Public Key Podcast

[CHAINALYSIS PODCAST EPISODE 31] – Liquid Staking: What Is It And Why Is It Taking Over The Ethereum Blockchain?

Episode 31 of Public Key, the Chainalysis podcast, is here! In this episode, we talk with Mara Schmiedt, the new Chief Growth Officer at Alluvial, who explains what liquid staking is and why it is growing rapidly.

You can listen or subscribe now on Spotify, Apple, or Audible. Keep reading for a full preview of episode 31. 

Public Key Episode 31 preview: Bridging capital from institutions to Proof of Stake blockchains

Just as many of us are starting to get our heads wrapped around the concept of staking in cryptocurrency, liquid staking has now become one of the most talked about and fastest-growing use case on the Ethereum network.  

In this episode, Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis) is joined by Mara Schmiedt, the new Chief Growth Officer of Alluvial. She talks about the early conversations of Bitcoin at family dinners and explains the fundamentals and nuances of liquid staking. 

Mara and Ian go deep into the mechanics of liquid staking and something called the Liquid Collective that Mara describes as the secure liquid staking standard, a protocol designed to meet the needs of institutions.

Quote of the episode

“I talk to so many people who kind of encountered crypto for the first time in a university setting, like our co-founder here at Chainalysis, Jonathan Levin, same story. He was studying in the UK and discovered Bitcoin in a pub. Tried to bring it up, I think, in some of his economics dissertation work and almost got laughed out of the program. I think you’re probably the third or fourth person that had that kind of inception story. ” – Ian Andrews (Chief Marketing Officer, Chainalysis)

Minute-by-minute episode breakdown

  • (2:45) – Mara’s crypto origin story: From discussing Bitcoin at a family event in 2014 to growing one of the biggest liquid staking companies in the industry. 
  • (6:39) – Understanding staking and the core principles behind the liquid staking ecosystem 
  • (10:07) – Comparing the methodologies of liquid staking to taking out a home equity line of credit 
  • (17:05) – What does it mean to be a “first enterprise-focused organization” in the liquid staking space 
  • (22:15) – What is the liquid collective, and how do Alluvial and its team contribute to these industry standards
  • (24:35) – What are some of the implications on the industry of Coinbase and other stakeholders offering liquid staking to its customers 
  • (26:55) – The future of liquid staking and evolution to more blockchains 

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Speakers on today’s episode

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