Wallfacer Podcast

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Aug 2026

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Wallfacer Podcast: Conversations with the builders, operators, and investors shaping crypto's future. We explore the strategies, technical innovations, and market insights that go beyond the headlines wallfacerlabs.substack.com

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36 recent

August 19, 202656 min

#35: Jerome de Tychey | EIP-8363, the 50% staking line, and Ethereum's issuance fight

Today’s guest is Jérôme de Tychey, president of Ethereum France, founder of EthCC, and a co-author of EIP-8363. He makes the case that Ethereum’s issuance curve has no equilibrium, concedes that the proposal’s original solo staker claim was a mistake his own team had to walk back, and puts community feedback at roughly 60 percent negative. We get into what actually breaks above a 50 percent staking ratio, the 15 hours he spent trying to convince SharpLink, and what he would still change about the proposal. Guest Links * Jérôme de Tychey: https://x.com/jdetychey * EthCC: https://x.com/EthCC * Ethereum France: https://x.com/Ethereum_France * EIP-8363 discussion thread: https://ethereum-magicians.org/t/eip-8363-tapered-issuance-burn/29263 * Issuance research index: https://issuance.wtf/ Host Links * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi * API Docs: https://docs.vaults.fyi/ Subscribe to the Podcast * https://wallfacer.io/podcast Timestamps [00:00] Intro [01:13] Why issuance, and why now [02:22] Ethereum’s history of cutting issuance, from 5 ETH blocks to the Merge [04:29] The original curve was set before LSTs and ETFs existed [07:17] Justin Drake on why the topic stalled, and “impossible is not French” [09:20] How the proposal came together, and the shape of the curve [12:44] What actually breaks above a 50 percent staking ratio [13:35] Slashing risk, LSTs, and the bailout expectation [18:15] Economic finality, and why 20 to 30 percent is the target [25:48] Why the diversity of the validator set matters more than the ratio [28:26] The Nakamoto coefficient, and contestability over concentration [30:28] “That was our own fault”: walking back the solo staker claim [32:58] Talking to SharpLink, Bitmine, and the ETF issuers [35:25] The coupon versus the principal, and what Grayscale pushed for [39:48] Store of value, looping, and what ETH actually gets used for [45:14] Monetary neutrality, and comparing ETH issuance to Bitcoin [50:00] What he has changed his mind on since publishing [52:05] The missing cascade model, and early signs of convergence [54:41] Where to follow the debate This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

July 31, 202653 min

#34: corn (Yearn) & Connor Flanagan (Birch Hill) | What even is a vault?

Today’s guests are corn, who works on growth at Yearn, and Connor Flanagan, COO and co-founder of Birch Hill. We get into why the word “vault” stopped meaning anything, how Yearn spotted $10 million missing from Stream Finance’s wallets weeks before it collapsed, and why Birch Hill responded to the SEC’s vault statement by asking for a meeting. They also walk through their launch with Groma, where a renter’s monthly payment buys equity in the building instead of disappearing. Guest Links * corn: https://x.com/omgcorn * Yearn: https://x.com/yearnfi * Connor Flanagan: https://x.com/cflan _ * Birch Hill: https://x.com/BirchHill_io * Groma: https://x.com/GromaCorp Host Links * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi * API Docs: https://docs.vaults.fyi/ Subscribe to Wallfacer Podcast * https://wallfacer.io/podcast Timestamps * [00:31] What does the word “vault” even mean anymore? * [02:21] Birch Hill’s thesis: bringing credit origination onchain * [07:01] Yearn is onchain to the core. Why work on offchain collateral? * [08:32] corn on the three tiers of vaults, and which one produced Stream Finance * [12:09] The spectrum of discretion, and whether KYC kills composability * [16:35] “I don’t think every vault is a security” * [18:02] What genuinely can’t be built onchain yet * [19:05] Which RWAs actually work onchain, and why fungibility decides it * [22:58] Modular lending markets as the new bootstrapping mechanism * [25:16] The Stream test: how to spot the next blowup * [27:03] Do curators inevitably push out the risk curve until they blow up? * [30:35] The Groma launch, and rent vesting as a renter’s mortgage * [38:22] Going live: permissioning, accredited checks, and discounted NAV oracles * [44:21] Why Yearn curates on Morpho * [44:35] What “institutional curator” actually means * [48:06] What’s next: new asset classes, yearn V4, and why CLARITY timing matters This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

