Bankless Weekly Rollup – October 31, 2025

Episode Title: ROLLUP: Markets Spooked? | MegaETH & Monad Mania | New CFTC Chair | Base & Polymarket Tokens? | Circle Arc Backlash
Hosts: Ryan Sean Adams & David Hoffman
Date: October 31, 2025

Episode Overview

This week’s Bankless Rollup is a packed, entertaining debrief on major crypto market movements, token launches, institutional advances, regulatory shifts, and some spicy blockchain drama. With Halloween lore and costumes as background, Ryan and David break down why markets got “spooked,” analyze oversubscribed token sales (MegaETH, Monad), dissect new ETF launches and partnerships, discuss the incoming CFTC chair, and react to controversial Web3 business development tactics. Heavy focus is given to the shifting U.S. macro environment, token economics, and how crypto is intersecting with TradFi and regulators.

Key Topics & Segments

🎃 Market Recap & Macro Mayhem

• Costume Commentary (00:04 - 01:20): A light-hearted, Halloween-themed intro.
• Market Rally & Pullback (01:31 - 09:10):
  • Stocks hit all-time highs (S&P, Nasdaq); crypto rallied but turned red after the Fed.
  • Bitcoin >$115k, ETH hit $4,232 pre-Fed; both down ~1.5% after.
  • Ryan: “I thought we were back, baby. But Powell... gave us everything I thought we wanted, but the markets hated it.” (01:34)
• Powell's Hawkish Turn (06:50 - 16:36):
  • Fed cuts rates 25bps, hints at ending QT in December (i.e., stop shrinking balance sheet).
  • Division in Fed on December cuts; markets spooked by less dovish forward guidance.
  • “A further reduction in the policy rate at the December meeting is not a foregone conclusion. Far from it.” – Powell (15:24)
• Quantitative Tightening (QT) 101 (09:36 - 13:54):
  • Historical perspective on the Fed balance sheet, QE1-3, COVID expansion.
  • Lyn Alden clarifies: it's “money printing with extra steps.”
  • Peter Schiff laments: “Like a banana republic, the US did monetize QT debt.” (12:48)
• Market Reactions & Speculation (16:00 - 21:50):
  • Polymarket odds for December rate cuts dropped from 90% to 70%.
  • David: “I'm calling shenanigans on the market. I think the market's just being jittery and I will stay in my bullishness.” (16:19)
  • Jitters in crypto amplified due to fear and weak positioning.

📈 TradFi Meets Crypto

• Job Cuts & AI Fears (20:00 - 21:50):
  • Amazon, Target, Paramount laying off tens of thousands; AI and automation suspected drivers.
  • Jeff Park: “Amazon laying off 30,000 people is all you need to know of why the Fed is in this paralysis right now.” (21:12)
• Solana ETFs Go Live (22:19 - 24:35):
  • Bitwise’s BSOL launches with $70M inflows in 2 days; strongest ETF launch of 2025.
  • BlackRock notably absent; if Solana matches ETH/BTC ETF flows, could see $3B over 12–18 months.
  • Solana traded down post-launch; market had “priced in” the ETF.
• Ethereum DATs Finally Sell ETH (24:44 - 26:54):
  • ETHzilla initiated buybacks funded by selling ETH—breaking a “only buy, never sell” tradition.
  • “Shareholders are supposed to be the first-class citizens… this is aligned with that.” – David (25:37)

🚀 Token Mania: MegaETH, Monad, and Polymarket

• MegaETH ICO Goes Nuclear (30:39 - 35:47):
  • Sale hits $50M cap in minutes; 28x oversubscribed (~100,000 participants KYC’ed).
  • Sold at $999M valuation; likely undervalued given futures pricing and anticipated $10B FDV.
  • Conducted on Kobe's Sonar platform, required KYC and investor tests, 1-year lock for U.S. buyers.
  • David's big-picture take: “ICOs are just an ungamable, fairer token distribution mechanism. [...] They just ask retail to put their money where their mouth is.” (32:08)
• Token Valuations (38:31 - 41:59):
  • Monad airdrop surprises; perpetuals pricing Monad at $5.6B FDV, MegaETH at $4.3B FDV.
  • David: “The pendulum between L2 and L1 premium is on the L1 side right now.” (39:14)
• Polymarket Confirms Token & Airdrop (35:52 - 36:49):
  • CMO Matthew confirms on podcast: “There will be a token. There will be an airdrop.”
• Base Token Speculation (41:09 - 42:04):
  • JP Morgan estimates hypothetical BASE token FDV at $34B if Coinbase launches.
  • “That puts it at number seven in the FDV of the crypto market… feels a little expensive.” – David (41:59)

🏛️ Regulatory News & Institutions

• New CFTC Chair: Mike Selig (52:27 - 53:28):

  • Former Bankless guest, crypto-native, returns to CFTC as chair for crypto oversight.
  • “This is bullish for crypto. He knows the space.” – Ryan (53:18)
  • Broad approval, even from David Sacks and President Trump.

• Trump’s Moves in Crypto (53:41 - 55:08):

  • Trump Media to launch a prediction market (Truth Predict) integrated in Truth Social.
  • “We told you … it's already got the stable dots on it, NFT collection, ETFs ... he just doesn't have Trump Chain!” – David (54:44)
  • Ro Khanna (D-CA) proposes bill to ban presidents and officials from owning or creating cryptocurrencies—crypto backlash begins.

