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<v Speaker 1>Hey, folks, I have Juli Tajwani, who's the head of

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<v Speaker 1>Coinbase Ventures joining me.

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<v Speaker 2>Hooley, great to have you. Thanks for having me.

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<v Speaker 1>Tell us a bit about yourself and what you do

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<v Speaker 1>at Coinbase.

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<v Speaker 3>Sure, So, I've been at Coinbase coming up on seven years,

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<v Speaker 3>and I look after Coinbase Ventures, which is our early

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<v Speaker 3>stage and strategic investing arm. We have now become one

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<v Speaker 3>of the most active investors in the crypto space. We've

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<v Speaker 3>made over five hundred investments across the world, continue to

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<v Speaker 3>actively invested in crypto based startups.

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<v Speaker 1>That's a lot of investments. Tell us about the difference

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<v Speaker 1>between the ventures and M and A, because there's obviously

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<v Speaker 1>been acquisitions that coinbase has made, but the ventures may

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<v Speaker 1>be a bit different, right.

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<v Speaker 3>Sure yeah. Separate, separate team, separate focused, separate mandates. So

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<v Speaker 3>when we started Coinbase Ventures, the philosophy the mandate was broadly,

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<v Speaker 3>we want to seed this ecosystem and help back accept

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<v Speaker 3>optional founders who are pushing the space forward. So we

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<v Speaker 3>invest very broadly. We'll invest in things that could be

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<v Speaker 3>considered competitive a coinbased from percerin perspective, things that are

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<v Speaker 3>tangential could be completely orthogonal. Some of our investments in

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<v Speaker 3>the portfolio naturally organically turn it to em andate conversations,

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<v Speaker 3>but it's not our primary focus when we're making the investment.

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<v Speaker 2>Got it.

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<v Speaker 1>So it could be token projects, it could be infrastructure companies,

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<v Speaker 1>and potentially they could be put into the coinbase ecosystem

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<v Speaker 1>as part of the business.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, definitely, it could be all types of all the above,

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<v Speaker 3>and sometimes there are like commercial relationships or business development

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<v Speaker 3>partnerships that we do, but we also invest in a

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<v Speaker 3>bunch of stuff that's outside of that platform.

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<v Speaker 1>Can you tell us about some of the most recent

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<v Speaker 1>investments you've made.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, we were very active.

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<v Speaker 3>Like I said, We've made over five hundred investments and

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<v Speaker 3>continue to deploy. Some recent ones that are notable of mind.

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<v Speaker 3>We were investors in Privy, which was acquired by Announced

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<v Speaker 3>It has been acquired by Stripe yesterday. We're large investors

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<v Speaker 3>in BBNK, which is another stable coin provider. We have

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<v Speaker 3>a bunch of founders for here today at State of Crypto,

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<v Speaker 3>Shane from Polymarket, U T y T y b uh,

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<v Speaker 3>and a whole bunch more Morpho. We could list a

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<v Speaker 3>model mon Our website's a great place to them.

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<v Speaker 1>See like the business side of me would say coinbase

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<v Speaker 1>should integrate poly market, like that'll be a natural segue,

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<v Speaker 1>so to speak, as part of the platform. Let me

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<v Speaker 1>go take some bets and things like that.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, we're definitely excited about prediction markets. There's uh, I

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<v Speaker 3>think it's it's still early on kind of the final

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<v Speaker 3>form factor, but a lot of credit to Shane and

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<v Speaker 3>the team there for putting putting it on the map.

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<v Speaker 1>Sure, are there any AI agent slash AI blockchain technology

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<v Speaker 1>companies that you're invested in.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, that's a big focus for us right now, the

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<v Speaker 3>intersection of crypto and AI. We're candidly not as excited

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<v Speaker 3>about some of the kind of like decentralized GPU type

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<v Speaker 3>compute models. We just don't know that technically things have

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<v Speaker 3>been figured out yet. But we're very excited about this

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<v Speaker 3>idea of we're moving to agent based commerce system and

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<v Speaker 3>that crypto and non chain rails should should play a

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<v Speaker 3>big part in how that new economy works. So a

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<v Speaker 3>bunch of investments we've made there that we can't disclose yet,

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<v Speaker 3>but it's we try to follow where like the best

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<v Speaker 3>and brightest hackers are spending their nights and weekends, and

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<v Speaker 3>that intersection points definitely where a lot of a lot

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<v Speaker 3>of that activity is happening right now.

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<v Speaker 1>So are there any specific sectors that you focus on

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<v Speaker 1>or you pretty much open so whether it be stable coins, AI,

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<v Speaker 1>r W, a tokenization, DeFi or you know, you guys

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<v Speaker 1>looking at all those sectors.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, so our mandate is very broad.

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<v Speaker 3>If there's some component of blockchain technology, it will cons

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<v Speaker 3>will evaluate it. The space moves really fast, so the

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<v Speaker 3>specific themes that we're focused on every any given time

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<v Speaker 3>kind of refreshes every every couple quarters, every every six months.

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<v Speaker 2>Right now, there is where we're spending a lot of time.

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<v Speaker 2>Are stable coins.