July 15, 202646 min

#33: Ivo Georgiev & Dimo Stoyanov, Ambire & heyAura | Building for the Chronically On-Chain

Episode Description Today’s guests are Ivo Georgiev and Dimo Stoyanov, co-founders of Ambire and heyAura, who have been building together for 13 years, from Stremio to AdEx to a smart-account wallet. We get into why the “next billion” wallet thesis stalled and why Ambire instead built for the chronically on-chain, how the Ethereum Foundation’s Kohaku privacy initiative ended up built on Ambire, and why an AI agent living inside your wallet could make protocol interfaces, discovery, and even vaults obsolete. Along the way, Ivo argues that people trust user interfaces more than they trust smart contracts, and that almost everything in crypto is really just a swap. Guest Links * Ivo Georgiev: https://twitter.com/Ivshti * Dimo Stoyanov: https://twitter.com/_DimoStoyanov * Ambire: https://twitter.com/AmbireWallet * heyAura: https://twitter.com/heyaura Host Links * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi * API Docs: https://docs.vaults.fyi/introduction Subscribe https://www.wallfacer.io/podcast Timestamps * [00:00] Intro * [00:34] How Ivo and Dimo met, Stremio, and the start of AdEx * [02:03] Why the ad network had to be built on Ethereum * [03:32] From AdEx to Ambire: onboarding people who’d never used a wallet * [06:02] The wallet market and who Ambire is really for * [10:10] Accounts vs. wallets, and unsustainable embedded-wallet pricing * [12:07] Shipping EIP-7702 first, and why it enabled Ambire’s growth * [16:06] Kohaku: the Ethereum Foundation’s privacy initiative built on Ambire * [19:12] The Safe integration, and trusting UIs over smart contracts * [22:47] heyAura’s origin, and putting discovery and security into the agent * [26:47] Smart sessions, and running an agent on your existing wallet * [29:12] Prompt injection, and finding the use case people actually want * [32:42] Can an agent replace the vault? Personalization vs. capital efficiency * [35:24] Local models, order flow, and opaque addresses * [37:31] heyAura’s top use cases and the year ahead * [40:45] The business of wallets: why everything is a swap * [45:05] Closing This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

May 8, 202647 min

#32: David Reising, Lotus Protocol | Tranched Lending and the Missing Middle in DeFi Credit

Episode Description Today’s guest is David Reising, founder and CEO of Lotus Protocol. Ryan and David get into why isolated lending markets keep converging on the same handful of pairs, how Lotus prices risk on liquidation thresholds, and why the recent string of DeFi exploits (Aave, Resolv, Stream Finance) is forcing a real rethink of how curators underwrite collateral. They also cover productive debt and the LotusUSD base rate, what David learned relaunching hyETH on Morpho with Gauntlet at Index Coop, and the case for going direct to markets in an agentic world. Guest Links * David Reising: https://twitter.com/Davidareising * Lotus Protocol: https://x.com/LotusFi _ * Lotus Labs: https://lotuslabs.net Host Links * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi * API Docs: https://docs.vaults.fyi/ Subscribe to Wallfacer Podcast https://wallfacer.io/podcast Timestamps * [00:00] Intro and what Lotus is * [01:18] Pricing risk on liquidation thresholds, not collateral quality * [04:47] The Morpho cbBTC market example and the case for tranched lending * [08:24] Designing for borrowers, not just lenders * [11:09] Embedded borrow, predictable rates, and what integrators want * [16:09] Risk frameworks and the limits of curator diligence after recent exploits * [18:43] Why collateral expansion will slow down in curated markets * [20:08] Lotus vaults: conservative, balanced, and aggressive * [24:24] Credora ratings and how onchain liquidity reprices risk * [27:48] Productive debt, cascading liquidity, and the LotusUSD base rate * [31:00] Senior vs junior demand, Ajna, and tick based lending * [34:24] Index Coop, relaunching hyETH on Morpho, and what scaled * [39:30] Operational intensity of the curator model * [41:48] Going direct to markets in an agentic world * [45:07] Launch timeline, pre-deposits, and subsidized borrow rates This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

