than just a summit—it's a gathering of the brightest minds in our ecosystem, and we're honored to have Andrew Miller, Anna Kazlauskas, Davide Crapis, dcbuilder, Ed Felten, Erik Voorhees, Illia Polosukhin, Jasper Zhang, Karl Floersch, Ken Ng, Kevin Owocki, Linda Xie, Shaw, Tomasz Stanczak, Chase Allred and Vitalik Buterin and on stage for this virtual summit focused around AI Agents and Blockchain! Watch the full Agentic Ethereum 2025 Summit Playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6DrYO4ORk8wzQ5wCZDs0mW&si=ARqB9gaXAqehWH1_ 🤖 *Agentic Ethereum 2025* Agentic Ethereum is an online, async hackathon that runs from Jan. 31 to Feb. 12, 2025. With over $175,000 USD in prizes, Agentic Ethereum is a great way to dive into the world of autonomous AI agents and explore how they can revolutionize projects on Ethereum. Start the year with groundbreaking innovation! Watch the full playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7jxP_flgRf5nZ_WDgFpBy3&si=RZozbd9C5KrG6Bf3 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Shaw X: https://x.com/shawmakesmagic ✅ Follow Eliza Labs Website: https://www.elizaos.ai ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Marek Olszewski

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Discover why Celo is the Ethereum L2 you've been searching for in this insightful talk by Marek Olszewski, co-founder of Celo. Learn about Celo's seamless transition from an L1 to an OP Stack and EigenDA-based L2, its ultra-low transaction fees, 1-second block times, and robust stablecoin ecosystem with native USDT. Explore how Celo supports real-world adoption through wallets like Opera Mini Pay and Valora, AI innovation with CXAI, and decentralized identity via Self Protocol. Whether you're a developer or crypto enthusiast, find out why Celo is the ideal platform for fast, affordable, and user-friendly blockchain applications. 00:00 - Introduction: Celo’s Transition to Ethereum L2 00:54 - The Hard Hard Fork: Celo’s Unprecedented Upgrade 03:41 - Engineering Challenges & Client Migration 05:29 - Community & Partner Support for the Upgrade 06:41 - Seamless Migration for DApps (Uniswap Example) 07:49 - The Great Celo Happening: Inflation Cut to 1% 09:02 - Reason 1: Fast & Affordable Transactions 11:38 - Reason 2: Celo’s Stablecoin Ecosystem 12:57 - Reason 3: Real Users & Mass Adoption 16:31 - Reason 4: AI & Agent-Based Innovation (CXAI) 17:56 - Reason 5: Decentralized Identity (Self Protocol) 19:51 - Hackathon Prizes & Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇹🇼 *Pragma Taipei* Pragma Taipei 2025 was held on April 3rd at POPOP in Taipei, Taiwan and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Taipei YouTube Playlist here: ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Marek Olszewski X: https://x.com/marek_ ✅ Follow Celo X: https://x.com/Celo ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Denisse Halm, co-founder of Divvy, presents a groundbreaking approach to funding sustainable growth in web3. Learn why traditional grants and hackathons often fail to drive long-term adoption and how Divvy’s on-chain protocol rewards builders based on measurable impact—not hype. Discover how ecosystems can deploy capital more efficiently by incentivizing real on-chain activity, empowering builders to focus on product-market fit, and fostering a diverse range of user experiences. If you're a builder, protocol, or investor looking for smarter ways to scale web3 adoption, this talk is a must-watch. 00:00 - Introduction: The Challenge of Web3 Adoption 00:53 - Why Traditional Funding Fails (Grants & Hackathons) 02:14 - $2B Spent, Low Adoption: What’s Broken? 03:39 - The Problem with Short-Term Incentives 05:01 - How Grants Stifle Builder Productivity 06:17 - Divvy’s Solution: Pay for On-Chain Impact 07:38 - How Divvy Works: Protocols, Builders & Users 09:24 - Smart Contracts for Transparent Rewards 10:32 - On-Chain Attribution & Permissionless Funding 11:39 - Why Protocols Love Divvy (Scalability & ROI) 12:50 - Benefits for Builders: No Grants, No Politics 13:59 - Case Studies: Beefy & Liquidity Revenue Sharing 15:10 - How to Implement Impact-Based Funding 16:58 - Join Divvy: For Protocols & Builders 17:36 - Closing: Fund Outcomes, Not Hype _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇹🇼 *Pragma Taipei* Pragma Taipei 2025 was held on April 3rd at POPOP in Taipei, Taiwan and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Taipei YouTube Playlist here: ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Denisse Halm X: https://x.com/hola_denisse ✅ Follow Divvi X: https://x.com/letsdivvi ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Francis Li from HashKey Chain explores Web3's "Maritime Era," where blockchain must balance decentralization with real-world compliance to achieve mass adoption. Learn how regulatory integration, on-chain insurance, and user-friendly solutions like social recovery (EIP-702) can rebuild trust and bridge traditional finance with Web3. Discover HashKey’s approach to compliance-as-a-service, enabling builders to innovate while institutions handle security. Essential for projects scaling beyond crypto-native users. 00:00 - Introduction: Web3’s "Maritime Era" & HashKey’s Vision 00:46 - Why Compliance is Web3’s Next Frontier 02:04 - Core Ideals: Permissionless Finance & Global Access 03:14 - Memecoin Volatility vs. Sustainable Growth 05:16 - EIP-702: Social Recovery for Mainstream Users 06:29 - HashKey’s Gasless Transactions (HSK Token) 07:03 - Rebuilding Trust Through Compliance 08:24 - Banks vs. Crypto: Simplifying Security 09:40 - HashKey’s Compliance-as-a-Service Model 10:21 - On-Chain Insurance & Liquidity Solutions 11:38 - How Compliance Unlocks Builder Innovation 12:15 - Closing: Compliance as a Bridge to Adoption _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇹🇼 *Pragma Taipei* Pragma Taipei 2025 was held on April 3rd at POPOP in Taipei, Taiwan and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Taipei YouTube Playlist here: ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow HashKey Chain X: https://x.com/HashKeyHSK ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this talk at Pragma Prague 2025, Martin Derka from Zircuit explores how intelligent sequencers can enhance blockchain security. He explains Zircuit's approach to sequencer-level security (SLS) using AI to detect and prevent hacks in real-time, sharing insights on EVM compatibility, transaction analysis architectures, and practical applications like phishing protection. The presentation covers technical challenges in implementing proactive security measures while maintaining blockchain performance, along with real-world testing methodologies to validate the system's effectiveness. 00:00 Introduction to Martin Derka and Zircuit 00:47 The problem: Recurring blockchain hacks 01:25 Zircuit's mission: Proactive chain security 01:57 Zircuit as EVM-equivalent ZK rollup 02:34 Traditional rollup flow vs SLS architecture 03:06 How sequencer-level security works 03:37 Transaction quarantine process 04:08 System design requirements 04:40 Scanning transactions vs full blocks 05:10 SLS 1.0: Transaction-level analysis 05:42 Advantages of pre-block analysis 06:16 Transaction dependency challenges 06:43 SLS 2.0: Block-level analysis 07:11 Performance tradeoffs 07:32 SLS 3.0: Optimistic execution 08:04 Handling analysis delays 08:28 Zircuit's hybrid SLS approach 08:48 Current architecture evolution 09:24 Training AI to detect hacks 10:01 Leveraging EVM compatibility 10:33 Model accuracy metrics 11:13 Potential impact on historical hacks 11:39 False positive challenges 12:09 Testing methodology 12:43 Porting real-world hacks for testing 13:14 Migration challenges 13:44 Research on contract migration 14:17 Address reference handling 14:49 Phishing protection use case 15:19 Wallet security limitations 15:50 On-chain phishing detection 16:22 Superiority of sequencer-level protection 16:54 Rule-based transaction filtering 17:25 Institutional adoption benefits 17:58 KYC/AML compliance solutions 18:30 System synchronization challenges 18:59 Forced inclusion considerations 19:32 DOS attack prevention 20:03 User experience design 20:36 Future detector development _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇨🇿 *Pragma Prague* Pragma Prague 2025 was held on May 29th at Holešovice Market in Prague, Czech Republic and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. This event was in collaboration with ETH Prague. Watch the full Pragma Prague YouTube Playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7vLS72NelQ2dOx2VgPNxJZ&si=UsHtX5roJ4R2R4_K ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Martin Derka X: https://x.com/dr_zircuit ✅ Follow Zircuit X: https://x.com/ZircuitL2 ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this fireside chat at Pragma Prague 2025, Kartik Talwar sits down with Friederike Ernst, co-founder of Gnosis, to explore Circles - a revolutionary approach to personal currencies. They discuss how Circles reimagines money creation using modern cryptography, eliminating banks as intermediaries while maintaining a web-of-trust model. The conversation covers practical implementation, group currencies, liquidity challenges, and real-world adoption strategies for this alternative monetary system that puts currency issuance directly in users' hands. 00:00 Introduction to Friederike Ernst and Circles concept 00:47 Defining Circles: Modern money with today's technology 01:26 How traditional money creation works through banks 02:40 Moving money issuance to individuals with cryptography 03:20 Settlement vs issuance: The role of banks in Circles 03:58 Circles mechanics: 24 daily issuance & demurrage 04:38 Personal currencies and the web-of-trust model 05:16 Protocol routing through trust connections 06:27 Abstracted pathfinding for transactions 07:02 Solving Sybil attacks through local network curation 07:37 Incentives for maintaining trust networks 08:10 Addressing liquidity challenges in daily transactions 08:45 Group currencies as liquidity solutions 09:27 Example: Self group implementation 10:02 Multiple identity solutions (Worldcoin, BrightID) 10:40 Pricing non-fungible personal currencies 11:15 Group currency valuation dynamics 11:49 Market-driven liquidity fragmentation 12:23 No enforced restrictions on currency behavior 12:56 Complementarity with proof-of-personhood systems 13:25 Agnostic identity verification approach 14:12 Decentralized ownership of currency networks 14:55 Circles adoption journey since 2020 launch 15:44 Challenging dollar dominance in global trade 16:22 Changing perceptions about money as technology 16:56 From cognitive shift to practical usage 17:31 New user-friendly app with QR code payments 18:04 Price stability and co-payment strategies 19:14 Localized pricing with group currencies 20:40 Incentivizing network growth and adoption 21:47 Positive early adoption experiences 22:24 Network effects and personal incentives 23:03 How to sign up for Circles V2 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇨🇿 *Pragma Prague* Pragma Prague 2025 was held on May 29th at Holešovice Market in Prague, Czech Republic and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. This event was in collaboration with ETH Prague. Watch the full Pragma Prague YouTube Playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7vLS72NelQ2dOx2VgPNxJZ&si=lQumFEDOqD_CNswb ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Friederike Ernst X: https://x.com/tw_tter ✅ Follow Gnosis X: https://x.com/gnosisDAO ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Paul Brody

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this talk at Pragma Prague 2025, Paul Brody from EY dives into the critical role of privacy in enterprise blockchain adoption. He explains why business privacy is more complex than consumer privacy, covering regulatory challenges, zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs), and scalable solutions like EY’s Nightfall and Starlight. Brody also discusses the future of privacy tech, compliance strategies, and why Ethereum is the backbone for enterprise blockchain. A must-watch for anyone interested in crypto, supply chain, DeFi, and enterprise blockchain solutions. 00:00 Introduction to Paul Brody and business privacy 00:49 Why business privacy is harder than consumer privacy 01:15 The value of privacy in enterprise coordination 02:12 How modern supply chains complicate coordination 03:12 Tokenization and smart contracts for business processes 04:17 Two types of privacy: Money vs. agreement terms 05:14 EY’s Nightfall (ZK rollup) and Starlight (private smart contracts) 06:18 Five challenges in enterprise privacy solutions 07:56 Regulatory compliance and confidentiality in privacy tech 09:25 Key requirements for enterprise privacy solutions 10:33 Privacy challenges in supply chain traceability 11:06 Four major privacy tech choices (ZKPs, MPC, HE, TEEs) 12:10 Why EY chose zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) 13:25 Evolution of Nightfall from prototype to production 14:03 Early high-value use cases for private transactions 14:33 Smart contracts for enforcing business agreements 15:31 Future of scalable, general-purpose privacy solutions 16:11 Performance improvements in ZKP technology 17:15 Why EY is an Ethereum maxi firm 18:25 Q&A: Other Big Four firms entering blockchain _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇨🇿 *Pragma Prague* Pragma Prague 2025 was held on May 29th at Holešovice Market in Prague, Czech Republic and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. This event was in collaboration with ETH Prague. Watch the full Pragma Prague YouTube Playlist here: ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Paul Brody X: https://x.com/pbrody ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Markus Haas

