The GENIUS Act brings regulatory clarity to stablecoins, but Conduit CEO Kirill Gertman argues that clarity alone won't guarantee success. Banks face a choice between building their own infrastructure or becoming the pipes for others.

Kirill Gertman has watched the stablecoin industry evolve from multiple angles. He spent nearly two decades in financial services before founding Conduit in 2021, including six years in crypto and a stint as VP of product at BRD, which became Coinbase Wallet. His company grew 16x in 2024 by solving a practical problem: businesses in emerging markets were accumulating stablecoins to hedge against local currency volatility but couldn't use those balances in their day-to-day operations. Conduit now works with tier-one banks and multinational corporations, processing billions in cross-border payments. And with the GENIUS Act bringing the first comprehensive regulatory framework for stablecoins in the United States, Gertman argues the legislation's passage raises as many strategic questions as it answers—particularly for banks that have been sitting on the sidelines.

Today, we'll explore why the GENIUS Act matters, the critical difference between stablecoins and deposit tokens, what strategy banks should actually pursue, and where Gertman sees the industry heading as major players race to build vertically integrated stacks.

Why every bank now needs a stablecoin strategy (whether they like it or not)

The venture capital world has a liquidity problem. With IPOs scarce and M&A exits few and far between, investors have been stuck in positions for years, unable to return capital to their LPs or move into new opportunities. But while traditional exit doors have stayed shut, technology has opened up new ones—specifically, platforms that make it possible to create and trade Special Purpose Vehicles at scale, something that used to require armies of lawyers and fund administrators.

Today I’m joined by Nik Talreja, the CEO and co-founder of Sydecar, a platform that’s turned what used to be a manual, months-long process into something you can do in days. He started his career as a securities attorney at firms like Weil Gotshal and Cooley, where he spent his days drafting the same documents over and over for venture deals. That experience showed him that much of what venture capitalists were paying lawyers to do could be standardized and automated, which led him to found Sydecar in 2021.

In our conversation, he explains how technology is reshaping private market infrastructure, what gets automated and what still needs human expertise, and how software is changing who can participate in venture investing.

Why venture capital infrastructure is finally getting automated

Even with the year-long purge of long-standing federal government agencies, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau still stands as a bulwark for people who seek information and resources in their dealings with financial institutions. On this episode, James 'Jim” McCarthy of McCarthy Hatch shares about his days getting the bureau off the ground—and how his company utilizes real-time risk prediction for the consumer financial industry to smooth the path for consumers and FIs to achieve positive complaint  resolutions. 

EPISODE 209: A CFPB PIONEER TURNS CONSUMER COMPLAINTS INTO AI-POWERED RELIEF

Community and regional banks operate in an environment of perpetual tension. They need to grow deposits and drive lending profitability while managing operating costs that threaten to overwhelm smaller institutions. They must also prevent increasingly sophisticated fraud while delivering customer experiences that match Amazon and Netflix. And they need to do all of this while building technology foundations that won't become obsolete before the implementation is complete.

At FIS's Emerald 2025 conference in Orlando, Peter Boyer, head of banking at FIS, and Craig Focardi, principal analyst at Celent, discussed how financial institutions are navigating these competing demands. Focardi and Boyer discuss how modernization is now a continuous process of adaptation, and that the institutions most likely to succeed will focus on enabling agility rather than chasing specific technologies.

"If you really take a step back and think about regional and community banking, there's a couple headwinds or tailwinds, that are driving how banks are thinking about the market," Boyer explained. "One is deposit growth and profitability growth through lending. Every bank right now is thinking, how do I grow? What is my sweet spot in my segment? Thing two is operating costs. How do they continue to drive a more efficient bank? AI is a big topic on that particular solution. And thing three is fraud. How do you protect the banking ecosystem? You put those three together and you've got a meaningful amount of where the energy is in the market today."


How community banks are balancing urgent pressures with long-term modernization

In this episode, I, Andrey Shlyakhovoy, discuss how the banking industry is being transformed by technology, social networks, and artificial intelligence. I share my view that traditional retail banks will eventually vanish or transform into technology-driven platforms. We explore how social networks can provide massive reach, new types of digital currencies, and seamless transactions across borders — all of which point toward a radical shift in the way banking and commerce will function in the near future.

E. 2 - Banking in the Age of Social Networks and Digital Platforms - Andrey Shlyakhovoy

In this episode, I, Andrey Shlyakhovoy, discuss the evolving role of currency in the digital age. I explain how money, traditionally a means for transactions and record-keeping, is already digital in many forms, and how emerging digital currencies are shaping the future of payments. We explore the trends toward cashless systems, the acceleration of transactions, and the implications for security and control in the financial ecosystem.

E. 7 - The Evolution of Currency and Digital Payments - Andrey Shlyakhovoy

In this episode, I, Andrey Shlyakhovoy, share advice for young entrepreneurs navigating the banking and financial landscape. I discuss the delicate balance between accelerating transactions to grow a business and avoiding the pitfalls of fraud and scams. We explore how understanding global trends, being digitally savvy, and thoroughly researching your business idea can help new entrepreneurs stay secure and effective in their ventures.

E. 8 - Navigating Banking Risks for Young Entrepreneurs - Andrey Shlyakhovoy

In this episode, I, Andrey Shlyakhovoy, discuss the uncertain future of cryptocurrency regulation from the perspective of governments. We explore how state control might affect financial innovation, the challenges of balancing security and efficiency, and the potential impact on legitimate businesses. I share my insights on how decentralization, compliance, and bureaucracy intersect, and what entrepreneurs should consider in navigating this evolving landscape.

E. 11 - Cryptocurrency and Government Regulation - Andrey Shlyakhovoy

This week’s guest is Sophie Lagouanelle, vice president of product for financial crime compliance at LexisNexis Risk Solutions

(0:00) – Tony and Shen talk about their Spotify 2025 Wrapped

(5:00) – Sophie joins and reflects on the state of financial crime

(14:00) – Volume and speed

(17:30) – AI and ML’s role

(25:30) – Changes within compliance teams

(30:00) – Focus areas for regulators

(40:30) – Shared memory


Episode 342: LexisNexis Risk Solutions’ Sophie Lagouanelle

his extensive academic survey, authored by Bryan Kelly and Dacheng Xiu, provides a comprehensive overview of the emerging field of financial machine learning (ML), exploring its application in the study of financial markets.

Financial Machine Learning and Asset Pricing

Wei-Shen Wong and Anthony Malakian discuss the hottest financial technology topics in the capital markets every week.

Tearsheet is news, opinion, and analysis on the business of finance.

Candid conversations with senior executives, fintech entrepreneurs, investors, industry experts -- all weigh in on the trends impacting the industry and the disruptive impact technology is having on the business.

Where social media, technology and finance intersect.

After amassing 125K listens as host of my previous banking podcast, I'm on my own and taking the game to a new level. Award-winning journalist, Pulitzer Prize finalist, composer and performer of all the Bankadelic music ... pizza fanatic.

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