May 1, 202646 min

#31: Joey Isaacson, Nook | Building a DeFi Savings App for Non-Crypto Users

Episode Description Today’s guest is Joey Isaacson, co-founder and CEO of Nook, a consumer savings app that connects everyday users to DeFi lending markets on Base. Joey spent five years at Coinbase leading design on earn, staking, and lending before building Nook to reach the 99.9% of people who’ve never touched DeFi. We talk about finding users on TikTok and Reddit instead of Crypto Twitter, why Nook won’t force-rebalance your funds, and how to build a business in consumer crypto. Guest Links * Joey Isaacson: https://twitter.com/joeyisaacson * Nook: https://earnwithnook.com * Nook Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nookearnapp/ Host Links * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi Subscribe https://www.wallfacer.io/podcast Timestamps * [00:00] Intro * [00:13] What is Nook and why Joey built it * [01:13] Who the actual Nook user is * [04:50] Distribution: TikTok, Reddit, Meta, and creator partnerships * [08:00] Short-form content strategy and the three-second hook * [10:24] Onboarding, trust, and starting with $5 * [13:45] Progressive disclosure: reputation scores, auto-deposits, building trust over time * [16:21] What builds trust fastest: referrals, cash bonuses, real faces * [19:43] Coinbase and the earn landscape: feature vs. product * [23:19] Risk after a wild weekend: Resolv, Drift, Kelp, and Aave liquidity * [29:05] How rebalancing works: Privy, CCTP, individual wallets vs. supervaults * [33:21] Business model: curator revenue shares, yield compression, and exchange fees * [40:55] Magic wand: cross-chain movement and insurance * [44:29] Roadmap: multiple positions, multiple assets, OpenCover coverage This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

April 20, 202633 min

#30: TezDev: Beyond Crypto-Natives: The Next Era of Earn w/ Tezos, Meria, and Hanji

Episode Description Today’s guests are Arthur Breitman (co-founder of Tezos), Owen (Hasheur) Simonin (CEO of Meria), and Dmitriy Kovalevskiy (founder of Hanji). Recorded live at TezDev 2026 in Cannes, the panel covers why crypto yields remain structurally higher than traditional markets, the real obstacles keeping fintechs from offering DeFi yield, and whether tokenized commodities or tokenized stocks will drive the next wave of adoption. Guest Links * Arthur Breitman: https://twitter.com/ArthurB * Tezos: https://tezos.com * Etherlink: https://etherlink.com * Owen Simonin (Hasheur): https://twitter.com/PowerHasheur * Meria: https://meria.com * Dmitriy Kovalevskiy: https://twitter.com/dmitrytez * Hanji: https://hanji.io Host Links * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi Subscribe and share with friends: * https://www.wallfacer.io/podcast ← Apple, YouTube, Spotify, and more! Timestamps * [00:00] Introductions * [00:33] What’s still holding fintechs back from offering DeFi yield * [02:02] Why crypto yields are structurally higher than traditional markets * [03:35] Two types of yield seekers: high yield chasers vs. reliability seekers * [04:26] Celsius, Resolv, and the new wave of on-chain risk * [07:08] Fixed-term lending: is there real demand beyond institutions? * [09:28] RWAs in the earn stack: commodities vs. real estate vs. T-bills * [12:06] Retail is attention-driven: the case for adding oil and macro assets * [13:25] Collateral diversity and why it starts with user demand * [14:27] The Robinhood of DeFi yield and Meria’s approach * [16:07] Regulator conversations: custody, staking risk categories, and MiCA * [19:46] Who are your users in two years? B2B2C, crypto natives, and new populations * [23:53] Etherlink’s DeFi growth and vaults.fyi integration * [24:04] Stablecoins as the onramp: why DEX trading will be easier than brokerage trading * [25:25] Tokenized stocks: the NVIDIA problem and long-tail assets * [29:23] Building the everything-app vs. staying specialized * [31:30] What each panelist is most excited about in crypto right now This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

