When Shift Happens Podcast

Kevin Follonier

Details

I sit down every week with the most based people in crypto. My goal is to create a safe space to have the deepest and most real conversations with the biggest builders and investors in the industry, as well as to help educate the mainstream people, politicians, celebrities and big Web2 entrepreneurs coming into Web3. Hopefully this platform does its little part in onboarding as many people as possible into the incredible world of opportunities that Web 3 offers, while staying true to crypto’s core values and ethos. Thank you for watching.

Recent Episodes

OCT 1, 2026
E188: Crypto Trading Expert: Why No Amount of Crypto Is Enough (even millions)
Jordi Alexander, founder and CEO of crypto trading firm Selini Capital, explains why retirement is a 20th century dream and why no amount of money will ever be "enough" in a world being rebuilt by AI. He also shares the skill AI can't replace, where he sees Bitcoin and Zcash heading next, and why health, not wealth, will be the biggest divide of the next 20 years. THE SHIFT NEWSLETTER 💡Go beyond the mic - subscribe to The Shift, my new weekly newsletter where I share the uncut stories, raw takes, and behind-the-scenes notes from When Shift Happens: https://www.kevinfollonier.com/crypto-web3-newsletter ___________ PARTNERS ⚖️ Variational aggregates liquidity to offer industry-leading depth on crypto, equities, commodities, and more: https://www.variational.io/ 🚀 Jupiter is the most used Decentralized Exchange in Crypto and the largest DEX by volume on Solana: https://jup.ag/ 💳 KAST lets you manage and spend stablecoins or crypto with a Visa Card or Apple Pay. Live in 100+ countries - Get $20 Signup Bonus - https://go.kast.xyz/VqVO/SHIFT - promo code: SHIFT 🔓 Trezor offers the safest cold-storage wallets for crypto and true financial independence. Buy with 10% off - promo code: WSH10 - https://affil.trezor.io/SH12h 🌱 Bitwise Asset Management manages $15B+ across 30+ crypto investment products — ETFs, index funds, alpha, staking, and more. https://bitwiseinvestments.com/ ⚖️ Ethena is a synthetic dollar protocol on Ethereum, offering a crypto-native, non-bank-dependent stablecoin called USDe. It uses a delta-neutral hedging strategy with staked ETH to maintain a $1 peg. https://ethena.fi/ ♾️ Coinsilium provides vital funding and expert advice to Web3 and AI-powered early-stage technology companies. https://www.coinsilium.com 🚀 Kalshi is a US regulated financial exchange that allows users to trade on the outcomes of real-world events : https://kalshi.com/category/crypto ___________ CONNECT WITH JORDI ALEXANDER Twitter: https://x.com/gametheorizing FOLLOW WHEN SHIFT HAPPENS Twitter (X): https://x.com/KevinWSHPod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevinfollonier_ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kevinfollonier_ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinfollonier/ Website: https://kevinfollonier.com/ DISCLAIMER The info contained herein is for informational purposes only. Nothing herein shall be construed to be financial, legal, or tax advice. The content of this video is solely the opinions of the speakers who are not a licensed financial advisor or registered investment advisor. Trading cryptocurrencies poses considerable risk of loss. The speakers do not guarantee any particular outcome. 00:00 Intro 03:23 How Do You Not Break The Streak? 05:56 Who Are You? 09:24 When Did You Know You'd Made It? 12:15 How Do You Get Into The Inner Circle? 14:23 Are Billionaires Actually Special? 18:55 Early Or Just Wrong On AGI? 24:00 Sponsor: Variational, Bitwise 24:57 How Do You Not Go Crazy? 29:10 When Did Your Intuition Cost You? 31:30 The Skill AI Can't Replace 41:25 Are Book Smarts Dead? 43:03 When To Stop Grinding And Recharge 47:17 How Do You Protect Your Peace Of Mind? 51:03 Is "No Retirement" Bad Advice For Normal People? 54:45 Sponsor: Kast 1:01:13 Are Health Shortcuts Worth It? 1:06:52 Has Your Hourly Rate Changed? 50K For A Coffee 1:09:41 Where Is The Puck Going? 1:16:07 Which Platforms Win? 1:20:18 Is Qiao Wang Serious About Zcash? 1:23:19 Where Could Zcash Be In 2 Years? 1:24:50 What's In Your Macro Portfolio? 1:25:50 Why Nobody Teaches Allocation 1:29:08 Sponsor: Jupiter, Ethena 1:29:48 How Wealth Turns Into Unhappiness 1:34:56 When Does More Money Stop Mattering? 1:36:07 Why Spend Millions To Impress Strangers? 1:40:37 At 90, What Would Make Your Money Worth It? 1:42:47 Health Inequality Vs Wealth Inequality 1:44:10 What To Do When You're Spiraling 1:49:16 Can Normal People Access Psychedelic Therapy? 1:51:15 The One Thing To Remember 1:53:01 Thank You Jordi
