Crypto vs. Banks: Who Controls America’s Money? | Summer Mersinger
Crypto vs. Banks — the proxy war for the future of money is heating up.
Summer Mersinger, CEO of the Blockchain Association and former CFTC Commissioner, joins Bankless to unpack the battle over the GENIUS Act, why banks are fighting to roll it back, and how stablecoins have become the frontline. From Elizabeth Warren’s fading influence to the $700M bank lobbying machine, we explore what’s really happening on Capitol Hill, the global stakes for stablecoins, and how upcoming U.S. policy could reshape innovation, regulation, and consumer freedom.
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TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Intro
1:12 The GENIUS Act Victory
8:49 How Laws Really Get Made
16:17 The Bank Lobby vs. The Crypto Lobby
20:29 The Shifting Politics of Crypto
27:29 Will Banks Go Crypto?
33:10 International Dimension
37:14 CFTC, SEC, and Market Structure
52:26 DC Drama & Leadership Vacancies
55:42 Prediction Markets & Policy Battles
1:00:07 Looking Ahead to 2026
1:02:15 Closing Thoughts
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RESOURCES
Summer Mersinger
https://x.com/SKMersinger
Blockchain Association
https://x.com/BlockchainAssn
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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
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ROLLUP: Markets Down | Tether $500B Raise | South Park x Polymarket | Gensler Grilled
In this week’s Weekly Rollup, we break down “Downtemper” market moves as Bitcoin and Ethereum slide, and examine why Vitalik Buterin is calling low-risk DeFi Ethereum’s true backbone. We highlight Tether’s ambitious $500B raise, Polymarket’s mainstream moment on South Park, and Gary Gensler’s testy CNBC appearance. We also cover Paul Atkins’ push for pro-crypto regulation, the heated debate over whether Base should be regulated like Nasdaq, and the surprising deletion of 86 million bank accounts in Vietnam as digital ID mandates expand.
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TIMESTAMPS & RESOURCES
0:00 Intro
4:16 Markets
https://x.com/PeterSchiff/status/1971193227807162797
https://x.com/tomleeupdates/status/197097365172296 1041
https://x.com/TheOneandOmsy/status/1969076691478696325
7:38 BitGo IPO
https://x.com/jseyff/status/1969143764535972186
9:51 Tether $500B Raise
https://www.reuters.com/business/crypto-firm-tether-eyes-500-billion-valuation-major-raise-round-bloomberg-news-2025-09-23
17:06 Polymarket / South Park
https://x.com/Polymarket/status/1970829572842065995
https://x.com/aleximm/status/1971063404308918630
https://x.com/Polymarket/status/1971137036863275056
https://x.com/martypartymusic/status/1970125767460950181
23:43 Gary Gensler / Paul Atkins / CFTC / Clarity Act
https://x.com/altcoindaily/status/1968814029943480623
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6379979495112
https://x.com/vronirwin/status/1969775136959270993
https://x.com/amandalfischer/status/1970254506374938992
https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2025/09/10/trump-s-cftc-hopeful-quintenz-takes-his-dispute-with-tyler-winklevoss-very-public
https://x.com/BrianQuintenz/status/1965855208195412356
https://www.theblock.co/post/371778/white-house-patrick-witt-market-structure-bill
39:25 Vitalik / DeFi / Coinbase
https://vitalik.eth.limo/general/2025/09/21/low_risk_defi.html
https://x.com/RyanSAdams/status/1969794415595077997
https://youtu.be/ADiEX92S58E
https://x.com/brian_armstrong/status/1968708504547364921
43:53 Synthetix Perp Dex
https://x.com/synthetix_io/status/1970237341760655656
https://www.bankless.com/podcast/how-synthetix-brings-perps-back-to-the-ethereum-l1-kain-warwick?ref=bankless.ghost.io
48:12 Base / Nasdaq Debate
https://thedefiant.io/newsletter/defi-daily/should-base-be-regulated-as-an-exchange
https://x.com/iampaulgrewal/status/1970206735206900038
https://x.com/MaxResnick1/status/1970250612399825075
https://x.com/VitalikButerin/status/1970258498996048247
https://x.com/jchervinsky/status/1970571188993958214
https://x.com/danrobinson/status/1970557854190051463
57:53 Coinbase + Cloudflare x402
https://x.com/CoinbaseDev/status/1970477072792592484
https://x.com/balajis/status/1952582943689556453
59:19 Vietnam Bank Account Purge
https://x.com/alanvibe/status/1967643742653042698
https://x.com/RyanSAdams/status/1969390296812196325
1:03:47 Closing & Disclaimers
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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
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What's Next for Crypto ETFs, ETFs vs DATs, Crypto ETF Explosion & Institutional Inflows | James Seyffart
James Seyffart from Bloomberg Intelligence joins to break down the state of crypto ETFs and their explosive growth.
