The Fintech Blueprint Podcast Por Lex Sokolin arte de portada

The Fintech Blueprint

The Fintech Blueprint

De: Lex Sokolin
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Finance is being pulled apart by the forces of frontier technology. From AI, to blockchain and DeFi, mixed reality, chatbots, neobanks, and roboadvisors — the industry will never be the same. Here is the blueprint for navigating the shift.2021 The FinTech Blueprint Economía Finanzas Personales Gestión y Liderazgo Liderazgo
Episodios
  • How WalletConnect Became the $400B Web3 Connectivity Layer, with CEO Jess Houlgrave

    How WalletConnect Became the $400B Web3 Connectivity Layer, with CEO Jess Houlgrave
    Oct 28 2025
    In this episode, Lex speaks with Jess Houlgrave, CEO of WalletConnect. In this episode Jess explains how WalletConnect bridges wallets and decentralized applications (dApps), simplifying secure blockchain interactions for millions of users.Together, Lex and Jess discuss the platform’s origins, technical innovations, and massive scale - supporting over 700 wallets and 70,000 projects. The conversation covers challenges in integrating traditional finance with Web3, regulatory compliance, and WalletConnect’s decentralized, token-incentivized network. Jess also shares insights on the future of on-chain commerce, global adoption trends, and the evolving relationship between fintech and blockchain infrastructure.NOTABLE DISCUSSION POINTS:WalletConnect Becomes Web3’s Financial Backbone: Once a simple UX fix, WalletConnect now connects 700+ wallets and 70,000+ apps, moving $400B annually. It’s evolving into the universal connectivity layer for on-chain finance - a “Visa for Web3.”Fintechs Are Forcing Crypto to Grow Up: As players like Stripe and Shopify enter Web3, they demand frictionless UX and regulatory-grade compliance, not crypto-native clunkiness. This wave will make crypto invisible but usable through embedded fintech experiences.Stablecoins Will Power On-Chain Commerce and Dollarization: Jess predicts commerce, not trading, will drive the next cycle. As stablecoins become spendable everywhere, users won’t need to off-ramp - accelerating global dollarization via open financial rails. TOPICSWalletConnect, ReOWN, Circle, Stripe, Checkout.com, MetaMask, Solana, blockchain, decentralized finance, DeFi, crypto, wallet, Web3, web2, UX, wallet infrastructure, stablecoins, tokens, token economy ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS1’03: WalletConnect’s Financial Connectivity Layer: CEO Jess Houlgrave on Helping Build The New Internet4’42: Universal Wallet Interoperability: How a Single Integration Connects Every App to Every Wallet9’06: Building Trust in Web3: How Seamless Wallet Connections Create the ‘Visa Moment’ for Crypto11’51: Scaling Web3 Connectivity: Inside the 50 Million Users and $400 Billion Powered by Wallet Infrastructure14’02: The Next Wave of Adoption: How Better UX and Fintech Integration Are Bringing Millions On-Chain16’53: Beyond Ethereum: How Multi-Chain Support and Compliance Are Driving the Next Phase of Web3 Growth19’41: When Web2 Meets Web3: How Fintechs Are Redefining Crypto UX and Compliance Standards22’34: Bridging the Knowledge Gap: Helping Fintechs Understand the Complexities of Web3 Integration26’37: The New Chain Race: Why Fintechs Are Repeating Banks’ Playbook and Competing for Value Capture in Web330’05: Decentralizing the Network: How Wallet Infrastructure Is Building a Sustainable Token Economy35’44: The Future of On-Chain Commerce: How Stablecoins and UX Advances Will Drive Real-World Payments39’46: The Rise of Digital Dollarization: How Open Financial Systems Are Reshaping Global Currencies40’57: The channels used to connect with Jess & learn more about WalletConnect Disclaimer here — this newsletter does not provide investment advice and represents solely the views and opinions of FINTECH BLUEPRINT LTD.Contributors: Lex, Laurence, Matt, Farhad, Mike, DaniellaWant to discuss? Stop by our Discord and reach out here with questions.
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    42 m
  • How Tandems/SigFig became a $60B Wealth AI platform, with CEO Mike Sha

