The Starting Block Β· July 16, 2026, 4:30AM EDT Β· 54:48
Zama Co-Founder & CEO Rand Hindi joins Gareth Jenkinson on The Starting Block to discuss how confidential DeFi works, the launch of a confidential USDC vault with Morpho and Stakehouse, and why privacy is essential for institutions to go all in on crypto. Bitwise Europe Senior Research Associate Luke Deans also joined Gareth for the day’s Market Pulse, where he discussed Bitcoin’s on-chain cost basis levels, the Fed’s expected rate hold amid geopolitical inflation risks, and why the institutional bid remains absent until risk-on conditions return.
OUTLINE
00:02 – Show Introduction
01:20 – Stripe-PayPal Mega Deal
02:00 – Crypto Market Structure Bill
02:53 – DTCC Tokenized Securities
03:35 – BlackRock’s On-Chain Vision
04:13 – Base Leadership Shakeup
05:49 – Ostium Hack & Stablecoin Wars
09:23 – Market Pulse: Bitcoin Outlook
16:57 – Fed Rates & Macro Risks
16:58 – ETF Flows & Institutional Bid
23:55 – Zama & Confidential DeFi
47:21 – Europe’s Privacy & Regulation Risks
Rand Hindi –
Zama –
Luke Deans
Gareth Jenkinson –
The Block –
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