The LayerZero/Wormhole Bidding War Shows How to Value a Crypto Business - Ep. 890

Unchained

Laura Shin

News, Tech News, Business News

4.6 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 22 August 2025

⏱️ 51 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The drama is heating up in crypto M&A. LayerZero, the omnichain interoperability protocol, shocked the market with a $110 million bid to acquire Stargate DAO — the very bridge it originally launched. Then Wormhole jumped in, asking the DAO to pause the vote so it could make a counter-offer. This episode unpacks the first-ever so-called onchain bidding war: how to value DAOs like real businesses, why LayerZero and Wormhole are fighting over Stargate, and whether this deal marks the beginning of a consolidation wave across crypto. Guests David Nage of Arca and M&A advisor Lawson Bae of Relayzero break down the numbers, the strategy, and what this turning point means for the 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! Sui Xapo Bank Guests: David Nage, VC Portfolio Manager at Arca Lawson Bae, Founder of Relayzero Links: Unchained: Wormhole Foundation to Counter LayerZero’s Bid for Stargate LayerZero Foundation Proposes $110 Million Stargate Acquisition, Retiring STG for ZRO Tokens Timestamps: 🎬 0:00 Intro 🧱 2:57 Why LayerZero wants to buy Stargate, the bridge it launched 💸 8:36 Whether the $110 million offer from LayerZero was actually fair 🕵️‍♂️ 14:07 How Wormhole may be trying to make things difficult for its biggest rival 📊 16:35 Why David thinks the $110 million number can be justified 📈 21:07 How the number of daily active users factors into valuing crypto projects 🔢 27:07 What a “reasonable multiple” for Stargate could look like 🗳️ 30:34 How the Stargate DAO should approach this pivotal decision 🤝 34:49 Why this deal shows that crypto M&A is booming Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	We're seeing that historic, you know, first on-chain, bidding war for your computer
0:03.8	M&A.
0:04.4	I think this adds to the maturity of the space.
0:07.3	It's no longer just YOLO or a number go up or, you know, when token or airdrops.
0:13.0	It's how can we analyze these things from a fundamental level and actually apply traditional
0:17.9	multiples to them to make sense of what the valuation could be.
0:24.2	This week, crypto witnessed something new, the first on-chain takeover battle.
0:29.2	Layer Zero offered $110 million to buy Stargate, the bridge that it originally built.
0:34.9	Just as the vote was starting, competitor wormhole jumped in,
0:38.6	asking the Dow to hold off so it could make its own bid. This raises serious questions.
0:43.8	How do we value on-chain businesses? Is this really worth $110 million? Is it less or more?
0:50.6	And what does this signal about the coming wave of mergers and acquisitions in crypto?
0:56.0	Joining me are David Nage, portfolio manager at ARCA, and Lawson Bay, an M&A advisor at Relay Zero,
1:03.0	to unpack what this deal means for Stargate, for Dow's, and for the future of the industry.
1:08.0	The conversation reminded me, yet again, that crypto has reached a stage
1:11.9	where only real businesses will succeed. And we all agreed, what we're seeing here is only
1:17.5	a taste of what's to come next. Our discussion gives a lot of insight into how to value
1:22.6	on-chain businesses, what multiples to apply, and what metrics are relevant. Hope you enjoy it. At Unchained,
1:29.7	we believe the future should be decentralized, and that includes our data. That's why we use
1:34.7	Walrus, the fast, dynamic, verifiable data layer. Learn more about the platform that's powering our future
1:41.2	at walrus.xyZ. One early bitcoiner sold 30,000 BTC too soon, missing out on over a billion dollars.
1:50.2	Don't want to make the same mistake?
	...

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