Fran Velasquez

Fran is CoinDesk's TV writer and reporter. He is an alum of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and CUNY's Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, where he earned his master's in business and economic reporting. In the past, he has written for Borderless Magazine, CNBC Make It, and Inc. He owns no crypto holdings.

Fran Velasquez

Latest from Fran Velasquez


Tech

Ethereum Miner Chandler Guo Predicts 90% of PoW Miners Will Go Bankrupt

The Merge put a big hurt on mining, the proof-of-work advocate told CoinDesk TV. He believes the Ethereum fork he backs will draw what miners remain as the glitches are fixed.

Chandler Guo told "First Mover" he expects only 10% of miners will survive post-Merge. (CoinDesk TV, modified)

Tech

Ethereum’s Merge Could Bring a 'Billion Users' to Web3, Polygon Co-Founder Says

Sandeep Nailwal told CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover" that the software update could lead to further upgrades that would increase "scalability" for layer 2 networks.

Sandeep Naliwal, co-founder Polygon (Polygon)

Tech

Ethereum Merge Could Shine Light on Chinese Mining Influence, Says VC

Matthew Graham, CEO of venture capital firm Sino Global Capital, weighs in on Ethereum’s upcoming Merge and what the seminal moment may reveal about Chinese miners on CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover.”

“It will be telling about how much market power Chinese OG miners still have,” Matthew Graham, CEO of venture capital firm Sino Global Capital, said during an appearance on CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover” on Wednesday. (CoinDesk TV)

Tech

Solana Co-Founder Sees Upside From Ethereum’s Merge, Saga Web 3 Mobile

Raj Gokal, Solana Labs’ chief operating officer, joined CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover” to discuss what the Merge could mean for Ethereum and how his company’s mobile phone will stack up against the iPhone 14.

"We want Ethereum to succeed. We want to see the Merge succeed," Raj Gokal said on CoinDesk TV's "First Mover." (CoinDesk TV)

Tech

Ether May ‘Inevitably’ Turn Into a Store of Value After Ethereum’s Merge, ConsenSys Economist Says

Lex Sokolin, head economist of decentralized protocols at ConsenSys, joined CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover” to discuss why ether could be seen as a store of value as regular and institutional users stake their tokens on the network.

ConsenSys Head economist of Decentralized Protocols Lex Sokolin (CoinDesk)

Finance

Ethereum’s Transition to PoS Could Push PoW by the ‘Wayside’, Ethereum Co-Founder Says

Anthony Di lorio, one of Ethereum’s founders, highlighted the time and effort that the Ethereum Foundation has invested in the change.

Anthony Di Iorio (Decentral)

Policy

SEC Chairman Gensler Wants Disclosures From Crypto Issuers, Lawyer Says

Ashley Ebersole, who worked at the agency before, told CoinDesk TV’s “All About Bitcoin” that the SEC's chief says the digital-asset firms would report in a different way than publicly traded companies do.

Ashley Ebersole, a former lawyer at the SEC. (LinkedIn)

Tech

Ethereum’s Merge May Boost Public's View of Crypto

Crypto podcaster Laura Shin told CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover” that the software update may allay the concerns of those worried about the industry's impact on the environment.

Laura Shin, author of "The Cryptopians" and host of the "Unchained" podcast. (Erika Rich/CoinDesk/Shutterstock)

Tech

What the Merge Could Mean for Ethereum and Its Developers

Protocol developer Preston VanLoon joined CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover” to discuss how the long-awaited upgrade will prompt a massive move to the blockchain.

Preston Van Loon, Prysmatic Labs, at Consensus 2022 (Morgan Brown/Shutterstock/CoinDesk)

Tech

Bitcoin's Price May Crash After Ethereum's 'Merge,' Researcher Says

Kyle McDonald told CoinDesk TV’s “First Mover" the Bitcoin network may be regulated away because of its energy consumption.

(CoinDesk)