Author: CoinDesk

Insights from PayPal’s first quarterly earnings report since launching crypto services.

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

Today on the Brief:

• Elon Musk back to DOGE trolling
• Bank of England says to prepare for negative interest rates
• Janet Yellen on “Good Morning America” discussing retail investors

Our main discussion: What did we learn about PayPal’s crypto strategy from its quarterly earnings report? 

In this episode, NLW breaks down:

• How PayPal’s perspective on crypto evolved
• What we learned about the success of its offering in Q4 2020
• What’s next for crypto at PayPal in 2021
• Why its biggest play is squarely focused on central bank digital currencies 

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MicroStrategy is hosting a two-day “Bitcoin for Corporations” event. Here’s what to watch for. 

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

Today on the Brief:

• An update on Ant and Jack Ma
• Bezos stepping down as CEO of Amazon 
• Miami’s play to become a crypto hub

Our main discussion: MicroStrategy’s “Bitcoin for Corporations” event 

Michael Saylor and MicroStrategy opened a new category of bitcoin investment last year when the company moved hundreds of millions of dollars of cash reserves into bitcoin. 

For the next two days, the company is hosting a virtual conference designed to help the 1,400 corporate leader attendees discover the playbook that allowed them to make the dramatic move that has paid off so well. 

In this episode, NLW examines the current state of institutional investment in crypto and asks what this event says about what might be coming next.

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As GME plummets and traditional financial media turns its attention elsewhere, where does the retail trading insurgency go from here? 

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

WallStreetBets is having a rough day. Its stocks are crashing. Champions from as recently as last week are selling out. More brokerage apps are turning off buying. 

In this episode, NLW explores what it means for this set of assets and the larger shift in power from institutional to retail investors. 

He argues, ultimately, that over the last year retail traders of the type led by WSB have established themselves as too powerful a force for the market to simply turn away from now. 

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The media keeps saying WallStreetBets is going after silver; WallStreetBets members say it’s a campaign to co-opt and divide them. 

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

Today on the Brief:

• Elon Musk talks bitcoin on Clubhouse
• India trying to ban crypto?
• DEXs have best month ever in January 

Our main discussion: Has WallStreetBets been infiltrated by hedge funds? 

Reddit community WallStreetBets became headline news last week when its short squeeze of GameStop (GME) nearly brought a famed hedge fund to its knees. According to Twitter personalities and the mainstream media, the community has now turned its focus to squeezing silver. 

Except, one cursory look at the subreddit shows that isn’t the case. Instead, it is full of posts about how hedge funds and media are trying to promote the silver story to distract and divide the community. 

In this episode, NLW tries to break down what’s happening and argues that now that WSB has become a market force, these sort of attempts to influence its conversation are going to become de rigeur. 

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Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started at nexo.io.

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A reading of Dalio’s first long-form essay on his thoughts about bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

Today’s “Long Reads Sunday” is a reading of Ray Dalio’s recent LinkedIn post, “What I Really Think of Bitcoin.” In his interpretation, NLW argues the post shows Dalio and Bridgewater are at the beginning of a deep dive into the space.

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Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started at nexo.io.

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The latest in the saga of WallStreetBets vs the world.

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

In this edition of the Breakdown’s weekly recap, NLW looks at:

• Robinhood’s ham-fisted explanations for why it shut down buying for GME and other stocks
• Why the root cause seems to have been insolvency
• How politicians are gearing up for political inquiries around the trading shutdowns 
• How WSB is reacting to the shutdown attempts 

This week on The Breakdown:

Monday | The Bitcoin Whales Won’t Stop Buying

Tuesday | ‘The 4 Wars We Could Fight With China,’ Feat. Kyle Bass

Wednesday | Why Bitcoin Has More Ideological Flexibility Than We Think

Thursday | WallStreetBets Is Occupy Wall Street With Teeth

Friday | In Retrospect, It Was Inevitable: Elon Musk Pumps Bitcoin to Space

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Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started at nexo.io.

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The price action is fun, but the larger significance is about decentralized alternatives to today’s financial system. 

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

Last night, Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk changed his Twitter profile to a single word: “bitcoin.” He also tweeted a cryptic message: “In Retrospect, It Was Inevitable.”

The price of bitcoin surged in the wake of the tweet, as did Google searches for “bitcoin.” The price increases liquidated some $387 million in short positions. 

In this episode, NLW breaks down the market reaction to Musk, the significance of the tweet and why it all connects to the larger story of WallStreetBets, Robinhood and shifting financial power. 

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Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started at nexo.io.

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The retail trader insurgency has massive implications for the future of capital markets. 

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

This week, a collective of foul-mouthed internet memers took down some of Wall Street’s best-known hedge funds. In today’s episode, NLW looks at:

• The historical context of how the Great Financial Crisis set the stage for WallStreetBets
• How WSB gained infamy during the COVID-19 crisis by correctly predicting the market’s rebound while other investors remained bearish 
• Why WSB started going after short-sellers, particularly around GameStop (GME)
• How WSB forced a short squeeze that required Melvin Capital to call in nearly $3B of emergency capital 
• Why Robinhood forcing users to stop buying GameStop and other related assets will go down as an inflection point in the history of capital markets

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Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started at nexo.io.

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NLW is joined by three philosophy professors for a discussion of bitcoin, ethics and politics.

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

Falling down the proverbial bitcoin rabbit hole tends to lead people to ask deep questions about the nature of the economy and society. Today’s Breakdown guests are all professionally trained to ask those sorts of questions as philosophers. 

NLW is joined by:

• Andrew Bailey, Yale-NUS College @resistancemoney
• Bradley Rettler, University of Wyoming @rettlerb
• Craig Warmke, Northern Illinois University @craigwarmke

The three form a research collective called Resistance Money and are working on a book about bitcoin’s use helping individuals overcome infringement by states and other institutions. 

On this episode they discuss bitcoin’s ideological flexibility and situate it in the context of the larger political landscape.

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Earn up to 12% APY on Bitcoin, Ethereum, USD, EUR, GBP, Stablecoins & more. Get started at nexo.io.

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One of investing’s loudest critics of China shares his assessment of where the U.S. political and business relationship with the country is headed. 

This episode is sponsored by Nexo.io.

In this episode, NLW speaks with Kyle Bass. Kyle is the founder and chief investment officer of Hayman Capital Management, a hedge fund focused on global events. He is known for correctly predicting the subprime mortgage crisis, as well as for his outspoken and critical views on China. 

In this episode, he and NLW discuss: 

• Contrarian investing
• The larger macro landscape
• Bitcoin and crypto 
• How the U.S.’ relationship with China changed under former President Donald Trump
• How the relationship is likely to evolve under current President Joe Biden 

Find our guest online: @Jkylebass

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