Tales from the Crypt #51: Max Keidun & Roman Snitko
11/27/2018 · 75 min · transcript via mlx
Tags
Key topics
— HODL HODL's Non-Custodial P2P Exchange: Roman and Max built a peer-to-peer Bitcoin exchange using 2-of-2 and 2-of-3 multisig contracts where the platform never holds user funds, differentiating it from centralized exchanges like Local Bitcoins.
— Founders' Bitcoin Journey: Roman discovered Bitcoin in 2010–2011 via Hacker News and Austrian economics; Max worked as a private banker for 10 years before a client introduced him to Bitcoin in 2013, leading both to leave Mycelium and launch HODL HODL in 2016.
— Educational Focus and User Experience: The team invested heavily in tutorial videos, a testnet environment, and intuitive UI to help users understand non-custodial trading, recognizing that peer-to-peer exchanges are more complex than centralized platforms.
— Prediction Markets and Future Products: HODL HODL is launching peer-to-peer Bitcoin prediction contracts (bets on any legal event), an OTC desk for large trades, and House HODL for real estate transactions using Bitcoin escrow.
— Blocking U.S. Users: The company restricted access to American citizens and residents this week due to regulatory burden and litigation risk, despite all U.S. trades being from licensed traders—a decision supported by most users and aligned with other major exchanges.
— Decentralized Reputation System Vision: Roman dreams of a graph-based, decentralized reputation system that uses friend-of-friend connections to calculate trustworthiness without a central authority, solving problems seen in centralized review systems.
Market & price signals
— Bitcoin price has declined significantly over five days as the bear market deepens. Roman noted processing power is now 8 billion transactions (nearly matching MasterCard's 11 billion). Both founders emphasized that bear markets force sustainable business models, eliminating speculation and weak projects; they expect Bitcoin adoption to continue despite price volatility, though neither predicted specific price targets.
Actionable insights
— Build Sustainable Products: Focus on meeting real market demand rather than relying on rising Bitcoin prices; profitability and utility drive long-term survival, not hype.
— Prioritize Education for Adoption: If using non-custodial or complex products, invest time learning via tutorials and testnet versions before real transactions to avoid costly mistakes.
— Use P2P Exchanges for Privacy: For users seeking to avoid KYC/AML, HODL HODL and similar non-custodial platforms provide an alternative where neither the platform nor counterparty controls your funds.
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 Cash App. Cash App offers the Boost program with a customizable Cash Card and discounts at retailers like Whole Foods (10% off), coffee shops ($1 off), Taco Bell (10% off), and Chick-fil-A. The app includes ACH deposit and withdrawal features for fast transfers between your bank account and Cash App, letting you quickly buy Bitcoin and send it to a personal wallet like Wasabi. Cash App also supports Bitcoin buying, selling, and sending with integrated Lightning Network payments for fast, cheap transactions. For new Cash App customers, use code TFTC10 when you sign up and send at least $5 to a friend in the first two weeks to get $21 added to your balance; terms apply. Bitcoin services provided by Block, Inc.—see https://cash.app/legal/podcast for Bitcoin disclosures.