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Kings of Crypto

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Kings of Crypto

By: Jeff John Roberts
Narrated by: Scott Aiello
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An expert, story-driven account of how Coinbase won the cryptocurrency game and set itself up to lead the future of banking and blockchain-based trading. This is the story of the people who made Coinbase, per PitchBook, “one of the most valuable startups in the US,” including the stoic, preppy founder and CEO Brian Armstrong and the bitcoin-obsessed former lumberjack Olaf Carlson-Wee, who turned their backs on the first generation of wild-eyed Bitcoin prophets to build something more profound and practical — a company poised to be the next generation’s Goldman Sachs or JP Morgan Chase. Founded in 2012, Coinbase today processes billions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency every week and has more customers than long-time investment giants Fidelity and Charles Schwab; what Google is to search and Uber is to ride-sharing, Coinbase is to cryptocurrency.

Ranging from Coinbase’s earliest days and the ensuing crypto-mania to the current battle between Silicon Valley and Wall Street for the center of finance, Kings of Crypto uses Coinbase to explore and explain the larger, over-arching disruption and future of finance.

Jeff John Roberts covers IP, blockchain, and cyber security for Fortune and previously reported on technology for Reuters and Gigaom. He is uniquely positioned to report the financial and legal aspects of the Coinbase story given his background as a lawyer and time as a Knight-Bagehot Fellow at Columbia Business School. In 2018, his work on blockchain for Fortune received a national honor from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers.

©2019 Jeff John Roberts (P)2020 Audible Originals, LLC. Business Economics Personal Finance Professionals & Academics Cryptocurrency Wall Street Royalty

Critic reviews

"A fun, fast-moving book that offers serious insight into the future of finance. For anyone looking to understand Bitcoin or how cryptocurrency will change Wall Street, Kings of Crypto is an essential read." (Alex Tapscott, co-author of Blockchain Revolution)

"Kings of Crypto tells the story of ragtag band of rebels who saw the future of finance before anyone else and who wrenched the revolution into their orbit. Listening to/reading this book is like sticking a stethoscoped ear to the vault containing the cryptocurrency industry's origins. Click, click, click - and a wealth of secrets spills out. Learn what made Coinbase, one of the most improbably successful Silicon Valley startups, hit it big - and what makes its founding 'Vulcan Swiss bankers' tick. As long as Satoshi Nakamoto's identity remains a secret, this is the closest you'll come to understanding the rise of crypto - and where it's all headed." (Robert Hackett, crypto reporter and senior staff writer, Fortune magazine)

"Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase overcame huge obstacles to bring on more customers than Charles Schwab had over five decades. How did brand-new entrepreneurs get 30 million everyday people to buy a new form of money? In Kings of Crypto, Jeff Roberts reveals all in this entertaining, absorbing and surprising story." (Laura Shin, Forbes reporter and host of popular crypto podcast Unchained)

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Engaging Narration • Intriguing Crypto History • Well-crafted Storytelling • Understandable Explanations • Rich Voice
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This was a genuinely intriguing listen for a number of reasons, but most of all because of Scott Aiello's narration which keeps the listener really engaged, even when the book necessarily turns toward explaining the crypto business of coding, math and the politics of nerddom. The book is well-crafted and there is a good amount of intrigue woven into this true-story education on crypto (and really, particularly on Coinbase). But over and over, it is Scott's rich voice, engaging choices and his own obvious grasp of the material that both help you understand what you're hearing and draw you in and keep you interested. A great listen for anyone interested in crypto-- its history, the basics, where's it's been and where it's potentially headed.

All Books Should Be Narrated by Scott Aiello

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Finally a translation of this complex idea into terms that earthlings like me can grasp. Anything that can strike fear into the Wall Street crime families is good for the world. Just as the mob went “legit” with fronts like waste management, the danger is that Wall Street sycophants will inevitably get their tentacles into crypto and block chain. We can only hope we can find a handful of intelligent and honest individuals in congress to oversee and protect the innocent. The sad reality is that 90% of them don’t understand Wall Street or are already in bed with them.

Welcome Earthlings

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Good overview of one of the most respected crypto exchanges, provides good insights to the crypto world, shows good comprehensive opinions for the past, the present and the future of crypto.

Excellent history!

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4 of 5 stars.

The historical account of Coinbase and its Silicon Valley culture follows the same trajectory of other start-ups who rose to prominence - amazing creative drive with a lack of oversight, respect for regulation and real world business experience. Ultimately, Coinbase prevails after going through many ups and downs.

Worth a read if one is into Crypto and wants to understand how these exchanges developed within the context of the broader Crypto movement.

The performance is solid.

A quick and slightly-interesting history

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I’ve been hearing about crypto for years with friends telling me about their bitcoin roller coaster rides. I really enjoyed this mostly Coinbase-POV intro to the world of crypto and somehow felt empathy for the struggles their team went through to build a world class business. Will be interesting to see how the story plays out as the past month would seem to indicate another crypto winter approaches…

My intro to the crypto world

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This perspective (of a startup) works well. There was enough balance to satisfy me. Many crypto concepts and the major events are introduced and told in a readily understandable way. Some detail is ignored for the flow -- but that works well for this panoramic tour, and supports the listener's overall competence and comprehension. I disagree with the few obsessive propeller-heads who sought to elevate themselves by micro-criticizing tiny marginal aspects of this -- the overall effect is high-information. The narrator was competent with a few tiny mispronunciations.

Brisk, listenable tour of crypto

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Enjoyable listen overlooking the growth of Bitcoin, Etherium, Litecoin and the whole cryptocurrency industry, simultaneously telling the story of the growth of Coinbase and it's competitors.

It name drops a few other cryptocurrencies, tokens, coins, etc. throughout the whole audio book. I was expecting to hear about Cardano when the DeFi chapter came up, but maybe when this was put together, they were not so far along.

Why you should listen to this audiobook? To hear about the obstacles which the industry as a whole has survived, and to give you confidence in the industry's future.

Dive into crypto behind the backdrop of coinbase

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I really enjoyed it. Very easy listen. Won’t blow your mind, unless you’re a complete novice on the topic

Well done

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orange coin good number go up!

FEDS ON THE BRINK OF QE INFINITY!

pretty good book.

not bad.

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Interesante conocer desde adentro la historia de crecimiento de uno de los grandes jugasores del ecosistema crypto

Buena historia de una startup crypto

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