Stephen Mackintosh, Co-Founder and General Partner at Karatage, joins Remy Blaire at the New York Stock Exchange. The segment begins with an overview of a significant partnership between Swigroup Holdings and Sui Network, which enables users to deposit Sui-native USDC and Sui tokens directly. This collaboration aims to simplify the funding process for users and bridge the gap between regulated finance and blockchain technology.
Stephen elaborates on the recent launch of two new stablecoins backed by BlackRock’s tokenized money market fund: SUI-USDE, a yield-bearing stablecoin, and USDI, which is compliant with regulatory standards. He highlights the strategic importance of these stablecoins in enhancing the DeFi ecosystem on the Sui platform, noting that they are designed to keep fees and yields within the network, ultimately benefiting the community. Stephen explains how Karatage has white-labeled the Athena engine to facilitate this initiative, which has already seen substantial growth in total value locked across various DeFi platforms.
The discussion then shifts to the intersection of artificial intelligence and blockchain, particularly in light of Sui Network’s partnership with Google. Stephen shares his background in AI, having previously run an AI business that was sold to a New York Stock Exchange-listed company. He describes Sui’s object-oriented blockchain model, contrasting it with traditional account-based models and emphasizing its scalability and potential for agentic payments. Stephen outlines how the infrastructure built by the Sui team, including decentralized programmable storage and verifiable off-chain compute, is essential for enabling autonomous and verifiable transactions.