Everyone quick announcement for last week's Unchained giveaway. I'd like to congratulate our three winners at Matthew Maury at a HD Rick and at why are you like this? I received a ton of submissions and it was super fun. Seeing which podcast you enjoy the most. It looks like entities are the most popular topic right now. Thank you to everyone who entered the contest for more fun content. Be sure to follow the Unchained pod account on Twitter. That's at Unchained underscore pod.
And to our three winners enjoy the real Vision crypto Gathering which wraps up the day. This show comes out. Be sure to check out my interview with Lily Wu and Peter Brant at 10:30 a.m. Eastern.
Hi everyone, welcome to unconfirmed the show that reveals how the markings and crypto are reacting to the week's top headlines and get the inside scoop on what they see on the horizon. I'm your host Laura Shin a journalist with over two decades of experience. I started covering crypto five years ago and is a senior editor at Forbes was the first mainstream media reporter to cover cryptocurrency full-time.
You may have heard about inter pop a super Team Laser focused on the emerging landscape of fandom. They are tapping into the latest Innovations in NF T's to revolutionize gaming Collectibles and comics on tasos. Learn more at hello. Inter pop dot IO the crypto.com at Pacey up to 8.5 percent interest on your Bitcoin get $25 when you download the crypto.com app with code Laura, the link is in the description.
Today's guest is Miami. Mayor Francis Juarez. Welcome, mayor Suarez.
Hi Laura. It's a pleasure to be with you
as we record Miami looks poised to approve the first crypto currency exchange sponsor of an NBA arena Friday, which is the day this episode comes out the Miami-Dade County Commission will vote on whether or not to approve the deal in which the current American Airlines Arena would be renamed FTX Rina. How did this deal come about?
Well, it wasn't open bid and they
Did I think a hundred thirty five million dollars for the naming rights? So they put in a very big bid, but I think it wouldn't happen if it wasn't for the fact that Miami is trying and striving very very much to become the crypto Capital the world and we're doing that frankly by doing some things that I think are very easy, right? The first thing we did was we scoured the United States to find out what are the most crypto friendly laws in this in the US we found out that it was Wyoming. So we promptly copied their laws.
Try to improve them and now have a bill in the house. And in the Senate that is making its way up to the governor, which would make Florida the most crypto friendly state in the nation. And then as a city, we implemented, you know a resolution that would allow our employees to get paid in Bitcoin that would allow residents to pay for fees in Bitcoin. And that would allow a city or at least explore the possibility of the city investing in Bitcoin. So we wanted to sort of own.
This space because we think that cryptocurrencies are the wave of the future and we want to be known as the city of the future
and how did you come to that conclusion and to have that desire to make Miami a crypto Capital
part of it was worth it. I have been doing a prior to this moment. I was on the Florida blockchain Foundation and also on the Florida blockchain task force that was established by the governor and and the CFO Florida and so for me, you know, I knew about the
Technology early. I'm a finance undergrad. So I have a degree in finance. So I understand the financial concepts of mathematical Concepts that underpin it and I understand people's frustration with government and government overspending and government try to manipulate through policy a variety of objectives. And I think that's what has attracted people to a system that is decentralized that is untethered to a central bank. And and I think that's what makes it.
Exciting especially when you see some of the actions that are being taken by governments across the country and across the world.
Well, that's interesting to have that take when you actually work in government. So how do you see the two blending together?
I think they have to interact like everything in life. I'm hoping that there's some benefit benefits in some positive byproducts of this sort of cryptocurrency Revolution. I think one of them will be hopefully the elimination of
Of deficit spending. We're hopefully governments are going to now have to tether themselves to crypto as a currency as opposed to the other way around and so they're gonna have to borrow money. Like everybody else borrows money. They can't just print their own money, you know, they borrow money at an interest rate and if governments don't behave physically they're going to have to borrow worse and worse rates. They just can't invent their own interest rates and invent their own currency which manipulates how markets work and so I think that's that could be a tremendous future benefit.
Are we in the city of Miami just to give an example? We're forced to balance our budget. So it's very natural for us. We actually have a surplus we actually have about a hundred fifty million dollars in Surplus and we have some of the lowest tax rates in the history of the city. So there is totally a space or government can be small can be nimble efficient delivery services without taxing people to death or without deficit spending
and it's so just the feature that you described it basically sounds like a future in which people transact in.
Governmental currencies and Fiat is not dominant the way it is today. Is that what you think will happen?