We cover the rise of Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs, the debate between ETFs and DATs, and the institutional inflows reshaping the market. James explains how advisors, hedge funds, and sovereign wealth funds are participating, the regulatory hurdles around staking ETFs, and why basket products may be the next big wave.
We also explore the implications of tokenized ETFs, the S&P 500’s gatekeeping of crypto companies, and what to watch for in the coming months as approvals and new products hit the market.
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TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Intro
1:18 DATs vs ETFs
6:18 DATs Final Equilibrium
9:21 ETFs 1-Year Check-in
23:42 Crypto Indexes
30:41 ETF Approval Process
41:03 Solana ETF
44:17 BTC & ETH ETFs
56:11 What’s Driving the Price?
59:39 Crypto Companies in the S&P
1:07:17 Blackrock Tokenized ETFs?
1:13:59 Key Outcomes
1:19:14 Closing & Disclaimers
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RESOURCES
James Seyffart
https://x.com/JSeyff
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesseyffart
Bloomberg Intelligence
https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/products/bloomberg-terminal/research/bloomberg-intelligence/
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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
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Vitalik Declares DeFi Ethereum’s Killer App | Ryan & David
Vitalik Buterin just declared DeFi as Ethereum’s “killer app.” In his new post, he compares it to Google Search, the dependable core business that powers everything else.
Ryan and David break down why Vitalik believes DeFi has finally earned this title, how it survived the volatility of the last cycle, and what it means for ETH as collateral, culture, and revenue. They cover the Google analogy, the risks DeFi has outgrown, and why this moment could define Ethereum’s future.
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TIMESTAMPS
0:09 DeFi: Ethereum's Core Business
3:50 The Significance of Vitalik's Article
5:27 Vitalik's Perspective on DeFi Maturity
9:27 The Stability of DeFi vs. TradFi
12:20 Core Low-Risk DeFi Activities
14:47 DeFi's Global Accessibility
15:37 DeFi and Ethereum's Cultural Goals
17:56 Economic Contributions of DeFi
21:24 ETH as a Store of Value
26:05 The Noble Purpose of DeFi
30:48 Alignment of DeFi with Ethereum
34:45 Google Analogy: DeFi's Backbone
39:27 Vitalik's Pride in DeFi
41:49 Marketing Messages and Ethereum
1:04:37 Closing & Disclaimers
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RESOURCES
Vitalik’s Post
https://vitalik.eth.limo/general/2025/09/21/low_risk_defi.html
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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
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The Unbundling of Banks: How Stablecoins Change Everything | Charles Calomiris
What happens when stablecoins break apart the traditional business model of banks?
Economist Charles Calomiris explains how the “unbundling” of payments and lending reshapes finance, why politics matter more than technology, and what this revolution could mean for the dollar’s future.
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TIMESTAMPS
0:00 What Are Banks?
7:56 Chartered Banking
30:44 The Unbundling
51:48 Stablecoin Yield Concerns
1:01:42 Death of The Dollar?
1:15:45 Stablecoins Abroad
1:20:52 Future of The Dollar
1:24:38 Dollar as a SoV
1:32:10 Are Stablecoins Winning?
1:36:30 Closing & Disclaimers
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RESOURCES
Charles Calomiris
https://x.com/cwcalomiris
Fragile by Design (Charles' Book)
https://www.amazon.com/Fragile-Design-Political-Princeton-Economic/dp/0691155240/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&sr=8-1
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Not financial or tax advice. See our investment disclosures here:
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Ireland