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Episode 1197 of Bitcoin And . . . is LIVE!

Topics for today:

• JPMorgan Bends the Other Knee . . . Again
• Schiff v. Zhao FIGHT!
• 110 Year Old Department Store Accepts Bitcoin
• Tether Moves Into AI

Today's Articles:

https://cointelegraph.com/news/jpmorgan-bitcoin-ether-collateral-institutional-report
https://bitcoinmagazine.com/builders/cz-and-peter-schiff-to-debate-btc-gold
https://bitcoinnews.com/adoption/bealls-retailer-to-accept-bitcoin/
https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2025/10/23/u-s-cpi-rose-softer-than-expected-0-3-in-september-bitcoin-adds-to-gains
https://decrypt.co/345859/tether-decentralized-ai-app-dataset-challenge-big-tech-dominance
https://www.theblock.co/post/376092/zelle-weighs-stablecoin-integration-expand-trillion-dollar-payments-network-abroad
https://bitcoinmagazine.com/business/relai-secures-mica-license-in-france


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[00:00:02] David Bennett:

It is 10:13AM   Pacific Daylight Time. It's the October   2025,   and this is episode eleven ninety seven   of Bitcoin and, woo hoo, going to Scary Wood today. Yeah. So this is gonna be a little bit of a shorter show. We gotta get ready. If you live in the Inland Northwest,   like the Panhandle   Of Idaho   or Eastern   Central to, you know, Central East to Northern Eastern   Washington State and you haven't been   to Silverwood   for Halloween where they turn it into Scary Wood,   may you're missing   out.   You're missing out. I won't describe it any further. Just trust me.   Google Scary Wood   in Idaho, and you'll you'll figure it out. If you were within driving distance and you haven't gone to this thing yet,   dude, I I don't know what's wrong with you. It's it's so freaking worth it, man. Especially if you've got kids,   they will love you forever. I promise.  

It's   it's like it's a small amusement park that they turn the whole damn thing into a gigantic   haunted house,   and it still has rides.   But there's so much more than that. I mean, it's they really spend a lot of money on this, and it's not just   it's not just the the haunted houses and stuff.   It's everything else.   It's an experience.   I promise you won't   you don't want to miss this. Okay? So go. Just just go. It's called scary wood.   Just Google it, and you'll find out more. But that's not why we're here. This is all the news you can use and more about Bitcoin.   We're gonna have JPMorgan   in the news. We're also gonna be talking about   CZ or Changpeng   Zhao and Peter Schiff   duking it out and a couple of other things.  

We got a giant retailer accepting Bitcoin. Is it what you think? Oh, I don't know. We're gonna find out together as we always do.   Tether will be in the news.   Zelle is gonna be in the news,   and   Relay is gonna be in the news. Let's start with JPMorgan.   JPMorgan   reportedly plans to let clients borrow   against their Bitcoin   and Shitcoin number one,   Zoltan Vardy from Cointelegraph.   Investment banking giant, JPMorgan   Chase,   is reportedly planning to let clients use Bitcoin and ether as collateral for loans,   collateral   for loans,   signaling Wall Street's continued move towards embracing digital assets.  

I'll bet this is sticking to Jamie Dimon's craw, you know, because   he he clearly   just doesn't he doesn't have the ability to send down a mandate to the rest of the crew saying no.   Either that   or he secretly loves Bitcoin. Anyway, the initiative would allow   JPMorgan's   global clients to borrow against their Bitcoin and ether holdings according to a Bloomberg report.   The offering   would store clients Bitcoin and Ether holdings through a third party custodian according to people familiar with the matter.   If confirmed,   the development could make the two leading cryptocurrencies   more attractive for institutional   investors   akin to the historic approval   of the first US spot Bitcoin exchange traded fund.  

