Tag Archives: he

The Saylor Paradox: When the High Priest of HODL Becomes a Central Banker

The Saylor Paradox: When the High Priest of HODL Becomes a Central Banker
For four years, the Church of Bitcoin rested on a single, unshakeable dogma: Michael Saylor will never sell.
It was a beautiful, comforting myth. In a world of volatile charts and paper-handed paper billionaires, Saylor was the ultimate thermodynamic anchor. His company, Strategy (MicroStrategy), was a black hole where capital went in, Bitcoin went out, and nothing ever returned to the event horizon. He promised to buy the top forever. He ridiculed the very concept of an exit strategy.

In May 2026, the dogma cracked. Faced with a staggering $12.5 billion paper loss in Q1 due to brutal market volatility, Saylor did the unthinkable. He used the “S-word” on an earnings call.

He did not whisper it. He weaponized it.

Saylor announced that Strategy would “probably sell some Bitcoin to fund a dividend just to inoculate the market.” The narrative shifted overnight. The high priest of absolute scarcity did not capitulate; he transformed. Michael Saylor has officially graduated from a Bitcoin maximalist into something far more complex, dangerous, and brilliant: Bitcoin’s first corporate Central Banker.

The Illusion of the Perpetual Flywheel

To understand why Saylor is preparing to sell, we must look past the laser-eyed memes and look directly at his balance sheet. Strategy’s financial engineering is a masterpiece of corporate alchemy. By issuing cheap convertible debt and massive tranches of preferred stock, Saylor built a leveraged flywheel. He borrows money from Wall Street at near-zero percent interest to buy an asset that appreciates at double digits, expanding his “Bitcoin per Share” metric to keep investors drunk on premium valuations.

Every flywheel faces friction.

When the market compresses and Strategy trades at an mNAV (Market Net Asset Value) discount, as it recently did at 0.87x basic mNAV, the traditional machine grinds to a halt. Issuing more stock to buy Bitcoin at a discount becomes dilutive; it harms the very equity holders he relies on. Meanwhile, credit rating agencies look at an asset class that is dogmatically locked away forever and refuse to count it as true, liquid collateral. If you can never sell an asset to cover a liability, Wall Street treats it as a liability in disguise.

Saylor’s pivot to selling Bitcoin is not an act of desperation. It is a calculated corporate necessity to save the premium.

“Inoculating” the Market: The Ultimate Psychological Trick

Look closely at his choice of words: “Just to send the message that we did it. ‘Look, the company’s fine, the market’s fine, the world didn’t come to an end.’”

This is pure central banking rhetoric. It is Alan Greenspan-level psychological warfare. By voluntarily selling a micro-fraction of his 843,738 BTC treasury to fund a shareholder dividend, Saylor achieves two things:

  1. He pacifies the rating agencies. He proves that his Bitcoin is a living, liquid asset capable of servicing corporate obligations in the real world.
  2. He disarms the bears. If Strategy sells $50 million of Bitcoin and the market does not collapse, the “Saylor Liquidation” ghost that has haunted crypto bears for years is permanently exorcised.

The Reality Check: For every 1 Bitcoin Strategy sells to fund operations or smooth out a dividend, their multi-variate capital allocation model is structured to buy back 5 to 10 times more using institutional credit. It is a net-positive accumulation disguised as a distribution.

The Thought-Provoking Twist: Have We Institutionalized the Rebel?

Herein lies the deep, uncomfortable paradox that the crypto community has yet to reckon with.

Bitcoin was created to destroy central banking, aiming to strip a small group of suit-wearing executives of the power to manipulate supply, dictate liquidity, and “smooth out” market cycles through programmatic interventions. It was supposed to be raw, unadulterated mathematical truth.

By cheering Strategy’s ascent to an empire of over 843,000 BTC, the market has willingly erected a new corporate deity. When Strategy schedules preferred distributions, adjusts its treasury plays, or pauses accumulation because the 1.22x mNAV threshold has been breached, they are not acting like a software company. They are acting like the Federal Reserve, adjusting the “internal interest rates” of the digital asset ecosystem.

The June 2026 programmatic Bitcoin sale made the blockchain light up. Crypto Twitter panicked, and the stock dipped in pre-market trading. It is not a sign of failure.

It is the ultimate proof that Bitcoin has been fully housebroken by Wall Street. The rebel asset has become corporate treasury, and its greatest champion is now its most sophisticated market maker. Saylor isn’t paper-handing; he’s just realized that to control the game forever, you occasionally have to let the house win a hand.

 

Source: https://www.securities.io/michael-saylor-bitcoin-central-banker/

 

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

www.anndy.com
j j j

CZ Claims He Would Reinvest Returned Fine Funds Into the US — but Is a Refund Possible?