113 MIN
SEP 25, 2026
E187: Binance Founder: Nobody Realizes How Big The Next 10 Years Of Crypto Will Be
Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder of Binance, opens up on why he's always bullish on Twitter, how a single tweet lined up with Bitcoin's 20% pump right before Trump's crypto speech, and why he believes crypto is still nowhere near saturated with less than 1% global penetration. He also gets candid about growing up a second-generation immigrant in Canada, surviving the FTX collapse and a Binance hack, and his contrarian take on why the traditional education system is broken. THE SHIFT NEWSLETTER 💡Go beyond the mic - subscribe to The Shift, my new weekly newsletter where I share the uncut stories, raw takes, and behind-the-scenes notes from When Shift Happens: https://www.kevinfollonier.com/crypto-web3-newsletter ___________ PARTNERS ⚖️ Variational aggregates liquidity to offer industry-leading depth on stocks, commodities, and more digital assets: https://www.variational.io/ 🚀 Jupiter is a leading platform for digital asset trading and the largest of its kind on Solana: https://jup.ag/ 💳 KAST lets you manage and spend digital dollars with a Visa Card or Apple Pay. Live in 100+ countries - Get $20 Signup Bonus - https://go.kast.xyz/VqVO/SHIFT - promo code: SHIFT 🌱 Bitwise Asset Management manages $15B+ across 30+ digital asset investment products - ETFs, index funds, alpha, staking, and more. https://bitwiseinvestments.com/ ⚖️ Ethena is a synthetic dollar system built on Ethereum's network, offering a digitally-native, non-bank-dependent price-stable digital currency called USDe. It uses a delta-neutral hedging strategy with staked ETH to maintain a $1 peg. https://ethena.fi/ ♾️ Coinsilium provides vital funding and expert advice to Web3 and AI-powered early-stage technology companies. https://www.coinsilium.com 🚀 Kalshi is a US regulated exchange for trading on the outcomes of real-world events: ⁠https://kalshi.com/⁠ ___________ FOLLOW CHANGPENG ZHAO (CZ)👇 Twitter: https://x.com/cz_binance FOLLOW WHEN SHIFT HAPPENS Twitter (X): https://x.com/KevinWSHPod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevinfollonier_ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kevinfollonier_ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinfollonier/ Website: https://kevinfollonier.com/ DISCLAIMER The info contained herein is for informational purposes only. Nothing herein shall be construed to be financial, legal, or tax advice. The content of this video is solely the opinions of the speakers who are not a licensed financial advisor or registered investment advisor. Trading cryptocurrencies poses considerable risk of loss. The speakers do not guarantee any particular outcome. #CryptoNews, #JupiterDEX, #SolanaEcosystem, #DeFiInsights, #DEXAggregator, #CryptoTrading, #Web4, #BlockchainFuture, #TokenEconomics, #CryptoCommunity, #DeFiGrowth, #CryptoAdoption, #FintechRevolution, #CryptoMistakes, #FoundersStory, #CryptoBuilders, #DeFiRevenue, #CryptoVolume, #CryptoCulture, #Web3ToWeb4, #CryptoInnovation, #SolanaDEX, #CryptoProduct, #BlockchainStrategy 0:00 Introduction 2:01 Life on the Road 3:33 Who Are You? 4:07 Becoming a Top-20 Billionaire 5:14 Growing Up Poor in Canada 6:45 His Sister's Career 7:35 Avoiding "Third Gen Degenerate" 8:07 Binance's First Day 10:05 Sponsor: Variational & Bitwise 10:58 The Early Team 12:32 What Hardworking Means 13:35 Misconceptions About Binance 14:24 Why Listed Projects Disappoint 16:54 Can Retail Ever Win? 18:58 Origin of the "4" Meme 20:55 Tweeting "4" and Meaning It 21:29 The FTX Tweet, Full Story 25:13 Hardest Period of His Life 26:05 Prison, Not Knowing When 27:48 Did Anyone Disappear? 28:31 Sponsor: Kast 29:18 The Pardon Process 32:20 Pardon: Politics or Justice? 34:32 Advice for Elon 35:44 Bybit Hack: Was Ben Right? 36:42 2019 Hack and the Red Button 41:18 Hyperliquid as a Threat? 45:07 Why Hype Isn't on Binance 46:31 The 10/10 Crash Villain 50:47 Tweeting "4" on the Crash? 51:31 Sponsor: Jupiter & Ethena 52:14 His Crypto Legacy 53:56 Giggle Academy 1:00:56 Can CZ Move the Market? 1:03:30 Outro
