Kraken’s IPO, Tether’s Power Play, & Why Bitcoin Still Wins

Update: 2025-11-24

Description

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Presented collaboratively by Early Riders & Onramp Media…

Final Settlement is a weekly podcast covering capital markets, dealmaking, early-stage venture, bitcoin applications and protocol development.00:00 - Latest in Bitcoin price action

01:46 - Kraken’s $20B IPO & Citadel’s investment

10:17 - Tether’s strategic investment in Ledn & Bitcoin-only lending

17:53 - VC money chases perp DEX infrastructure

21:52 - Maker/Sky’s OBEX incubator & the stablecoin yield gray zone

24:46 - Slash: stablecoin-first banking and demand for better money movement

26:01 - Human risk management, AI scams & Doppel’s $70M raise

32:48 - Cardano chain split exploit & “decentralization theater”

42:13 - Rethinking the poverty line, broken stats & the debasement trade

50:12 - Square/Block’s SMB Bitcoin tools & the future of merchant adoption

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Links discussed:

https://www.theblock.co/post/378358/lighter-raises-68-million-1-5-billion-valuation-vc-bets-flood-perp-dex-infrastructure-report

https://www.ledn.io/post/tether-invests-in-ledn

https://www.theblock.co/post/380056/hoskinson-involves-fbi-after-developers-careless-experiment-splits-cardano-blockchain

https://decrypt.co/349147/crypto-exchange-kraken-raises-800-million-20-billion-valuation

https://www.doppel.com/blog/doppel-series-c

https://x.com/LayerZero_Core/status/1990822714416963636

https://www.yesigiveafig.com/p/part-1-my-life-is-a-lie

Keep up with Michael: https://x.com/MTanguma

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mtanguma/

Keep up with Brian: https://x.com/BackslashBTC

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-cubellis-00b1a660/