I can totally see a future that that that happens. In fact, that's really kind of a regression to our past, you know government Fiat are relatively recent in terms of human history. And you know, it would not surprise me. If you know the democratization of Technology allows for people to come to a common understanding as to what they think has value and
exchange from there, which is essentially a Bitcoin is or cryptocurrencies, right? It's it's a digital mechanism where people have agreed we're going to assign value to this, you know mechanical mechanical technological piece of data and and that's what we're going to trade and and then of course all the benefits flow from that so as long as regulation doesn't impede it unnecessarily or there isn't like some sort of a main a big hawk or anything like that. I see that the truck the trend and the trajectory particularly as you see government's Implement monetary.
Policy that creates a tremendous amount of inflation. I see the trajectory as being one that's on the upswing kind of like this crane right behind
me. Right which for people who are listening to the audio. There is pretty much a near-vertical crane right behind his head and it's just a quick question it back to the FTX sponsorship since it's a 19-year agreement and the crypto markets are known to have these Boleyn their Cycles. Is there any concern amongst the Commissioners or other cities?
Officials about signing FTX for such a long term sponsorship.
Not really. I mean we'll know on Friday for sure, but I don't think so. I mean, I think that it's a very generous agreement. It could very well end up being a very inexpensive agreement for them. If the price of Bitcoin continues to go up in the way that it's gone up when I when I put the resolution on the commission meeting it was trading at 47. I don't know if it's a 55 now is I-55 earlier. So it's already up, you know, almost 20 percent was that up to now?
56 days ago so somebody might just have been 56. So so you top up, you know to almost $10,000 it could that hundred thirty five million dollar price tag could look paltry in that's probably what they're banking on Frankie in the next five years forget about 10
years. Yeah. Yeah. It is true. Obviously over the long term. It has been pretty parabolic and I was also curious because obviously as you're probably well aware a lot of
people in kind of what we would say the Normie world and on crypto world view crypto is being volunteer Allure associated with criminals. And so I just wondered like were there any perceptions amongst the other City officials that you had to overcome and if so what arguments did you find effective and persuasive with them?
Well, the answer is yes, of course, there were people that we had to convince and some people that weren't convinced we had, you know, not everybody voted for it was a 4-1 vote one of the Commissioners voted against it and my argument was the currency on which the most illicit activity in the world in the history of the world has happened is the dollar. Okay. So we're not taking the dollar out of circulation because illicit activities have you know have have used the dollar to to transact business. I mean, there's all the
The famous stories of you know Colombian or I shouldn't even say their nationality but drug drug dealers who are you know, stuffing hundred dollar bills in their in their drywall. So, I mean that that part to me it's kind of nonsensical but to make the argument that no, no we should go to dollars because crypto has a tendency to be affiliated with criminal activities $1 R. AR the are the fiat currency that is most been used in the history of humanity for criminal activity. I mean, it's kind of a silly
argument, okay?
In a
moment, we will discussed the possibility of Miami transacting in Bitcoin. But first a quick word for the sponsors who make the show possible.
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Now and get $25 by using the code Laura the link is in the description back to my conversation with Miami mayor Francis Suarez. So as you mentioned earlier the city May pay city employees in Bitcoin and also have the city's corporate treasury invest in Bitcoin and I wondered where is that interest coming from our city employees demanding or requesting to be paid in Bitcoin or what has the reaction been to this possibility?
No, they're not not really, you know, this was just something that we thought was an interesting way for us to continue to be Innovative to get to give our employees options. You know, none of them are forced to do it. It's completely voluntary at whatever level they want. They could theoretically do it already on their own. I mean, they could get paid in dollars and go to an exchange and buy Bitcoin. So it's just sort of a mechanism that allows them to do it instantaneously, but it's exciting because it also helps
And what I call their ascendency to mainstream and I think a big part of the coin success, is it being approved by and used by governmental agencies? Because that's seen as one of the biggest threats to bitcoin. So I think from a from a branding perspective and from a sending to you know, to mainstreaming perspective. It's a really significant event for the Bitcoin community and the crypto community
and
As for the possibility of the city treasury investing in Bitcoin what needs to happen to make that possible
what we're doing some legal research to see if we can even hold Bitcoin. That's something that we have to first figure out whether it's a legal investment asset. If it is then the second thing second threshold I think is you touched a little bit on its volatility. So we're only allowed to invest in certain kinds of assets that hurt have a certain volatility threshold.
What even if they're going up completely right? It's not about you know, their Direction per se even though it should be it's more about their movement. And and what kind of an asset class can you invest in? So those are the analysis that have to take place before we can decide and then of course, you know, I thought about some creative ways to defray the city's Risk by maybe getting some big crypto holders to co-invest with the city so that it becomes less risky.
