<p>In this episode, host Friederike Ernst is joined by Michael Svoboda, CEO of Liquid AG, to discuss Liquity V2 and the launch of the BOLD stablecoin. Michael explains how Liquity maintains a governance-free, immutable architecture to provide "sovereign dollars" that are not dependent on human committees or centralized backstops. He introduces user-set interest rates, a novel DeFi primitive where borrowers determine their own rates to balance their cost of capital against the risk of being redeemed by stablecoin holders. </p><p><br /></p><p>They explore the technical mechanics of the BOLD stablecoin, its multi-collateral backing of ETH and LSTs, and why the protocol funnels 100% of fees directly to users rather than extracting rent. Michael also shares his analogy of crypto-native stablecoins as "electric engines" that offer a fundamentally different risk profile from traditional banking rails. Finally, the conversation dives into the impact of global regulations like MiCA and why the future of finance belongs to peer-to-peer credit markets.</p><p><br /></p><p>Topics</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><ul><li>00:00 Intro &amp; Context</li><li>04:15 Why Banking is Under Pressure</li><li>09:30 From V1 to Liquity V2</li><li>15:00 User-Set Rates Explained21:45 Redemptions &amp; Peg Stability</li><li>27:10 Collateral Risk: ETH &amp; LSTs</li><li>35:20 Cefi vs. Defi Risk Spectrum</li><li>42:15 Is Immutability Dogmatic?</li><li>49:00 Revenue Distribution &amp; Self-Sustainability</li><li>55:30 Non-USD Stables &amp; Global Shifts</li></ul><p><br /></p><p>Links</p><p><br /></p><ul><li>Michael on X: https://x.com/svobodamichael</li><li>Liquity: https://www.liquity.org/</li><li>Bluechip: https://bluechip.org/</li><li>Lido: https://lido.fi/stvaults?mtm_campaign=epicenter</li></ul><p>Sponsors: </p><ul><li>Lido V3 introduces stVaults: modular staking infrastructure that lets builders and institutions deploy custom staking vaults, while staying anchored to stETH as a shared liquidity layer. Get started building with Lido V3 today: https://lido.fi/stvaults?mtm_campaign=epicenter</li></ul>