A spokesperson   for JPMorgan   has declined   to comment.   The report follows months of speculation   that JPMorgan   could soon accept Bitcoin and Ether ETFs as collateral.   JPMorgan   has been considering cryptocurrency   collateralized   loans since at least July   when the first reports on this matter emerged.   Still,   the Financial Times   previously reported that adopting Bitcoin and Ether as collateral assets may not occur until 2026,   but the investment bank also expressed interest in   stablecoins.   Yeah. Stablecoins.   During an earnings call on July 15 when CEO Jamie Dimon himself   said that they planned   to be involved in stablecoins   to better, quote, understand   this emerging asset class.  

JPMorgan   was among the first US banks to venture into crypto, even though Jamie Dimon hates it. In 2020,   it launched JPM Coin, a dollar peg stablecoin.   Then in 2024,   the bank reported holding shares of different spot Bitcoin ETFs.   The early integration came despite   JPMorgan   CEO previously expressing criticism   of digital assets because in you know, remember, in 2018,   Jamie Dimon said that he had no interest in cryptocurrencies, and then in 2022,   called it   decentralized   Ponzi schemes,   but commented   commented   positively   on blockchain   and smart contract technology.  

So bend the knee, Diamond.   You're gonna bend the knee. Now   Trump bent the knee,   and we're about to see if Peter Schiff bends the knee.   Probably not. I mean, let's be realistic. Peter Schiff is like it's like talking to,   I don't know, the Great Wall Of China. It's just it's just immobile. So   newly pardoned, if you did not know, Changpeng Zhao got pardoned by Trump,   Newly pardoned Changpeng Zhao, Changpeng Zhao, and Peter Schiff   agree to a Bitcoin versus gold debate. My question is why?   Why do we have these debates?   Do they change anything?  

No. They actually don't. This is why I never got into debate club.   I should have because the the being able to debate   is a skill that carries into a great many things, but going to a debate,   when somebody wins the debate, does national policy change, does world policy change, does does it ripple like like electricity through the population of the planet and everybody changes their mind? No. It does freaking nothing. But we're here we are again,   and Micah Zimmerman   from Bitcoin magazine is gonna tell us about it. CZ   or Changpeng Zhao   and Peter Schiff are supposedly   taking their long running argument to the stage.  

The Binance founder has agreed to debate the outspoken economist and gold advocate after Schiff publicly   challenged him to a Bitcoin versus tokenized   gold discussion. If you remember yesterday,   I told you that he's launching this gold back token thing. Congratulations,   Peter. You you just invented something we've we already know about for, like, the last seven years.   It's ridiculous, but   here we are. Anyway, the exchange   follows Schiff's announcement that he is launching his own blockchain based gold product and sees these sharp critique that such tokens are not truly on chain, quote,   as much as you voice against Bitcoin,   you are always professional and non personal, c z told Schiff on x.  

I appreciate that.   We can have a debate about it.   Schiff replied later, quote, absolutely. Several people have already reached out to me offering to moderate.   Do you have a preference?   End quote.   All this debate talk arrives hours   after president Donald Trump granted a full pardon to Changpeng Zhao. Trump said he wasn't guilty and was persecuted   by the Biden administration.   Schiff recently said that he's building a tokenized gold form in NeoBank with a blockchain token called t gold.   Whoo.   Might as well it's here's the meme, teabag.   It's gonna happen, guys.  

Shift just he just, like, opened the door and said, come on in, Teegold.   Oh, god.   Somebody   get this man a public relations   officer or something. Oh, my god.   Schiff describes it as real money for the digital age, and all of it comes at mid a multiyear gold rally with prices hitting   $43.80   per ounce earlier this month.   Schiff argues that tokenized gold could provide a stable asset backed alternatives to alternative to Bitcoin's volatility,   serving as both a medium of exchange and store value.   And CZ wasted no time in firing back on x. He called tokenized gold   a   trust me bro token,   arguing that such assets rely on third party custodians. And it goes on a little bit further, but we don't need it. They're gonna debate. And c z has now he's fully pardoned   by by Trump.  

