Final Settlement E002: Energy-Backed Money with Max Webster
January 30, 2024
This episode is produced by Onramp Media, the content arm of Onramp. It is educational and does not constitute investment advice.
On this Final Settlement episode from Onramp Media, hosts Brian Cubellis and Michael Tanguma talk with Max Webster about the idea of bitcoin as energy-backed money. They compare bitcoin to other forms of commodity money, frame it as a tether to real-world opportunity costs, and explore building layers atop bitcoin, the Lightning Network, and investing in bitcoin startups. Final Settlement is editorial commentary and is not investment advice.
Chapters
0:00 - Introduction to Max 5:30 - Bitcoin as energy-backed money 17:58 - Other forms of commodity money 20:23 - Free markets for electricity 23:03 - Opportunity costs & bitcoin as a tether to reality 28:13 - Building layers atop bitcoin 31:33 - Market-ranking systems 36:38 - A message from Onramp 36:54 - The Bitcoin Ouroboros: rebuilding internet infrastructure 42:53 - Applying altcoin ideas to bitcoin 47:25 - Next wave of bitcoin applications 50:43 - Investing in bitcoin startups 56:13 - The state of Lightning & balancing development 1:02:55 - Fund structure & philosophy 1:08:45 - Diversity of custodial solutions 1:12:07 - Webster On His Risk-Reward Framing 1:17:53 - Wrapping up
Frequently Asked Questions
Who joins the hosts on this Final Settlement episode?
Max Webster joins hosts Brian Cubellis and Michael Tanguma, with his introduction at (0:00) and the energy-backed money discussion beginning at (5:30).
What does 'energy-backed money' mean in this conversation?
Max Webster frames bitcoin as energy-backed money (5:30), compares it with other forms of commodity money (17:58), and describes it as a tether to reality through opportunity costs (23:03).
How does the episode discuss building on bitcoin?
It explores building layers atop bitcoin (28:13), the state of the Lightning Network (56:13), and the next wave of bitcoin applications (47:25).
What does the conversation cover about investing in bitcoin startups?
Max Webster discusses investing in bitcoin startups (50:43) and his fund's structure and philosophy (1:02:55). This is the show's framing, not investment advice from Onramp.
This episode is editorial and educational content. Onramp does not provide tax, legal, or investment advice. Bitcoin is volatile and may lose value. Past performance does not guarantee future results.