Privacy Podcast

The Privacy Podcast by Miden explores the future of privacy, identity, and trust in a digital world being reshaped by blockchain and AI.Hosted by Ben Schiller, The Privacy Podcast dives into one of the most critical questions facing technology today: How do we build a more private, secure, and trustworthy internet?A former journalist with over a decade of experience covering crypto and emerging technologies, including six years at CoinDesk, Schiller brings a sharp editorial lens to conversations at the intersection of privacy, blockchain, and digital rights.At its core, this podcast is driven by a simple idea: privacy is not optional. It is foundational to the next phase of the internet.As blockchain technology moves from experimentation to real-world adoption, privacy becomes essential for onboarding institutions, enabling enterprise use cases, and unlocking the full potential of decentralized systems. At the same time, it addresses a deeper, long-standing issue. The modern in

Privacy Podcast is a news podcast hosted by Ben Schiller, with 17 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Ben Schiller hosts Privacy Podcast, a news show with 17 episodes published.

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  Episode #15

  Zcash Is Surging. Is Privacy the Reason?

  Oct 1, 202627 min

  Zcash has become one of crypto’s standout assets, putting privacy back at the center of the market conversation. What’s driving all the interest in Zcash, a project that looked to be fading into obscurity two years ago? On this episode of The Privacy Podcast , host Ben Schiller sits down with Ashton Addison , founder and host of Crypto Coin Show , to unpack what’s behind Zcash’s remarkable run and what it says about the future of privacy in crypto. They examine why Zcash has broken away from other privacy assets, the growing institutional interest surrounding the asset, and the fundamental tension between Zcash’s optional privacy model and Monero’s privacy-by-default approach. The conversation also tackles the harder questions: How much of Zcash’s momentum is actually about privacy? How much is market hype? And as crypto markets move higher, can Zcash sustain its extraordinary rise? Ben and Ashton discuss Zcash, Monero, NEAR, institutional adoption, regulation, market speculation and what the next phase of the privacy economy could look like. About the Guest Ashton is the founder, CEO and host of Crypto Coin Show and founder/CEO of BlockWest. He has worked in blockchain since 2014 and has conducted more than 1,500 interviews with founders, executives and investors across crypto and digital assets. His official site describes Crypto Coin Show as reaching 150K+ YouTube subscribers, with distribution that includes Refinitiv TV/London Stock Exchange audiences and major podcast platforms. Connect with Ashton Addison: Website: ashtonaddison.com Crypto Coin Show: cryptocoinshow.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashtonaddison/ X: @Ashton_Addison_ YouTube: Crypto Coin Show https://linktr.ee/cryptocoinshow About the Show The Privacy Podcast by Miden explores the intersection of privacy, identity, and emerging technologies. Hosted by Ben Schiller, the show brings together builders, regulators, and thinkers shaping what comes next in a world where data is power. Executive Producer Michele Musso Edited by the Musso Media Team Music: licensed. All rights reserved. ©2026 Musso Media

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  Episode #14

  Is Blockchain Privacy Really Private?

  Sep 11, 202621 min

  Privacy on the blockchain is one thing. But what about everything that happens before and after a transaction? On this episode of The Privacy Podcast , host Ben Schiller sits down with Dr. Corey Petty , Chief Evangelist at Logos , to explore why true digital privacy may require protecting far more than the contents of an individual transaction. Logos grew out of the Ethereum ecosystem with an ambitious goal: build a decentralized, privacy-focused technology stack that addresses the entire transaction lifecycle, from communication and coordination to settlement and beyond. Corey explains why he believes privacy cannot simply be added to existing systems after the fact, and why metadata such as IP addresses, network activity, timing and communications can potentially reveal just as much as the transaction itself. Ben and Corey also dig into the growing institutional demand for blockchain privacy, the difference between transaction-level privacy and deeper infrastructure-level privacy, and how increasingly sophisticated AI tools could make seemingly disconnected pieces of metadata even more revealing over time. They also discuss the economic case for privacy. Could better privacy infrastructure do more than protect users? Could it actually make transactions and coordination more efficient, opening the door to business activity that companies may be reluctant to conduct on fully transparent networks today? The conversation then turns to the idea of the network state , where communities organize around shared rules, technologies and economies, with the ability to opt in...and importantly, the ability to exit. Finally, Corey shares what’s ahead for Logos as its teams work toward mainnet, expand the ecosystem around the network and develop a token designed to help secure its decentralized infrastructure. In this episode: • Why Logos is building privacy across the entire transaction lifecycle • The privacy risks hidden in metadata • Institutional blockchain privacy and its limitations • How AI could make leaked metadata even more revealing • The economic argument for privacy infrastructure • What “network states” could look like in practice • Why the ability to exit matters in decentralized systems • Logos’ roadmap toward mainnet • Why the network is expected to have its own token Can blockchain infrastructure ever be truly private if the transaction is protected but everything surrounding it is still visible? About the Guest Dr. Corey Petty is a longtime blockchain researcher, technologist and evangelist for Logos , a privacy-focused technology stack being developed to support digital sovereignty, decentralized infrastructure and resilient digital communities. Corey has been involved in the Ethereum and decentralized technology ecosystem for years, with work spanning blockchain, messaging, privacy, security and decentralized infrastructure. Today, his work focuses on explaining the vision behind Logos and why privacy needs to be built into technology from the ground up rather than added as an afterthought. Through his writing, public talks and podcast appearances, Corey explores topics including full-stack privacy, blockchain infrastructure, digital sovereignty, network states and the development of alternative digital institutions. Corey Petty on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/corey-petty Corey Petty’s Website / Writing: https://bayesianpersuasion.com Logos: https://logos.co If you enjoyed this conversation, be sure to Like , Subscribe , and turn on notifications so you never miss future episodes of The Privacy Podcast . About the Show The Privacy Podcast by Miden explores the intersection of privacy, identity, and emerging technologies. Hosted by Ben Schiller, the show brings together builders, regulators, and thinkers shaping what comes next in a world where data is power. Executive Producer Michele Musso Edited by the Musso Media Team Music: licensed. All rights reserved. ©2026 Musso Media