I actually didn't expect that.   He didn't need to do that.   We his his voter base   was not   clamoring at his door   saying you've gotta free CZ. It's gotta be done. It's   Ross Ulbricht was a different story now, wasn't it?   Nobody gave a shit about CZ.   Nobody cared.   Besides, he I don't even think the guy was in jail. I think he spent, like, a few months in jail. He can't be CEO of Binance anymore. He had to pay a massive fine, but he's still rich as snot. Honestly,   whoop dee doo.   What you gotta ask yourself,   Ross Ulbricht,   that was that was in the they are going to vote for me column.  

Now that Trump's already in office and nobody was giving a shit about c z,   why did Trump   pardon   Changpeng Zhao?   I will bet you we hear more about this relationship, and that's in quotes,   in the future, but   right now we gotta move on to Bells.   Now   you might not remember Bells, the retail store.   It's spelled b e a l l s, and I used to pronounce it Beals,   but apparently it's pronounced Bells.   But it's been around since, I don't know, the sixties, probably further than that. And they were definitely a staple anchor store in every American mall that you saw alongside Sears,   JCPenney.  

You this is the scale of the store that that we're talking about, or at least it used to be that. They they have since pretty much kinda gone away,   but I guess they never filed for bankruptcy, and I guess they never closed because this is the first time that I've heard about Bells   in a very,   very long time.   Is it a zombified hail Mary? Let's find out from Alex Larry in Bitcoin News.   Bells   becomes the first national   retailer   to accept Bitcoin payments.   Bells Incorporated,   one of America's   oldest retail chains, has made history by becoming the first national retailer to accept digital asset payments   across all of its stores.  

The company has partnered with Flexa,   a leading digital payments platform to allow customers to pay with Bitcoin   and also other digital assets.   Bell's, which has still over 660   stores in 22 American states under the Bell's   name,   Bell's Florida,   and HomeCentric   Brands   announced that customers can now pay with Bitcoin directly from over 300 supported wallet apps.   The integration also supports more than 99 digital assets across   multiple blockchains,   including, of course, Bitcoin   and the rest of the field and stablecoins.   The company is the first   major national retailer to accept digital currencies   from any digital wallet app across a dozen or more blockchains simultaneously.  

The new payment option   is made possible through Flexa Payments, a digital infrastructure that makes digital asset transactions as fast and easy as card payments.   The platform offers   sub one second transaction speeds   and   instant confirmations   and automatically updates to include new wallet apps and supported tokens.   Flexico founder Trevor   Filter, what a neat name, Filter,   said this move is embracing innovation, quote, the retail legacy that Bell's has built   for the last one hundred and ten years. Oh my god. I had no idea. It's incredible, he said. We're fight or we're delighted   to play a part in the next chapter of their innovation,   end quote. Filter said Bell's   long history and national presence makes them a perfect partner   to bring digital payments into everyday shopping. Quote, it's no surprise   that a company with this much staying power is now adopting the most important payments technology evolution the world has ever seen.  

The new payment system's launch coincides with Bell's   one hundred and ten year anniversary.   Wow. I'm still kinda shocked that they're that old. I had no idea. That means that they've been around since, what, 1910?   Holy mother.   The company headquartered in Bradenton, Florida has invested in technology to improve customer experience   from in store kiosks and online shopping tools to now accepting digital currencies at checkout.   Digital currencies, and this is a quote, will reshape   how the world transacts,   and Bells is proud to be at the forefront of that transformation,   sad said,   Matt Bell, b e a l l. So I guess they've kept it in the family.  

Chairman and CEO   of Bells Incorporated, quote, our partnership with Flexa   is about more than just payments.   It's about preparing for the future of commerce and continuing to innovate for the next one hundred and ten years, end quote. Bell said,   the company has always focused on making shopping easy and modern for its customers, and digital assets are the next logical step.   And I haven't seen the Bells in a very, very long time.   But they've got three brands   and over 600 stores   in 22 states,   and all of them are going to start accepting Bitcoin.   Yeah. I know. And 89 shit coins, but whatever. I I don't care.  