    How Tandems/SigFig became a $60B Wealth AI platform, with CEO Mike Sha
    Oct 6 2025
    In this episode, Lex speaks Mike Sha - the CEO and co-founder of Tandems (formerly SigFig), a leading provider of AI-powered software for wealth management firms and financial institutions. Together, Lex and Mike discuss the evolution of wealth technology through the lens of Mike’s entrepreneurial journey from founding Wikinvest in 2006 to building Tandems. Wikinvest pivoted to portfolio tracking and then to a B2B model, powering major portals like Yahoo Finance and managing over $500 billion in tracked assets. The team’s insights into poor retail investment behavior led to building SigFig, a B2B robo-advisor, eventually serving banks like UBS and Wells Fargo.Today, rebranded as Tandems, the firm offers AI-powered tools for advisors across three key areas: meetings, asset gathering, and investment management, with AI integrated via a modular “wealth OS” platform. Tandems uses an open architecture for AI, prioritizing trust, configurability, and high accuracy tailored to the specific workflows of financial advisors. NOTABLE DISCUSSION POINTS:The Realization That Most Investors Struggle on Their Own Sparked the Robo-Advisory Movement - Mike Sha’s early data from tracking $400–500 billion in retail portfolios across Yahoo!, CNN, and other finance portals revealed that most individuals consistently underperform when managing their own investments. This insight directly led to the creation of SigFig, one of the first robo-advisors, designed to make high-quality investment advice affordable and automated. It shows how data-driven observation of user behavior can uncover market inefficiencies and spark new product categories.Distribution and Integration Trumps Pure Innovation in Fintech Partnerships - Tandem’s evolution from a consumer-facing platform to a B2B software provider for major banks underscored a critical lesson: distribution and trust are the hardest parts of scaling in financial services. Rather than trying to replace institutions, Sha’s team embedded within them - learning that success requires deep integration with legacy systems and respect for the bank’s compliance and operational frameworks. The “secret” to working with large financial institutions, Sha notes, is understanding their old infrastructure and designing around it - not fighting it.AI’s Real Impact in Wealth Management Will Begin with Eliminating Repetitive Work - Tandem’s current strategy focuses on AI automation for financial advisors, not as a replacement but as an assistant. Sha highlights that over 90% of an advisor’s day involves repetitive administrative work - meeting prep, paperwork, compliance, follow-ups. Tandem’s “Wealth OS” connects legacy systems and uses AI to automate these tasks first, freeing advisors to focus on human relationship-building and advice. It’s a practical and near-term vision of AI in finance: efficiency before intelligence. TOPICSTandems, SigFig, Wikinvest, wealthtech, wealth management, fintech, ai, artificial intelligence, investment, roboadvisors, finance, financial management, banking, bank partnerships ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS1’31: From Wikis to Wealth Tech: Mike Sha on How 401(k)s and “Investing-as-a-Chore” Shaped Tandems7’05: Building a Fintech from the First Dot-Com Boom: The Origins of Tandem’s Founding Partnership10’46: Turning Drive-By Traffic into Real Investors: The SEO Strategy That Sparked a $500B Fintech Shift16’25: Following the Money: How Tandems Scaled Through Bank Partnerships and the Hidden Art of Integrating Legacy Systems21’58: Inside the Fintech–Bank Power Dynamic: Lessons from Partnering with UBS and Navigating the Enterprise Maze25’36: Scaling Smart: How Tandems Grew from 25 to 100 People by Blending Finance, Software, and Global Talent29’55: Beyond Robo-Advisors: How Tandems Rebranded to Tackle Wealth Management’s “Unsexy” Problems with AI34’02: AI for Advisors: Automating the 90% of Work They Don’t Want to Do39’32: Open Architecture, Not One Model: How Tandem Builds Reliable AI for Financial Institutions43’53: The channels used to connect with Mike & learn more about Tandems Disclaimer here — this newsletter does not provide investment advice and represents solely the views and opinions of FINTECH BLUEPRINT LTD.Contributors: Lex, Laurence, Matt, Farhad, Mike, DaniellaWant to discuss? Stop by our Discord and reach out here with questions.
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    45 m
  • Managing $2B+ in On Chain Assets, with KPK Co-Founder Marcelo Ruiz de Olano