64 MIN
SEP 10, 2026
E186: Variational CEO: This Hidden Fee Is Quietly Draining Your Crypto Account
Lucas Schuermann is the founder and CEO of Variational, a peer-to-peer derivatives protocol built on Arbitrum. Former Genesis executive, former quant, and someone who went to Columbia at 12 and started a hedge fund at 20. Today we get into why variational charges zero trading fees, how it's aggregating liquidity from traditional finance to list hundreds of assets on chain, why perps have a funding rate problem most traders don't understand until it costs them, and what happens to old-school brokers once this liquidity actually moves. ___________ THE SHIFT NEWSLETTER 💡Go beyond the mic - subscribe to The Shift, my new weekly newsletter where I share the uncut stories, raw takes, and behind-the-scenes notes from When Shift Happens: https://www.kevinfollonier.com/ ___________ PARTNERS ⚖️ Variational aggregates liquidity to offer industry-leading depth on crypto, equities, commodities, and more: https://www.variational.io/ 🚀 Jupiter is the most used Decentralized Exchange in Crypto and the largest DEX by volume on Solana: https://jup.ag/ 💳 KAST lets you manage and spend stablecoins or crypto with a Visa Card or Apple Pay. Live in 100+ countries - Get $20 Signup Bonus - https://go.kast.xyz/VqVO/SHIFT - promo code: SHIFT 🌱 Bitwise Asset Management manages $15B+ across 30+ crypto investment products — ETFs, index funds, alpha, staking, and more. https://bitwiseinvestments.com/ ⚖️ Ethena is a synthetic dollar protocol on Ethereum, offering a crypto-native, non-bank-dependent stablecoin called USDe. It uses a delta-neutral hedging strategy with staked ETH to maintain a $1 peg. https://ethena.fi/ ♾️ Coinsilium provides vital funding and expert advice to Web3 and AI-powered early-stage technology companies. https://www.coinsilium.com 🚀 Kalshi is a US regulated financial exchange that allows users to trade on the outcomes of real-world events : https://kalshi.com/category/crypto ___________ FOLLOW VARIATIONAL 👇 • Twitter: https://x.com/variational_io • Linkedin: https://ky.linkedin.com/company/variational FOLLOW WHEN SHIFT HAPPENS Twitter (X): https://x.com/KevinWSHPod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevinfollonier_ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kevinfollonier_ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinfollonier/ Website: https://kevinfollonier.com/ DISCLAIMER The info contained herein is for informational purposes only. Nothing herein shall be construed to be financial, legal, or tax advice. The content of this video is solely the opinions of the speakers who are not a licensed financial advisor or registered investment advisor. Trading cryptocurrencies poses considerable risk of loss. The speakers do not guarantee any particular outcome. Timestamps 0:00 Intro 2:20 Merch, Travel & Being Back in Singapore 5:13 Who Is Lucas Sherman? 5:24 How Lucas Thinks About Building Trust 6:03 Starting College at Age 12 8:26 How Do You Actually Skip That Many Grades? 9:45 Making Friends Six Years Younger Than Everyone Else 10:40 Are You Still a "Weirdo" at 30? 11:40 Starting a Hedge Fund at 20 - "Hubris of the Young" 14:09 From Paper-Reading Group to a Real Fund 16:50 Acquired by Digital Currency Group at 21 18:59 Why Sell the Fund to DCG? 19:54 Sponsors: Variational & Bitwise 20:47 Did You Regret Selling That Early? 21:51 The Money DCG Made Off Their Work 22:38 Starting a Market Making Firm 24:46 Explain Variational Protocol to Your Mom 26:49 Biggest Mistake Building Variational 28:13 The "Holy Sh*t, We Built Something Massive" Moment 29:54 Reason #1: Zero Fees 32:59 How Do You Trust the Price With Only One Market Maker? 34:33 Are Trading Fees a Scam? 35:29 How Much Do Fees Actually Cost Traders? 36:33 Reason #2: Asset Selection & What "Liquidity" Really Means 40:20 Why Hasn't Crypto Solved This Already? 42:39 Where On-Chain Order Books Break at Scale 46:04 Sponsor: KAST 1:07:30 Sponsor: Jupiterexchange & Ethena