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this talk at Pragma Prague 2025, Markus Haas introduces the dGEN1 hardware wallet from Ethos, designed to revolutionize mobile crypto security. He explains how the device implements account abstraction at the OS level, creating a seamless smart wallet experience across all apps while maintaining EOA compatibility. The presentation covers Ethos's journey from forking Android to developing secure enclave technology, the benefits of their account-abstracted EOA approach, and their vision for making crypto a first-class citizen on mobile devices. 00:00 Introduction to Markus Haas and Ethos 00:56 The mobile crypto UX problem in 2021 01:32 dGEN1 hardware wallet launch 02:09 Account-abstracted EOA concept 02:48 Bridging AA wallets with dApps 03:21 Seamless user experience benefits 03:52 Instant smart wallet setup 04:25 Solving AA fragmentation 05:01 Cross-chain gas management 05:32 Unified wallet across all apps 06:10 Open-source vision for Android 06:48 P256 secure enclave security 07:26 Invisible UX improvements 08:05 Making crypto first-class on mobile _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇨🇿 *Pragma Prague* Pragma Prague 2025 was held on May 29th at Holešovice Market in Prague, Czech Republic and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. This event was in collaboration with ETH Prague. Watch the full Pragma Prague YouTube Playlist here: ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow ethOS X: https://x.com/EthereumPhone ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Learn how to build scalable, gas-efficient blockchain apps on Flow in this ETHGlobal Prague 2025 workshop with b z from the Flow Foundation. Discover why Flow is the fastest EVM-compatible L1, featuring native account abstraction, gasless UX, and on-chain metadata storage. Walk through deploying a dApp with on-chain randomness, cross-chain DeFi strategies, and Cadence (Flow's resource-oriented language). Includes live demos, $10K bounty details, and judging criteria for hackathon participants. Perfect for Solidity devs exploring high-performance chains and Web3 builders targeting mass adoption. 00:00 - Introduction to Flow Blockchain & Workshop Goals 00:45 - Why Flow? Scaling Lessons from CryptoKitties 01:27 - Flow’s Origins: Solving Ethereum’s UX & Scalability 02:33 - Flow’s Advantages: Gasless UX & EVM Compatibility 03:39 - Cadence vs. Solidity: Resource-Oriented Programming 04:14 - Cross-VM Composability (EVM + Cadence) 04:49 - Flow’s Ecosystem: NBA, Disney, Ticketmaster NFTs 05:26 - Flow’s Multi-Role Node Architecture Explained 06:28 - Energy Efficiency & Gas Cost Comparisons 07:05 - $10K Bounties: Killer Apps & Cross-Chain DeFi 07:45 - What Makes a Killer App? (CryptoKitties, Uniswap) 08:50 - Cross-Chain DeFi: LayerZero, Stablecoin Farms 09:25 - Batch Transactions & On-Chain Randomness Demo 10:05 - Live Demo: Deploying a Contract in 5 Minutes 11:13 - Frontend Integration with Cursor & Wagmi 12:28 - Debugging & Chain ID Configuration 13:02 - On-Chain Metadata Storage (CloneX Case Study) 14:02 - Developer Resources: Faucet, Docs, Telegram 14:33 - Mainnet Deployment & Upgradeable Contracts 15:08 - Advanced Flow Features: Magic Link, Hybrid Custody 16:17 - Key Rotation & High-Throughput Accounts 16:54 - Cross-Chain Tools: LayerZero, V3 Labs 17:37 - Judging Criteria: Tech, UX, Adoption, Originality 18:44 - Flow Grants Program ($50K Pools) 19:19 - Q&A: Testing, NFT Minting, On-Chain Storage _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇨🇿 *ETHGlobal Prague* This workshop is specifically for ETHGlobal Prague, a 3-day hackathon held May 30 - June 1 2025, bringing together the most skilled web3 developers, designers and product builders from all around the globe for a weekend-long adventure to advance the Ethereum ecosystem! Watch the full ETHGlobal Prague 2025 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5Vv-ZobDU2YMWekDFYvOqd&si=SoQ5O2TOAK8RkYf- _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this fireside chat at Pragma Cannes 2025, Kartik Talwar interviews Roham Gharegozlou, CEO of Dapper Labs, about the evolution and mainstream adoption of consumer crypto, NFTs, and blockchain technology. They discuss the shift from early projects like CryptoKitties to mass adoption driven by partnerships with major brands such as NBA, NFL, and Disney, highlighting regulatory clarity and improved infrastructure as key enablers. Roham emphasizes the importance of abstracting blockchain complexity for users, true digital ownership, and composability. The conversation explores the convergence of AI and crypto, with programmable on-chain agents and open data layers enabling new use cases. Hackathons and developer engagement are credited for ecosystem growth, especially with Flow’s EVM equivalence. Looking ahead, they predict a future where AI, AR/VR, and crypto create seamless, composable consumer experiences, with entertainment and co-creation at the forefront. 00:00 Introduction 00:43 Crypto Adoption Waves & Early Days 01:29 What’s Different Now: Regulation & Infrastructure 02:32 Mainstream Adoption: Games, Entertainment, and Institutions 03:28 Disney Partnership & Regulatory Clarity 04:08 Comparing Crypto to Early Internet Adoption 04:59 Brand Partnerships: NBA, NFL, Disney 05:49 Changing Brand Perspectives on Crypto 06:46 Digital Collectibles & Monetization Models 07:32 Open Ecosystems & User Ownership 08:51 Abstracting Blockchain for Mainstream Users 09:42 Platform Risk & Open Standards 11:25 Digital Identity & Interoperability 12:21 Blockchain as Immortal Software 12:47 AI and Crypto: Overlap & Opportunities 13:30 On-Chain Agents & Programmability 15:24 Smart Resources & Autonomous Agents 16:53 Scheduled Callbacks & Flow Features 18:02 Hackathons, Developer Ecosystem & EVM Equivalence 19:47 AI, Security, and Developer Tools 20:40 The Future of Consumer Crypto (5-Year Outlook) 21:30 Entertainment, AI, and Seamless Interfaces 22:24 Co-Creation, IP, and the Future of Experiences 23:45 Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes* Pragma Cannes 2025 was held on July 3rd at the Carlton Cannes in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6jZYPY5-YIBzvMtUT3ajjI ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Dapper Labs X: https://x.com/dapperlabs ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sergey Nazarov, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this fireside chat at Pragma Cannes 2025, Kartik Talwar interviews Sergey Nazarov, co-founder of Chainlink, about the evolving landscape of DeFi, institutional adoption, and the future of blockchain. Sergey discusses the increasing creativity in DeFi yield generation, the impact of potential Fed interest rate cuts, and the growing focus on compliance and cross-chain identity to attract institutional capital. He highlights regulatory shifts, especially in the US, enabling institutions to participate in DeFi, and predicts a massive influx of tokenized real-world assets, stablecoins, and institutional funds—potentially surpassing the current crypto market cap within three years. Sergey emphasizes the need to preserve decentralization and transparency as traditional finance enters Web3, and advises developers to focus on stablecoin innovation, payments, real-world asset issuance, and vault strategies. Chainlink’s role in providing proof of reserves, cross-chain integration, and compliance solutions is also discussed as key infrastructure for this transition. 00:00 Introduction 00:32 State of DeFi and Yield Innovation 02:14 DeFi Yield vs. Fed Rates and Institutional Interest 04:49 Institutional Perspectives and Compliance Risks 06:19 Regulatory Shifts and US Influence 08:52 Institutional Capital and On-Chain Integration 10:32 Industry Narratives and Capital Influx 12:09 Impact on Blockchain Ethos and Public Networks 13:50 Tokenization of Real-World Assets 15:27 Institutional Influence and Industry Evolution 17:35 Timeline for Institutional Adoption 18:48 Chainlink’s Role in the New Landscape 19:54 Stablecoins, Payments, and Industry Shifts 20:54 Advice for Developers and Founders 21:51 Opportunities: Stablecoins, Payments, Asset Issuance 23:34 Vaults, Asset Management, and Infrastructure 24:14 Closing Advice and Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes* Pragma Cannes 2025 was held on July 3rd at the Carlton Cannes in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6jZYPY5-YIBzvMtUT3ajjI ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Sergey Nazarov X: https://x.com/SergeyNazarov ✅ Follow Chainlink X: https://x.com/chainlink ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Vitalik Buterin, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

At Pragma Cannes 2025, Kartik Talwar and Vitalik Buterin discuss evolving trends in the Ethereum and broader crypto ecosystem. They highlight regional differences in community interests—privacy in Prague, AI in Taipei, and global diversity at Cannes. The conversation covers the shift from DeFi innovation to integration, the resurgence of previously failed ideas like micropayments and tokenized stocks, and the challenge of moving from hype to actual product delivery. They debate the intersection of AI and crypto, noting limited real-world success so far. The importance of privacy, decentralization, and composability is emphasized, especially as institutions like Robinhood launch their own chains and stablecoins. They advocate for L1 asset issuance, improved L1-L2 interoperability, and formal verification for security. The session concludes with reflections on fostering a builder culture, balancing mainstream adoption with frontier innovation, and the need for practical, user-centric solutions in Ethereum’s future. 00:00 Introduction 00:42 Icebreakers & Robinhood Launch Discussion 01:48 Diversity & Culture in Ethereum Events 03:22 Pragma’s Audience & Event Structure 05:18 Regional Trends: AI, Privacy, DeFi 06:47 DeFi: Integration vs. Innovation 08:21 The Value of Experimentation in DeFi 09:42 Revisiting Old Ideas: Micropayments, Tokenized Stocks 11:49 Privacy as Feature, Not Application 12:35 Missed Opportunities: VPNs, Bandwidth Sharing 13:14 Surprising Successes & User vs. Developer Perspectives 14:18 Ethereum’s Subcultures & Community Dynamics 16:54 Builder Culture vs. Hype Cycle 18:52 Vision for ETH Pragma 2030 20:04 Lessons from Internet History & Event Curation 22:25 Economic Impact & Hackathon Metrics 23:18 Most Impactful Ethereum Applications 24:58 Distributed Compute & Idle Resources 25:18 AI & Crypto: Current State and Challenges 28:22 AI Agents, Wallet Use Cases, and Future Potential 30:14 Decentralization: Properties vs. Technology 32:26 User Attitudes Toward Privacy & Institutional Perspectives 34:40 Governments, Privacy, and Cashless Societies 36:31 Android, Linux, and Mass Adoption Lessons 38:33 Default Choices, User Education, and Crypto Values 40:26 Institutional Chains, Fragmentation, and L1/L2 Dynamics 43:02 Technical Priorities: L1-L2 Interoperability & Security 46:07 Vision for Ethereum Culture in 2027 47:37 Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes* Pragma Cannes 2025 was held on July 3rd at the Carlton Cannes in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6jZYPY5-YIBzvMtUT3ajjI ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Vitalik Buterin X: https://x.com/VitalikButerin ✅ Follow the Ethereum Foundation X: https://x.com/ethereumfndn ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Shea Ketsdever

