Crypto's Killer App?
Sean Neville (cofounder of Circle and co-creator of USDC) and Zach Abrams (founder of Bridge, now part of Stripe) unpack the real story behind stablecoins and the future of internet-native money. They share lessons on finding product-market fit, surviving early chaos, and building financial infrastructure at planetary scale.
a16z crypto show · Sean Neville, Zach Abrams, Robert Hackett
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (mgln.ai) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
with @zcabrams @psneville @rhackett
In this episode, Robert Hackett sits down with Sean Neville, cofounder of Circle and co-creator of the USDC stablecoin, and Zach Abrams, founder of Bridge (now part of Stripe), for a deep dive into the real story behind stablecoins, finding product-market fit, and the future of payments infrastructure.
They explore the earliest days of USDC — when stablecoins were far from obvious and regulatory frameworks didn’t exist. Sean shares how his conviction in “money running at internet speed” helped shape a multibillion-dollar asset. Zach recounts Bridge’s pivot from NFTs to stablecoin infrastructure — and how his business has changed since joining Stripe.
Together, they break down:
- Why stablecoins are having their moment now
- What counts as product-market fit (and why founders rarely “feel” it)
- The challenges of building crypto and AI products within heavily regulated environments
- Why new base-layer chains like Arc, Tempo, and others may be needed
- How decentralization, liquidity moats, and interoperability will define the next decade of blockchain adoption
- What the future of programmable money and AI-driven financial workflows looks like
Whether you’re a founder, a crypto-curious builder, or someone trying to understand where global payments are headed, this conversation — originally recorded live at our recent a16z crypto Founders Summit — offers insights from two operators at the center of an industry-defining transformation.
Guests:
• Sean Neville — Cofounder, Circle; CEO and cofounder, Catena
• Zach Abrams — Founder and CEO, Bridge (acquired by Stripe)
Highlights:
01:26 — Origins of USDC
02:44 — Why stablecoins are having their moment now
04:14 — Circle’s early product experiments
06:19— Surviving crypto cycles
07:35 — Bridge: From NFT payments to stablecoins
08:58 — What product-market fit actually feels like
20:02 — Inevitability and the founder vs. employer mindset
20:58 — Why Bridge joined Stripe
26:18 — How AI changes company building
29:38 — What students should study now
30:27 — Why new payment chains (Tempo & Arc)?
35:55 — Decentralization as imperative
Follow a16z crypto on...
- X: https://x.com/a16zcrypto
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/a16zcrypto/posts/
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7pMZvsNXEnb0CYcPiDQywE
- Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/web3-with-a16z-crypto/id1622312549
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@a16zcrypto
📩 Subscribe for more industry reports, trend updates, news analysis, builder guides, and other resources: https://a16zcrypto.substack.com/subscribe/
🎙️ Like, subscribe, comment, share the show: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/podcast/
***
As always, none of the following should be taken as investment, business, legal, or tax advice. Please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information, including a link to a list of our investments.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.