Bits + Bips

Why Agents Will Ditch Stablecoins That Don't Pay Yield

If the risk is the same, why would any rational agent choose a stablecoin that pays nothing over a money market fund that does?  In this clip, Chris Perkins puts the question directly to Circle’s Gordon Liao, who walks through USYC — Circle's yield-bearing instrument — and the seamless toggle between it and USDC.  Austin Campbell frames the winners as "transformers": platforms that can move fluidly between yield and liquidity states. The answer matters for every wallet, exchange, and agentic commerce stack being built right now.   Hosts: Austin Campbell @austincampbell | Ram Ahluwalia @ramahluwalia | Chris Perkins @perkinscr97 Guest: Gordon Liao, Chief Economist and Head of Research at Circle   This clip is from a longer conversation on USDC, the CLARITY Act, and rising bond yields. Full episode here: https://youtube.com/live/bYgoVvXME3Q?feature=share [https://youtube.com/live/bYgoVvXME3Q?feature=share]   We go live every Monday at 4.30 ET — subscribe to catch it live.   Follow us on our new channels! Bits + Bips is moving to its own feeds. Subscribe now at unchainedcrypto.com/bitsandbips so you don't miss the launch.   Coinbase [http://coinbase.com/unchained]: Get 20% off the first year of your Coinbase One annual plan at coinbase.com/unchained [http://coinbase.com/unchained].

Will On-Chain Repo Reach $1 Trillion? One Reason Yes, One Reason No

Matteo Pandolfi of Pareto puts a number on the table: on-chain repo reaches $1 trillion within five years. He makes the case using the current pipeline of traditional institutions entering the space and the hybrid infrastructure model that does not require full on-chain execution. Craig Burchell of FalconX gives you both sides. The bull case: the facilities are already being built, the demand is real, and you are watching it happen in real time. The bear case: the standardization problem. The reason centrally cleared repo works in TradFi is that everything operates under the same agreement and can be automated like clockwork. Getting an entire ecosystem on a standardized on-chain repo form is a gargantuan challenge. On-chain is probably one of the best places to try, but that is still essentially standing up a new exchange from scratch. To open the segment, Craig walks through the Aave deleveraging crisis as the clearest example of what a mature on-chain repo market changes: nobody wanted to sell their positions. They needed short-term liquidity. The cascade did not have to happen. This clip is from a longer conversation on bringing the repo market on-chain. Full episode here: ⁠https://youtube.com/live/E_X1rmunes4⁠ [https://youtube.com/live/E_X1rmunes4]  Bits + Bips: The Interview drops every Thursday — subscribe to catch it. Heads up!  If you haven’t yet, be sure to subscribe to Bits + Bips, since the show will migrate there in a few weeks. Follow us on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, X, Unchained and wherever you get your podcasts.

$5B On-Chain Credit: What's Actually Working and What's Still Missing

On-chain private credit has crossed $5 billion across more than 2,000 assets. The borrower side has matured significantly — institutional counterparties like FalconX are accessing credit on-chain with clear terms, legal structures that hold up to institutional scrutiny, and professional underwriters applying real credit discipline. But the liquidity side remains the visible gap. Tokenization improves transferability; it does not automatically create an active secondary market. Craig Burchell and Matteo Pandolfi walk through the current landscape: the different flavors of on-chain credit from stablecoin yield strategies (USDE, USDS, Syrup USDC) to tokenized TradFi private credit (JTRY, Apollo ACRED, Fasanara, Maple), how FalconX is already using on-chain channels for its tokenized loan book, and what the specific stablecoin repo and RWA deleveraging use cases look like in practice. Craig explains the 'HiFi' framework — why a robust on-chain repo market does not require everything to be fully programmatic — and Matteo maps the composability advantage: using an on-chain credit facility as collateral in a Morpho vault is a proof of concept that goes well beyond yield. This clip is from a longer conversation on bringing the repo market on-chain. Full episode here: https://youtube.com/live/E_X1rmunes4 [https://youtube.com/live/E_X1rmunes4]  Bits + Bips: The Interview drops every Thursday — subscribe to catch it. Heads up!  If you haven’t yet, be sure to subscribe to Bits + Bips, since the show will migrate there in a few weeks. Follow us on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, X, Unchained and wherever you get your podcasts.

Is the AI Rally a Bubble? Ram, Chris, and Austin Disagree

Semiconductors now make up 18% of the S&P 500 — a record — as capital floods into AI infrastructure. Is this another dotcom bubble, or something structurally different? Ram Ahluwalia says the spending is coming from the world’s most profitable companies and the returns are already showing up in cloud growth. Christopher Perkins says every mania eventually reaches an extreme. Austin Campbell argues the bigger question is whether investors are actually backing the right companies. This clip is from a longer conversation on markets, AI, and crypto. Full episode here: https://youtube.com/live/owJbpl30Zq4 [https://youtube.com/live/owJbpl30Zq4]  We go live every Monday at 4:30 PM ET — subscribe to catch it live. Coinbase One [http://coinbase.com/unchained]: Get 20% off the first year of your Coinbase One annual plan at coinbase.com/unchained [http://coinbase.com/unchained].

Paul Tudor Jones Says Bitcoin Is the Best Inflation Hedge. Is He Right?

Paul Tudor Jones called Bitcoin the best inflation hedge the same day it broke through 80 while equities sold off. The Bits + Bips crew debates whether he’s right — and what comes next for the store of value. Ram Ahluwalia sees quantum-resistant successor coins on the horizon. Chris Perkins argues the next backed asset may rely on energy or compute — not gold or Treasuries. Featuring Austin Campbell (@austincampbell), Ram Ahluwalia (@ramahluwalia), and Chris Perkins (@perkinscr97). Full episode: https://youtube.com/live/7MTkawyMU8o [https://youtube.com/live/7MTkawyMU8o]  Thank you to our sponsor! Coinbase One — coinbase.com/unchained [http://coinbase.com/unchained] If you haven’t yet, be sure to subscribe to Bits + Bips, since the show will migrate there in a few weeks. Follow us on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, X, Unchained and wherever you get your podcasts.  🔥 Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bits-bips/id1827931786 [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bits-bips/id1827931786]   🔥 YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuKiSkbYrUOOEEiYQEVPniQ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuKiSkbYrUOOEEiYQEVPniQ]   🔥 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/6aSBMrOyi33aVDCULJ9mjN?si=NTLk-jl5QGeytA6-2kxMVQ&nd=1&dlsi=42f0b13dd53c4ba0 [https://open.spotify.com/show/6aSBMrOyi33aVDCULJ9mjN?si=NTLk-jl5QGeytA6-2kxMVQ&nd=1&dlsi=42f0b13dd53c4ba0]