Why These DeFi Builders Are Betting It All on Coinbase’s L2, Base - Ep. 894

In this episode of Unchained, Laura Shin interviews Alex Cutler of Aerodrome and Luke Youngblood of Moonwell about building DeFi on Base, Coinbase's layer-2 network. They discuss the benefits of building on Base, including automatic token listings on Coinbase and access to a large user base. They also critique Uniswap and other centralized exchanges, highlighting the importance of sustainable value accrual for token holders. The conversation explores the convergence of CeFi and DeFi, with Coinbase leading the way in distributing on-chain products and services. They also address the challenges of scaling with demand and the need for permissionless systems. The guests emphasize the importance of building for the long term and redistributing value to users. The episode concludes with a discussion on how to sustain volumes without token incentives and the future of DeFi. Additionally, Laura Shin presents a crypto recap covering topics such as on-chain economic statistics, CFTC guidance on foreign crypto exchanges, Trump Media's venture with Crypto.com, institutional investments in Solana, Google Cloud's Layer 1 blockchain, controversies surrounding HyperLiquid, Aave's institutional platform Horizon, the debut of the YZY meme coin, Tether on RGB, and Stargate DAO's acquisition by Layer Zero Foundation.