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Shea Ketsdever from Flashbots presents an optimistic outlook on MEV (Maximal Extractable Value) in Ethereum, focusing on the evolution of block building. She explains how block builders determine transaction inclusion and ordering, and how MEV has historically caused issues like spam and centralization. Innovations like Flashbots' MEV-G and MEV-Boost, and the introduction of Proposer-Builder Separation (PBS), improved privacy and competition but led to new centralization risks via exclusive order flow deals. The latest breakthrough, Builderet, leverages Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs) for verifiable, private, and decentralized block building, enabling orderflow sharing, permissionless refunds, and multi-operator resilience. Builderet addresses centralization, improves market efficiency, and supports Ethereum’s goals of scalability, user experience, and interoperability. Shea highlights Builderet’s role in scaling, reducing spam, enabling programmable block building, and supporting institutional adoption, positioning Ethereum ahead of competitors like Solana. 00:00 Introduction 00:34 Speaker Introduction: Shea from Flashbots 01:12 What is Block Building? 02:27 MEV Challenges in DeFi 03:16 Flashbots and MEV-G: Private Transactions 04:14 Limitations and Centralization Risks 04:38 Proposer-Builder Separation (PBS) and MEV-Boost 05:25 Relays and the Block Builder Market 06:23 Centralization via Order Flow Deals 08:26 The Trust Bottleneck in Block Building 08:45 Flashbots’ Breakthroughs: Trusted Execution Environments 09:55 Builderet: Decentralized, Verifiable Block Building 11:05 Multi-Operator Model and Orderflow Sharing 12:06 Permissionless Refunds and Market Improvements 13:07 Block Building as a Market 13:38 Builderet’s Broader Applications 13:59 Competing with Solana and Upgrading Ethereum 15:03 Institutional Adoption and Custom Block Space 16:45 Programmable Block Building on Ethereum 18:02 Scaling Ethereum: Reducing MEV Spam 19:51 Improving User Experience and Interoperability 22:30 Conclusion and Call to Action _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes* Pragma Cannes 2025 was held on July 3rd at the Carlton Cannes in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6jZYPY5-YIBzvMtUT3ajjI ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Ismael Hishon Rezaizadeh, co-founder of Lrange Labs, discusses the critical role of Ethereum's infrastructure and zero knowledge proofs (ZKPs) in ensuring trust, privacy, and safety in AI applications. He introduces zero knowledge machine learning (ZKML), which leverages ZKPs to verify AI model integrity, privacy, and fairness, especially in security-sensitive sectors like healthcare, defense, finance, and content moderation. Lrange’s Deep Prove library enables fast, scalable, and commercially viable ZKML, supporting large models and real-world deployments with partners like Intel, Nvidia, and AWS. Ismael emphasizes the need for verifiability and transparency in AI, moving beyond blind trust to cryptographic proofs, and highlights the growing adoption of ZKML in both Web2 and Web3. He also discusses future advancements, including proofs of training, fairness, and reasoning, and the societal impact of embedding verifiability and privacy as primitives in AI systems. 00:00 Introduction 00:36 Zero Knowledge Proofs & ZKML Overview 01:35 Challenges in AI Trust, Safety, and Bias 02:26 Importance of ZKPs for AI Verifiability 03:17 Lrange Labs & Deep Prove Introduction 04:29 How Deep Prove Works 05:56 Use Cases: Defense, Healthcare, Web2, Web3 08:05 Decentralization & Open Source Approach 09:07 Lrange Research & Industry Collaboration 10:44 Extending ZKML Beyond Crypto 11:29 Societal and Sectoral Impact of ZKML 13:14 Agentic Systems, Compliance, Content Moderation 15:02 DeFi, Governance, and Healthcare Applications 16:40 The Future: ZK as a Default Primitive 17:43 Q&A: ZK Computational Improvements & Future Directions 20:33 Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes* Pragma Cannes 2025 was held on July 3rd at the Carlton Cannes in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6jZYPY5-YIBzvMtUT3ajjI ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Lagrange Labs X: https://x.com/lagrangelabs ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sergej Kunz

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this keynote, Sergej Kunz, co-founder of 1inch, shares the long-term vision for United DeFi—an integrated, intent-based, and chain-abstracted infrastructure designed to bring the next billion users into Web3. He outlines the current state of DeFi adoption, the fragmentation challenges across blockchains and layer 2s, and how unified liquidity can eliminate inefficiencies. The talk explores how 1inch is building an intent-based cross-chain protocol that offers atomic swaps, direct P2P execution, and gasless transactions without bridge risks or wrapped assets. Sergej compares today’s DeFi adoption to the internet’s 1997 moment, highlighting the path toward mass adoption. He explains why chain abstraction is key for user-friendly experiences, how liquidity unification reduces slippage and improves pricing, and the role of competitive market makers in driving efficiency. The roadmap shows how cross-chain composability and ecosystem-wide integration can unlock trillion-dollar opportunities for users, protocols, and developers. 00:00 Introduction by Kartik 00:33 Sergej Kunz introduction 01:21 Current DeFi adoption stats 01:58 Comparing crypto to internet adoption 02:30 Institutional adoption & ETFs 03:23 Market cap & growth potential 04:07 The problem of fragmentation 05:06 Beyond Ethereum: multi-chain liquidity 06:08 Core advantages of DeFi 07:41 Composability & open protocols 08:47 Vision: unified liquidity layer 09:18 Intent-based cross-chain protocol 10:12 Unifying liquidity through arbitrage 11:36 Gasless user experiences 12:13 Economic impact of unification 13:24 Price improvements & execution 14:52 Reducing price slippage across chains 15:32 Improving user experience 16:46 The risks of bridging & MEV attacks 17:47 Intent-based architecture benefits 19:30 Chain abstraction for mass adoption 20:36 Path to United DeFi adoption 22:02 Global crypto adoption trends 24:28 Network effects & liquidity depth 25:42 Technical innovation: Dutch auctions 26:54 Benefits for users, protocols & LPs 27:56 Simple developer integration 28:35 Real-world impact & future use cases 29:23 Call to action: build with 1inch 30:23 Closing & Q&A mention _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ *Unite Defi 2025* This ceremony was part of Unite DeFi 2025, an online hackathon sponsored by 1inch and held from July 25 to August 8. It brought together the world’s most talented Web3 developers, designers, and product builders to advance the Ethereum ecosystem! Watch the full Unite Defi 2025 playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4YsK81x2echSjHDRQD09oJ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow 1inch* X: https://x.com/1inch ✅ *Follow Sergej Kunz* X: https://x.com/deacix ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Tomasz Stanczak, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this fireside chat, Tomasz Stanczak, Co-executive Director of the Ethereum Foundation, and Kartik Talwar, Co-founder of ETHGlobal, discuss the future of the Ethereum protocol, focusing on upcoming upgrades, scalability, and institutional adoption. Key topics include the Fusaka and Glamsterdam upgrades, which will enhance L2 scaling, blob capacity, and overall network throughput. They highlight the progress of ZKVMs, aiming for significant gas and transaction improvements, and the evolving role of Ethereum Layer 1 versus Layer 2 for different applications. The conversation covers enterprise and financial institution interest, stablecoin initiatives, and the migration of projects from custom L1s to Ethereum L2s for better integration and activity. The importance of Ethereum as a global coordination layer, its potential integration with AI and robotics, and the need for collaboration between traditional finance and web3 builders are emphasized. The session concludes with a call to action for building impactful products on Ethereum, leveraging its robust ecosystem and upcoming technical advancements. 00:00 Introduction 01:02 Ethereum Foundation Current Priorities 01:43 DevConnect and Blockchain Adoption in Argentina 02:04 Enterprise and Institutional Engagement 02:50 Upcoming Fusaka and Glamsterdam Upgrades 03:12 November Upgrade Details: L2 Scaling and EIPs 04:11 Impact of Upgrades on Scalability and Blobs 05:11 Ethereum Layer 1 Roadmap (Next 12 Months) 05:35 ZKVMs and Scaling Innovations 06:24 Integrating ZKVMs into Layer 1 07:17 Validator Provers and Infrastructure Requirements 08:09 Throughput and Gas Improvements 09:05 Choosing Between Layer 1 and Layer 2 10:02 Application Deployment Strategies 11:31 Institutional Questions and Engagement 12:54 Ethereum’s Long-Term Vision: AI, Robotics, and Coordination 13:42 L2 Launches, Stablecoins, and Ecosystem Diversity 14:58 Stablecoins and Ethereum as a Global Platform 16:24 L1 vs L2: Institutional Decision-Making 17:07 L1 Premium and Migration to L2s 18:33 L1 Fee Capture and Revenue Models 19:25 Wishlist for the Ecosystem and Collaboration 20:17 Conclusion and Call to Action _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma New York* Pragma New York 2025 was held on August 14th at Vesper Events in Brooklyn, New York and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New York YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5TRLdUXjnhUVfdbBtu6z2j ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Tomasz Stanczak X: https://x.com/tkstanczak ✅ Follow The Ethereum Foundation X: https://x.com/ethereumfndn ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sergey Nazarov, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this fireside chat, Sergey Nazarov, Co-founder of Chainlink, and Kartik Talwar, Co-founder of ETHGlobal, discuss the evolution and institutional adoption of DeFi, focusing on the expanding role of oracles, cross-chain interoperability, and compliance. Sergey explains how oracles have evolved from simple data feeds to encompass cross-chain bridges, identity, and AI oracles, culminating in the Chainlink Runtime Environment (CRE) and CCIP (Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol). He emphasizes the necessity of robust, secure, and compliant infrastructure for institutional capital to enter DeFi, highlighting Chainlink's dominance in securing DeFi protocols and enabling programmable token transfers. The conversation covers the importance of liquidity, the integration of stablecoins and CBDCs, the abstraction of user experience, and the critical mass of composable building blocks on Ethereum. Sergey offers advice for institutions entering DeFi: prioritize security, compliance, and cross-chain connectivity, and leverage established standards and infrastructure like Chainlink. He predicts rapid growth in on-chain assets, especially RWAs, as institutional adoption accelerates. 00:00 Introduction 01:30 Evolution of Oracles and Smart Contracts 04:22 Oracles’ Role in DeFi and Cross-Chain Bridges 06:43 CCIP and Institutional Requirements 10:17 CCIP for DeFi and Institutional Use Cases 13:20 Chainlink’s Security and Market Share 15:16 Stablecoin Chains and DeFi Liquidity 17:28 Fragmentation vs. Decentralization 20:55 User Experience and Stablecoin Abstraction 23:19 Real-World Institutional Integrations 25:06 Ethereum’s Ecosystem and Composability 27:30 Institutional Mindset Shifts 32:08 Best Practices for Institutional Adoption 34:54 Importance of Cross-Chain Connectivity 36:51 Predictions for On-Chain Asset Growth 38:10 Conclusion _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma New York* Pragma New York 2025 was held on August 14th at Vesper Events in Brooklyn, New York and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New York YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5TRLdUXjnhUVfdbBtu6z2j ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Sergey Nazarov X: https://x.com/SergeyNazarov ✅ Follow Chainlink X: https://x.com/Chainlink ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Steven Goldfeder, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this fireside chat, Steven Goldfeder, Co-founder of Offchain Labs, discusses the evolution and impact of Arbitrum and the Offchain Labs ecosystem, focusing on Robinhood’s decision to build on Arbitrum. He details the multi-year partnership process, emphasizing Arbitrum’s strengths: deep Ethereum integration, mature DeFi ecosystem, Orbit stack customizability, and Stylus, which enables smart contract development in languages like Rust and C++. Goldfeder highlights the advantages for enterprises launching their own L2 chains, such as control, revenue opportunities, and seamless user migration. He addresses industry challenges like fragmentation and interoperability, stressing that user experience (UX) and wallet-level abstraction are more crucial than deep technical research. The acquisition of ZeroDev is positioned as a move to improve UX and cross-chain functionality. Goldfeder critiques new L1s for stablecoins, advocating for Ethereum L2s due to security, decentralization, and financial efficiency. He concludes with optimism about institutional adoption and the future of blockchain usability. 00:00 Introduction 00:10 Robinhood’s Arbitrum Partnership: Origins and Rationale 03:39 Arbitrum’s Unique Features: Orbit Stack & Stylus 04:54 Why Enterprises Launch Their Own Chains 06:39 Other Institutional Partnerships & Adoption Timeline 09:24 Remaining Technical Challenges & Industry Bottlenecks 10:34 Fragmentation, Interoperability, and UX Focus 12:02 Fast Withdrawals, ZeroDev Acquisition, and Chain Abstraction 15:17 Integration of ZeroDev and Offchain Labs’ Strategy 16:48 New L1s for Stablecoins: Critique and L2 Advantages 20:04 Personal Reflections & Institutional Adoption 21:40 Robinhood UX, Blockchain Abstraction, and Future Outlook 22:26 Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma New York* Pragma New York 2025 was held on August 14th at Vesper Events in Brooklyn, New York and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New York YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5TRLdUXjnhUVfdbBtu6z2j ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Steven Goldfeder X: https://x.com/sgoldfed ✅ Follow Offchain Labs X: https://x.com/OffchainLabs ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