CZ Claims He Would Reinvest Returned Fine Funds Into the US — but Is a Refund Possible?

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has raised the prospect of the U.S. granting a refund to part of the record-setting $4.3 billion fine the exchange paid authorities last year, telling followers he would reinvest any returned funds back into the country.

The comments came over a year after the disgraced founder was released from custody following a four-month sentence for anti-money-laundering violations.

Although some of CZ’s followers have responded with gratitude, others believe the former founder is simply playing a “long game of diplomacy.”

 

CZ To Refund the U.S.?

Responding on X to a question from blockchain author and commentator Anndy Lian, who asked whether the U.S. might “refund your $4.3 billion since you are pardoned,” Zhao called the issue a “delicate question.”

Zhao wrote: “I appreciate the pardon already. There is a balance in asking for more vs ‘what is fair’ vs appreciate what you got already.”

He added that if any refund were granted, he intended to invest it on U.S. soil “to show our appreciation,” while clarifying that he has not yet made a formal request.

Lian responded that CZ’s goal to invest back into America was “a good take.”

Under his plea deal, Zhao personally paid a $50 million criminal fine, while Binance agreed to forfeit $4.3 billion to settle federal investigations involving the Department of Justice, FinCEN, and the CFTC.

However, although CZ was pardoned, the presidential waiver does not typically unwind monetary penalties already paid.

Penalties, particularly those tied to criminal settlement, are generally final and non-refundable, largely because they have already been transferred to the U.S. Treasury or another government entity.

A pardon also typically does not interfere with corporate settlements already completed, which, in Binance’s case, covered years of alleged compliance failures.

“If money is paid to the government, you can’t get the money back except through a congressional appropriation,” a former clemency lawyer with the Department of Justice told Al Jazeera.

Community Response

The community’s response to CZ’s claims of optimistic “appreciation” has been mixed, with some expressing that CZ’s comments sounded like a PR move.

One X user said: “Sounds like he’s playing long game diplomacy.”

Another wrote: “Convenient timing for a pr move when everything’s bleeding out. Curious what ‘reinvest’ actually means tho.”

“Cute gesture, but you can’t buy your way out of surveillance when everything’s transparent anyway,” said another.

Another X user said? “Who else thinks the $4.3B was the cost of the Pardon? 😅”

However, some of CZ’s followers did continue to express gratitude.

“That’s very thoughtful of you. Yeah, investing it in America if they refund the money is not a bad idea at all,” one said. 

CZ Pushes Back on X Endorsements

Last week, CZ cautioned his millions of followers against interpreting his social-media activity as a signal of credibility.

The comments followed reports that some users were buying and selling X accounts, in some cases for thousands of dollars.

“Don’t buy handles that I follow. I will unfollow any sold accounts,” Zhao wrote on X, adding that he follows accounts “randomly.”

He stressed: “My follow means nothing, not endorsement.”

 

The warning came after an X user posted that, at the height of the 2022 bull market, accounts followed by Zhao could sell for between $3,000 and $20,000 in USDT.

Some buyers reportedly acquired “CZ-followed” profiles only to be unfollowed shortly afterward when Zhao discovered the growing market.

While some participants saw the trade as a status-seeking novelty, others used it for more malicious purposes.

According to the user’s account, criminal groups had begun purchasing these “CZ-follow” profiles to promote crypto scams and rug-pull operations by leveraging Zhao’s reputation for legitimacy.

“That’s the really detestable part,” the post said, adding that Zhao’s recent wave of unfollowing was “the right move.”

 

Source: https://www.ccn.com/news/crypto/cz-reinvest-binance-us-fine-funds-if-refunded/

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

www.anndy.com
j j j

Who is Anndy Lian? How Does he Turn You Into an NFT Hero?

Who is Anndy Lian? How Does he Turn You Into an NFT Hero?

Anndy Lian is a serial entrepreneur based in Singapore. He is always trying to work hard in the crypto and blockchain industry. When I first met him, he was actively investing in Layer 1 blockchains. Then he was advising a sovereign wealth fund and was the chairperson at an Esports association. He is always busy.

 

His journey started in 2017 during the ICO times. He started one of the earliest supply chain blockchain companies back then and moved on to advising governments as he felt that there were too many dodgy businesses going on in the crypto scene.

 

He is a fund manager and partner at a local capital market services licensed firm. He is a philanthropist, giving back to society by donating and spending time serving his Singapore community. His servant leadership and attitude is well-liked by his peers.