💥 Circle ARK Layer 1 & Web3 BD Drama

• Circle ARK L1 Goes Testnet (45:23 - 46:59):
  • Circle pivots to its own EVM Layer 1, claims to be “the economic operating system for the Internet.” Marketing rhetoric receives eye rolls.
  • “There's an element of … smelling their own farts.” – David (46:04), mocking grandiose marketing.
  • Criticisms over “distributed governance” (not even claiming decentralization yet).
• Solana & Western Union: BD Controversy (57:00 - 62:39):
  • Western Union launches stablecoin on Solana; CEO lauds Solana’s speed.
  • Allegations surface that Solana Foundation paid Western Union $25M+ to secure the partnership, raising debate over transparency and authenticity of “organic adoption.”
  • David: “All the chains are incented to pretend it's all organic adoption… and that's what I don't like.” (60:10)
  • Both Solana execs and president Lily Lu deny details—debate continues about Web3 business practices.

🏦 TradFi Integration & IPOs

• Banks Go Crypto-Native (64:52 - 66:20):
  • Aave acquires stablecoin savings app Stable Finance—DeFi moving into neobank territory.
  • Farcaster acquires meme token bot “Clanker”—social+DeFi evolution.
  • Major banks (Wells Fargo/Zelle) and Citi partner with Coinbase to offer fiat–crypto payment solutions.
  • Brian Armstrong: “Crypto and stablecoins are the tools. It's not a debate anymore. We're going to update the financial system.” (66:20)
• Crypto IPOs Incoming (66:47 - 69:56):
  • Securitize files $1.25B IPO; leads with real-world-assets narrative.
  • Consensus (MetaMask, Infura, Linnea L2) prepping IPO with Goldman Sachs leading.
  • David: “Crypto companies need TradFi exposure now—can’t get full exposure with just tokens anymore.” (69:32)
  • The growing intersection of listed equities and onchain assets.

📡 Tech & Protocol Innovation

• X402 Payment Standard Explodes (46:57 - 52:27):
  • Coinbase’s X402 standard bridges web payments and stablecoin rails, finally enabling “micropayments for the Internet.”
  • “200,000% growth” in 3 weeks, fueled initially by meme coins but with AI, agentic, and machine-to-machine applications on the horizon.
  • “We are calling for an X402 summer super cycle.” – David (51:37)

Memorable Quotes

• Ryan, on ARK L1 marketing:
  “I found this marketing speak just like you, David, supremely annoying and slightly triggering... to just be like, guys, we solved it, the layer one that's going to be the economic OS for the entire thing.” (45:23)

• David, on Solana’s Western Union partnership:
  “Pretend it's organic...what's irksome about these types of deals is that as the market we don't get to know the details. That's what I don't like.” (60:10)

• David, on the market’s nerves:
  “I'm calling shenanigans on the market. I think the market's just being jittery and I will stay in my bullishness.” (16:19)

• Powell (via Ryan):
  “A further reduction in the policy rate at the December meeting is not a foregone conclusion. Far from it.” (15:24)

Notable Timestamps

• 01:31 — Market Recap, S&P/NASDAQ ATH, Crypto performance
• 06:50 — Fed statement, Quantitative Tightening, Macro analysis
• 16:12 — Crypto/TradFi reactions to rate cut odds
• 22:19 — Solana ETF launch coverage
• 24:44 — ETHzilla DAT sells Ethereum
• 30:39 — MegaETH ICO details
• 35:52 — Polymarket token/airdrop confirmed
• 38:31 — Monad, MegaETH valuations, airdrop mechanics
• 41:09 — Base token speculation, JP Morgan’s projections
• 45:23 — Circle ARK L1 backlash and fintech vs. decentralization debate
• 46:57 — X402 payment standard—overview and “supercycle” thesis
• 52:27 — Mike Selig named new CFTC chair
• 53:41 — Trump launches prediction markets, ban bill from Ro Khanna
• 57:00 — Western Union–Solana “pay for partnership” controversy
• 64:52 — Acquisitions (Aave/Stable, Farcaster/Clanker), banks embracing stablecoins, Citi/Coinbase deal
• 66:47 — Securitize and ConsenSys IPO news

Takeaways

• Macroeconomic “good news” spooked markets due to less dovish Fed guidance; markets remain hyper-sensitive to policy signals.
• Token launches (MegaETH, Monad) are in ferocious demand, but distribution mechanisms and legal structuring (ICOs, KYC, lockups) are evolving.
• Institutional adoption surges: ETFs, banks, and even Western Union entering stablecoins—sometimes with major undisclosed business incentives.
• TradFi and crypto are merging operationally and financially: stock market, IPOs, and protocol tokens now move in parallel.
• Regulatory momentum: new, crypto-native CFTC chair could bring clarity and legitimacy to digital asset markets.
• Web3 is maturing, but competitive business practices and marketing spin (“organic adoption”) provoke scrutiny—and some disillusionment from veteran Ethereum voices.
• Technical innovations such as X402 could reconfigure how money moves on the Internet—watch this space for an “agentic” new era.

If you missed the rollup, this summary should bring you directly into the pulse of crypto’s latest developments, the evolving dynamics between protocols and TradFi, and the ever-colorful narratives that shape this industry.