88 MIN
SEP 2, 2026
E185: Ethena CEO: This $7B Crypto Company Just Launched An App That Pays You To Spend Money
Guy Young built Ethena from zero to billions in under two years. In this conversation, we talk about the one crypto product he believes can reach 100 million users: a yield-bearing dollar in a mobile app. The goal is for it to feel like a normal fintech app where users don't even know crypto is powering it underneath. Just save, spend, and send to anyone in the world. THE SHIFT NEWSLETTER 💡Go beyond the mic - subscribe to The Shift, my new weekly newsletter where I share the uncut stories, raw takes, and behind-the-scenes notes from When Shift Happens: https://www.kevinfollonier.com/crypto-web3-newsletter ___________ PARTNERS ⚖️ Variational aggregates liquidity to offer industry-leading depth on crypto, equities, commodities, and more: https://www.variational.io/ 🚀 Jupiter is the most used Decentralized Exchange in Crypto and the largest DEX by volume on Solana: https://jup.ag/ 💳 KAST lets you manage and spend stablecoins or crypto with a Visa Card or Apple Pay. Live in 100+ countries - Get $20 Signup Bonus - https://go.kast.xyz/VqVO/SHIFT - promo code: SHIFT 🌱 Bitwise Asset Management manages $15B+ across 30+ crypto investment products — ETFs, index funds, alpha, staking, and more. https://bitwiseinvestments.com/ ⚖️ Ethena is a synthetic dollar protocol on Ethereum, offering a crypto-native, non-bank-dependent stablecoin called USDe. It uses a delta-neutral hedging strategy with staked ETH to maintain a $1 peg. https://ethena.fi/ ♾️ Coinsilium provides vital funding and expert advice to Web3 and AI-powered early-stage technology companies. https://www.coinsilium.com 🚀 Kalshi is a US regulated financial exchange that allows users to trade on the outcomes of real-world events : https://kalshi.com/category/crypto ___________ Follow Guy Young • Twitter: https://x.com/gdog97_ FOLLOW WHEN SHIFT HAPPENS Twitter (X): https://x.com/KevinWSHPod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevinfollonier_ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kevinfollonier_ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinfollonier/ Website: https://kevinfollonier.com/ DISCLAIMER The info contained herein is for informational purposes only. Nothing herein shall be construed to be financial, legal, or tax advice. The content of this video is solely the opinions of the speakers who are not a licensed financial advisor or registered investment advisor. Trading cryptocurrencies poses considerable risk of loss. The speakers do not guarantee any particular outcome. 0:00 Introduction 2:37 Which Of Guy’s Plans Didn’t Work Out 5:37 Where Are The Users People Are Trying To Obtain 7:10 What Excited Guy About Crypto 9:20 Differences Between PayPal, Revolut, & Neo Banks 12:43 Partnerships: @Variational @BitwiseInvest 13:36 Revolut vs Stable Coin Neo Banks 15:58 Is Swapping To Neo Banks A 10x Improvement 18:00 Ethena Pay Explained Simply 21:21 Why Another Crypto Neo Bank 23:53 Will A Fight For The Pie Happen With Crypto Banks 25:55 How Ethena Gets Users When It Can Help Everyone 32:47 What Makes Ethena Different 36:51 Ethena’s Cashback System Revealed 38:32 Guy’s Thoughts On How Ethena Reduces Fees 39:39 How Ethena Gets The Best Yield 45:16 Guy’s Opinion On Dealing With FUD 48:35 Why Guy Doesn’t Communicate A Lot 49:29 Partnership: @KASTxyz 50:17 What KPI Is Ethena Looking To Hit In 2026 51:55 The Holy Grail For A Stable Coin Neo Bank 52:31 Partnerships: @JupiterExchange @Ethena 53:14 If Everyone’s Doing The Same Thing, Who Wins 55:23 The Next Big Thing For Ethena After Ethena Pay 56:36 Is Ethena Pay Like USDE 58:04 Closing Thoughts
