Cas Piancey and Bennett Tomlin
175 episodes listed below
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Bennett and Cas discuss historical moments in the cryptocurrency and finance industries, focusing on frauds, hacks, exit scams, and other malfeasance.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin make cryptocurrency failures legible by tracing the money, incentives, institutions, and moral claims behind them.
Crypto Critics' Corner follows the money through cryptocurrency's failures, asking how firms, executives, and financial structures produce losses that hype tends to obscure.
Tether comes up at dinner; you'd rather hear Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin than another sales pitch.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A sharp crypto discussion uses SBF's prison suffering to argue for dignity, rehabilitation, and reform.
Crypto Critics' Corner treats SBF's prison suffering as a hard test for a wider principle: human rights and dignity should still count, even when the person involved has hurt thousands of people. Cass P.
A Tether investigation turns crypto's strange characters into a story about how the money moved.
Crypto mania gets a human-scale reading as Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin talk with Zeke Fox about Number Go Up, his book on cryptocurrencies, fraud, Tether, stablecoins, and cryptocurrency exchanges.
A sharp All In critique that lands best when it explains incentives and unvested Solana claims.
Crypto Critics' Corner takes on the All In podcast after Cass Pianci says Chamath's recent Twitter behavior made him want Bennett Tomlin to talk through its hosts.
Prime Trust's almost $100 million failure becomes a sharp look at crypto's missing money, weak consequences, and limited alternatives.
Prime Trust's almost $100 million loss comes through as another case of crypto treating missing money as something to route around rather than answer for.
A skeptical look at effective altruism, moral reasoning, and the promises attached to crypto wealth.
Crypto Critics' Corner revisits effective altruism through William McCaskill's low-key return to Twitter and public discussion of the philosophy.
Circle's story becomes a compact lesson in stablecoin competition and compliance pressure.
Crypto Critics' Corner treats Circle as a case study in stablecoins under pressure: compliance, market access, and the push to look like a regulated business instead of a crypto bet.
Bitcoin finance, beyond the thesis.
Crypto arguments with the polish left off.
Crypto markets, regulation, and inside-baseball commentary.
Heterodox science argued at full speed.
Cass and Bennett interview Eric Roesch about fraud in cryptocurrency and finance, focusing on Elon Musk's ESG controversies and historical cases like the Chisso Corporation.
This episode discusses the potential end of Federal Reserve independence, examining its role in monetary policy, bank regulation, and government oversight.
This episode provides practical tools and methods for investigating companies and individuals, using examples like Bitfinex to demonstrate how to uncover corporate structures and conduct due diligence.
This episode discusses Tether's growth to a $100 billion market cap, its Q4 attestations revealing massive profits and investments, and its systemic importance in the crypto ecosystem.
This episode discusses the Sam Bankman-Fried trial, focusing on defense witnesses like data analyst Joseph Pimbley and their role in presenting financial data about FTX and Alameda.
This episode discusses whether Donald Trump and his administration are corrupt, focusing on a New York Times article about bribe-like activities involving Trump coin and the author's subsequent qualification that it's not definitive corruption.
This episode discusses recent cryptocurrency fraud stories, including Donald Trump's endorsement of World Liberty Financial and Justin Sun's activities, as the hosts catch up on crypto news after a break.
The hosts discuss the controversial DJT token, a Solana-based meme coin allegedly created by Barron Trump and reported by Pirate Wires, involving figures like Martin Shkreli and Peter Thiel.
This episode discusses the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), its origins as an Elizabeth Warren initiative after the 2008 financial crisis, its focus on consumer issues like junk fees and debanking, and its effectiveness as a regulator.
This episode features Katie Baker from The Ringer discussing her coverage of the Sam Bankman-Fried trial, focusing on social media's role and Caroline Ellison's testimony.
The hosts discuss 'the realization'—a moment when listeners conclude Elon Musk lacks expertise in their field, focusing on his tunnel projects in Las Vegas as an example.
The hosts discuss the ongoing struggles of regional banks in America, focusing on New York Community Bank Corp's recent billion-dollar investment led by Stephen Mnuchin and revisiting lessons from last year's banking crisis.
Law professor Rohan Grey discusses digitizing the FISC and the role of the Treasury Bureau of Fiscal Services in moving government money, with hosts Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin.
This episode discusses allegations of insolvency and financial issues surrounding cryptocurrency figure Justin Sun and his projects, particularly focusing on problems with the Poloniex exchange and its lack of transparency.
The hosts interview Andrew Bailey, co-author of the book 'Resistance Money' about Bitcoin, discussing disagreements and perspectives on Bitcoin maximalism.
This episode examines Moonstone Bank's connections to FTX and Deltec, tracing its origins from Farmington Bank to its role in cryptocurrency banking.
Patrick McKenzie discusses why cryptocurrency fails to effectively address payment infrastructure issues, explaining the complexity of transactions and the role of payments as messages within economic systems.
This episode discusses whether NFTs like the Stoner Cats collection are considered securities by the SEC, focusing on royalty structures and regulatory implications.
This episode discusses Sam Bankman-Fried's trial with journalist David Z.
This episode discusses Trump's executive order on digital financial technology, exploring its implications and the hosts' humorous take on political and legal aspects.
Elizabeth Lopatto discusses the courtroom atmosphere leading up to Sam Bankman-Fried's guilty verdict in his cryptocurrency fraud trial.
This episode discusses the complexities and evolution of venture capital, exploring its original intent, current issues like regulatory capture, and its expansion beyond Silicon Valley into media.
