Nik Bhatia is an author of two economics books, a visiting fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute and the founder of The Bitcoin Layer. In Nik&#x27;s first appearance on the podcast, he discusses his niche in the Bitcoin community, the role of Bitcoin as a transaction asset, the threat or lack thereof of quantum computing on Bitcoin, his issues with the current eurodollar market, his new proposal to use stablecoins as statecraft, and much more. Watch the full length video on our new YouTube Channel! Check out the transcript for this week&#x27;s episode, now with links. Recorded on May 5th, 2026 Subscribe to David&#x27;s Substack: Macroeconomic Policy Nexus Follow David on X: @DavidBeckworth Follow Nik X: @Timevalueofbtc Follow the show on X: @Macro_Musings Check out our Macro Musings merch! Timestamps 00:00:00 - Intro 00:01:49 - Nik&#x27;s Career and Background 00:12:32 - Crypto Assets for Transactions 00:18:28 - Quantum Computing and Bitcoin 00:24:08 - Stablecoins as Statecraft 00:58:36 - Outro

Nik Bhatia on Bitcoin and the Case for Using Stablecoins for Statecraft

Macro Musings with David Beckworth

Welcome to Macro Musings, where each week we pull back the curtain and take a closer look at the most important macroeconomic issues of the past, present, and future. I am your host, David Beckworth, a Senior Research Fellow with the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, and I'm glad you decided to join us. Our guest today is Nik Bhatia.

Nik is the author of a new paper titled Stablecoins as Statecraft, Reclaiming U.S. Financial Sovereignty in the Eurodollar Market. It's an interesting paper that makes the case for stablecoins as a role in U.S. monetary sovereignty and reclaiming the eurodollar market abroad. And Nik, welcome to the program. Thanks, David. Great to be here. It's great to have you on. Now, you are a visiting fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute.

You also are the founder of the Bitcoin Layer. You're also a professor, an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California, Marshall School of Business. And you've written this working paper for the Bitcoin Policy Institute. And again, as I mentioned, this paper explains how stablecoins can be used to reclaim some of the government control of the eurodollar market.

Maybe that's too strong of a term, but to bring them back into the regulatory perimeter of the U.S. government. And I guess, Nik, this is the first question out the gate. That's a little surprising to see the Bitcoin Policy Institute have a paper on how to get the eurodollar market within the regulatory perimeter. So tell me about the backstory of this paper. What motivated you to write it and why BPI got behind it? It's a great question, David.

Nik Bhatia on Bitcoin and the Case for Using Stablecoins for Statecraft

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.

Nik Bhatia on Bitcoin and the Case for Using Stablecoins for Statecraft

Read the full transcript

The candid version is on a podcast, not the earnings call.

The candid version is on a podcast,
not the earnings call.