Arthur Hayes and Tom Lee's latest interview: The future of DAT, stablecoins, and prediction markets

In-depth discussions on the development trends of digital asset vaults, stablecoin chains, and perpetual futures exchanges were conducted by heavyweight figures in the crypto industry, Arthur Hayes and Tom Lee. This article is derived from a YouTube video released by Unchained, organized, compiled, and written by BlockBeats. (Background: The ban on Arthur Hayes trading HYPE! Community proposal: He should not be seen buying a Ferrari) (Context: Tom Lee's speech at TOKEN2049: The world is undergoing its first major reform since the gold standard, and Ethereum will be the biggest beneficiary) Host: Haseeb Qureshi, Managing Partner at Dragonfly Tom Schmidt, General Partner at Dragonfly Tarun Chitra, Managing Partner at Robot Ventures Guests: Arthur Hayes, CIO of Maelstrom Tom Lee, CIO of Fundstrat Capital and Chairman of Bitmine Editor's note: This interview brings together heavyweight figures in the crypto industry—Arthur Hayes and Tom Lee—to engage in in-depth discussions on cutting-edge topics such as perpetual futures, stablecoins, digital asset vaults (DAT), prediction markets, and privacy coins. The guests not only shared their unique insights on market trends, product strategies, and competitive landscape but also analyzed the development logic of crypto assets from an institutional perspective: how DAT can become the "CEO of on-chain Wall Street," whether stablecoin-specific chains can create real value flows, the competition and innovation of Perp DEX, and the potential of prediction markets and privacy coins in information, speculation, and social value. The article presents both industry operational experiences and reflects the latest trends in the financialization, compliance, and product innovation of the crypto ecosystem, serving as an important reference for understanding the current development context and future trends of the crypto market. Below is the complete content of the conversation: Haseeb: Hello everyone, I am the Chief Hype Officer at Dragonfly. We are early investors in crypto, but I must state that everything we say here is not investment advice, legal advice, or even life advice (laughs). We are back at the Token 2049 venue. We just reviewed last year's scenes backstage. If you rewind time to before "Trump became the 'dear leader'", Token 2049 was all about meme coins; if you remember the Breakpoint event next door, Iggy Azalea made big news at that time. Arthur, how is the atmosphere at this year's Token 2049? Arthur: Traffic jam. Haseeb: Indeed (laughs). Tom Schmidt: I feel like it’s almost a "comfortable boredom." Compared to last year's meme coin frenzy, this year everyone is talking about stablecoins and DAT (Digital Asset Treasuries). Tom, no offense, but the atmosphere is completely different from last year's Iggy Azalea strip club party. Haseeb: Last year there were fewer suits and more strip shows; what about this year, Tom? How do you feel about a more institutional Token 2049? Tom Lee: This year the energy is high, the number of attendees is very large, and many key figures have come. We held a lot of meetings, very efficient. Haseeb: More efficient than last year's strip show party? Tom Lee: I didn’t attend (laughs). Discussion on DAT trends Haseeb: Understandable. Okay, let's talk about DAT. For the audience who are not familiar, DAT stands for "Digital Asset Treasuries," equivalent to "macro-strategizing everything." Tom on stage today is the chairman of Bitmine. Bitmine is currently the largest Ethereum treasury, with a very rapid increase, already holding about 2.65 million ETH, accounting for over 2% of the total Ethereum supply. Notably, we see that the trading volume of these DATs is highly concentrated. In the past, there were many different DAT participants, but now 90% of the daily trading volume of DAT is between MicroStrategy and Bitmine, while the other trading volumes are almost small fragments. I have to ask, Tom, many people think you are the "savior of Ethereum." What do you think? Tom Lee: That’s a big... Haseeb: Job, yes, that’s right. Tom Lee: I think Ethereum itself is in a good state. The Ethereum Foundation has focused on the right direction over the past year. Plus, the rise of stablecoins has truly ignited the demand for blockchain. And Bitmine just happened to hit this timing. Haseeb: That's true. At that time, the foundation was still adjusting internally, and the narrative was being reshaped. But now it feels like you've basically become Ethereum's "Chief Marketing Officer." Tom Lee: Haha, then I need to add that title to my business card. Haseeb: You definitely should. Arthur, what do you think about the DAT craze? What impact does it have on Ethereum and the reshaping of the narrative? Arthur: I think everyone loves to hear Tom Lee speak on CNBC. If he wants to beat the drums and promote, then go for it, brother. I love it; we need more Toms like Tom Lee. Every chain should have its own Tom Lee. Haseeb: Yeah, every chain, right? Then let me ask you a question, Tom, what do you think you did right that others who want to be the "altcoin version of Tom Lee" didn’t do? Tom Lee: I think the first thing Bitmine did right was communication. We have always been very clear in our messaging: ETH is in a super cycle. We continuously emphasize this through our official website, speeches, and the chairman’s video addresses. Secondly, Bitmine has a strong connection to the institutional world. For example, Cathie Wood publicly held a Heavy Position in Bitmine early on, and now it has become one of the top ten holdings in the ARK fund, which has attracted more institutional funds in. This process has created a "flywheel effect," so today we are the 26th largest stock by trading volume in the U.S. And as you mentioned, we are indeed creating liquidity for DAT together with MicroStrategy. Haseeb: What’s next? I see you are not limited to Ethereum. Recently, there was news that your scale has surpassed Worldcoin's DAT, as if expanding outward. Can you talk about this strategy? Tom Lee: Bitmine wants to continue helping Ethereum grow over the next 15 years. Specifically, this includes identifying more key projects that will consume ETH and burn gas; it will also help incubate new payment rails on Ethereum. Of course, we are also closely cooperating with the Ethereum Foundation to identify and prioritize upgrade directions. This also includes investing in some truly outstanding projects. For example, the Orb 8 code—it's related to Worldcoin, as a16z mentioned, in the 11 areas AI genuinely cares about, there’s a...