In this episode of Talking Tokenization, Jacquelyn Melinek interviews Vivek Raman, CEO of Etherealize and former Wall Street high yield credit trader. Vivek shares his journey from top-tier banks to pioneering Ethereum-based tokenization solutions. He explains why tokenizing existing financial assets on public blockchains is crucial for the future of finance and how Etherealize is tackling the challenges of institutional-grade privacy, compliance, and scalability. The episode covers the shift in institutional sentiment towards blockchains, the importance of public and layer-2 Ethereum networks, and the massive opportunity tokenizing the global capital markets presents. Vivek also highlights why privacy solutions onchain are mission-critical and shares his outlook on regulatory tailwinds and the urgent need for responsible innovation today.Sponsored by Securitize, the proven leader in tokenized funds, equities, and private markets. Discover more at securitize.io.
Sponsored by Fireblocks, the trusted stablecoin infrastructure for global enterprises. Learn more at fireblocks.com.
⏱️ Timestamps
(00:00) - Intro
(01:08) - Why Vivek left banking? The lack of tech upgrades on Wall Street
(03:22) - Discovering Ethereum in 2020 and seeing product-market fit
(05:07) - Defining tokenization in simple terms
(07:11) - Why Ethereum is the best back-end for financial assets
(09:27) - Stablecoins as the first step in tokenization
(12:03) - Regulatory clarity, bipartisan support & the Clarity Act
(14:46) - Etherealize raises $40M to build tokenization infrastructure
(18:25) - Privacy as table stakes for institutional adoption
(20:11) - Future tokenized assets: treasuries, mortgages, car loans
(23:01) - Global opportunity: emerging markets & democratized access
(27:04) - The urgency of building responsibly before momentum fades
(31:00) - Tokenization makes assets programmable and globally accessible
(35:09) - Investing in private companies like OpenAI & regulatory issues
(38:06) - Scaling Ethereum for institutions & risks of fragmentation
(40:07) - Final thoughts
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Note: This podcast is for informational purposes only. Guests may have financial interests in discussed entities or assets. Not investment advice.