April 10, 202654 min

#29: Jeremiah Smith, OpenCover | Why 99.95% of DeFi Is Uninsured

Today’s guest is Jeremiah Smith, co-founder and CEO of OpenCover. Jeremiah explains why less than 0.05% of DeFi TVL is insured, walks through how OpenCover’s new “covered vaults” primitive eliminates the upfront cost and manual renewal problems that killed DeFi insurance adoption, and breaks down the Nexus Mutual underwriting stack that backs it all. Ryan and Jeremiah also discuss the Resolv USR fallout, the xUSD claims payout, and why embedded risk transfer is becoming table stakes for any product offering DeFi yield. Guest Links * Jeremiah Smith: https://twitter.com/itsJeremiahS * OpenCover: https://opencover.com * Nexus Mutual: https://nexusmutual.io Host Links * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi Subscribe and share with friends: * https://www.wallfacer.io/podcast ← Apple, YouTube, Spotify, and more! Timestamps * [00:00] Intro and OpenCover’s founding story * [03:54] The “DeFi mullet” app that preceded OpenCover * [06:40] Celsius, BlockFi, and why self-custody won * [08:29] What OpenCover does and doesn’t underwrite * [10:26] Yield compression and the challenge of scaling DeFi yield * [13:01] How much DeFi capital is actually insured today * [16:20] Why DeFi insurance adoption is so low * [19:45] Tranching, TrueFi, and the structural shortage of conservative capital * [22:14] OpenCover’s two verticals: protocol risk and transaction risk * [26:01] How covered vaults work: stake, cover on, unstake, cover off * [28:56] Premium streaming, rate dynamics, and whether insurance only works in high-rate environments * [33:13] The Resolv USR fallout and contagion risk across Morpho vaults * [34:46] The xUSD / Stream Finance claims payout, end to end * [37:13] How underwriting and repricing works for Morpho vaults * [40:00] Risk ratings vs. risk transfer: why insurance beats scores * [43:37] The Nexus Mutual underwriting stack: syndicates, capacity, and claims * [49:51] Who insures the insurers? Smart contract risk on the covered vault itself * [51:13] What success looks like: embedded protection as the default This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

March 4, 202649 min

#28: Octave Mesnard, Jumper | A consumer hub vision, building for prosumers & multi-chain myths

EPISODE DESCRIPTION: Today’s guest is Octave Mesnard, Head of Strategy and Consumer Products at Jumper Exchange. We discuss Jumper’s evolution from a thin cross-chain swap interface into a full on-chain consumer hub, the real challenges of building consumer DeFi products at the right time, and why Octave thinks the multi-chain future will consolidate around far fewer chains than anyone expected. GUEST LINKS: * Octave Mesnard: https://twitter.com/octavionotpunk * Jumper Exchange: https://jumper.exchange * Jumper Exchange on X: https://x.com/JumperExchange * Jumper Earn: https://jumper.exchange/earn Learn how Jumper leverages the vaults.fyi API: https://docs.vaults.fyi/general/case-studies/jumper-earn HOST LINKS: * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://app.vaults.fyi/ * Build with our APIs: https://docs.vaults.fyi SUBSCRIBE: * Apple * Spotify * YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WallfacerLabs * Substack: https://wallfacerlabs.substack.com/s/podcast TIMESTAMPS: [00:00] Introduction [00:39] What was your initial foray into crypto? [02:17] Are there any parallels between catastrophe bonds and crypto insurance? [05:43] Tell us about Valha and Kook Exchange — what did you set out to solve? [09:10] You had both an API and a consumer interface — was that intentional? [12:05] Before joining LiFi, you were already working with them. How did that come about and how did you end up joining? [13:34] When you joined, did you already have a vision for what you wanted Jumper to become? [15:23] How do you think about where Jumper goes from here — browser, desktop, mobile? [19:43] Does the Robinhood comparison resonate — one place where users manage everything? [22:07] Who actually is the “normie” user in crypto? [23:42] So Jumper started as a thin layer on LiFi’s stack — is Earn the attempt to thicken that? [26:21] How have you thought about curation on Jumper Earn — what gets listed and what stays out? [29:10] How do you think about risk scoring more broadly across DeFi? [34:46] What are your concerns around RWAs coming into DeFi? [37:28] How do you view the competitive landscape for swapping and bridging today? [40:22] How did you think about working with vaults.fyi and how do you approach partnerships generally? [42:01] Outside of your role at Jumper, what’s catching your attention in DeFi right now? [44:22] You work in interoperability — do you have a contrarian view on the multi-chain future? [48:58] What is the origin of Octavio Not Punk This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

December 10, 20251 hr 6 min

#27: Sebastien Derivaux, Steakhouse Financial | Building Steakhouse, MakerDAO's RWA Legacy, and DeFi risk management

