Today is the start of an Era. This morning is my first day at Bitcoin Policy Institute as Head of Strategy.
BPI is the honey badger of policy in DC. We are a small but mighty team of uncompromising advocates pursuing success for both Bitcoin and America.
I can’t wait to help them chart the next phase of the organization with the experience I’ve gained from the Senate.
We already have several new initiatives in the works that we are excited to share with you soon.
Stay tuned. For now, it’s time to build!
BPI is the honey badger of policy in DC. We are a small but mighty team of uncompromising advocates pursuing success for both Bitcoin and America.
I can’t wait to help them chart the next phase of the organization with the experience I’ve gained from the Senate.
We already have several new initiatives in the works that we are excited to share with you soon.
Stay tuned. For now, it’s time to build!
Conner Brown
https://x.com/BitcoinConner/status/1981426046780985518?t=QWKAUfDZKm__DjU8vBiJXQ&s=35
Application and more details can be found here:
We’re looking for a cracked front end developer that could help make a new BPI research project really shine.
Who is the best?
Who is the best?
The Bank Policy Institute’s “Stablecoin Risks” reads like it’s 2018, not 2025. It mixes up payment stablecoins with algorithmic experiments and then waves at old headlines to argue “risk.” Let’s fact-check the piece point by point.
First tell: they lean on USDT’s October 2018 blip and USDC’s March 2023 SVB episode to imply ongoing peg fragility. That’s pre-GENIUS Act, pre-current reserve standards, and—re: USDC—was resolved when U.S. authorities guaranteed SVB deposits.
Second tell: they cite USDe (Ethena) dropping to $0.65 on Oct 10, 2025—but USDe is an algorithmic product, not a reserve-backed payment stablecoin. Using USDe to indict USDC/USDT is apples-to-jet-engines.
Then they pivot to Aave leverage loops and a decision to “hard-code” USDe’s price for collateral—again, platform-specific/algorithmic design risk, not an indictment of reserve-backed payment coins used for payments and settlement. Category error.
First tell: they lean on USDT’s October 2018 blip and USDC’s March 2023 SVB episode to imply ongoing peg fragility. That’s pre-GENIUS Act, pre-current reserve standards, and—re: USDC—was resolved when U.S. authorities guaranteed SVB deposits.
Second tell: they cite USDe (Ethena) dropping to $0.65 on Oct 10, 2025—but USDe is an algorithmic product, not a reserve-backed payment stablecoin. Using USDe to indict USDC/USDT is apples-to-jet-engines.
Then they pivot to Aave leverage loops and a decision to “hard-code” USDe’s price for collateral—again, platform-specific/algorithmic design risk, not an indictment of reserve-backed payment coins used for payments and settlement. Category error.
The 2023 USDC de-peg? It proved the opposite of what BPI claims: stablecoin issuer banking risk was backstopped when FDIC/Treasury/Fed protectedall SVB depositors, and USDC rapidly re-pegged. This was the reason why we wrote the GENIUS act! Stablecoin issuers needed integration with U.S. safeguards, instead of creating new systemic hole.
The policy environment has changed: the GENIUS Act now sets a federal framework for payment stablecoin issuers, clarifying what they are, how reserves work, and what’s prohibited (e.g., direct interest). The piece barely grapples with that.
Now the part BPI really misses: national security. ~99% of payment stablecoins reference the U.S. dollar. That’s the dollar’s soft-power supercharger—U.S. money, on the open internet, in every wallet. Undercutting that hands terrain to rivals.
These coins don’t just spread dollars—they buy Treasuries. (I.e. USDC reserves sit in short term treasuries custodied by Blackrock). JPM estimates stablecoin issuers already hold ~3% of all T-bills outstanding—this is financial innovation creating structural demand for U.S. debt. This is a critical development given the U.S. fiscal outlook.
Look, even the Fed is acknowledging the upside now: stablecoins can lower payment costs and improve global treasury ops—while increasing overall demand for dollars.
Are there risks in the markets? Sure: yield schemes, platform leverage, transparency lapses. But, these are not stablecoin risks. These are defi risks. Just like I can use a physical dollar to buy lottery tickets, that is not an indictment of cash!
The policy environment has changed: the GENIUS Act now sets a federal framework for payment stablecoin issuers, clarifying what they are, how reserves work, and what’s prohibited (e.g., direct interest). The piece barely grapples with that.
Now the part BPI really misses: national security. ~99% of payment stablecoins reference the U.S. dollar. That’s the dollar’s soft-power supercharger—U.S. money, on the open internet, in every wallet. Undercutting that hands terrain to rivals.
These coins don’t just spread dollars—they buy Treasuries. (I.e. USDC reserves sit in short term treasuries custodied by Blackrock). JPM estimates stablecoin issuers already hold ~3% of all T-bills outstanding—this is financial innovation creating structural demand for U.S. debt. This is a critical development given the U.S. fiscal outlook.
Look, even the Fed is acknowledging the upside now: stablecoins can lower payment costs and improve global treasury ops—while increasing overall demand for dollars.
Are there risks in the markets? Sure: yield schemes, platform leverage, transparency lapses. But, these are not stablecoin risks. These are defi risks. Just like I can use a physical dollar to buy lottery tickets, that is not an indictment of cash!
What do you consider to be the single best visual explainer of how the Bitcoin network operates?
I’m looking for something that can be digested in less than an hour and explains all parts:
- mining
- nodes
- wallets
- blocks
- Etc.
I’m looking for something that can be digested in less than an hour and explains all parts:
- mining
- nodes
- wallets
- blocks
- Etc.
The @CNB_cz launched a historic project from the central banking perspective: a test portfolio of digital assets. The portfolio includes bitcoin, US dollar-pegged stablecoins and a tokenised dollar deposit. The total purchase price of the portfolio is USD 1 million, or around 0.0006% of the CNB’s assets. The portfolio was created in the CNB Lab innovation hub.
It does not form part of the international reserves, and the purchases certainly do not represent any sort of investment advice on our part. Why create the portfolio? We want to be prepared for the future. The test portfolio will allow us to gain knowledge and practical experience that will prepare us for tokenisation- and digitalisation-related changes in the financial system. This will ensure we remain able to fulfil our duties arising from the Act on the CNB – that is, to supervise the financial market, to contribute to financial stability and the sound operation of the financial system, to administer payments and to conduct monetary policy, including managing our international reserves. What comes next? The project will be assessed in 2-3 years. Until then, the volume of the portfolio will not be increased.
Conner Brown
The @CNB_cz launched a historic project from the central banking perspective: a test portfolio of digital assets. The portfolio includes bitcoin, US dollar-pegged stablecoins and a tokenised dollar deposit. The total purchase price of the portfolio is USD…
A true Zero-to-One moment for central banking.
The Czech National Bank ($100B+ balance sheet) just bought bitcoin “to prepare for the future.”
Congrats to Aleš — and we’re working every day in the U.S. to make sure America isn’t last to understand this.
The Czech National Bank ($100B+ balance sheet) just bought bitcoin “to prepare for the future.”
Congrats to Aleš — and we’re working every day in the U.S. to make sure America isn’t last to understand this.