Did Washington Crush Crypto’s Most Important Bank? Its Former Chairman Says Yes. - Ep. 780

Unchained

Laura Shin

News, Tech News, Business News

4.5 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 7 February 2025

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Sign up for our free regulatory newsletter! Silvergate Bank was once crypto’s most important banking partner, handling billions in deposits from the biggest players in the industry. Then, FTX collapsed—and everything changed. In this episode of Unchained, Mike Lempres, former chairman of Silvergate, talks about how Silvergate grew into a banking giant for crypto, why Washington suddenly turned against them—even after they survived the FTX crisis, and whether Operation Choke Point 2.0 was real. Plus, did short sellers and politicians work together to tank Silvergate’s stock? And what does the future look like for banks that want to serve crypto? This is part of the inside story of one of the biggest banking collapses in crypto history. Show highlights: 2:08 How Mike’s background in banking led him to work in crypto 4:10 Why banking has always been a challenge for crypto companies 5:14 How Silvergate Bank got involved so much with the industry and how it achieved “tremendous growth” 8:10 The “magic” of the Silvergate Exchange Network (SEN) 14:19 Why Mike believes Silvergate’s problem was not banking regulators, but D.C. politics 17:49 How everything changed after the FTX collapse 24:45 Whether SEN is a valuable asset for a bank to have 28:39 Why Mike believes that Operation Choke Point 2.0 is real 30:48 Whether short sellers worked with politicians to tank Silvergate 34:21 How Mike thinks that banks could service the crypto industry Visit our website for breaking news, analysis, op-eds, articles to learn about crypto, and much more: unchainedcrypto.com Thank you to our sponsors! RockWallet Somnia Network Quai Network Mantle Guest Mike Lempres, Former Chairman of Silvergate Bank Links Unchained: Why the new FDIC Leadership Isn’t Convinced Operation Chokepoint 2.0 Exists Regulators Are Limiting Banks Serving Crypto Clients. Does That Violate the Law? Rep. French Hill Says He’d Investigate Operation Choke Point 2.0 as Financial Services Chair Are Regulatory Failures to Blame for Crypto Banking Issues? Caitlin Long on Why Operation Choke Point 2.0 Has Bankers Nervous Ahead of Debanking Hearings, Industry Is Divided on Political Strategy Caitlin Long on Why the Fed’s Rejections of Custodia Bank Seem Politically Motivated How Will the FTX Collapse Affect Silvergate? A Bear and a Bull Debate Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Do you feel like everything that you experienced, like you would say that that is part of
0:04.9	Operation Shope 2.0?
0:06.3	Like, do you think it's real?
0:07.9	Yes, I do.
0:09.2	And it's interesting, I didn't think that originally, but as more and more time passes,
0:12.8	I've seen, it was clearly a coordinated matter coming out of Washington, D.C.
0:18.4	That had certainly the effect of keeping crypto out of the banking system.
0:27.1	Hi, everyone. Welcome to Unchained, your no-haped resource for all things crypto. I'm your host,
0:31.7	Lorishin. We are now featuring quotes from listeners on the show. Today, we have two comments on
0:36.8	X responding
0:37.6	to polychain capitals, Olaf Carlson Wee, who recently said on Unchained, quote,
0:42.8	every post should have a token. In response, Volk wrote, this does not need to exist. Remember
0:48.9	the Dorsey tweet, don't bring back hype in crypto, build real value. Meanwhile, Travis Bickle commented,
0:55.7	Olaf undefeated. If you want your comment featured, write a review of the podcast overall,
1:00.6	or leave a comment on our video on YouTube or X. This is the February 7th, 2025 episode of Unchained.
1:07.9	Rockwallet is a secure digital wallet that's quick, easy, and built with a safety-first
1:12.6	mindset.
1:13.6	Visit rockwallat.com welcome slash unchained for an exclusive offer for Unchained listeners.
1:20.6	Mantil is building the future of OnChane Finance.
1:23.6	Experience its enhanced index fund, Mantle Banking, and MantleX.
1:30.7	Visit group.mantle.xy to learn more.
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	...

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