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  Episode #14

  Bitcoin in Costa Rica: A Love Story

  Aug 26, 202624 min

  Hummingbird: The Bitcoin Jungle Story shows a community coming together around new monetary ideas. It began as a five-minute film about bitcoin in Costa Rica. It became a full-length documentary called Hummingbird: The Bitcoin Jungle Story . In this week’s episode of of Privacy Podcast , host Ben Schiller speaks with Paul Keating , one of the creators of the documentary about the people and ideas behind a growing Bitcoin community in Costa Rica and what happens when the principles of Bitcoin move from the internet into the real world. Keating’s own story is part of that experiment. After leaving California for Costa Rica near the end of the COVID era, he found a community of Bitcoiners and eventually began living almost entirely on Bitcoin, converting his paychecks and later being paid directly in Bitcoin. Hummingbird draws its title from the prophecy of the eagle and the condor, representing different cultures and ways of understanding the world coming together. The film asks whether Bitcoin can provide common ground between communities that might otherwise appear very different. Merchants in Costa Rica can accept Bitcoin, how users can move between Bitcoin and local currency when necessary, and why adoption doesn’t require people to first understand every aspect of monetary theory. The conversation then expands beyond money into another form of sovereignty: social media. Paul discusses his work with Primal and his belief in Nostr, an open social protocol designed to give users greater control over their identity, content and connections. Instead of rebuilding a social network every time someone joins a new platform, Nostr makes that identity and social graph portable across compatible applications. For Paul, the philosophy behind it closely parallels Bitcoin: users own their data and maintain sovereignty over their stack. In This Episode Ben and Paul discuss: Paul’s decision to leave California and build a life in Costa Rica What it’s actually like to live primarily on Bitcoin How Bitcoin Jungle developed in Costa Rica How a five-minute video became Hummingbird: The Bitcoin Jungle Story The meaning behind the film’s hummingbird metaphor Why Bitcoin adoption can look different outside the United States Using Bitcoin for everyday purchases Streaming Bitcoin payments directly to filmmakers Why Paul believes Nostr could provide a better foundation for social media Taking ownership of your identity, followers and content online Primal and the emerging Nostr ecosystem Why decentralization still faces a major mainstream adoption challenge What living in Costa Rica taught Paul that “Bitcoin Twitter” couldn’t Watch Hummingbird Search for Hummingbird: The Bitcoin Jungle Story on YouTube or visit hummingbirdfilm.com . About the Guest Paul Keating | https://www.hiimpaulk.com/ Paul Keating can also be found on Nostr/Primal as Paul in the Jungle . | https://primal.net/paul X: @thepaulosophy Instagram: @paulinthejungle NOSTR| Join Nostr / beginner site Nostr protocol overview Official Nostr protocol GitHub Primal — a social media app built on the decentralized Nostr protocol. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/primal/id1673134518 If you enjoyed this conversation, be sure to Like , Subscribe , and turn on notifications so you never miss future episodes of The Privacy Podcast . About the Show The Privacy Podcast by Miden explores the intersection of privacy, identity, and emerging technologies. Hosted by Ben Schiller, the show brings together builders, regulators, and thinkers shaping what comes next in a world where data is power. Executive Producer Michele Musso Edited by the Musso Media Team Music: licensed. All rights reserved. ©2026 Musso Media

