The US Government Vs Bitcoin w/ Zack Shapiro
5/9/2025 · 71 min · transcript via mlx
Tags
Key topics
— The Samurai Wallet prosecution represents a fundamental threat to non-custodial Bitcoin software; prosecutors are charging developers with failing to register as money transmitters despite FinCEN explicitly telling them in August 2023 that Samurai was not money transmission.
— The Brady violation: prosecutors withheld FinCEN's guidance for a full year, violating the judge's two-week disclosure rule, yet continued prosecution knowing the legal theory was unsupported.
— Todd Blanche's April 2025 memo from the Deputy Attorney General explicitly prohibits "regulation by prosecution" on non-custodial mixing tools, yet SDNY prosecutors have not dropped the case.
— If precedent stands, running a Bitcoin node, mining, or writing open-source wallet code could all become criminal offenses under Money Transmitter law.
— The Trump administration's stated pro-crypto stance and the Blanche memo create a narrow political window for case dismissal before trial momentum makes reversal harder.
— Stablecoin legislation (Genius Act) is advancing as the administration's first crypto priority; it includes provisions targeting Tether while Circle is positioned as the regulated domestic alternative.
Market & price signals
— None discussed.
Actionable insights
— Contact your elected representatives and social media to amplify pressure on the Trump administration and DOJ to drop the Samurai Wallet case; Shapiro believes this legal window is closing and political noise matters.
— Donate to the Peer-to-Peer Rights Fund to support defense counsel; the case goes to a critical Brady hearing on May 9th with the judge's response due by noon Friday.
— Monitor the stablecoin bill vote and potential amendments that could introduce KYC surveillance on peer-to-peer stablecoin transfers, turning private stablecoins into de facto CBDCs.
Episode sponsorships
Paid placements mentioned in this episode. BTC Pods is not sponsored by or affiliated with these advertisers. Links are included so you can find offers mentioned on the show.
— This episode is brought to you by River, the best place for Bitcoiners and businesses to buy Bitcoin. With River, you can set up zero fee recurring buys, making stacking sats effortless. And while you're waiting for the perfect buying opportunity, River lets you earn daily interest on your cash balance paid in Bitcoin, which outperforms most high yield savings accounts. River also holds all Bitcoin in multi-sig cold storage with monthly proof of reserves. To open an account go to river.com/wbd and earn up to 100 in bitcoin when you buy.
— This episode is brought to you by River, the best place for Bitcoiners and businesses to buy Bitcoin. With River, you can set up zero fee recurring buys, making stacking sats effortless. And while you're waiting for the perfect buying opportunity, River lets you earn daily interest on your cash balance paid in Bitcoin, which outperforms most high yield savings accounts. River also holds all Bitcoin in multi-sig cold storage with monthly proof of reserves. To open an account go to river.com/wbd and earn up to 100 in bitcoin when you buy.
— Casa is the leading Bitcoin self-custody solution, offering multi-signature security and key management services designed for simplicity and protection against single points of failure. Learn more at casa.io.
— Ledger provides hardware wallets that give you complete control over your private keys, ensuring that your Bitcoin stays safe from hacks, phishing, and malware. To find out more, visit ledger.com.
— IREN, the largest NASDAQ-listed Bitcoin miner, powers the Bitcoin network using 100% renewable energy and provides cutting-edge AI compute resources. Visit iren.com to learn more.