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<v Speaker 3>Stable coin related infrastructure, DeFi, all types of defied protocols,

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<v Speaker 3>on chain consumer applications, So i'd put like prediction markets

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<v Speaker 3>and poly market in that category, and the intersection of

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<v Speaker 3>crypto AI. Those are kind of like the four areas

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<v Speaker 3>we're spending a lot of time right now. But we

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<v Speaker 3>have the humility to know, like we're not the smartest

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<v Speaker 3>people in the room, and where where the builders are

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<v Speaker 3>going is where we're going to spend time.

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<v Speaker 1>That absolutely makes sense. Yeah, it's and there's so many

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<v Speaker 1>sectors that are coming up in this industry, Like one

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<v Speaker 1>I'm really fastened by, fascinated by is deep In and

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<v Speaker 1>you know, maybe over the next four years debt sectors

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<v Speaker 1>are some mature even more so it's just exciting to

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<v Speaker 1>see all the building that's happening.

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<v Speaker 2>Totally. Yeah, we're we're also excited about deep In.

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<v Speaker 3>I was my helium when you know, when that first

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<v Speaker 3>came out, and that's that that's definitely an exciting category.

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<v Speaker 3>We've we've made a bunch of investments there as well.

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<v Speaker 1>As far as you know from a venture standpoint, do

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<v Speaker 1>you I don't know if you can share this information,

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<v Speaker 1>do you have like a number you your team works

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<v Speaker 1>on as far as investing capital that you can put towards.

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<v Speaker 2>These Yeah, we're we're investing off the coinbase balance sheet.

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<v Speaker 3>We do set we do set a kind of a

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<v Speaker 3>guardrail for capital capital deployment, and so we manage it

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<v Speaker 3>similar to how you know a series seed or Series

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<v Speaker 3>A centric fund would manage it. And so yeah, but

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<v Speaker 3>we're also adaptive with the market and we kind of

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<v Speaker 3>let the opportunities drive us. So there's no like fixed

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<v Speaker 3>number of dollars that have to go out the door

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<v Speaker 3>every year. There's also like there's just flexibility on it.

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<v Speaker 1>So what's on your road map? I know you touched

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<v Speaker 1>a bit on some things that you're looking at, but

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<v Speaker 1>what can you share with us on your roadmap?

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<v Speaker 3>On the roadmap, so we've got it. We have like

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<v Speaker 3>a core kind of early stage venture investing activity, which

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<v Speaker 3>is kind of our our bread and butter wheelhouse. We're

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<v Speaker 3>excited about. We recently stood up like a base Ecosystem

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<v Speaker 3>group on Echo, which is a crowdfunding complying crowndfunding platform.

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<v Speaker 3>So we're excited about finding ways that we can fulfill

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<v Speaker 3>Coinbas's broader mission around economic freedom, where we can expand

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<v Speaker 3>access to folks in the market who want to invest

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<v Speaker 3>behind the companies that we're investing in, and also bring

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<v Speaker 3>that capital availability to founders and startups.

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<v Speaker 2>So that's like.

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<v Speaker 3>One initiative and we're kind of thinking through working through

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<v Speaker 3>other other examples like that where we can basically match

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<v Speaker 3>great founders and sources of capital where their inefficiencies.

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<v Speaker 1>Final the question herefore, I let you go, what are

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<v Speaker 1>you most excited about for the crypto market this year?

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<v Speaker 3>And yeah, you know, like zooming out, it's it's it

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<v Speaker 3>is kind of just been a wild wild ride over

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<v Speaker 3>the past like years of ups and downs. I think

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<v Speaker 3>if I was just talking a few folks that it

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<v Speaker 3>feels really weird to kind of be in the mainstream

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<v Speaker 3>right now, like the crypto people were kind of the

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<v Speaker 3>edgy off to the side, like not the favored, favored

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<v Speaker 3>group of founders. I think what I'm scited about it

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<v Speaker 3>is how just how much the conviction around crypto is

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<v Speaker 3>going to eat the traditional financial system is proving out

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<v Speaker 3>like you see it with stable coins right now. You

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<v Speaker 3>see if you look at the numbers, payment volumes, and

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<v Speaker 3>like penetration stable coins are happening. Bitcoin has crossed this

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<v Speaker 3>chasm where it's we now have black rock here, you know,

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<v Speaker 3>with a Bitcoin ETF. So it's it's kind of cool

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<v Speaker 3>to be here in New York and Wall Street and

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<v Speaker 3>see how this, you know, this edgy cipherpunk thing has

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<v Speaker 3>now really kind of integrated itself into the financial system

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<v Speaker 3>and is going to continue to penetrate. And also excited

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<v Speaker 3>about the tone of where things are progressing from a

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<v Speaker 3>regulatory front in the United States, So hopeful and optimistic

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<v Speaker 3>that during this administration we get some clear rules of

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<v Speaker 3>the road for founders and builders, and that's only just

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<v Speaker 3>going to keep compounding the innovation of the space.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, it's exciting and boy, you know I heard well

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<v Speaker 1>this was reported this morning that black Rock said they

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<v Speaker 1>want to be the leader in the digital asset space,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, by twenty thirty and holding the most assets.

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<v Speaker 1>So it's kind of surreal. You kind of have to

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<v Speaker 1>pinch yourself, like how did this happen? But it's exciting.

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<v Speaker 1>This this technology is going to power the economy, the markets,

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<v Speaker 1>and much more.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, and increase economic freedom in the world, which is

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<v Speaker 2>our mission.

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<v Speaker 1>Absolutely, holy great stuff for joining me.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you,