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  Episode #13

  Privacy, Ethereum, and the Future of On-Chain Finance, Featuring Igor Mandrigin

  Aug 12, 202630 min

  As financial institutions move more activity on-chain, privacy and interoperability are becoming critical to the future of blockchain adoption. In this episode of The Privacy Podcast , host Ben Schiller sits down with Igor Mandrigin, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Gateway , to discuss the evolution of Ethereum infrastructure, institutional adoption, and why modern privacy technology could play a major role in bringing finance on-chain. Igor explains why enterprises are moving beyond traditional permissioned blockchains toward newer privacy architectures and how zero-knowledge technology is making it possible to protect sensitive information while still proving that transactions follow network rules. The conversation also explores interoperability and the risk of recreating traditional financial silos across disconnected blockchain networks. Ben and Igor discuss the AggLayer , changes within the Ethereum Foundation , and where institutions are showing the most interest today, including stablecoins, payments, real-world assets, and fintech platforms built on-chain from the start. They also examine why privacy becomes even more important as blockchain moves into everyday financial products, where transparent transaction histories can expose information consumers and institutions expect to remain private. In this episode, you'll learn: • Why institutions are reconsidering permissioned blockchains • How modern privacy technology can support enterprise adoption • Why interoperability matters for the future of on-chain finance • Where stablecoins and real-world assets fit into institutional adoption • How Ethereum’s ecosystem is evolving • Why privacy matters as blockchain enters everyday financial services Why This Matters As stablecoins, tokenized assets, and other financial services move on-chain, institutions need more than faster infrastructure. They need privacy, interoperability, and security that can work at scale. Without those capabilities, blockchain risks recreating the same fragmented financial systems it was designed to improve. The next phase of adoption will depend on whether the industry can connect networks while protecting sensitive financial information and maintaining the benefits of open, verifiable infrastructure. About the Guest Igor Mandrigin is Co-Founder and Chief Technology and Product Officer (CTPO) at Gateway.fm, where he focuses on blockchain infrastructure, privacy, and technology for institutional on-chain adoption. Igor Mandrigin on LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/mandrigin/ Website: Gateway.fm https://gateway.fm/ If you enjoyed this conversation, be sure to Like , Subscribe , and turn on notifications so you never miss future episodes of The Privacy Podcast . About the Show The Privacy Podcast by Miden explores the intersection of privacy, identity, and emerging technologies. Hosted by Ben Schiller, the show brings together builders, regulators, and thinkers shaping what comes next in a world where data is power. Executive Producer Michele Musso Edited by the Musso Media Team Music: licensed. All rights reserved. ©2026 Musso Media

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  Episode #12

  Privacy, Stablecoins, and the Future of Financial Freedom, Featuring Yaya Fanusie

  Aug 7, 202633 min

  As stablecoins become a core part of the global financial system, one critical question remains: How do we protect privacy without sacrificing security or compliance? In this episode of The Privacy Podcast , host Ben Schiller welcomes Yaya Fanusie , Chief Policy Officer at Aleo and former CIA counterterrorism analyst, for a timely discussion on the future of blockchain privacy. Yaya shares how his career investigating terrorist financing led him into cryptocurrency policy and why he now believes privacy-preserving technology is essential for both individual freedom and national security. The conversation explores the GENIUS Act, stablecoin adoption, zero-knowledge proofs, regulatory challenges, illicit finance, and why the next major policy debate will focus on protecting consumer privacy in an increasingly digital financial system. In this episode, you'll learn: • Why blockchain transparency creates new privacy challenges • How zero-knowledge technology can balance privacy with regulatory compliance • What the GENIUS Act means for stablecoins and financial innovation • Why privacy is becoming a national security issue • How regulators are beginning to rethink digital identity and financial privacy • What comes next for blockchain policy and consumer protection Why This Matters As stablecoins transition from crypto-native assets into mainstream financial infrastructure, the conversation around blockchain is shifting. The challenge is no longer simply achieving adoption. It's ensuring that privacy, security, and compliance can coexist. This episode explores why privacy may become one of the most important policy issues facing digital finance over the coming decade and what builders, regulators, and institutions need to consider next. About the Guest https://www.linkedin.com/in/yaya-jata-fanusie-87901738/ https://aleo.org/ If you enjoyed this conversation, be sure to Like , Subscribe , and turn on notifications so you never miss future episodes of The Privacy Podcast . About the Show The Privacy Podcast by Miden explores the intersection of privacy, identity, and emerging technologies. Hosted by Ben Schiller, the show brings together builders, regulators, and thinkers shaping what comes next in a world where data is power. Executive Producer Michele Musso Edited by the Musso Media Team Music: licensed. All rights reserved. ©2026 Musso Media

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