The city and it becomes something that's more easily accepted by by the residents
and how would that co-investment? Make it less risky for the city?
Well, let's say for example that let's say for example that the city invested 250,000. I'm just making up numbers and the core investors invested 750 but on the gains right on the gains the city first gets back its 250 right and then the core investors get back their money, but their money stays in right there.
Get back there 750 but their original Seven fifty states and so the city ends up making, you know back its money plus plus the the violence so they're upside is significantly greater and then you know, obviously if there's if there's a downside loss the loss gets gets born first by the co-investors and last by the city. So that's that's just an idea that I've had that I've come up with, you know, I'm not sure if we're going to be able to do something like that, but I think it's a creative way of defraying the risk so that you can sort of get your feet wet and dip your toe in the water.
water without creating a tremendous amount of risk that your residence might be afraid of
and how long is this study expected to take
Hard to say I mean we have you know, like government and nothing ever is as fast as you want it to be and you know, we have a lot of big projects that were working on. We just came back from Las Vegas talking about a pouring tunnel. So we're working at variety big progress is going to take whatever time I'm always. I'm very anxious and sort of impatient. So but we want to make sure that everybody's comfortable want to make sure our councils comfortable, you know at the end of the day this is not done by executive Fiat, you know, it's not like I can just wave a pen and make it happen. So you know you have your
I have to study it and then you have to get your commission or Council comfortable with it so that they approve it
and last topic. There's been a lot of controversy recently about the environmental impact of proof of work remaining which is what's used by Bitcoin and Miami won't be probably one of the city's hardest hit by climate change. So how do you reconcile your interest in Bitcoin as well as its potential impact on the environment against your love for Miami and your interest in mitigating the effects of climate change. They're
extremely easy.
Extremely easy to reconcile those two things because a part of the problem with Bitcoin mining is 90% of it is not done in the United States 90% of it is done in countries that have dirty energy. So that's that's the reason why it's considered to be a dirty activity, but for example, Miami, we would love to be a mining a hub for a national security reasons. We don't think 90% of mining should be outside of the US and B. We get nuclear power. So we have clean energy our clean energy Supply.
That's essentially unlimited and so we have the ability to have to supply mining centers and data centers in perpetuity with clean energy. So it actually would be to the benefit of the crypto Community if we did more money in the u.s. Because we buy a large produce clean energy so that which would change that narrative and that Dynamic and I also think in the future you're going to see, you know solar and other kinds of to clean technology hydrogen as technology that
That propels mining as well as you're going to see mining happening in different forms. You're going to have you're going to they're going to be bigger hash blocks. They're going to be you know, more efficient terms of authentication changes in terms of how you know, Bitcoin and other transactions on the blockchain are authenticated that's going to that's going to be that's going to reform. So I think technology is going to make it more efficient less expensive and less power consuming
and it just one quick question on what you said.
When you were talking about mining in the US, Miami is very hot and obviously Bitcoin miners generate even more heat. So what are you saying that you would want to do the mining in Florida or you mean just like in a colder part of the
u.s. No. No, I think it could be anywhere in the US but certainly could be in Miami as well. I mean, I don't think that the mining activity itself is going to contribute to the heat of the city. I've never heard or seen of a study where the mining activity itself or data center which by the way, I don't know if I'm sure you've been to a bunch of data centers. I mean there.
Insulation is incredible because they have to be basically bomb-proof. Right? So you could drop a huge bomb on a Data Center and it there they are Guardians of the infrastructure the technological infrastructure of a city. So it's very unlikely that they're pushing off a tremendous amount of heat from from The Source itself.
Okay. Well, I mean they do generally a lot of heat but but also then it takes energy to cool them down and whatever. But anyway,
okay. Well, let me think. What is that happening in turn is that happening internal or external?
Well, I mean some of them are you know, like you said kind of I think and underground or in Bunker's but then others I think are you know, just like a normal?
Building so it sort of depends on what the setup is got right for this is for discussion. Maybe when there's like an actual plan in the works and we can to talk about it then.
Thank
you. All right. Well, thank you so much for coming on unconfirmed.
Thank you so much for having me.
Don't forget next up is the Weekly News recap stick around for this weekend crypto after this short break.
Meet inter pop a super team redefining the feature of n of T's and fandom from comics and trading card games to digital Collectibles and everything in between. They are building the architecture of an entirely new landscape of fandom using technology built on the tasers blockchain to drive their Vision visit. Hello inter pop dot IO to learn
more
Thanks for tuning in to this week's news recap first headline.
