In this episode of Empire, we start with a 25-minute interview with Adam Brotman, the creator of Starbucks Rewards, to discuss why he believes every company will adopt an NFT strategy. We discuss his partnership with Starbucks, NFTs as the ultimate loyalty product and what OG crypto fans get wrong about NFTs. After this interview, we do something a bit different. Instead of our usual roundup, we dropped one of our favorite episodes from a new Blockworks show called 0xResearch. It's an episode with dYdX's founder Antonio Juliano that I highly recommend you check out. If that's not for you, check out the spicy roundup from our Bell Curve podcast [see links below]. - - Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (02:03) Creator of Starbucks Rewards talks NFTs (25:55) 0xResearch dYdX podcast with Antonio (26:05) FTX's Ripple Effects Across CeFi & DeFi (38:11) Brand As A Moat (42:49) How dYdX Can Outmatch CeFi (49:35) Expected FTX Regulatory Fallout (54:36) Risk Mgmt & dYdX’s Safety Module (1:01:40) SubDAOs & Governance (1:04:31) dYdX AppChain Update (1:13:36) How dYdX Will Approach MEV (1:16:53) On & Off Ramps To dYdX (1:23:16) Returning Fees To Stakers & The Future Of dYdX - - Follow Adam: https://twitter.com/adambrotman Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ -- Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at http://empirepodcast.link/circle that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is. - - Resources Forum3 https://www.forum3.com/ Bellcurve Podcast (roundup) Spotify: https://bit.ly/3Fdw7pB Apple: https://bit.ly/3UJid4b YouTube: https://bit.ly/3VH4jB6 0xResearch Podcast Spotify: https://bit.ly/3hhL81z Apple: https://bit.ly/3hcTsQ8 YouTube: https://bit.ly/3DNVFdp Blockworks Research twitter https://twitter.com/blockworksres - - Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.