In this fireside chat, Vivek Raman, Co-founder of Etherealize, discusses his transition from Wall Street to becoming an Ethereum advocate, emphasizing the need to upgrade—rather than replace—the archaic financial system using Ethereum’s programmable infrastructure. He highlights the recent inflection point driven by ETH ETF approvals and institutional interest, noting BlackRock’s tokenization efforts. Etherealize’s mission is to evangelize Ethereum to Wall Street, facilitate tokenization of real-world assets on Ethereum L1, leverage L2s for scalability, and develop institutional-grade privacy solutions. Raman stresses the importance of avoiding liquidity fragmentation and ensuring interoperability, advocating for assets to reside on Ethereum L1 with L2 customization. He outlines the challenges of legal, regulatory, and privacy hurdles, but sees the current regulatory climate as an unprecedented opportunity. The ultimate goal is to rewire Wall Street’s infrastructure onto Ethereum, unlocking new financial products and utility beyond simple tokenization, and to establish frameworks for compliant on-chain finance. 00:00 Introduction 00:39 Vivek Raman’s Background & Entry into Ethereum 02:24 Transition from Wall Street to Crypto 03:35 Upgrading vs. Replacing Financial Systems 05:04 Institutional Adoption & Inflection Point 07:33 Etherealize’s Mission and Early Days 09:17 Evolving Etherealize: From Evangelism to Product 10:16 Product Focus: Tokenization, L2s, Privacy 11:46 Institutional Reactions & Challenges 13:43 Team Composition: Wall Street Meets Ethereum 14:14 Fragmentation & Liquidity Concerns 16:40 Interoperability & Bridging Solutions 17:07 Beyond Tokenization: Unlocking New Financial Utility 18:34 Legal & Regulatory Challenges in Tokenization 19:36 Frameworks & Regulatory Engagement 20:16 Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma New York* Pragma New York 2025 was held on August 14th at Vesper Events in Brooklyn, New York and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New York YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5TRLdUXjnhUVfdbBtu6z2j ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Vivek Raman X: https://x.com/VivekVentures ✅ Follow Etherealize X: https://x.com/Etherealize_io ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Kartik Talwar, Co-founder of ETHGlobal, opens Pragma New York 2025, a one-day, single-track Web3 conference designed to be accessible to all skill levels, not just engineers. The event features 15 curated sessions—eight fireside interviews and seven talks—with founders and executives from leading blockchain, fintech, and DeFi organizations. Key topics include the future of Ethereum, interoperability, fintech and stablecoins, AI integration in Web3, scaling solutions, privacy, institutional adoption, yield strategies, and onchain DeFi evolution. Pragma emphasizes pragmatic, non-technical discussions, global participation (410 attendees from 43 countries), and innovative event features like city packs, ETHGlobal Plus, and NFC wristbands for networking. Major partners include Archology, Chainlink, Circle, and PayPal USD. The agenda includes speakers from the Ethereum Foundation, Privy, Offchain Labs, Flow, Chainlink, Plume, Etherealize, Uniswap, Flashbots, Aztec, Bankless, and Optimism. 00:00 Introduction 00:36 What is Pragma? Event Philosophy 01:17 Event Format and Speaker Lineup 01:39 Focus on the Future & Accessibility 02:10 Sessions Overview 02:26 Schedule & Global Participation 02:44 Acknowledgment of Partners 03:00 City Packs and Event Perks 03:28 ETHGlobal Plus & Community Access 04:21 NFC Wristbands & Networking 05:06 Agenda Overview: Ethereum Foundation & Privy 05:25 Interoperability, Fintech, AI, and Scaling 05:44 Consumer Crypto, Privacy, and Institutional Adoption 06:31 Yield, Institutional Ethereum, and Onchain DeFi 07:03 Break & Afternoon Sessions 07:16 Privacy, Bullish Ethereum, and Scaling with Optimism 07:40 Closing & Where to Find More Info _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma New York* Pragma New York 2025 was held on August 14th at Vesper Events in Brooklyn, New York and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New York YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5TRLdUXjnhUVfdbBtu6z2j ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Kartik Talwar X: https://x.com/TheRealKartik ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Chris Yin

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

Chris Yin, CEO of Plume Network, discusses "Yield as the New Meta" in the current crypto cycle, contrasting it with previous cycles focused on NFTs and alt L1s. He explains that today's narrative centers on yield, particularly real yield, and identifies three key dimensions: liquidity (driven by stablecoins and high T-bill rates), utility (protocols like Pendle enabling yield trading and tokenized real-world assets), and value capture (passing protocol fees to users). Chris highlights Plume's approach to tokenizing diverse real-world assets (RWAs) beyond T-bills, such as mineral rights and tuk tuk fleets, enabling broader participation and utility. He emphasizes the importance of making RWAs feel native to crypto, focusing on retail adoption and composability, rather than replicating traditional finance on-chain. Plume's ecosystem demonstrates significant user engagement, TVL growth, and innovative use cases, positioning yield as the central theme of this market cycle. 00:00 Introduction 00:27 Background and Last Cycle Recap 01:49 The Rise of Yield as the New Meta 03:27 Real Yield and the L2/Bridging Evolution 03:55 Three Dimensions of Yield: Liquidity, Utility, Value Capture 04:16 Liquidity: Stablecoins and Yield-Bearing Assets 06:01 Utility: Protocols, Tokenized Assets, and Pendle 07:05 Value Capture: Protocol Fees and Base/Application Layers 08:01 Plume Overview and Ecosystem 09:23 Tokenized Assets on Plume: Beyond T-Bills 09:45 Plume’s Stablecoin and Yield Mechanisms 10:48 User Adoption and Asset Utility on Plume 11:08 Real-World Asset Examples: Mineral Vault and Oil Rigs 12:24 Real-World Asset Examples: Tuk Tuk Fleets 13:00 Looping, Leverage, and On-Chain Utility 14:09 Value Capture and Fee Distribution 14:29 Making RWAs Crypto-Native and Retail-Focused 15:35 Bottom-Up Adoption vs. Traditional Finance 16:31 Conclusion: Yield as the Cycle’s Core Narrative _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma New York* Pragma New York 2025 was held on August 14th at Vesper Events in Brooklyn, New York and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New York YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5TRLdUXjnhUVfdbBtu6z2j ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Chris Yin X: https://x.com/chriseyin ✅ Follow Plume Network X: https://x.com/plumenetwork ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

David Hoffman

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2025

David Hoffman, Co-founder of Bankless, presents "10 Objectively True Reasons ETH is Bullish," focusing on Ethereum's strengths with minimal hype. He highlights ETH's ultra-low inflation, even lower than Bitcoin, making it the most sustainable and scarce layer 1 asset. Ethereum's DeFi ecosystem creates strong reservation demand for ETH, with a significant portion locked in protocols, making it the world's most productive asset via "money legos." Ethereum is engineered for longevity, with multiple clients and a focus on resilience and credible neutrality. Major brands and institutions like Circle, Robinhood, BlackRock, and Wall Street are building on Ethereum, leveraging the EVM as a new industry standard. Ethereum's adaptability and transparent governance foster trust, while institutional adoption (e.g., Tom Lee, pension funds) underscores its value proposition. ETH uniquely balances monetary soundness, programmability, and upgradability, occupying a singular position in crypto—there is "no second best." The talk aims to dispel "Ethereum Derangement" and reinforce ETH's foundational role in the future of finance. 00:00 Introduction 00:39 Purpose: Objective Bullish ETH Reasons 02:05 Reason 1: Lowest Inflation of Any Layer 1 04:14 Reason 2: DeFi and Reservation Demand 05:31 Reason 3: ETH as the Most Productive Asset 06:34 Reason 4: Longevity and Store of Value 07:42 Reason 5: Ethereum’s Unique Brand and Institutional Adoption 09:24 Vitalik’s Vision and Brand Trust 10:33 Reason 6: 100% Uptime and Institutional Trust 11:24 EVM Network Effects and Corporate Chains 12:55 Reason 7: Adaptability and Open Governance 13:44 Institutional Bullishness (Tom Lee, Pension Funds) 15:17 Reason 8: ETH Earned Its Position 15:39 Reason 9: No Second Best—ETH’s Unique Middle Ground 16:42 Conclusion: Curing Ethereum Derangement _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇺🇸 *Pragma New York* Pragma New York 2025 was held on August 14th at Vesper Events in Brooklyn, New York and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma New York YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh5TRLdUXjnhUVfdbBtu6z2j ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow David Hoffman X: https://x.com/TrustlessState ✅ Follow Bankless X: https://x.com/Banklesshq ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2024

The panel discussed the incipient adoption of cryptocurrency by financial institutions, emphasizing diverse representation from custody, trading, research, and infrastructure-focused crypto companies. While noting heightened interest from banks, asset managers, and hedge funds, mainstream adoption remains nascent. Crypto's appeal lies in diversification and disruptive potential, yet hurdles include regulatory uncertainties, security concerns, volatility, and a lack of valuation models. Panelists underscored the necessity for institution-centric infrastructure, such as tailored custody and trading platforms. Regulatory clarity, security assurance, and developments like ETF/ETP approvals were seen as catalysts. DeFi, stablecoins, and tokenized assets were recognized for their potential, contributing to an overall optimistic outlook on institutional adoption. --------- Speakers: Nikou Asgari | Financial Times (Moderator) Manuel Nordeste | Fidelity Investments Christopher Siedentopf | Uphold Eliézer Ndinga | 21Shares Anya Nova | GK8 --------- The European Blockchain Convention is the most influential blockchain event in Europe. Follow us to find out more 👇 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/euro.. Twitter: https://twitter.com/EBlockchainCon Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eblockchain..

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2024

The panel, moderated by Joaquín Muñoz, delved into enhancing customer engagement through NFTs and digital assets. The central theme revolved around a community-centric approach to NFTs, with an emphasis on values and positive impact. Shannon showcased FC Barcelona's collaboration with World of Women as an illustration of NFTs contributing to social good. Concurrently, Wen Lin addressed the challenge of user-friendly blockchain adoption, highlighting the significance of understanding fan desires. Pablo expanded on this by envisioning crypto exchanges as Web3 gateways, presenting diverse services such as NFT wallets. Finally, Jordi underscored FC Barcelona's commitment to blockchain for engagement, citing specific instances like NFT collections supporting environmental causes. In conclusion, the panelists collectively urged companies to approach NFT campaigns with a long-term vision, aligning them with their values and the desires of their communities. The emphasis was on considering NFTs as more than speculative assets, recognizing their potential to create meaningful digital experiences and drive positive change in the broader social context. --------- Speakers: Joaquín Muñoz | Bird & Bird (moderator) Shannon Snow | World of Women Jordi Mompart Penina | FC Barcelona Wen Lin Xia Zhan | LaLiga Entertainment Pablo Monti | Bing X --------- The European Blockchain Convention is the most influential blockchain event in Europe. Follow us to find out more 👇 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-blockchain-convention/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EBlockchainCon Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eblockchainconvention/

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2024

In this keynote, Dr. Shamshudeen discusses the ongoing shift from centralized to decentralized systems, particularly in the context of Web 3.0 and blockchain. Despite global adoption reaching 64.4% of the population, challenges persist, including skepticism and the entrenched nature of centralized practices. The speaker highlights issues associated with centralized control, such as bottleneck decision-making and a lack of democratic processes, emphasizing the need to recognize the changing landscape. To address these challenges, he proposes preserving centralized wisdom while integrating decentralized empowerment, using the concept of identity as a crucial bridge. User-friendly tools, clear communication, and collaboration with regulatory bodies are presented as essential components of this transition. The talk concludes with a tangible example of progress—a Central Bank Digital Currency launch in Malaysia—underscoring the speaker's call for a balanced approach: "Decentralization empowers, but centralized wisdom guides." --------- Speaker: Dr. Shamshudeen Mohd Yunus | Tijarah Holding --------- The European Blockchain Convention is the most influential blockchain event in Europe. Follow us to find out more 👇 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-blockchain-convention/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EBlockchainCon Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eblockchainconvention/

