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Lighter CEO on ‘democratizing finance’ with a zero-fee, ZK perp DEX

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Episode 8 of The Big Brain Podcast, hosted by The Block President Larry Cermak and MegaETH CSO Namik Muduroglu, was recorded with Vladimir Novakovski, the founder and CEO of Lighter.

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In episode 8 of The Big Brain Podcast, Lighter founder Vladimir Novakovski explains why he built a zero-fee, ZK-powered perp DEX as an Ethereum L2, how it stacks up against CEXs and rival perp chains, and what the Lighter team learned from recent market stress ahead of their token launch.

OUTLINE 00:00 – Introduction

04:50 – What Lighter is

06:15 – Why Ethereum L2 and ZK

11:03 – Zero-fee retail model

18:11 – Robinhood relationship & RH Chain

|20:30 – L1 vs L2 value capture

27:08 – TGE timing and token value

30:29 – DYDX, Hyperliquid and CEX vs DeFi |

35:52 – 10/10 crash and LLP risk

39:50 – Infra upgrades and closing

 SHOW LINKS: - Apple: https://apple.co/43F3vmq

- Spotify: https://spoti.fi/44NT1lZ

- Larry: https://x.com/lawmaster

- Namik: https://x.com/NamikMuduroglu

- The Block Podcasts: https://x.com/TheBlockPods

GUEST LINKS

Vladimir Novakovski - https://x.com/vnovakovski

Lighter - https://x.com/Lighter_xyz

This episode of the Big Brain Podcast is brought to you by our sponsor, ⁠Canton Network⁠.

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