Today’s guest is Sébastien Derivaux, co-founder of Steakhouse Financial. We discuss the evolution of real-world assets in DeFi from MakerDAO’s pioneering experiments to today’s institutional-grade credit infrastructure, the recent mF-ONE private credit controversy and what it reveals about risk management in tokenized assets, and how Steakhouse built a $1B+ vault curation business on Morpho. Seb shares unfiltered lessons from five years of bringing TradFi credit on-chain—from Société Générale’s groundbreaking tokenized bond deal to defaults to launching Grove as a Sky Star allocating $1B into CLO strategies. GUEST LINKS: * Sébastien Derivaux: https://twitter.com/SebVentures * Steakhouse Financial: https://twitter.com/SteakhouseFi * Steakhouse Financial Website: https://steakhouse.financial HOST LINKS: * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi * Vaults.fyi X: https://x.com/vaultsfyi * Wallfacer X: https://x.com/wallfacerlabs SUBSCRIBE TO WALLFACER PODCAST AND SHARE WITH FRIENDS: * Apple * Spotify * YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WallfacerLabs * Substack: https://wallfacerlabs.substack.com/s/podcast TIMESTAMPS: * [00:00] Introduction & Background * [02:20] MakerDAO’s Early RWA Experiments: Société Générale, Centrifuge & Lessons Learned * [10:02] The Economics of RWAs: Cost Savings, Efficiency & What Actually Works On-Chain * [16:31] Why Crypto Needs RWAs: Yield Sources, Composability & Liquidity Challenges * [24:20] The mF-ONE Controversy: What Happened & How to Think About Private Credit Risk * [31:00] Commercial Break * [34:17] Risk Management Philosophy: Lenders vs. Investors & Diversification Strategy * [42:46] Comparing RWA Risk to Crypto Collateral & Evolution of Market Perception * [48:53] Building Steakhouse: Three Business Pillars & Becoming a Morpho Curator * [51:45] The Future of Curation: Market Structure, Competition & Traditional Finance Entry * [57:08] Vault Governance: Non-Custodial Design & How Morpho Captures Value * [59:58] Grove Protocol & Sky’s Star System: Decentralized Allocation Strategy * [1:04:33] Looking Ahead: Term Lending, Yield Curves & 10-Year Vision This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com

September 23, 202531 min

#26: Andrew Keys, The Ether Machine | Why DATs beat ETFs & The $654M Ethereum Bet

Today's guest is Andrew Keys, co-founder and chairman of The Ether Machine and managing partner of DARMA Capital. We discuss why crypto treasury companies offer superior returns to ETFs through active yield generation, the structural limitations preventing ETFs from capturing Ethereum's full economic value, and Andrew's $654 million bet on Ethereum's future as the infrastructure for a decentralized internet. Andrew also shares lessons from a decade building Ethereum's institutional adoption and why clean corporate structures matter more than speed to market. GUEST LINKS: * Andrew Keys: https://x.com/AK_EtherMachine * The Ether Machine: https://x.com/TheEtherMachine * DARMA Capital: https://x.com/darmacapital HOST LINKS: * Ryan Rodenbaugh: https://twitter.com/ryanrodenbaugh * Vaults.fyi: https://vaults.fyi SUBSCRIBE SECTION: Subscribe to Wallfacer Podcast and share with friends: * Apple/Spotify: https://www.wallfacer.io/podcast * YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WallfacerLabs * Substack: https://wallfacerlabs.substack.com/s/podcast TIMESTAMPS: * [00:18] Andrew's Background & Early Ethereum Journey * [05:39] ETFs vs Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) * [08:15] North Star Metric: Ether Concentration Per Share * [09:54] Institutional Investor Education & Market Response * [10:25] Ethereum's Evolving Narrative & Stablecoin Product-Market Fit * [12:40] Ethereum's Market Dominance in High-Quality Liquid Assets * [16:57] DARMA Capital's Institutional Staking Business * [20:35] Why Go Public: Philosophy vs Opportunity * [22:46] Regulatory Environment & Long-Term Vision * [23:54] Clean Corporate Structure Strategy * [28:10] The Future of Altcoin DATs & Market Sustainability * [29:36] Lessons Learned: From Naive Decentralization to Meeting People Where They Are This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wallfacerlabs.substack.com