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2024

This panel, moderated by Pratap Penumalli, centered on onboarding the next billion users to Web 3. Pratap, engaged the audience in a participatory discussion, exploring the current landscape of Web 3 adoption. Key questions arose regarding the definition of being "onboarded to Web 3," with a focus on the significance of connected wallets. The panel delved into the estimation of connected wallets globally, considering the evolving metrics in the rapidly changing Web 3 space. Panelists, including John Woods (CTO at Algorand Foundation), Bogdan Gusiev (CTO and Co-founder of Unstoppable Domains), Tim Walther (Manager for Web3 and Metaverse at Volkswagen Group), and Evgeny Kif (Chief Product Officer at Cryptology), provided diverse perspectives. They discussed metrics used by their organizations to gauge adoption and emphasized the challenges and opportunities in forming partnerships, particularly with major brands such as Lamborghini and Starbucks. Privacy emerged as a critical theme in the panel's discussions. John Woods stressed the importance of privacy by default, envisioning a future where users are safeguarded against the exposure of personal spending history. The panelists expressed optimism about the trajectory of Web 3 adoption, hoping for hundreds of millions of users in the next five years. They underscored the importance of fostering digital ownership awareness, foreseeing a future where blockchain technology secures various aspects of individuals' lives. --------- Speakers: Pratap Penumalli | Galaxy Labs John Woods | Algorand Foundation Bogdan Gusiev | Unstoppable Domains Tim Walther | Volkswagen Group Evgeni Kif | Cryptology --------- The European Blockchain Convention is the most influential blockchain event in Europe. Follow us to find out more 👇 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-blockchain-convention/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EBlockchainCon Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eblockchainconvention/

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2024

The panel at the European Blockchain Convention, led by Madeline Boys, provides insightful perspectives on the imperative of transparency in the digital asset space. The dialogue extends to the challenges of adoption and regulatory engagement. Waqar underscores the critical role regulators play in driving adoption, emphasizing the need for regulators to mandate standards for reporting and transparency. Denis and Stephan stress the proactive role organizations can play in adopting standards even before regulatory mandates, highlighting the cost-saving benefits and improved data quality that standards bring to the industry. In the closing remarks, the panel expresses optimism about the ongoing evolution of standards and the collaborative efforts needed to shape the digital asset landscape. While acknowledging that evolution takes time, the speakers encourage industry participants to actively engage in the standardization process to meet the unique needs and use cases of the digital asset ecosystem. --------- Speakers: Madeleine Boys | GBBC Digital Finance Waqar Chaudry | Standard Chartered Bank Stephan Dreyer | Association of National Numbering Agencies (ANNA) Denis Dounaev | Digital Token Identifier Foundation (DTIF) --------- The European Blockchain Convention is the most influential blockchain event in Europe. Follow us to find out more 👇 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-blockchain-convention/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EBlockchainCon Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eblockchainconvention/

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2024

Jonathan Leßmann , Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Platform Strategy at SWIAT, shared insights during a recent panel discussion, building on the concept of "co-opetition" in the blockchain space. Leßmann, emphasized the significance of regulatory considerations for institutions. Discussing the evolving landscape, he pointed out the misconception that regulatory hurdles persist, highlighting existing regulations in France, Germany, and Europe's DLT pilot regimes. He also acknowledged the challenges of creating synergies in a market marked by isolated initiatives. Leßmann delved into the role of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in shaping the adoption of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). He presented a risk-driven perspective from the BIS, emphasizing the need for financial institutions to evaluate dependencies and assign capital requirements accordingly. Addressing scalability, he introduced SWIAT's co-opetition model, featuring a unified ledger and interoperability standards to enhance scalability and regulatory compliance. The emerging financial ecosystem, already supported by major institutions, aims to facilitate blockchain adoption while considering risks and contingencies associated with decentralization. In summary, Leßmann's presentation highlighted the ongoing efforts to overcome regulatory challenges, the role of the BIS, and SWIAT's approach to fostering a collaborative and compliant financial ecosystem on the blockchain. --------- Speakers: Jonathan Leßmann | SWIAT --------- The European Blockchain Convention is the most influential blockchain event in Europe. Follow us to find out more 👇 Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-blockchain-convention/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/EBlockchainCon Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eblockchainconvention/

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2024

Join Stani Kulechov, Founder of Aave, and Rune Christensen, Founder of MakerDAO, as they sit down with ETHGlobal’s Kartik Talwar at Pragma Istanbul 2023 for an in-depth conversation on the future of algorithmic stablecoins. \ This session explores how stablecoins like GHO and DAI are evolving in response to market demands, the critical role of user adoption and yield, and how new models like Maker’s Endgame and subDAOs are shaping the next phase of DeFi governance and scalability. Rune unpacks MakerDAO’s transition from a monolithic protocol to a modular ecosystem of subDAOs, emphasizing alignment engineering and decentralized control. Stani discusses Aave’s strategy behind launching GHO and how protocol design, liquidity guarantees, and governance minimalism are influencing product decisions. The conversation also covers the challenges of stability, governance complexity, real-world integration, and the long-term viability of decentralized currencies. Whether you’re building in DeFi, researching stablecoins, or looking to understand what comes next in Web3 finance, this talk delivers deep insights into the infrastructure powering the decentralized economy. 00:00 Introduction to panel on algorithmic stablecoins 00:58 MakerDAO’s new direction and user demand 03:12 Yield as a growth strategy for Maker 05:18 Why Aave launched GHO stablecoin 08:31 Measuring stablecoin success: supply vs. demand 10:01 Stablecoins for payments and global GDP 13:59 What is Maker’s Endgame strategy? 17:46 SubDAOs and decentralizing Maker governance 21:34 Aligning subDAOs with MKR holders 26:36 Stani’s take on governance minimalism 30:20 Stability management and DAO alignment 33:49 Alignment engineering and self-healing DAOs 36:49 Is GHO a product or a protocol? 39:31 MakerDAO’s upcoming rebrand 41:09 Aave’s user-first stablecoin product strategy 44:11 Organic growth and adoption of GHO 45:17 Advice to each other and cross-protocol insights 47:08 Audience Q1: Future of seigniorage stablecoins 48:19 Audience Q2: STI integrations, real-world growth 50:45 Closing remarks and appreciation _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇹🇷 *Pragma Istanbul* The sixth edition of Pragma took place in Istanbul in November 2023 with a curated series of high-quality talks that sparked thought and discussion. Pragma Istanbul 2023 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Istanbul 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4rHV1H4J7y0wDok4bIS17t&si=lb8ttkU1HS2tpnUP ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow *ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2024

What does it take to scale Web3 infrastructure for billions of users? In this insightful Pragma India 2023 panel, ETHGlobal's Kartik Talwar moderates a high-impact discussion with Harsh Rajat (Push Protocol), Prashant Maurya (Spheron), and Aniket Jindal (Biconomy) on what "Infrastructure as a Service" means in the decentralized world. Discover how leading Web3 infra projects are solving real challenges—from real-time communication via wallet-based notifications, to decentralized compute, to smart contract wallets leveraging ERC-4337. Learn about vendor lock-in problems, infra decentralization, developer UX, new business models like micro-payments and staking, and the future of modular infra tooling. 00:00 Intro: Building useful Web3 infrastructure 00:36 What is Push Protocol? Wallet-based comms 01:09 What is Spheron? Decentralized compute infra 01:37 What is Biconomy? Smart wallets with ERC-4337 02:06 Why build Push: From liquidation to communication 03:19 Why Spheron exists: Bridging Web2/Web3 compute 05:38 Why Biconomy chose account abstraction 06:38 Making wallets seamless in-app 08:00 Why Web3 needs infra as a service 09:07 Web3-native communication vs Web2 10:16 Vendor lock-in, optionality, and decentralization 11:40 Cost savings and global data center access 12:10 Why blockchain solves infra payment layers 13:02 Biconomy: Improving UX for smart wallets 14:50 Infra that understands smart contract context 15:26 Startup challenges: Hiring & unlearning 16:34 Push’s tech challenge: Decentralized real-time infra 17:48 Spheron: Hiring infra talent & community-building 20:00 Biconomy: Culture, noise filtering & tech maturity 21:37 Smart wallet standardization challenges 22:36 New business models: SaaS vs wallet-based payments 23:55 Web3-native monetization: micropayments & staking 25:04 Infra still missing: Better block explorers 26:24 Standardizing bundlers & paymasters 26:55 On-chain identity and reputation protocols 27:58 The rise of decentralized infra (DePIN) 28:29 Closing thanks and applause _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇮🇳 *Pragma India* The final Pragma of the year took place in Bengaluru India in December 2023 with a curated series of high-quality talks that sparked thought and discussion. Pragma India 2023 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma India 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh4rHV1H4J7y0wDok4bIS17t&si=lb8ttkU1HS2tpnUP ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2024

Join Kartik Talwar, co-founder of ETH Global, as he welcomes attendees to Pragma London 2024, a one-day summit exploring the future of web3 and blockchain innovation. This accessible event features founder-led discussions on Ethereum evolution, Lens Protocol's permissionless future, account abstraction (EIP-4337), and crypto-AI convergence. Discover new primitives like on-chain Packs (NFT-based perks) and gain insights from Safe, ENS, Chainlink and other leading projects. Designed for both newcomers and experts, Pragma offers a single-track format with interviews and panels covering decentralized analytics, wallet innovation, and modular blockchain development. 00:00 - Opening Welcome by ETH Global's Kartik Talwar 00:49 - Pragma's Mission: Pragmatic Web3 Development 01:29 - Bridging Web3 Knowledge Gaps for Newcomers 02:01 - Founder-Led Content in Single-Track Format 02:26 - Non-Technical Approach for Broad Accessibility 02:57 - Event Structure: Conversation-Focused Interviews 03:27 - Logistics: Schedule, Website & Attendee Statistics 04:25 - Partner Highlights: Lido, Stargate, Worldcoin 05:31 - Introducing Packs: NFT-Based Event Perks 06:32 - Extending Utility: On-Chain/Off-Chain Benefits 07:29 - Full Agenda Overview: Ethereum to Account Abstraction 07:54 - Justin Drake: Ethereum's Roadmap Discussion 08:18 - Lens Protocol's Permissionless Evolution 08:48 - Dune Analytics: Scaling Blockchain Data 09:18 - Exploring Crypto and AI Synergies _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇬🇧 *Pragma London* Pragma London took place at Christchurch Spitalfields in London on March 14, 2024, and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma London playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7rvaHBM14peT1TwI3QX38p&si=MzGrEYwYjxSQFiFM ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Ever since we first introduced our new event series Pragma in Tokyo of the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sergey Nazarov, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2024