58 MIN
AUG 27, 2026
E184: Trezor CTO: How Quantum Computers Could Empty Every Bitcoin Wallet
Trezor's CTO, Tomáš Sušánka, breaks down how AI is changing the scam landscape and why even security experts are getting fooled. From AI deepfake Microsoft Teams calls to voice cloning and phishing sites that nearly caught the CTO himself, this conversation covers the modern security playbook everyone needs for 2026. THE SHIFT NEWSLETTER 💡Go beyond the mic - subscribe to The Shift, my new weekly newsletter where I share the uncut stories, raw takes, and behind-the-scenes notes from When Shift Happens: https://www.kevinfollonier.com/crypto-web3-newsletter ___________ PARTNERS 🚀 Jupiter is the most used Decentralized Exchange in Crypto and the largest DEX by volume on Solana: https://jup.ag/ 💳 KAST lets you manage and spend stablecoins or crypto with a Visa Card or Apple Pay. Live in 100+ countries - Get $20 Signup Bonus - https://go.kast.xyz/VqVO/SHIFT - promo code: SHIFT 🔓 Trezor offers the safest cold-storage wallets for crypto and true financial independence. Buy with 10% off - promo code: WSH10 - https://affil.trezor.io/SH12h 🌱 Bitwise Asset Management manages $15B+ across 30+ crypto investment products — ETFs, index funds, alpha, staking, and more. https://bitwiseinvestments.com/ ⚖️ Ethena is a synthetic dollar protocol on Ethereum, offering a crypto-native, non-bank-dependent stablecoin called USDe. It uses a delta-neutral hedging strategy with staked ETH to maintain a $1 peg. https://ethena.fi/ ♾️ Coinsilium provides vital funding and expert advice to Web3 and AI-powered early-stage technology companies. https://www.coinsilium.com ___________ Follow Tomáš Sušánka • Twitter: https://x.com/tsusanka FOLLOW WHEN SHIFT HAPPENS Twitter (X): https://x.com/KevinWSHPod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevinfollonier_ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kevinfollonier_ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinfollonier/ Website: https://kevinfollonier.com/ DISCLAIMER The info contained herein is for informational purposes only. Nothing herein shall be construed to be financial, legal, or tax advice. The content of this video is solely the opinions of the speakers who are not a licensed financial advisor or registered investment advisor. Trading cryptocurrencies poses considerable risk of loss. The speakers do not guarantee any particular outcome. 0:00 Introduction 2:07 Does Tomas Like To Talk 4:15 What Does Tomas Do & Why 5:15 How Much Does Bitcoin Matter To Tomas 6:28 Why Should People Still Care About Bitcoin 8:25 Who Is Tomas Sushanka 10:10 Why Humans Are So Bad With Security 12:58 Tomas’s Thoughts On People Downplaying Risk 14:27 How Should One Think About Risk 15:25 Does Intelligence Play A Role In Risk 16:54 Why Do Smart People Fall For Scams 23:39 How Do We Fix This Scam Problem 25:12 Partnerships: @Variational @BitwiseInvest 26:05 Which Security Mistake Would Tomas Remove 28:57 How Tomas Protects His Assets 29:49 What’s The Craziest Hack Tomas Has Seen 31:24 A Security Habit That Makes Tomas Look Crazy 32:27 Why Someone Should Care About Self-Custody 36:05 When Should People Look Into A Hardware Wallet 37:48 A Strategy For Hardware Risk Management 44:16 How Does One Manage The Inheritance Problem 46:29 Should People Keep Assets On An Exchange 47:32 Partnership: @KASTxyz 48:20 What Security Setup Should Kevin’s Grandma Use 50:08 Things To Can Do To Prevent Hacks & Scams 1:01:57 Should People Upgrade Their Trezor Wallets 1:05:28 How Self-Custody Will Evolve & Not Be Archaic 1:08:07 Partnerships: @JupiterExchange @Ethena 1:08:50 The Biggest Problem With Self-Custody 1:09:52 Is Quantum Computing A Worry For Crypto 1:14:48 Who’s Taking Quantum Computing Seriously 1:20:41 Who’s Securing Bitcoin Against Quantum Risk 1:23:58 A Crypto Belief That Tomas Disagrees With 1:26:12 Is There A Future For Digital Identity 1:27:56 Could Self-Custody Become Too Complicated 1:28:42 Dangerous Advice Tomas Had Heard Before 1:29:43 Does AI Make You Safer Or Vulnerable 1:31:25 Closing Thoughts
92 MIN