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Unchained

The Chopping Block: Aave Civil War + Flow Hack + Coinbase Super-App - Ep. 993

Unchained

Laura Shin

News, Tech News, Business News

4.61.3K Ratings

🗓️ 1 January 2026

⏱️ 61 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Welcome to The Chopping Block — where crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, Tarun Chitra, and Robert Leshner chop it up about the latest in crypto. This episode opens with the Aave DAO civil war: a CoWSwap integration that allegedly routed swap fees to Aave Labs/Avara instead of the DAO, igniting “stealth privatization” claims, a “poison pill” push to seize Aave IP/brand, and a bigger fight over who really owns Aave.com and the protocol’s front door. Next, the crew unpacks the Flow hack (a $3.9M mint exploit) and the wild rollback talk that followed — plus why forks and bridges make rollbacks dangerous, turning bridges into accidental custodians and breaking old security assumptions. Finally, they break down Coinbase’s System Update and the “Everything Exchange” strategy — stocks, tokenization, perps, prediction markets, stablecoin rails — and whether this approach can win against Robinhood. DAO wars, chain chaos, and super-app ambition — let’s get into it. Show highlights 🔹 Aave DAO civil war erupts — CoWSwap fees reportedly route to Aave Labs/Avara, not the DAO, fueling “stealth privatization” claims. 🔹 “Poison pill” proposal — DAO demands Aave IP/brand and Aave.com control, turning governance into a DevCo vs DAO showdown. 🔹 No foundation, messy ownership — Aave’s pre-foundation setup exposes off-chain IP risk, jurisdiction questions, and untested legal theory. 🔹 Christmas vote drama — 41% abstain signals a redo; OG/Asia backlash pits “property rights” vs “commons” narratives. 🔹 Flow hacked for $3.9M — chain pause + rollback idea sparks outrage (and wouldn’t even stop the attacker). 🔹 Rollbacks meet bridges — forked history can wipe innocent bridgers; bridges become custodians when chains reorg or rewind. 🔹 Interconnected chains break security — old models crumble, and small chains “die twice” when bridges/oracles unplug. 🔹 Coinbase goes “Everything Exchange” — stocks/ETFs, tokenization, perps, prediction markets; can Coinbase beat Robinhood’s funnel? Hosts: ⭐️Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly ⭐️Robert Leshner [MIA], CEO & Co-founder of Superstate ⭐️Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures ⭐️Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly  Links: Aave Cowswap Integration- Tokenholder Questions (aave discussion)  https://governance.aave.com/t/aave-cowswap-integration-tokenholder-questions/23530?u=ignas  Aave Will Win: 2026 Master Plan by Stani Kulechov https://x.com/StaniKulechov/status/2001036446098919461  Timestamps 00:00 Intro 01:51 Aave Civil War Erupts 06:37 CoWSwap Fees Spark Aave IP Debate 10:20 Can a DAO Own IP? 15:25 Aave’s Pre-Foundation Legal Quirk 28:20 Flow Hacked: $3.9M Mint Attack 33:50 Small Chains Die When Bridges Leave 34:33 App Chains Boom Is Over 36:32 The Hidden $20M L1 Tax 43:29 Coinbase System Update: Everything Exchange 57:43 Coinbase vs Robinhood: Build vs Buy Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

I think there's something that strikes a nerve in like people who have been in crypto a while versus people who are newer and there's like some disconnect that that is also hidden this.

0:10.6

That is a good point.

0:12.0

Not a dividend. It's a tale of two pawn.

0:14.4

Now your losses are on someone else's balance.

0:17.2

Generally speaking, air drops are kind of pointless anyways.

0:19.6

I'm named to trading firms who are very involved. I like that E drops are kind of pointless anyways. I'm named trading firms who are

0:21.5

very involved.com. Delic.Eight is the ultimate problem. Defy protocols are the antidote to this problem.

0:28.7

Hello, everybody. Welcome to Chopin Block. Every couple weeks, the three of us get together and give

0:32.7

the industry insight of perspective on the critical topics of the day. So quick controls. First

0:37.1

you got Tom, the Defy Maven and Master of Memes.

0:39.7

Hello, everyone.

0:41.5

Robert is enjoying his new year like a normal person, but the three of us psychos are here to

0:46.7

record a podcast for you guys.

0:48.6

Joining us, we have, of course, Tarun, the Geog Brain, Grand Puba of Gauntlet.

0:54.0

Yo. And I'm Aseeb, the gigabrain, Grand Puba of Gauntlet. Yo.

0:55.7

And I am Hib, the head hype man at Dragonfly.

0:58.8

We are early-stage investors in crypto, but I want to caveat that nothing we say here is

1:02.1

investment advice, legal advice, or even life advice.

1:04.7

Please see Chopin Block at XYZ for more disclosures.

1:07.7

So I've been actually off the grid for quite a while.

1:11.1

I haven't been as tuned in to what's happening in Crypto Land,

1:14.6

and you were just saying that same thing true for you.

...

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