In this insightful fireside chat from Pragma London 2024, Chainlink co-founder Sergey Nazarov sits down with Kartik Talwar of ETHGlobal to explore the evolving role of oracles, cross-chain communication, and the long-term vision for Web3 infrastructure. Sergey discusses Chainlink’s origin, powering DeFi’s exponential growth, the rise of Proof of Reserve and real-world data feeds, and the launch of CCIP (Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol). He shares a compelling vision where every bank and asset manager operates their own L2, interconnected through secure oracle networks, with Ethereum at the core. This is a must-watch for builders, founders, and anyone curious about the convergence of capital markets and decentralized systems, real-world assets (RWAs), and how to make Web3 usable, trusted, and inevitable. 00:00 Welcome Sergey Nazarov to Pragma London 00:58 How Chainlink got started and smart contracts' gaps 02:31 Oracle networks vs. simple data feeds 03:39 Chainlink’s early role in powering DeFi 04:56 Beyond price feeds: Expanding oracle use cases 06:10 Chainlink’s evolution and new data categories 07:18 Proof of Reserves and the path to proof of everything 08:23 Adding trust-minimized computation and automation 09:32 Launch of CCIP for cross-chain communication 10:37 Chainlink’s role: moving data in/out/between chains 11:12 CCIP features and programmable token transfers 12:14 Real-world asset adoption and private L2s 13:48 Prediction: All banks will run their own L2s 14:33 Enterprise L2s connecting to Ethereum 15:39 Net new value: onboarding institutions and users 16:14 Three types of participants in the ecosystem 17:52 Infrastructure vs. application builders 19:24 Why normies still struggle with crypto UX 20:58 Improving trust, security, and experience 22:05 Web3 must match or beat Web2 UX 23:01 Why verifiable applications are the end goal 24:06 From niche use cases to a global default 25:06 Chainlink’s view on reaching escape velocity 26:08 Learning from security and data failures 27:07 Reflections from the pre-Ethereum era 28:13 How we move faster vs. taking decades 28:43 The exponential growth of the ecosystem 29:15 Final words and appreciation for builders _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇬🇧 *Pragma London* Pragma London took place at Christchurch Spitalfields in London on March 14, 2024, and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma London playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7rvaHBM14peT1TwI3QX38p&si=MzGrEYwYjxSQFiFM ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Ever since we first introduced our new event series Pragma in Tokyo of the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Sergey Nazarov* X: https://x.com/SergeyNazarov ✅ *Follow Chainlink* X: https://x.com/Chainlink ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Daniel Bar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2024

xplore the rise of APAC in the crypto ecosystem with Daniel from Bit Ford at Pragma Sydney 2024. This talk dives into Australia’s crypto legacy, from early Ethereum contributors to modern DeFi innovators like Synthetix and Immutable. Discover how APAC’s unique blend of financial expertise, UX innovation, and community-driven events like ETH Sydney fosters blockchain adoption. Learn about the "ascending world" narrative, the importance of third places in web3 culture, and upcoming opportunities like Devcon Bangkok. Essential for builders, investors, and crypto enthusiasts in APAC and beyond. 00:00 - Introduction: APAC’s Growing Role in Crypto 00:56 - Daniel’s Background: Bit Ford & Ethereum Sydney 01:38 - Australia’s Crypto Legacy: Ethereum & Dogecoin 02:17 - Early DAOs & On-Chain Governance in Australia 02:54 - 2017 ICO Boom & BIP Puba’s Influence 03:34 - Synthetix & Australia’s DeFi Innovations 04:08 - The “Ascending World” & APAC’s Crypto Potential 04:52 - APAC’s Crypto Hubs: Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong 05:26 - Geopolitics & Innovation: Israel vs. Australia 06:06 - Australia’s Strengths: UX & Financial Tech 07:23 - Case Studies: Canva, Atlassian, Immutable 08:00 - Web3 as a “Third Place” for Culture & Innovation 08:39 - Public Goods & Social Fabric in Crypto Communities 09:56 - Web3’s Unique Features: Composability & Permissionlessness 10:29 - Decentralization & Tokenized Economies 11:07 - Education & Hackathons: ETH Sydney’s Impact 11:41 - Success Stories: Young Builders in Crypto/AI 12:17 - Upcoming Events: ETH Sydney & Sui Hacker House 12:53 - Road to Devcon Bangkok: How to Get Involved _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇦🇺 *Pragma Sydney* The Sydney edition of Pragma took place at The View by Sydney in May 2024 with a curated series of high-quality talks that sparked thought and discussion. Ever since we first introduced our new event series, Pragma, in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. Watch the full Pragma Sydney playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7rvaHBM14peT1TwI3QX38p&si=MzGrEYwYjxSQFiFM ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2024

Roham Gharegozlou, founder of Dapper Labs (CryptoKitties, NBA Top Shot, Disney Pinnacle), joins Pragma Sydney 2024 to discuss the future of consumer crypto applications. Learn how Flow blockchain is evolving with EVM compatibility to bridge Ethereum's ecosystem with mainstream adoption. Roham shares insights from scaling NFT projects to millions of users, the challenges of interoperability, and why the next wave of crypto apps must balance seamless onboarding with open developer ecosystems. Discover why consumer crypto's "million DAU" milestone requires rethinking distribution, wallet UX, and community-driven utility beyond speculative trading. 00:00 - Introduction: Dapper Labs' Crypto Legacy 01:27 - From CryptoKitties to Mainstreaming NFTs 02:34 - Why NFTs Are More Than Buying/Selling 04:37 - Birth of Flow Blockchain: Scaling & UX 06:05 - Flow's Evolution: From Closed to Open Ecosystem 07:35 - Flow's EVM Compatibility & Crescendo Upgrade 09:06 - Bridging Cadence and Ethereum Smart Contracts 10:42 - Developer Reactions to Flow's New Direction 12:42 - Scaling Stats: Ticketmaster, Top Shot & Disney Pinnacle 15:09 - The Million DAU Challenge for Consumer Crypto 17:08 - Open vs Closed Developer Ecosystems 19:09 - Killer Apps vs Gradual Adoption Debate 21:31 - Wallets as Consumer Apps? Distribution Battles 23:55 - Who Owns the User Relationship in Web3? 25:49 - Marketplace Discovery vs Asset Distribution 26:38 - Advice for Consumer Crypto Founders _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇦🇺 *Pragma Sydney* The Sydney edition of Pragma took place at The View by Sydney in May 2024 with a curated series of high-quality talks that sparked thought and discussion. Ever since we first introduced our new event series, Pragma, in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. Watch the full Pragma Sydney playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7rvaHBM14peT1TwI3QX38p&si=MzGrEYwYjxSQFiFM ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Roham Gharegozlou* X: https://x.com/roham ✅ *Follow Dapper Labs* X: hhttps://x.com/DapperLabs ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2024

Join Robbie Ferguson, co-founder of Immutable, in this fireside chat from Pragma Sydney 2024 as he dives into the future of on-chain gaming and blockchain’s role in revolutionizing digital ownership. Discover how Immutable grew from early Ethereum experiments to becoming the leading Web3 gaming platform, with insights into ZK-rollups, cross-chain liquidity, and the $150B in-game asset market. Robbie shares lessons on scaling startups, vertical integration, and why NFTs and tokens are transforming player economies. A must-watch for gamers, developers, and crypto enthusiasts. 00:00 - Introduction to Immutable & On-Chain Gaming 00:46 - Immutable’s Vision: Web3 Gaming Adoption 01:17 - Robbie’s Crypto Journey: From Bitcoin to Ethereum 01:49 - Smart Contracts & Early Blockchain Gambling 02:25 - Aligning Incentives: New Models of Capitalism 02:53 - From Trading Bots to NFTs: Founding Immutable 03:26 - The $150B In-Game Asset Opportunity 04:00 - Digital Ownership vs. Traditional Gaming Models 04:27 - Building Etherbots & Ethereum’s Scaling Challenges 04:54 - Evolution of Game Studios: Web2 to Web3 Adoption 05:23 - East vs. West: Regional Web3 Gaming Trends 06:23 - The "FarmVille Moment" for Web3 Gaming 07:54 - Why Gamers Demand Ownership: Retention & Monetization 08:49 - Web3 Gaming’s Value Proposition: Liquidity & Utility 09:53 - Secondary Markets: CS:GO Skins to Fortnite Futures 10:55 - Acquisition, Retention & Monetization in Web3 Games 11:53 - Immutable Passport: Onboarding the Next Billion Gamers 13:17 - Self-Custody & Cross-Game Liquidity Innovations 14:51 - Vertical Integration: Why Immutable Built Its Own Wallet 15:18 - Partnering with Polygon: ZK-Rollups for Gaming 17:45 - App-Specific Chains vs. Multi-Rollup Future 19:12 - NFTs as an Asset Class: Liquidity & Financial Utility 21:10 - Lessons Scaling Immutable: Talent & Web2/Web3 Hybrids 22:34 - What’s Next: 61 Games Launching in 2024 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇦🇺 *Pragma Sydney* The Sydney edition of Pragma took place at The View by Sydney in May 2024 with a curated series of high-quality talks that sparked thought and discussion. Ever since we first introduced our new event series, Pragma, in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. Watch the full Pragma Sydney playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7rvaHBM14peT1TwI3QX38p&si=MzGrEYwYjxSQFiFM ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Robbie Ferguson* X: https://x.com/0xferg ✅ *Follow Immutable* X: https://x.com/immutable ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Aqeel Mohammad

Conflux - Web3 UX Unconference · Nov 16, 2023

No description The video features an opening speech from a conference in Istanbul addressing the UX community. Despite regional challenges and the absence of some colleagues, the speaker appreciates attendees' presence at DevConnect and encourages them to enjoy the additional activities available, including Turkish ice cream and coffee. The speech explains that the UXLand conference is an "un-conference," where participants create the event by discussing topics of interest to them. The conference has no sponsors or volunteers but is supported by the Ethereum Foundation and DevConnect. The speaker emphasizes that the success of the event depends on attendee participation and stresses that it's a collaborative environment rather than a platform for promoting individual projects. Attendees represent various professional backgrounds, with product development, engineering, and design being prominent. Key topics for discussion include account extraction, user onboarding, Web3 design principles, and general adoption within the ecosystem. Working groups will form to delve deeper into these areas in a collaborative setting with provided tools like FigJam for documentation. The speaker also mentions a goal of creating memorable ways (memes) to communicate complex UX concepts outside of the conference to foster broader understanding and excitement. An example given is "4337," which has gained attention despite many not fully understanding it. The video outlines rules for speakers, including strict time limits,

Aqeel Mohammad

Conflux - Web3 UX Unconference · Nov 16, 2023

No description The video discusses various perspectives on cryptocurrency adoption, primarily focusing on improving user experience and reducing friction for users. It starts with a description of Kiwi News, a platform like Hacker News or Reddit for Web 3, emphasizing the importance of simplifying interactions with wallets and transactions to facilitate adoption. The conversation then shifts to the potential of B2B transactions in blockchain, highlighting how blockchain as a ledger technology can be particularly useful for trustless ecosystems and micro-businesses in need of credit. One speaker, Kyle, brings up the necessity of concentrating on adoption to achieve network effects similar to major social platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook. This is contrasted with the idea that usefulness should be prioritized over adoption. There is also a discussion about whether financial use cases are sufficient for Web 3 adoption or if more focus should be placed on solving real-world problems. The dialogue also touches upon the challenges in emerging markets like Turkey and Argentina, where crypto is used as a hedge against inflation and financial instability. The speakers explore how crypto can provide solutions for people in economies with limited access to traditional financial services. Lastly, there is an emphasis on the responsibility of those involved in crypto to consider global inclusivity and ensure that underprivileged regions are not left behind. The speakers suggest that building robust applications suitable

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2023

Join our expert panel discussion at the 2023 European Blockchain Convention and explore how to bring CBDCs to Consumers and Businesses. How CBDCs could bring the security of operations to the industry and enhance the adoption of blockchain technologies? Our panelists explore the role of intermediaries and how they can find their role in the emerging industry. --------- Speakers: Erwin Voloder | European Blockchain Association (Moderator) James Wallis | Ripple Nadia Filali | Caisse des Dépôts Laurent Marochini | Société Générale --------- The European Blockchain Convention is the most influential blockchain event in Europe. Follow us to find out more: Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-blockchain-convention/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/eblockchainconvention/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/EBlockchainCon

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2023

Backstage at the 8th European Blockchain Convention, Marta Piekarsa-Geater, senior DAO strategist at ConsenSys, sat down and had an interview with us! ConsenSys is the leading Ethereum software company. They enable developers, enterprises, and people worldwide to build next-generation applications, launch modern financial infrastructure, and access the decentralized web. We talked about scalability, mainstream adoption, stablecoins and more! Make sure to like and subscribe! --------------- Follow us for more: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/european-blockchain-convention/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eblockchainconvention/ Twitter: @eblockchaincon