It's, again, it's the user experience. It's it's getting people used to seeing this   in the most innocuous of places, like coffee bars and Bell's retail stores. Stores. You you know, your wife goes and buys a dress or something like that, and   you you you've given her, like, I I don't know,   maybe they take lightning payments. You give her a lightning wallet that's loaded up with, like, you know, 4 or $500   worth of of of Bitcoin on lightning,   and boom. Yeah. She's even she's able to do it. The the user experience is very, very important, and I don't think we should pooh pooh it. Alright?   So let's move on   to CoinDesk,   who is saying that   United States   consumer price index rose softer   than expected,   a point 3% rise in September.  

So, therefore, of course, Bitcoin added to gains. This is James Van Stratten, by the way, from CoinDesk.   The US government shutdown has meant a dearth of official economic data this month. But,   of course, the Bureau of Labor Statistics got enough of its group together to issue the consumer price index report   for September, and it came in better than anticipated.   The CPI rose 0.3%   month over month compared to economist   expectations of point 4%   and August's   point 4% increase. On a year over year basis,   the CPI increased by 3%   against forecast of 3.1   and August's   2.9.  

Core CPI,   excluding volatile food and energy prices,   climbed point 2%   on a month over month basis versus expectations of point three.   Year over year core CPI was 3% compared to an expected 3.1%.   Bitcoin added to its earlier gains in the immediate aftermath.   It was trading at around 11,600.   I think it's fallen down to, like, a $110,200   at this point, but it is what it is. So   the Bureau of Labor Statistics was able to pull a skeleton crew together, and they were able to finagle the CPI and release it. And   Jiminy crickets, it's better than expected.   I'm sorry, but I'm going to call bullshit, but for the short term,   it works for us. Let's run the rest of the numbers.  

Well, the energy sector was up a lot more earlier this morning, but Brent Norsey is still in the green by   point 15%   to $66   a barrel. West Texas Intermediate is in the red point 16%   down   to $61.69.   Natural gas is down   four points to $3.20   per thousand, and gasoline is up   point 4% to a buck 93 a gallon. And Murbaughn Crude   is in the green point 16%,   sixty nine   sixteen. Shiny metal rocks are   they're mixed today. Palladium is down almost a half. Gold is still down   over a tenth of a point, but hanging in there at $41.40.9   or, well, I guess I should say 90¢.  

Platinum is up a quarter. Silver is down a third. Copper is up a third.   And then into ag, we are fully mixed with the biggest winner being   wow. Cotton, point 17%   to the upside. Biggest loser is coffee,   two and a quarter to the downside. Meanwhile, live cattle is down three.   Whoo.   Lean hogs up a half, and feeder cattle are down two and a half. So it looks like the Argentina   news   is starting to shake out some of the higher cattle prices. I'm not sure if that's exactly why, but that's my gut feeling.   S and P is up point 89%.   Nasdaq is up 1.17.  

Dow is up 1.08.   And the S and P Mini,   point 79%   into the greenfield.   A $110,004.40,   that is a $2,200,000,000,000   market cap, and we can only purchase 26.8   ounces of shiny metal rocks with our one Bitcoin of which there are 19,939,110   and 1 half of.   Average fees per block are low.   Again,   there are   16 no. I'm sorry. About 22 blocks   carrying 50,000 unconfirmed transactions   waiting to clear at high and low priorities of one satoshi per v byte.   Hash rate holding at 1.1   Zeta hashes per second. So you can do with that what you will.   And   from Machine Money, which was yesterday's episode of Bitcoin, and I got Jay with 2,100   sats. Thank you, Jay. I appreciate it. He says,   I've gotten a standalone Android m p three player   and moved back to antennapod   to play podcast on it. So I'll have to boost the show manually after I listen   now rather than streaming since I like to keep it offline.  

