About this episode
In this episode of Bullish on Bitcoin, Alexei sits down with Lorenzo, co-founder of USDT0 — the fastest-growing stablecoin interoperability platform in crypto history, hitting $100 billion in transfer volume in just 525 days. A self-described gold bug and Bitcoin maxi, Lorenzo brings a rare perspective that spans DeFi-native infrastructure building, Tether product development, and a deeply held conviction in hard money.
From the mechanics of how USDT0 works and who is actually using it (hint: it's not just whales), to the three-way stablecoin war between Tether, Circle, and the new OpenUSD consortium, to a frank discussion on gold vs Bitcoin as a store of value and why censorship resistance is Bitcoin's ultimate superpower — this is one of the more wide-ranging and candid episodes of the show.
In this episode we discuss:
- Lorenzo's journey: from DeFi Summer to co-founding USDT0 via Tether's Alloy and CCTP-inspired infrastructure
- How USDT0 hit $100B in transfer volume in 525 days — and what actually drives the numbers
- Who uses USDT0: the surprising split between whale institutions and small everyday transactions in emerging markets
- Why stablecoins are a real-world use case that transcends crypto cycles — especially for the Global South
- USDT vs USDC: their actual market niches and why Lorenzo thinks Circle is more exposed than Tether
- OpenUSD enters the market: competition is good, but is it really built for the people who need it most?
- Could tokenized gold (XAUt0) eventually surpass tokenized dollars in market cap?
- Gold vs Bitcoin: why Lorenzo holds both, and how gold's 2,000-year purchasing power track record shapes his thesis
- Why Bitcoin's censorship resistance is its true superpower — something no stablecoin can ever replicate
- Bitcoin maximalism vs pragmatic Bitcoin building: the healthy shift away from tribalism in the industry
- DCA as a philosophy: Lorenzo's five-year recurring buy order and why he never second-guesses it
- Antonopoulos, "Internet of Money," and the intellectual path that drew a generation into Bitcoin