Fidelity files for a Bitcoin ETF an affiliate Fidelity filed for a Bitcoin ETF with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday the proposed ETF notes. The application will quote provide direct exposure to bitcoin and track the price of BTC through Fidelity's in house prices bitcoin price index which adjusts for the trust's expenses. Fidelity digital assets will custody the underlying Bitcoin vanilla B. ZT F will be named the wise origin Bitcoin.
Just a subtle nod to be coins pseudonymous crater on Twitter Alex Thorn head of firm-wide research accounting seed digital pointed out that in Japanese Satoshi means wisdom and Nakamoto means origin.
In a statement to the block of fidelity spokesperson expounded on the filing saying quote the digital assets ecosystem has grown significantly in recent years creating an even more robust Marketplace for investors and accelerating demand among institutions and increasingly wide range of investors seeking access to bitcoin has underscored the need for a more Diversified set of products offering exposure to digital assets Fidelity's entrance into the Bitcoin. ETF race comes right on the heels of similar.
Spy van Eck Valkyrie and why TIG Wisdom Tree and first advisors / skybridge next headline coin basis direct listing draw scrutiny to the firm's prospects. Brian Armstrong's net worth and customer service Mario Gabrielle a founder of tech newsletter the generalist along with well-known crypto analysts such as Jill Carson Ryan Todd and Catherine who wrote up a comprehensive peace on the paradoxes of coinbase as
decentralized exchange championing the rise of decentralization. The article is too long to summarize here, but I recommend it for those looking for a thorough analysis on coinbase ahead of its direct listing some Choice highlights include the correlation between coin basis Revenue growth and bitcoin price has been around 70% for the past few years institutional trading made up 64% of coin basis trading volume while only accounting for five percent of Revenue.
Transaction fees made up 86% of coin basis Revenue in 2020 CNBC reports. The much-anticipated coinbase direct listening is poised to make co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong a very wealthy man at the latest valuation Armstrong stake in a company is worth thirteen point six billion dollars, which would leave him in the company of recent Tech Founders like zooms Eric you on at 16 billion dollars Twitter's Jack Dorsey at 13 billion dollars and shopify's
Evan Spiegel a 10 billion dollars in net worth
in coin basis virtual am a are or ask me anything on Reddit Armstrong made Headlines by acknowledging that coin based would support Central Bank digital currencies. If and when they met the exchanges listing standards and response to a question about coinbase providing special watching my shares to early customers a la a crypto airdrop Chief Financial Officer Alysia Hoss, but such rumors to rest seeing there will be quote no opportunity to invest in a company.
Prior to that direct listing she reveals. However that coinbase had researched the idea of a security token a digital representation of a stock instead of a standard IPO has cited a lack of opportunity for institutional investors as the reason why a blockchain need of security never materialized.
The coinbase news cycle was not all positive last Friday the cftc find the exchange 6.5 million dollars for allegedly providing misleading information about the trading volume on his platform cheat X now, we rebranded as coinbase Pro between 2015 and 2018 the cftc pointed out to in-house software programs that traded with each other inflating the asset prices and volume on G docks the agency also alleged that a former coinbase.
You participated in wash trading using Litecoin Bitcoin trading pairs in a tweet thread Evan lorenza Deputy editor of Grants interest rate Observer speculated that coinbase, which now based on its revenues would not be defined as an emerging Growth Company quote skated under the emerging growth deadline based on when it filed this means that along with other emerging growth companies. It is now only required to disclose two years of financials in its S1. Here. I lie noted that
The period of time for which it provided financials quote begins just after the cftc said that coinbase stopped conducting wash trades to give the illusion of more training volume the N of T looked into how coinbase struggles with customer service by following several customers who lost five and six figure amounts of crypto on the platform after their accounts were hacked. They say they received little to no customer support for long periods of time. The coinbase said that only .004 percent of its users had experienced such an
Attack the company said it has added 2000 customer service reps to help in such circumstances, but the story as a reminder to secure your passwords and always use second Factor authentication services such as Google Authenticator or a yubikey.
Next headline Yoona swap finally unveils V3 plans, you know swab was introduced in true crypto fashion via an announcement of an announcement in a dramatic boarding six-second video featuring three unicorns and a hidden message Written in the Stars a few hours later Yoona swap released a blog post outlining the V3 plan and setting May 5th as the target launch date Eunice what V3 aims to be quote.
Was flexible and efficient a MMR automated Market maker ever designed and will quote provide liquidity with up to 4000 x capital efficiency relative to you know, swop V2. The heart of the update is centered on a concept of concentrated liquidity which allows liquidity providers more control over the price range their markets trade on.
