This is the third of a multi-part series on decentralised finance (DeFi). DeFi is a blockchain use case that is potentially disruptive to the traditional finance industry. The first part of the series explains what it is and the philosophy behind the movement. The second part of the series delves into the state of the DeFi ecosystem as of October 2020. A primer on blockchain (including examples of insurance use cases) is available in this paper I co-authored.
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Coinbase’s imminent stock market debut has been a long time coming. It’s a fortuitous time for a crypto exchange to go public; at US$2 trillion (at time of writing), crypto-assets’ total market capitalisation is at an all-time high. The frothy market makes people trade with abandon, bestowing lucrative transaction revenue and custody fees (c. US$1.8 billion in Q1 2021) to Coinbase. In good times, it’s easy to overlook the risk factors listed on Coinbase’s S-1 filing. “No risk, no reward” is the mantra of the day.
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My Saturday morning routine when I was 7 years old was simple. I woke up and before long, I was in front of the television watching reruns of the 1980s cartoon, Voltron: Defender of the Universe. Voltron left such an impression on my younger self that many years later, I referenced it in my wedding vows.
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This is the second of a multi-part series on decentralised finance (DeFi). DeFi is a blockchain use case that is potentially disruptive to the traditional finance industry. The first part of the series explains what it is and the philosophy behind the movement. A primer on blockchain (including examples of insurance use cases) is available in this paper I co-authored.
Continue reading
Naval Ravikant is a tech entrepreneur, angel investor, and a modern day philosopher. He’s not a household name; he once lamented that his fans are mainly young male geeks. That’s a shame because his wisdom is universal; transcending age, gender, and predilection.
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This is the first of a multi-part series on decentralised finance (DeFi). DeFi is a blockchain use case that is potentially disruptive to the traditional finance industry. The second part of the series delves into the current state of the DeFi ecosystem.
Continue reading
When I’m not working, parenting or on TikTok, I read. In recent years, my reading material has veered towards biographies and memoirs. I’m fascinated by how great men/women ascend to the top of their chosen fields.
Continue readingQuantum physicist and author, Michio Kaku, writes about the Cave Man Principle in his book, Physics of the Future. He argues that modern humans, despite many advances, still think like our caveman ancestors. Whenever there is a conflict between modern technology and our innate preferences, technology loses out and is not fully adopted. Case in point: remote working (in the pre-pandemic world) did not take off because we prefer interacting with our fellow humans in the flesh.
Corollary to the Cave Man Principle… there will be a premium placed on gossip, social networking, and entertainment.
Michio Kaku, Physics of the Future
With an estimated 800 million monthly active users, TikTok has found the secret sauce that appeals to our primitive caveman brain.
Continue readingI’m not a car guy. When I got the Tesla Model S (with the wife’s permission), it was out of my love for tech, and my genuine belief in the environmental ethos of zero-emission electric cars. The love affair started the moment Elon Musk unveiled the Model X. I fell for the car hook, line and sinker when Elon (yes, we’re on first name basis in a parallel simulated universe) promised autonomous driving capabilities.
The Model X was love at first sight. Alas, a car is a financial liability and the Model X, with the then base price of around £95,000, was the epitome of financial folly. So I settled for a modest Model S with a 75 kWh battery pack.
Continue readingRestarting a blog in the age of TikTok is akin to driving a gas guzzler in the age of Tesla. I love Tesla and tech but unfortunately, I can articulate my thoughts better in words than in 60-second videos. Also, I can’t dance, let alone do a TikTok dance challenge. Long form complete thought is how I (rock and) roll.
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