This episode discusses Wyre, a cryptocurrency payment processor involved in fraud, its connections to Ryan Breslow's companies ECO and Bolt, and a suspicious $1.5 billion acquisition offer.
This episode discusses the final cross-examination of Sam Bankman-Fried during his trial, featuring insights from journalist Molly White who attended the proceedings.
The hosts and guest Ed Zitron discuss the Winklevoss twins' history with Facebook, their lawsuit against Mark Zuckerberg, and their subsequent ventures in cryptocurrency.
This episode explores the differences between the SEC and CFTC, their historical origins, and discusses the possibility of merging these two financial regulatory agencies.
This episode discusses the implications of Elon Musk's influence on finance, focusing on a recent press conference by David Sachs about cryptocurrency regulation and stable coin bills.
This episode features an interview with Peter Ryan, discussing his background in crypto journalism and research, his consultancy work, and his perspective on Bitcoin and the crypto industry.
This episode discusses the Southern District of New York's potential dismissal of corruption charges against Mayor Eric Adams, allegedly due to political pressure related to Trump immigration enforcement.
This episode features journalist Nitish Pahwa discussing cryptocurrency's political influence, including misconceptions about crypto voters affecting elections and the Federal Reserve's response.
This episode explores whether prediction markets threaten democratic values by examining their mechanics and comparing them to other financial instruments like gambling and options trading.
This episode discusses the unprecedented criminal indictment threat against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell by the Trump administration, framing it as political pressure over interest rate decisions rather than legitimate oversight.
This episode compares the legal outcomes of cryptocurrency exchange founders CZ (Binance) and SBF (FTX), focusing on their different sentences and charges.
The hosts discuss their controversial stance on Tether, acknowledging that most listeners and critics will dislike the episode while crypto supporters will enjoy it, and connect it to recent political news about Donald Trump's election.
This episode features a discussion with Ed Zitron about the 'rot economy' and 'shitification' of everything, exploring pessimism about the future of the internet and world while emphasizing the need to fight back against influential figures like Elon Musk and Mark Andreessen.
This episode discusses the indictment of Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao for financial crimes including money laundering and regulatory violations, comparing it to other exchange cases and exploring future implications.
This episode features investigative journalist Vincent Woo discussing the controversial philosophy of Effective Altruism and its relationship with Effective Accelerationism, exploring why it has become so negatively polarized in public discourse.
The hosts interview Molly White about her critical review of Chris Dixon's book 'Read, Write, Own' and discuss the broken promises of Web3 and blockchain technology.
This episode critically examines Elon Musk's Starbase City in Texas, discussing its implications as a company town and comparing it to historical examples.
This episode features reporter Danny Nelson discussing the courtroom testimony of Nishad Singh in the Sam Bankman-Fried/FTX trial, focusing on how Singh's narrative about knowing customer funds were being misused was challenged during cross-examination.
This episode features an interview with crypto critic Molly White discussing Donald Trump's controversial cryptocurrency wallet launch and the broader implications of crypto corruption.
This episode discusses the challenges cryptocurrency companies face in securing banking relationships, focusing on a recent article about Bitstamp's negotiations with European banks amid evolving crypto regulations.
This episode features an interview with economic analyst Joey Politano discussing how Donald Trump's incoming administration might impact cryptocurrency policies and regulation.
This episode features an interview with Corey Frayer, former SEC senior advisor for crypto oversight, discussing his role in regulating cryptocurrency and the challenges faced by the SEC.
This episode explores the documented connections between cryptocurrency billionaire Brock Pierce and Jeffrey Epstein, focusing on Pierce's early career as a child actor and his involvement with Digital Entertainment Network.
This episode explores Deltec Bank's history, its connections to Tether and FTX, and the unusual background of its owner Jean Chalapin, creator of Inspector Gadget.
This episode discusses the second week of the Sam Bankman-Fried trial, focusing on testimony from FTX co-founder Gary Wang and insights from a CoinDesk reporter covering the case.
This episode investigates the alleged involvement of SBF's parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Freed, in the criminal activities of FTX and Alameda Research.
Leo Schwartz from Fortune joins to discuss his article on Circle losing the stablecoin war to Tether, covering Circle's regulatory struggles, the Silicon Valley Bank crisis, and the broader irony of US dollar derivatives dominating crypto.
This episode discusses a constitutional crisis where the U.S.
Crypto Critics' Corner uses Sam Bankman-Fried's complaints about delayed Adderall, Ensam, and vegan meals to argue that pretrial detainees should still get medical care and food accommodations.
Zeke Faux discusses his book “Number Go Up” on Crypto Critics’ Corner with Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin, focusing on Tether, stablecoins, and fraud.
Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin spend the episode on All In, naming Chamath Paliapedia, Jason Calacanis, David Sachs, and David Friedberg as the four hosts they want to examine.
Prime Trust, a Nevada-based crypto trust used by Binance US and TrueUSD, is described as having lost almost $100 million.
Cass Pianci and Bennett Tomlin argue that effective altruism gave Sam Bankman-Fried and the EA circle a moral language for FTX-era decisions.
Cynthia Cooper describes how WorldCom grew to $38 billion in revenue through 60 acquisitions, 60-plus billing systems, and weak internal controls.
Crypto Critics' Corner examines why cryptocurrency satire targets Bitcoin JPEG debates, Tether, Justin Sun, and grandiose industry claims.
Crypto Critics' Corner examines whether Bitcoin lending can coexist with the "not your keys, not your coins" principle through Mario Gibney's work at Ledn.