This version of you know, swap will launch with a business source license that delays the commercial use of the code for up to two years perhaps in response to eat sushi swap arrival that previously copied and pasted unicef's code to create a competitor the question now becomes as Jose macedo partner at Delphi digital asked on Twitter. How do you enforce a license if an anonymous and decentralized team Forks the code?
On a related note Google search volume for Yoona swab reached its highest point since September 20 20 next headline fat F changes the definition of n of t s and daps the financial action task force or fat of the intergovernmental organization tasked with developing anti-money laundering and other Financial surveillance policies release draft Guidance with two changes that could transform defy first and expanded the definition of value.
gasps virtual assets service providers to include many defy applications or daps that could require decentralised platforms to conform to the same anti-money laundering laws traditional financial institutions follow secondly found of change the phrase quote assets that are fungible to quote assets that are convertible and interchangeable the new terminology would lump certain and of tees under the same regulations as virtual assets if
Tokens were used to facilitate money laundering or terrorism Peter Van valkenburg director of research a coin Center a blockchain. Advocacy organization called the proposed changes problematic in a blog post. He wrote quote classification as a vasp would obligate these non-custodial persons to register with a local regulator collect and report to government masses of information about their activities and the activities of others and to know the names and physical addresses.
Of everyone with whom they interact those requirements may be reasonable for banks and other financial institutions where most money laundering takes place, but they are absolutely inappropriate for private persons participating in open computer networks.
Ian Taylor cheer a trade Association crypto UK also criticized the changes saying fat f are recommending to the government's that they do everything they can to stop digital asset related Financial relations that aren't intermediated fan of will be accepting public comments on the draft language until April 20th.
Next headline Elon Musk mines BTC through Tesla sales. You can now buy a Tesla with Bitcoin Ilan tweeted out on Wednesday learning 760. Mm likes his announcement comes just over a month after Tesla revealed a 1.5 billion dollar Bitcoin investment and vague plans to accept BTC as payment musk went on to clarify that quote Bitcoin pay to Tesla will be retained as Bitcoin not
Did a fiat currency designating Tesla as a corporate hudler. He also noted that pay buy Bitcoin capability will be available outside the u.s. Later this year time for an end of T round up after his historic and of T sale at Christie's digital artist be people received fifty three million dollars in ether and promptly converted it to u.s. Dollars in an interview with Fox News. He called the recent surge in nft prices above all though. He does believe that the technology behind.
Entities will outlive the bubble much like what happened with the internet Time Magazine offered up three non fungible tokens inspired by X most iconic covers this week. One Is God dead to is truth Dead 3 is Fiat dead the end of T's sold for 241 'if or $385,000. I'm super where Thursday?
Jack Dorsey sold his original tween as an N of t for 2.9 Million Dollars Dorsey converted all proceeds from the auction to bitcoin and donated to give directly to Africa response. The New York Times released a recent column as an end of T and is auctioning it off for the neediest cases fund the article ironically about and of teas sold for three hundred and fifty thousand eith or five hundred and fifty thousand dollars on Thursday.
Time for fun bits Bitcoins energy consumption rationalized as criticism over Bitcoins environmental impact heats up. The community has banded together with ways to rationalize the energy used to power the proof of work blockchain Nick Grossman General partner at Union Square Ventures use crypto mining as a battery transforming electricity into value in the form of digital assets. He believes Bitcoin as battery will shift The Narrative from
Quote crypto mining is a dangerously large consumer of energy to quote crypto mining is driving the energy transition from fossil fuels to Renewables Square crypto. Also chimed in releasing the first volume of a Bitcoin Mythology series The pithy introduction reads quote since there are no more prominent or prevalent myths about Bitcoin than those having to do with its environmental impact we started there.
While thought-provoking and quirky both the Bitcoin as a battery concept and the idea that Bitcoins environmental concerns our mythological lack a quantitative Foundation, which will be necessary in the coming years for the marketing War over the environmental impact of proof of work this week. I will allow Bitcoins Creator at the last word on proof-of-work quote. The marginal cost of gold mining tends to stay near the price of gold gold mining as a waste, but that waste is far less than the utility of having go.
Available as a medium of exchange. I think the case will be the same for Bitcoin. The utility of the exchange is made possible by Bitcoin will far exceed the cost of electricity used there for not having the coin would be the net waste. All right. Thanks for tuning in to learn more about Miami. Mayor Francis Suarez. Be sure to check out the links in the show notes. Don't forget. We are now on YouTube subscribe to the Unchained podcast Channel today on confirm this produced by me Laura shin.
In with help from Anthony Yoon, Mark Murdock and Daniel Ness. Thanks for
listening.