Hopefully, this will also help the show. Oh, Jay, it always helps the show. I'm not sure if boost have more or less impact than streaming on fountain   on a show's ranking.   Thank you, sir. I don't know either.   I'm under the impression, and I can't tell you why, that it's a combination of both,   but I don't know. I I I really don't know. I'd have to I'd have to talk to the guys over at Fountain about that, and   it is what it is. Even if I find out something I don't wanna find out, it's not like it's gonna change. Just like having a debate. Right? It does nothing.   Anyway, Psyduck with seven fifty six says   Psyduck.  

Justin with 5,000   sats. Thank you, Justin, says happy weekend, David, and listeners.   I know I'm gonna have a good weekend. We're going to Scary Wood. See?   Although we may run into a little bit of of of rain.   Hopefully, it's just a drizzle,   slightly wet.   Wish us luck. That's the weather report.   Welcome to part two of the news that you can use   Tether.   They're they've been in the news, like, solid for the, like, ever now because they keep doing different things.   This time, it's different again.   Now Tether launches a decentralized   artificial intelligence   app,   dataset to change or rather, dataset to challenge   big tech dominance, Josh Quitner,   out of Decrypt   dot c o.  

Tether Data,   the technology arm of the world's largest stablecoin issuer, is expanding into artificial intelligence with the launch of what it calls   the world's   largest   synthetic   dataset   for STEM, s t e m, that's science, technology, engineering, and math,   STEM focused AI models.   Earlier today, the company unveiled QVAC Genesis 1,   a 41,000,000,000   token dataset built to train science and engineering oriented language models, and QVAC Workbench,   a cross platform local AI application   that runs models directly on consumer devices.   Per Tether, QVAC stands for quantum verse atomic computer. Oh, I'm sorry. Hold on. Quantum verse   automatic   computer.  

You know what this I'm just gonna pause here. You know what came to mind?   The nineteen fifties.   If that's the I mean, the early   nineteen fifties.   Quantum verse   automatic   computer   is something like it's like the turboencabulator,   man. I mean, it's the the way that they would phrase things around science and engineering and math and that shit back in the fifties, in the atomic age. This is exactly the same language.   It's like they're reaching back in time for their marketing team. I   I I   I'm good with it. I really am. It actually sounds pretty cool. Quote,   QVAC   is Tether's answer to centralized   AI,   an entirely   new paradigm where intelligence   runs privately,   locally,   and without permission.  

No clouds, no gatekeepers, just you, your machines, and unstoppable   intelligence,   the QVAC website mission statement said. Oh, mission statements.   Put a tie on the suit's beak.   The move marks a striking escalation of Tether's ambitions beyond finance.   The company said the dataset has been validated on math, physics, biology, and medical benchmarks   and was designed to, quote, level the playing field for open source AI by giving researchers an an alternative   to proprietary   data controlled by companies like OpenAI and, of course, Google.   While QVAC Genesis one itself isn't a financial product, the broader QVAC ecosystem is being built with clear links to Tether's crypto infrastructure.  

In earlier company statements, Tether said QVAC's architecture   will eventually integrate Bitcoin   and its own stablecoin,   USDT,   enabling AI agents to transact   autonomously   using   digital assets. This suggests   the initiative could evolve beyond data and local AI tools into a network   where intelligent agents   cannot only learn and reason, but also pay, trade,   and interact   directly through blockchain rails. Quote, intelligence,   it shouldn't be centralized, said Paolo Ordano,   Tether's chief executive officer, in a statement accompanying the release. Quote,   with QVAC Workbench and Genesis one, we're opening the door to infinite intelligence,   AI that lives,   learns, and evolves locally   on your own device,   end quote.  

The company   also released a free consumer facing app called QVAC Workbench for smartphones,   Android for now, and iOS, quote, within a few days, as well as desktop platforms, Windows, macOS, and Linux.   Quote, with QVAC Workbench, all chats and interactions with the AI models remain local on device   where data is owned by the user   and remains 100%   private, the company said.   It also introduces a peer to peer feature called delegated   inference,   which allows the mobile app to offload heavy computation to a desktop workstation   while keeping all data   private and local.  