 

His latest book, “NFT: From Zero to Hero”, is aligned with what he does. He likes the technology behind NFT and never likes how projects are managing NFTs as if it is like a valueless Ponzi scheme. That is also why Anndy chooses to launch the book after the hype and not during the hype. He believes that this is the right time to launch a book to tell everyone about the good and bad of NFT and how the market is changing and building stronger than ever at the same time.

 

During this interview, he emphasized a few points. Firstly, he wants all to know that mastering the logic behind NFT is not difficult. You need only the correct mindset and set up clear purposes when creating the NFTs. There is also a lot of information online for you to read about, and there is no reason why you cannot understand it.

 

Secondly, he said that there are many good tools online to help you decide what you can consider buying. He has spent time using some of the tools and listed a handful in his book that he thinks are useful. “Instead of guessing what NFT to buy, use the statistics to aid your decision,” Anndy said.

 

Anndy also went on to share that data could be contradicting. For example, 10,000 NFTs were sold, but when you look at the on-chain wallet addresses, only 10 of them exist. These are the small details you need to catch when making a decision.

 

Thirdly, he wants people who read his book and look at the trends ahead. The general public knowledge is very superficial. Many people think that NFT is a quick money scheme and we are purely selling “air”. “The fact that NFT is not just about a jpeg profile picture is not known to many. This is disturbing.”

 

According to Anndy, we can look at creating medical platforms using NFTs and empowering patients with the ability to control their medical records. We can look at digitizing land title deeds using NFT too. “The NFT usage scenarios are limitless.”

 

I also took the chance to ask Anndy what we should invest in next. He said to follow the simple rules- Consider investing in projects with good utility, strong community, and always building. “If they do not have the above, there is no need to consider who is on their cap table and how strong their team is. Assuming they have a working tech solution.”

 

Lian added that some people said that investing in Layer 1 blockchain is a sure win is totally wrong. He said starting layer 1 is not difficult; sustaining it with good usage is the challenging part. You need a lot more money to make it work compared to layer 2.

 

He said that, similarly, some people hate meme coins and said they have no value. “I don’t see eye to eye on this. The value of a meme coin is in its community and the core team. If the community is strong, anything can happen.” He added that bad management is one of the core reasons why meme coins fail. “The tell-tale signs are obvious.”

 

Just like the same old Anndy we see on Twitter. He ended by saying, “not financial advice”.

 

Anndy Lian’s new book has sold more than 8,000 copies during its launch at Bybit NFT marketplace. He has subsequently listed them on leading platforms like Amazon and Google books. At the point of this interview, he told me that he had appointed a Singapore distributor who would put his books in major bookstores in the South East Asia region.

 

I also read that he was awarded an Honorary Doctoral Degree by the Academic Council of Ulaanbaatar Erdem University in recognition of his contribution to the development of productivity science in Mongolia. He is also completing his PhD soon.

 

Congratulations Anndy.

 

The Future of NFTs

 

A number of countries are now actively working on regulatory frameworks for NFT assets, strengthening anti-fraud and anti-manipulation audits of projects, determining the business core of each platform, and solving financial security issues such as illegal fundraising and false fraud.

 

Nowadays, NFT financial tools are becoming more and more abundant, and the scale of financial derivatives is steadily increasing. At the same time, major public chains are actively upgrading, expanding, and building their own ecological frameworks to provide underlying support for the production, confirmation, pricing, circulation, and traceability of NFT assets. The NFT industry is gradually exploring a development path suitable for blockchain assets.

 

Due to the short development history of NFTs, we are still in the industry’s infancy, but we can still see its rapid development and gradual maturity. It is believed that under the transformation of the market, the improvement of supervision, and the gradual improvement of the ecosystem, the future of NFTs will never be just about hype but will become an indispensable part of future technological life.

 

The NFT space is fast-changing. While writing this, new NFT projects are popping up every day. From the Busan Metropolitan Government in Korea announcing an NFT conference to the International Cricket Council launching cricket NFTs to CoinRunners crowdfunding a movie by selling NFTs.

 

The few consistent NFT trends over the past year have been their steady growth, the rising interest in them, and their ever-expanding applications.

 

The future these NFT trends depict is an interesting one. While many people are concerned about the implications of the metaverse and the rise of AI, it’s a future full of possibilities.

 

It’s a future that bridges the gap between consumers and creators gives value and security to digital assets, and one which, for better or for worse, will shake up the world.

 

The future is bright, but the road is tortuous. The NFT market will eventually mature and deliver on its promise.

 

Your new asset is in the digital world.

 

Source: https://hackernoon.com/who-is-anndy-lian-how-does-he-turn-you-into-an-nft-hero?source=rss

 

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

www.anndy.com
j j j