Aya Miyaguchi

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Aya Miyaguchi, Executive Director of the Ethereum Foundation, joins Pragma Tokyo to explore the mission of growing Ethereum as an “infinite garden.” In this deeply personal and philosophical conversation, Aya reflects on Ethereum's values, Japan’s emerging role in the developer ecosystem, and what it means to coordinate a decentralized movement. From the EF’s support structure and cultural insights to the challenges of maintaining neutrality and scaling open systems, Aya shares how her background as a teacher influences her leadership style and how EF empowers others rather than dictates outcomes. The conversation also touches on Japan’s potential in areas like DAOs, open source culture, and unique approaches to coordination, governance, and identity. If you're curious about Ethereum’s future, EF’s philosophy, or global crypto adoption through cultural lenses, this is a must-watch. 00:00 Intro and welcoming Aya Miyaguchi 01:31 Aya’s relationship with Japan 03:12 Rise of builders in Japan’s Ethereum ecosystem 05:02 From teacher to Ethereum Foundation 07:59 What the Ethereum Foundation does 09:42 The Infinite Garden philosophy 12:24 Trade-offs of decentralized coordination 14:01 Why Ethereum is built in an open, slow way 16:00 Cultural values and leadership at EF 18:15 Why Ethereum is not a product or a company 20:21 Challenges of explaining Ethereum in Japan 23:15 Japan’s potential in open source and web3 26:06 Empowering developers and shifting mindsets 27:27 Growing optimism in Japanese policy 28:55 Ethereum’s bottoms-up culture vs top-down 29:52 EF’s evolving role as coordinator 33:36 The Infinite Garden and value alignment 34:51 Holding less than 1% of ETH and why that matters 36:31 Subtraction, legitimacy, and balance 39:13 Thanking the EF team and community 41:35 Q&A: Ethereum and network states 43:00 Q&A: Use cases for Japan and local innovation 46:16 Closing remarks and community encouragement _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇯🇵 *Pragma Tokyo* It’s always been about hackathons. Until now! Kicking off in Tokyo we announced the latest edition to the ETHGlobal family last week. Pragma will be one day summit, focusing on high quality talks in an intimate atmosphere that fuels reimagining the world and networking with like-minded individuals. Watch the full Pragma Tokyo 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh72VNBeeMzsvxnDdJH-vPhZ&si=z7enlsk30_DUjIoL _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow the Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Masa “Senshi” Kikuchi, founder of Secured Finance, unveils the launch of their institutional-grade DeFi platform live at Pragma Tokyo. Built to bridge the gap between traditional finance and crypto, Secured Finance brings interbank-grade, peer-to-peer capital markets to decentralized finance. In this talk, Masa shares the project’s origin story from ETHGlobal’s HackFS, outlines the problems with existing DeFi money markets, and demonstrates how Secured Finance enables fixed-term lending, real yield curve formation, and smart contract-based clearing for digital assets. Learn how they’re unlocking long-term investment tools, derivatives, FX forwards, and more—all while opening the door for institutional adoption through decentralized, composable infrastructure. If you're interested in the next evolution of DeFi, this is one you don’t want to miss. 00:00 Intro to Masa and Secured Finance 00:50 Building interbank-grade DeFi markets 01:27 Mission to bridge TradFi and crypto 02:12 Origin from HackFS and early milestones 03:41 Interbank markets are already decentralized 04:30 OTC derivatives market size breakdown 05:15 Capital markets vs DeFi money markets 05:59 Why TradFi can’t yet offer full crypto services 07:23 Building yield curves with ex-TradFi experts 08:06 Yield curves: order book vs AMM rates 08:49 Fixed-term lending and borrowing launch 09:30 Product is live: 32 fixed-term loan markets 10:21 Whitepaper, app, and documentation launch 11:06 Three-phase go-to-market strategy 11:47 Rapid community growth and user traction 12:41 7K+ unique wallet connections post-launch 13:22 Training program to become a top DeFi trader 14:02 Japan’s commitment to Web3 leadership 14:42 Closing applause and project recap _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇯🇵 *Pragma Tokyo* It’s always been about hackathons. Until now! Kicking off in Tokyo we announced the latest edition to the ETHGlobal family last week. Pragma will be one day summit, focusing on high quality talks in an intimate atmosphere that fuels reimagining the world and networking with like-minded individuals. Watch the full Pragma Tokyo 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh72VNBeeMzsvxnDdJH-vPhZ&si=z7enlsk30_DUjIoL _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Masa 'Senshi' Kikuchi* X: https://x.com/masa_web3 ✅ *Follow Secured Finance* X: https://x.com/Secured_Fi ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

In this powerful keynote, Balaji Srinivasan outlines the looming Fiat Crisis and its potential global implications. Filmed remotely for Pragma Tokyo, Balaji explores the collapse of trust in fiat currencies, the multi-layered economic polycrisis, central bank missteps, the rise of Bitcoin and Ethereum, and the urgent need to exit legacy financial systems. Through detailed analysis of U.S. national debt, central banking failures, global de-dollarization, and rising geopolitical tensions, Balaji explains why private keys and sovereign collectives are the next evolution in global finance and governance. Learn about Bitcoin maximalist states, the network state thesis, and how builders and sovereign individuals can protect themselves in a rapidly shifting world. 00:00 Introduction to Balaji's Fiat Crisis talk 01:12 What is the Fiat Crisis? A new world order 02:22 Decline of the U.S. dollar and multi-currency future 03:20 U.S. debt spiral and monetary policy consequences 05:16 How the Fed caused the banking collapse 08:05 Unrealized losses and systemic insolvency 09:25 The printing resumes: backstopping the crisis 10:21 Additional crises: municipal, real estate, and bonds 11:11 Global de-dollarization and sovereignty movements 12:44 Auto loans, credit cards, and student debt crisis 13:32 Insurance and institutional instability 14:30 Low-trust society and political polarization 15:32 Probability of a Fiat Crisis in months, years, or decades 17:09 Protecting yourself: counterparty risk and private keys 20:09 Building in crypto: from Maslow to mass adoption 22:15 Practical steps toward network states 24:08 Learning from COVID, preparing for the next wave 25:41 Western vs Eastern fiat outcomes 28:03 Rise of startup cities like Prospera 29:37 The inverted century and global role reversals 32:35 What infra is missing for post-fiat governance 36:39 Governments as partners: sovereign alliances 37:39 Giant robot vs. giant monster metaphor 40:10 Flatcoins and crypto-native stability concepts 42:46 Bitcoin as digital gold, volatility trade-offs 44:43 Fiat's slow decline vs. Bitcoin’s long-term strength 47:00 Peaceful exit from the dollar network 50:27 Collective global dedollarization movements 52:01 Seizing assets: why early exit is key 54:48 2008 vs 2023: learning from past crises 58:34 How inflation invisibly shifted political wealth 1:01:04 Global divergence and preparing for deplatforming 1:03:06 Bitcoin bans? Three types of Bitcoin states 1:07:20 Digital gold window and sovereignty through crypto 1:08:00 Final question: financial exit strategies 1:13:06 Sovereign collectives: from individual exit to community 1:15:06 Final thoughts and call to action _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇯🇵 *Pragma Tokyo* It’s always been about hackathons. Until now! Kicking off in Tokyo we announced the latest edition to the ETHGlobal family last week. Pragma will be one day summit, focusing on high quality talks in an intimate atmosphere that fuels reimagining the world and networking with like-minded individuals. Watch the full Pragma Tokyo 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh72VNBeeMzsvxnDdJH-vPhZ&si=z7enlsk30_DUjIoL _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Patricio Worthalter

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Patricio Worthalter, founder of POAP, joins Pragma Lisbon for a wide-ranging fireside chat on the past, present, and future of POAP and the broader NFT ecosystem. In this thoughtful and candid session, Patricio reflects on his journey from early blockchain evangelist to launching POAP as a way to preserve memories through digital collectibles. He explains how POAP evolved into the most adopted non-financial blockchain application, with over a million wallets holding these curated tokens. Patricio discusses surprising adoption by financial institutions like American Express and SWIFT, POAP’s role as a public good, and why curation, scarcity, and de-financialization are key to POAP’s integrity. He also shares insights on the NFT market, long-term trends, and how projects like Nouns and DAOs are shaping the future of decentralized coordination. A must-watch for anyone passionate about Ethereum, digital identity, governance, and the future of NFTs. 00:00 Opening and welcome to Patricio Worthalter 00:47 What is POAP? Defining digital collectibles 02:44 How POAP started and why it was created 04:49 Transition from speculation to meaningful tech 06:16 Early days of NFTs and building in isolation 08:12 Who Patricio thought POAP users would be 10:04 Why early adoption was difficult 11:18 Surprising adoption by financial institutions 13:25 Working with banks and SWIFT on collectibles 14:38 Use cases with brands like Porsche and Amex 17:27 Composability and onboarding for Web2 brands 19:20 Crypto-native teams vs. mainstream brands 21:08 Is POAP a consumer or enterprise product? 23:27 What makes POAP a digital public good 26:07 How Wikipedia inspires POAP’s model 27:22 Discussing the idea of de-financializing POAP 28:14 The future where everything is tokenized 29:46 Curation as key to POAP’s long-term value 31:10 Moving to a model where POAPs cost money 33:34 Insights from broader NFT ecosystem trends 36:03 Why NFTs face less institutional resistance 37:26 Long-term thinking for NFT builders 39:21 PFPs, sustainability, and building real value 40:21 Coordination and lessons from the Nouns DAO 42:31 Upcoming nouns activations at ETHGlobal 44:40 Final advice for founders and POAP supporters _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇵🇹 *Pragma Lisbon* Pragma Lisbon 2023 took place at Casa do Alentejo on May 11, 2023, and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Lisbon 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7nuyBq4GojkgAhqoRtsi9K&si=pYS-TR5BOQSZ3YGi ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Ever since we first introduced our new event series, Pragma, in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Patricio Worthalter* X: https://x.com/worthalter ✅ *Follow POAP* X: https://x.com/poapxyz ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Join Christina Beltramini of Lens Protocol at Pragma Lisbon 2023 for an in-depth conversation on how to successfully grow consumer-friendly web3 social applications. Drawing on her unique background in the music industry, her work at TikTok during its explosive growth phase, and her early involvement in NFTs, Christina explains what makes web3 social fundamentally different from web2 and how builders can take advantage of decentralized social layers. She discusses the challenges of onboarding users without a frontend, the importance of community in building sticky, sustainable products, and how Lens has activated creators—especially musicians—by offering new monetization and engagement tools. Christina also shares lessons from failed experiments, how Lens approaches ecosystem expansion, and why building in public with psychological ownership leads to long-term success. Whether you’re building the next web3-native social platform, designing creator tools, or rethinking community architecture, this talk offers a clear look at what’s working, what’s not, and where web3 social is headed. 00:00 Opening and intro to Christina Beltramini 01:13 Christina’s background in music and TikTok 02:53 What defines a web3 social app 04:29 Why full decentralization matters 05:38 Pitfalls for web2 founders entering web3 06:41 Why community-first strategy is essential 07:52 Building Lens without a frontend 08:59 The musician onboarding playbook 10:33 Failed experiments and early lessons 11:41 Building ecosystems for specific communities 12:43 Key differentiators of web3 social 14:25 Utility and cross-platform engagement 15:01 Monetization, remixing, and provenance 16:35 Open data structures and deeper engagement 18:47 Challenges for onboarding non-crypto users 19:23 Advice on growth and early user traction 20:59 Psychological ownership and community funding 21:35 The power of community over product 22:06 Final thoughts and wrap-up _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇵🇹 *Pragma Lisbon* Pragma Lisbon 2023 took place at Casa do Alentejo on May 11, 2023, and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Lisbon 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7nuyBq4GojkgAhqoRtsi9K&si=pYS-TR5BOQSZ3YGi ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Ever since we first introduced our new event series, Pragma, in Tokyo in the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Vitalik Buterin, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin sits down with ETHGlobal’s Kartik Talwar for an in-depth fireside chat at Pragma Waterloo. They cover Ethereum’s scaling roadmap, rollup taxonomy (stage 0 to stage 2), the future of smart contract wallets and ERC-4337, and why decentralization still matters. Vitalik also shares personal insights on the last 10 years of Ethereum, privacy challenges, social recovery wallets, and the ZuConnect / Zuzalu community experiments. If you're interested in Ethereum L2s, ZK proofs, account abstraction, or building user-friendly decentralized systems, this conversation is packed with thought leadership and actionable insights for developers, builders, and web3 enthusiasts. 00:00 Introduction with Vitalik Buterin 01:14 What is a rollup and why it matters 02:59 Rollup data availability and integrity 05:00 Rollup security: stage 0 to stage 2 07:55 Role of emergency councils and thresholds 09:48 Validiums and sidechains explained 10:18 Ethereum's 10-year reflection 12:00 From abstract to practical applications 13:37 Layer 2 payments and real-world issues 15:36 ETH payment experience in Argentina 17:18 Convenience vs. decentralization 20:46 What does decentralization mean? 22:15 Social recovery vs centralized recovery 24:57 Why ERC-4337 is essential 27:32 Problems with ERC-1271 adoption 29:16 Social challenges vs. technical hurdles 30:21 Multi-chain wallets and consistency issues 33:05 Counterfactual addresses and key resets 35:59 Social recovery + privacy = cryptographic challenge 37:35 Solving UX with coordination, not tech alone 38:04 Zuzalu experiment overview 40:31 Community-led culture and governance 44:05 Using zk-proofs for real-world access 46:46 Anonymous voting with Zupass 48:18 ZK-powered stamps and access control 50:22 Cities and network effects as choice 51:19 Vision for Ethereum’s next 10 years 52:53 Why values matter in crypto's future 54:56 Collaboration over empire building 55:26 Closing thoughts on meaning and success _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇨🇦 *Pragma Waterloo* The now third edition of Pragma kicked off with a curated series of high-quality talks that sparked thought and discussion among attendees as they were storming into the Auditorium of the CIGI Building. Pragma Waterloo 2023 was an opportunity discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Watch the full Pragma Waterloo 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh7i8oFx5vCB9qTdadQqAjF0&si=NS2W71SteTbEs4T8 ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Vitalik Buterin X: https://x.com/VitalikButerin ✅ Follow the Ethereum Foundation X: https://x.com/ethereumfndn ✅ *Follow the Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Alex Gluchowski, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Join Alex Gluchowski, CEO and co-founder of Matter Labs and creator of zkSync, as he dives deep into the future of Ethereum scalability in this fireside chat at Pragma Paris 2023. This conversation explores Ethereum at hyperscale—from zero-knowledge proofs and ZK rollups to GPU-powered proof generation, recursive SNARKs, the ZK Stack, volition models, and more. Alex shares the technical breakthroughs that make hyperscalable blockchains possible, including zkSync’s new proof system Boojum, decentralized sequencers, and elastic data availability. With insights on ZK-EVM design choices, compression benchmarks, developer UX, the evolution of Ethereum rollups, and what true blockchain mass adoption looks like, this talk is a must-watch for anyone building or investing in Ethereum infrastructure. 00:00 Welcome & Introduction with Alex Gluchowski 00:38 Why zkSync was created 01:48 Zero-knowledge proofs as a scaling catalyst 03:33 Capitalism, freedom & permissionless innovation 05:11 Ethereum as the value layer of the internet 06:16 What ZK rollups enable: scale and privacy 08:25 Volition and zkPorter explained 10:07 zkSync’s cost efficiency and privacy roadmap 11:06 Recursion and constant-size proof benefits 12:05 Breakthroughs and proof system: Boojum 14:22 Performance benchmarks and GPU proving 16:57 Mainnet rollout and shadow proving 17:56 Unlimited block size with ZK recursion 19:03 zkSync throughput and battle-tested usage 20:12 ZK vs Optimistic rollups 23:28 State diffs vs calldata and compression 25:10 Volition trade-offs and user security 26:45 ZK Stack and EVM compatibility 28:41 Modular deployments with hyperchains 30:23 Hyperchains as city districts 33:38 Hyperbridging and seamless interoperability 35:18 Lessons learned and early missteps 36:55 How to measure Ethereum scalability success 38:38 ZK Credo and defining hyperscalability _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Paris* Pragma Paris took place at the Pavillion Vendome in Paris on July 20, 2023, and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Paris 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh42f0yI-hyeOCbNZpvV2fIT&si=Ez6ych6OAdn_sq1D ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Ever since we first introduced our new event series Pragma in Tokyo of the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Eli Ben-Sasson, Kartik Talwar