Man, these guys are not messing around.   Unlike conventional training material scraped the public Internet, Quebec's dataset is   fully synthetic,   generated, filtered, and validated by models trained on educational and scientific materials.   Tether claims the data enables models to, quote, reason,   solve problems,   and think critically rather than simply mimic text patterns.   The full technical breakdown is available   in the QVAC research blog.   The QVAC work bench app lets users run large language models like Llama, Medjema, and Quinn entirely on their phones or computers.   Tether framed the twin release as part of a larger effort to create local intelligence or AI that operates independently of cloud servers,   the company, which already dominates the stablecoin market with this USDT token,   is positioning its artificial intelligence unit,   Tether Data,   as an advocate   for decentralized infrastructure   that keeps both money   and information   outside of corporate control.  

So who owns your AI?   The project arrives amid intensifying debate over synthetic data's role in model training.   While it promises privacy and scalability,   skeptics caution that synthetic training data can amplify the biases or errors of their parent models,   potentially locking in distorted reasoning patterns.   Tether's announcement did not specify which generative systems produced   Genesis one's   content   or how its quality   assurance was performed. But even so,   QVAC Genesis one represents one of the boldest open data experiments yet from a private crypto firm. I don't think any other crypto firm is doing this, so I think they're the only one. But   if Tether's claims hold up under scrutiny,   then it could   give independent researchers and smaller labs a new foothold in the AI race and signal Tether's determination to influence not only the future of finance,   but of artificial intelligence itself.  

I'm   I'm not surprised   that Tether's doing this.   You you know? I mean,   they're not gonna get left behind. Tether's positioning themselves for being something a hell of a lot bigger than they started out for, and they're doing it at a pace that is almost eye watering.   It's honestly,   it's impressive.   I'm   I I'm not I I promise you I'm not a fan. I'm not a fanboy,   but I I gotta give credit where credit is due. I'm looking at these guys and they start out with this this shit token that everybody made fun of that is now the world's largest stablecoin,   and then they started buying gold.  

They had already been buy you know, buying treasury bonds. They already set that relationship up, but then all of a sudden, they started buying gold. They started putting physical Bitcoin on their balance sheet, and then they start buying land, and then they start buying other companies,   some of which are agricultural.   And all of the land and agriculture stuff that they're involved with   is in Latin America.   This   I'm telling you to   do not   blink or shut your eyes   at Latin America.   That place is a freaking   hotbed   for what comes next. And if you're not watching it, you're gonna miss it big time. Let's move on to Zelle.  

Zelle or Zelle. I don't know exactly how to pronounce it, z e l l e. You know, the the the payment app that you have on your phone.   Zelle weighs   stablecoin   integration   to expand its   trillion dollar payments network abroad.   RT Wilson from the block,   widely used United States payment network, Zelle,   is eyeing an international expansion utilizing   stablecoins.   Quote, Zelle transformed how Americans send money at home. Now   we're beginning the work to bring that same level of speed and reliability to to Zelle consumers sending money to and from   The United States.  

Our goal is to bring the trust, speed, and convenience of Zelle to consumers'   international   money movement   needs, end quote. Early Warning Services operates Zelle.   The company said that this initiative, which is scant on details, of course, quote, marks an important step in expanding the reach of Zelle globally by leveraging stablecoins. Oh my god. Zelle has been exploring   issuing its own stablecoin   according to a report from last month.   According to early warning services, approximately $1,000,000,000,000   was transferred using Zelle just last year, While other payment networks like PayPal and WiseHands,   or Wise handle a lot of cross border payments, and many crypto firms have sought to compete   by offering low cost ways to move money internationally.  

Zelle has a massive customer base that might be interested in the ability to, oh, I don't know, transfer money to other countries.   On the stablecoin front,   since The US created a regulatory framework for stablecoins,   many major banks have now signaled interest in issuing their very own   USD peg token. And for now,   Tether,   issuer of USDT,   and then US based Circle,   issuer of USDC,   are the world's two largest stablecoin companies.   All the banks missed missed it. They were too busy   cheering Jamie Dimon who was pointing at us and laughing,   and now they find themselves catching or playing catch up,   and it's over.  