    Managing $2B+ in On Chain Assets, with KPK Co-Founder Marcelo Ruiz de Olano
    Sep 9 2025
    In this episode, Lex speaks with Marcelo Ruiz de Olano, Co-Founder of KPK (Karpatkey), an on-chain asset management firm born out of Gnosis DAO. Marcelo recounts KPK’s evolution from stewarding Gnosis’s $1B treasury to advising on more than $2B for leading protocols like ENS, Balancer, and the Ethereum Foundation. The discussion dives into the mechanics of non-custodial treasury management - balancing governance, security, and risk - along with strategies across lending, liquidity provision, and stablecoin yields. Marcelo also shares why the rise of large Ethereum treasury companies could be a turning point for DeFi, injecting institutional-scale liquidity and potentially making ETH more liquid than Bitcoin. NOTABLE DISCUSSION POINTS:Origins and Scale of On-Chain Treasury ManagementKPK spun out of Gnosis DAO, which had one of the earliest and largest on-chain treasuries (~$1B). From there, KPK evolved into an independent manager now advising on over $2B of DAO and foundation treasuries (ENS, Balancer, Ethereum Foundation, etc.), pioneering non-custodial, fully on-chain asset management practices.Conservative, Mission-Driven Approach vs. Yield-ChasingUnlike many DeFi actors during “DeFi Summer,” KPK deliberately rejected risky high-yield strategies. Instead, they prioritized capital preservation and mission alignment—for example, ensuring ENS’s treasury only supports Ethereum-strengthening initiatives (like minority client staking or avoiding centralization risks). This contrarian, values-driven approach built trust and positioned them as long-term stewards of DeFi treasuries.Transformative Potential of Ethereum Treasury CompaniesMarcelo highlights that emerging Ethereum treasury firms (similar to MicroStrategy’s BTC play) could deploy $10B+ in ETH treasuries. A single such “mega whale” could inject unprecedented liquidity into DeFi—making ETH potentially more liquid than BTC, bootstrapping entire verticals (DEX liquidity, lending, insurance), and creating a flywheel where treasury strategies directly accelerate Ethereum’s adoption and price stability. TOPICSKPK, Gnosis, Gnosis Safe, Balancer, Aave, Maker, Sky, Uniswap, Morpho, Ethereum Foundation, on-chain asset management, DAO, decentralized autonomous organization, treasury management, DeFi, tokenization, ETH, Ether, stablecoin, USDC ABOUT THE FINTECH BLUEPRINT🔥Subscribe to the Fintech Blueprint newsletter to stay at the forefront of Fintech and DeFi: https://bit.ly/3hyhlC2🤝 Partner with Fintech Blueprint through sponsorships: https://bit.ly/3UZllsV👉 Twitter: https://twitter.com/LexSokolin TIMESTAMPS1’08: From Gnosis to KPK: Building the Infrastructure for On Chain Treasury Management8’00: Playing It Safe: How KPK Built Long Term DeFi Strategies in a Risk Obsessed Market11’50: DeFi Lending Unlocked: How KPK Assesses Risk and Builds Yield Strategies with Stablecoins and Leverage17’11: Treasury Playbooks: Matching DeFi Investment Strategies to Risk Profiles and DAO Values20’32: Stablecoin Farming and DAO Drama: Navigating Risk, Governance, and Community Conflicts23’18: From Impermanent Loss to Long Term Gain: Liquidity Provision and the Case for OG DeFi Protocols26’33: Behind the Smart Contracts: Why Human Ops and Governance Still Run On Chain Asset Management30’11: The Rise of Ethereum Treasury Companies: How On Chain Giants Will Supercharge DeFi Liquidity and Revenue36’34: The Ten Billion Dollar Whale: How Ethereum Treasury Giants Could Reshape Liquidity and Supercharge DeFi40’51: The channels used to connect with Mercelo & learn more about KPK Disclaimer here — this newsletter does not provide investment advice and represents solely the views and opinions of FINTECH BLUEPRINT LTD.Contributors: Lex, Laurence, Matt, Farhad, Mike, DaniellaWant to discuss? Stop by our Discord and reach out here with questions. Disclaimer here — this newsletter does not provide investment advice and represents solely the views and opinions of FINTECH BLUEPRINT LTD.Contributors: Lex, Laurence, Matt, Farhad, Mike, DaniellaWant to discuss? Stop by our Discord and reach out here with questions.
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    41 m
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