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Join Eli Ben-Sasson, co-founder of StarkWare and pioneer of zero-knowledge proofs, for a deep and accessible conversation on the evolution of SNARKs, STARKs, and the future of Ethereum scalability. In this Pragma Paris 2023 fireside chat, Eli shares how ZK-STARKs emerged, why they matter, how Starknet and Cairo are unlocking a new era of developer experience, and what it means to achieve fractal blockchain scalability through recursive proofs. Get insight into the cryptographic foundations of scalability, security, and privacy, hear how Cairo is rapidly gaining developer adoption, and learn why STARKs are poised to shape the long-term infrastructure of Web3. Whether you're a researcher, builder, or curious learner—this talk will leave you inspired by the promise of provable computation at hyperscale. 00:00 Intro and welcoming Eli Ben-Sasson 00:43 From academia to Zcash and StarkWare 02:46 Origins of STARKs and focus on scalability 03:59 SNARKs vs STARKs: key differences 05:22 Improving STARK efficiency and recursion 07:13 Amortized proof cost and real-world usage 08:27 STARKs enabling blockchain scalability 09:42 Privacy and fractal scaling with Layer 3s 10:16 Starknet, Cairo, and developer onboarding 11:33 Applications on Starknet and account abstraction 12:41 Why Cairo instead of EVM compatibility 13:48 Fine print of EVM-compatible ZK systems 15:02 Why Cairo will dominate future smart contracts 16:20 Starknet developer growth and ecosystem 17:38 STARK-based systems becoming the norm 18:58 Ethereum as base layer, not competition 19:34 What Starknet still needs to improve 20:50 Community building and global expansion 21:25 Lessons learned in company building 22:58 Flat teams and decentralized leadership 24:16 Timeline predictions and confidence 24:48 What scalable blockchain infrastructure looks like 25:29 Closing thoughts and thank you _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Paris* Pragma Paris took place at the Pavillion Vendome in Paris on July 20, 2023, and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Paris 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh42f0yI-hyeOCbNZpvV2fIT&si=Ez6ych6OAdn_sq1D ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Ever since we first introduced our new event series Pragma in Tokyo of the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Eli Ben-Sasson* X: https://x.com/EliBenSasson ✅ *Follow StarkWare* X: https://x.com/StarkWareLtd ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kartik Talwar, Jesse Pollak

ETHGlobal · Oct 9, 2023

Join Jesse Pollak, creator of Base and a leader at Coinbase, as he breaks down the story behind launching Base—Coinbase’s Ethereum L2 chain—and his bold vision for the future of the onchain internet. In this fireside at Pragma Paris 2023, Jesse shares the inside story of how Base came to life, why Coinbase chose to build on the OP Stack, and how decentralization, open-source collaboration, and user-centric design will bring the next billion users onchain. Learn how Coinbase is connecting its 100M+ users to Web3, how Base plans to grow the onchain economy through better onboarding, interoperability, and developer-first infrastructure—and why Jesse believes we’re about to enter the steepest adoption curve crypto has ever seen. 00:00 Introduction and welcoming Jesse Pollak 00:49 How Base started inside Coinbase 01:55 Early failures and testnet turning point 03:27 Coinbase vs. Base: structure and autonomy 05:05 Choosing Ethereum, EVM, and OP Stack 07:16 Why many L2s need open interoperability 08:17 Open source, decentralization, and the superchain 09:49 Base’s decentralization strategy 11:21 Collaboration with Paradigm and ref/opera 12:24 Security, pessimism tool, and shared audits 13:55 Base as core contributor to OP Stack 15:23 How Coinbase plans to onboard 100M+ users 17:00 Solving UX with seamless wallet flows 18:07 Mainnet timeline and launch concerns 19:10 It’s a years-long journey, not a sprint 20:14 Jesse’s 2-year prediction: 100M+ onchain users 21:54 Why we’ve hit the inflection point now 22:31 Real crypto growth hasn’t even started yet 23:05 Closing remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Paris* Pragma Paris took place at the Pavillion Vendome in Paris on July 20, 2023, and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Paris 2023 playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh42f0yI-hyeOCbNZpvV2fIT&si=Ez6ych6OAdn_sq1D ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. Ever since we first introduced our new event series Pragma in Tokyo of the spring of 2023, we have been fostering a curated, global community of individuals who deeply care about web3. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ *Follow Jesse Pollak* X: https://x.com/jessepollak ✅ *Follow Base* X: https://x.com/base ✅ *Follow Kartik Talwar* X: https://x.com/therealkartik Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/kartik ✅ *Follow ETHGlobal* X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ETHGlobal _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship?_ 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Ethereum Denver · Oct 9, 2023

In this video, we dive into the fascinating world of Dapper Labs and their groundbreaking contributions to the non-fungible token (NFT) space. Join us as we explore how Dapper Labs is revolutionizing mainstream adoption through their innovative hybrid custody approach. One of the key highlights we'll be discussing is Dapper Labs' pioneering feature called erc4337. This remarkable development brings unprecedented capabilities to Ethereum and other EVM chains, opening up new possibilities for NFT enthusiasts and creators alike. We'll also dive into Flow, Dapper Labs' very own blockchain that has taken the industry by storm. With its immense success demonstrated by NBA Top Shot's staggering $100 million trading volume milestone, it's clear that Flow is a force to be reckoned with in the NFT realm. We'll explore how this platform has attracted over 600,000 NFT holders and examine Dapper Labs' ambitious plans for future growth. Join us on this captivating journey as we uncover the secrets behind Dapper Labs' game-changing innovations in NFTs and discover what lies ahead for this trailblazing company. #DapperLabs #NFTRevolution #buidl #ethdenver #erc4337 TLDR: The key idea of the video is that hybrid custody, which combines self-custody and ease of use, is crucial for achieving mainstream adoption of Web3 and improving user experience in blockchain applications. 00:00 🔑 Unlocking mainstream adoption through hybrid custody is a relevant feature for all blockchain developers, as it brings capabilities to ethereum and other evm chains, and Dapper Labs will demonstrate its potential for user experience in mobile applications. 00:46 💡 Flow, a blockchain developed by Dapper Labs, has gained significant traction with 20 million user accounts and almost 400 million nft transactions, positioning it as a major player in the Web3 space. 02:17 🔑 Mainstream adoption of Web3 can be achieved through hybrid custody, which solves the trade-off between self-custody and ease of use for developers and users, allowing users to onboard without the need for a crypto wallet while maintaining the benefits of composability and application interoperability. 04:05 🔑 Create easy-to-use experiences for consumers and developers in web3 by implementing seamless onboarding and hybrid custody, allowing for account migration and delegation while preserving composability and developer experience. 05:29 🔑 Users can easily access Web3 products by setting up a Web3 identity and delegating control of their on-chain wallet to a parent wallet, without changing their public wallet address or transferring assets. 07:16 🔑 Highway custody enables users to have full control over their assets and seamless access to the benefits of Web3, while also allowing developers to build for both centralized and decentralized ecosystems, giving users the freedom to choose their preferred software. 08:57 🔒 A hybrid custody system allows users to authenticate through Google, make transactions, play games, and receive fungible tokens within an app. 10:18 🔑 Hybrid custody enables users to easily manage and access their assets across various web3 platforms, improving user experience and security.

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2022

To avoid being left behind, banks need to find a way to embrace this technology and treat it as a friend rather than an enemy. Cryptocurrency adoption could streamline, enhance, and upgrade financial services, and there are plenty of recent industry advancements that can ease banks’ concerns around the risks and instead let them recognize the potential benefits. SPEAKERS: - Stephanie Ramezan, Director of Business Development, Europe, Gemini - Kim Schneider, Blockchain Specialist, Rabobank - Mariana Gospodinova, Executive VP Operations, Crypto.com - Mai Santamaria, Head of Financial Advisory Team, Department of Finance Ireland - Simon Seiter, Head of Digital Assets, Hauck & Aufhäuser

European Blockchain Convention · Oct 9, 2022

In this intimate session, Fireblocks CEO and Co-founder Michael Shaulov will discuss what he is seeing in terms of institutional adoption of digital assets across a variety of use cases, what some of the barriers are for institutions and what makes him most excited for the future. The market cap for cryptocurrencies is approximately $3 trillion. There is more than $100 billion locked in DeFi pools and the market cap of stablecoins is more than $100 billion as well. Digital assets can no longer be ignored and institutions, both new and old, need to be thinking about the impact they can have on their business and how digital asset use cases apply to them. ----- SPEAKER - Michael Shaulov, CEO and Co-founder of Fireblocks