You blink in this space,   and it's over.   Maybe the Swiss   will learn from that mistake.   Swiss Bitcoin   only app Relay   secures a Micah license in France.   Oh, joy.   Micah Zimmerman Bitcoin magazine.   Swiss   Bitcoin   app Relay   has become one of the first Bitcoin only companies to receive regulatory approval under Europe's landmark markets and crypto assets framework, the MICA framework.   The Zurich based firm announced today that it had been granted authorization   as a crypto asset service provider by France's Financial Market Authority.   The approval marks a significant moment,   not just for Relay,   but for the broader Bitcoin ecosystem in Europe.  

The micro regulation, which came into effect earlier this year, establishes uniform rules for crypto companies across the EU aiming   to increase investor protections and reduce   regulatory fragmentation between member states.   While large exchanges like Binance and Coinbase are still navigating the complex licensing process,   Relay's   early authorization   gives it a head start. Yeah. I'd say a massive head start as one of the first Bitcoin only firms to achieve such compliance. Quote, we're incredibly proud to be the first of the first Bitcoin companies   to get the Michael license and are eager   to expand   to France,   you know, first, and Europe in a second step, said Julian   Lininger,   cofounder and CEO of Relay. Quote, this is a big, big moment for Bitcoin adoption   on the   continent.  

Founded in Zurich in 2020,   Relay has grown despite a rough regulatory environment for digital assets.   The company closed a series a funding round last year that surpassed   after surpassing 500,000   app downloads and established itself as a user friendly gateway for European retail investors seeking exposure to Bitcoin without any intermediaries.   With the Michael license secured, Relay can now passport   its services across the EU, meaning it can operate in all   27   member states once formal notification procedures are complete.   The company plans to introduce a suite of new features tailored to European users,   including instant SEPA payments, s e p a, higher trade limits, fixed price transparency,   and   enhanced security standards. Relay also intends   to invest in education   and community building, launching localized learning resources   and sponsoring Bitcoin events across Europe.  

Quote, our goal is clear.   Bringing Bitcoin to as many people as possible,   simple, secure, and regulated,   said   Adam Belacan,   cofounder and president of   RelayEU.   The company is also strengthening its governance with a newly appointed advisory board featuring industry veterans, Juan Guillerme.   I guess, Guillerme. I can't pronounce it. Daniel Estrad   and Herb de Kurdrel,   who will provide guidance on regulatory compliance and strategic growth.   Relay plans to leverage its MICA approval to expand across Europe with marketing campaigns and app updates scheduled for 2026.   Yesterday,   in another bit of news, I was gonna talk about it today, but, we'll just do it here.  

Blockchain.com   announced it received a Mica license as well granted by the Maltese Financial Services Authority.   Not a fan of blockchain.com,   but, you know, they do exist, and now they have a Michael license. So   and but but understand blockchain.com   is not Bitcoin only. They're pretty much all shitcoin, but whatever. Don't care.   Relay has always been very, very good for Bitcoin   and very, very solid   a very, very solid team.   Relay has always been that, and they have always been Bitcoin only.   Right? So we need more of that   representing Bitcoin in places like the EU, United States, the rest of the West.  

I think outside of the West, the rest of the world can take care of themselves.   It's clear that Africa and Latin America,   they know what to do. And they're   knee deep in doing it, so I don't think we have to worry about them. The people that we really have to worry about is the West.   It is just that way. They're they're the West is just being too slow   on the uptake. Okay. So   that is all I had planned for today. Like I said, shorter show. Not much I can do about it. Going to Scary Wood. Gotta get ready. I'll see you on the other side.   This has been Bitcoin, and and I'm your host, David Bennett. I hope you enjoyed today's episode and hope to see you again real soon.  

Have a great day.