More pain for the crypto industry means a chance for startups to pivot

Hello there! Dan DeFrancesco in NYC, but I can't stop watching this video of a car ramming into a booth where two podcasters were recording (no one got seriously hurt). Check it out here.

We've also got an upcoming event hosted by yours truly! Join us March 23 for "Finance Meets Its Future," an event presented by amberdata. Learn how finance pros are addressing digital transformation through digital assets, frictionless payments, ESG Investing, and more. Register here for the live event.

On tap, we've got stories on a buy now, pay later company looking to make a comeback, the top people leading venture debt deals, and what not to do when you stay at a hotel.

But first, we're running a special sale.

If this was forwarded to you, sign up here. Download Insider's app here.

1. Crypto clearance.

After an awful 2022 that saw one of the industry's high-profile figures implode, the crypto market is looking for a bounceback.

But as Mathew McDermott, global head of digital assets at Goldman Sachs, put it to Insider, there is still "a little bit more pain" for the industry.

McDermott laid out to Insider's Bianca Chan and Dakin Campbell how tough times for crypto startups mean more realistic valuations and, in some cases, a reevaluation of the business model.

In short, crypto's about to have a long, hard look in the mirror.

I see one of three outcomes for most startups this year:

They run out of money and fold. The unfortunate realities of the startup game. Many could end up getting "acquired" in deals that will essentially function more as acqui-hires than anything else.

They refocus their business and streamline things. Once of the most common critiques I hear about crypto is "It's a solution looking for a problem." The most recent crypto winter could force startups to be a bit more pragmatic about the specific problem they are looking to address.

They pivot their business to look outside crypto. A VC I spoke with last week mentioned this as a likely outcome. In short, a lot of the use cases in crypto that seemed to make sense a year ago simply don't anymore. But that doesn't mean the entire company needs to be scrapped.

Take Alain Meier, who got into crypto while at Stanford University and had an idea for using it to help with cross-border money movement. It didn't pan out, but in the process Meier and his cofounder had built tech for identity verification in crypto that proved to be pretty valuable.

The company eventually expanded beyond crypto and was acquired by Plaid in 2022. Now, it's a key piece of the fintech's growth plans for 2023, as Insider reported.

And a big part of that, Meier admits, is thanks to those original roots in crypto.

"If you can solve fraud in crypto, you can solve fraud in basically any part of finance," Meier told Insider. "We kind of cut our teeth in that industry and then expanded out."

Click here to read more about Goldman Sachs' strategy around digital assets.

In other news:

2. A BNPL comeback story. Buy now, pay later service Sezzle was having a tough go of things last year, with one research analyst slashing their price target for its shares to just a penny. But the company has had a much better start to the year, thanks in part to a strategic pivot. More on that here.

3. Venture debt's top dogs. While equity investing in venture largely dried up in 2022, debt investing continued to explode as founders looked to extend their runway without their valuations getting knocked. Meet the 10 key people structuring these debt deals for startups.

4. A startup that wants to revolutionize housing with its tiny, affordable homes is facing plenty of headaches. Boxabl's Casitas, 375-square-foot houses that retail for $60,000, have caught the attention of celebrities, including Elon Musk, and attracted a wait list of 157,000 people. But questions remain around production costs, the company's governance, and the spending habits of the father-and-son cofounders. Read more about the big problems facing these tiny-home manufacturers.

5. One of Goldman's top traders is heading for the exits. Joe Montesano, Goldman Sachs' head of equities trading for the Americas, who was also one of the bank's highest-paid employees in recent years, is leaving the firm with no specific plans on where he will land, Bloomberg reports. Part of Montesano's oversight at the bank was its index-rebalancing team, a type of trading that boomed during the pandemic before falling flat last summer due to overcrowding. And be sure to check out our running list of partners who have left the bank during David Solomon's tenure.

6. The secret to Citadel's success in commodities. Ken Griffin's hedge fund hired nearly two-dozen scientists and analysts back in 2018 to help the firm with its trading strategy by correctly forecasting the weather months in advance. Read more here.

7. FTX just took a shot at a massive crypto asset manager. FTX trading affiliate Alameda filed a lawsuit against Grayscale Investments over its fees and the way in which it allows investors to redeem their shares. Read more about the lawsuit here.

8. Next time you stay at a hotel, avoid these common mistakes. From the best way to go about booking a room to why you should always read the Bible, some valuable tips via a former employee of a hotel chain. Check out all the advice here.

9. Toblerone might have to change its logo because its level of "Swissness" isn't high enough. The chocolate bar's parent company is moving some of Toblerone's production to Slovakia, which means it might not meet Switzerland's legal definition of "Swissness." Perhaps it can launch a secretive, private bank for the uber rich? More on how one maintains high levels of "Swissness."

10. How to not break the bank, but still impress, at your next dinner party. Private chef Meredith Hayden spills the beans on how to make dishes that feel expensive even though they aren't. Here are some go-to pasta dishes to spin up that'll leave your guests asking for the recipe.

Curated by Dan DeFrancesco in New York. Feedback or tips? Email [email protected], tweet @dandefrancesco, or connect on LinkedIn. Edited by Jeffrey Cane (tweet @jeffrey_cane) in New York and Hallam Bullock (tweet @hallam_bullock) in London.