Slate Money Podcast Summary
Episode: Memelord Takeover
Date: October 29, 2022
Host: Felix Salmon (Axios), with Emily Peck (Axios) and Elizabeth Spiers
Special Guest: Matt Levine (Bloomberg Opinion)
Overview
In this engaging episode, the Slate Money crew welcomes renowned financial columnist and crypto commentator Matt Levine. The group dives deep into three timely topics: Elon Musk’s official takeover of Twitter ("Memelord Takeover"), Matt Levine’s massive new "Crypto Issue" for Bloomberg Businessweek, and the dramatic shakeup at Credit Suisse. The tone is witty, conversational, and occasionally irreverent, making complex finance news accessible and lively.
1. Elon Musk’s Takeover of Twitter
[00:18–12:27]
Key Discussion Points
-
Elon Musk Closes the Deal
- Musk’s acquisition of Twitter is finally complete, a day earlier than expected, for $44B.
- Musk promptly fired Twitter’s top three executives.
-
How Did Musk Find the Cash?
- Most of the financing likely came from selling Tesla stock and from co-investors ("friends and family"), but details are murky.
- The group jokes about the conspiracy theory that Musk paid for Twitter with Dogecoin:
"My favorite theory, which I don't actually believe ... was that he paid for a huge chunk of Twitter with Dogecoin." – Felix Salmon [05:02]
-
The Leverage and Debt Situation
- Twitter is now highly leveraged, owing $1.5B/year in interest—more than its free cash flow.
- Matt explains banks’ reluctance to enforce debt covenants with Elon as their client:
"If you foreclose, the thing that you own is Twitter with Elon Musk being mad at you. And do you want that?" – Matt Levine [07:28]
-
Future of Twitter Under Musk
- Potential risks: layoffs, cost-cutting, bankruptcy.
- Emily voices mild optimism for a Musk-driven turnaround:
"I kind of am starting to think that Elon Musk is going to turn Twitter around." – Emily Peck [09:22]
- Debate about whether major user segments (left, right, “woke snowflakes”) will actually leave.
"I don't think anyone's going to leave if Donald Trump comes back. But I think that if in fact he cuts moderation to the bone ... then people will leave." – Matt Levine [11:30]
2. Matt Levine’s Big Crypto Explainer
[12:27–34:48]
Key Discussion Points
-
Levine’s Crypto-Edition for Bloomberg Businessweek
- Matt spent the summer writing a comprehensive, 40,000-word explainer on crypto.
- The issue aims to be a "timeless" reference, but Matt jokes about crypto’s volatility.
-
Crypto’s Place in Finance
- Crypto is developing more slowly than the early internet.
- The main reason crypto gets so much coverage: "a metric fuck ton of money" is involved.
"If enough smart people are investing their money in it, who am I to say there's nothing there?" – Matt Levine [14:40]
-
Speculation vs. Real-World Use
- Most crypto activity is still self-referential speculation; transformation to broader economic/real-world use cases is limited:
"Beyond purely sort of self referential financial speculation, the amount of real there there is ... way lower than all the people I was talking to in 2013 would have predicted at this point." – Felix Salmon [16:37] "This is a much more narrow purpose technology and it's like a financial technology. ... It's not going to change every aspect of your life." – Matt Levine [16:56]
- Most crypto activity is still self-referential speculation; transformation to broader economic/real-world use cases is limited:
-
Crypto, Regulation, and Trust
- Crypto frequently operates as regulatory arbitrage—sidestepping traditional rules.
"A huge amount of crypto activity is basically just regulatory arbitrage." – Felix Salmon [22:15]
- Matt explains the paradox of crypto’s "trustless" systems quickly reverting to the need for institutions (Coinbase, Celsius), often without sufficient regulation:
"People have just sort of imported over their instincts about trusting banks to things like Celsius that are just like the opposite of banks." – Matt Levine [29:27]
- Crypto frequently operates as regulatory arbitrage—sidestepping traditional rules.
-
Reputation, Identity, and ‘Soul’ in Crypto
- Crypto thinkers propose "soul-bound tokens" as a form of on-chain reputation:
"A musician could issue a song from his soul... It's just like, it's an endlessly fun thing to write about." – Matt Levine [31:50]
- Crypto thinkers propose "soul-bound tokens" as a form of on-chain reputation:
-
Living in the Digital World / Metaverse
- Emily posits that we’re already living in a "metaverse" via digital life (Slack, Twitter, etc.).
"If you think we don't already live in a metaverse, you are incorrect." – Emily Peck [33:24]
- Felix counters that these experiences exist independently of crypto.
- Emily posits that we’re already living in a "metaverse" via digital life (Slack, Twitter, etc.).
3. Credit Suisse Breakup and the Future of Big Banks
[34:49–42:35]
Key Discussion Points
-
Credit Suisse’s ‘Voluntary’ Breakup
- Credit Suisse announced plans to split into four parts, shedding riskier divisions, and spinning off others.
- This marks an unusual retreat from the aspirations of the "global finance supermarket" model.
"Now Credit Suisse is worth less than the sum of its parts." – Matt Levine [38:05]
-
Why Should ‘Normals’ Care?
- These changes reflect the post-2008 regulatory desire to make banking boring and reduce risk:
"The broad like regulatory goal after 2008 was to make banking boring again." – Matt Levine [39:05]
- These changes reflect the post-2008 regulatory desire to make banking boring and reduce risk:
-
General Trend
- Banks—both European and American—are becoming less ambitious, more conservative.
"It's been a long time since anyone used the word global financial supermarket in a non-ironic sense." – Felix Salmon [40:17]
- Banks—both European and American—are becoming less ambitious, more conservative.
4. Notable Quotes and Moments
-
On Musk’s Motivation to Buy Twitter
"Don't you have things that you find annoying about Twitter that you're like, Ah, I would change this... He just like wanted an edit button. He's like, I'll pay $44 billion for an edit button." – Matt Levine [02:51]
-
On Twitter’s Future
"If you foreclose, the thing that you own is Twitter with Elon Musk being mad at you. And do you want that?" – Matt Levine [07:32]
-
On the Absence of Utility in Crypto
"The whole edifice is built on mistrust... And then the minute that it becomes, you know, a minute, basically, around 2013... everyone just started trusting institutions all over again." – Felix Salmon [28:03]
-
On the Digital-First Life
"I wake up every day and ... for the next eight or more hours, I'm in the laptop, I'm in Slack, I'm on Twitter... If you think we don't already live in a metaverse, you are incorrect." – Emily Peck [33:24]
5. Numbers Round – Memorable Stats and Anecdotes
[42:35–48:32]
- Elizabeth: 1,200 (>Number of times most people toggle between apps daily) [42:41]
- Emily: 40 (Years since Tylenol scare nearly cancelled Halloween) [42:59]
- Felix: 2.6% (US GDP growth in Q3 2022, countering "recession" narrative) [45:19]
- Matt: $1.5 billion (Drop in Kanye West’s estimated net worth after Adidas ended their partnership) [46:24]
"He didn't lose any money, but he lost a stream of future earnings... that got capitalized into a $1.5 billion number." – Matt Levine [47:33]
6. Closing Remarks
- Host previews next week’s guest, Rana Foroohar, and invites listener questions.
- The episode balances sharp financial analysis with humor and clear explanations, making complex stories—from Twitter’s future under a "Memelord" to the meaning of crypto and global banking trends—both engaging and understandable.