Monero Talk

1 Million Downloads! Vik Sharma on Cake Wallet, Monero, and the Rise of “Privacy Coins” | EPI 367

November 7th, 2025  |  29 mins 59 secs

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, cakewallet, crypto, cryptocurrency, fungible, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, viksharma, xmr, zcash

TODAY'S SHOW: In this episode of Monero Talk, Douglas Tuman chats with Vik Sharma, founder of Cake Wallet, about the wallet's milestone of 1 million downloads and 450,000 monthly active users. Vik shares how Cake Wallet, initially a Monero-only wallet, has expanded to support Bitcoin, Litecoin, and more—while staying true to its open-source and privacy-focused roots.

The conversation covers Cake Wallet's relationship with the Monero community, privacy coins' growing attention (especially Zcash), and why Monero remains the preferred choice for actual use. The episode wraps up with thoughts on how Monero can stay ahead in the privacy space and the goal of creating a global peer-to-peer economy where people can "live off Monero."

Spirobel on Monero being ahead of Zcash in scaling privacy + Price, News & More! | EPI 238

November 2nd, 2025  |  3 hrs 42 mins

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, fungible, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, spirobel, xmr, zcash

MONEROTOPIA 💃🏽🏝🕺🏼 EPISODE 238 - Spirobel on Monero being ahead of Zcash in scaling privacy + Price, News of the week & More!

The Privacy Coin Surge: How Monero, Zcash, and Others Are Competing — w/ Diego Salazar | EPI 366

October 28th, 2025  |  1 hr 52 mins

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, diegosalazar, fungible, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, surae, xmr, zcash

TODAY'S SHOW: This episode of Monero Talk features the CypherStack team — CEO Diego Salazar and mathematicians Brandon “Surae” Goodell and Luke — for a deep dive into Monero’s Full Chain Membership Proofs (FCMPs) and how they compare to Zcash.

CypherStack is a privacy-focused research and development company behind Stack Wallet. Diego handles strategy while Brandon and Luke lead the mathematical research for Monero. They discussed their contributions to FCMPs, a major upgrade aimed at improving Monero’s privacy and scalability. While critics from the Zcash community call FCMPs “unproven,” the team explained that it uses well-established mathematics, not untested theory.

They also compared Monero’s community-driven model with Zcash’s corporate structure, noting strengths and trade-offs in both approaches. Despite praising Zcash’s Halo 2 privacy tech, they argue Monero’s privacy-by-default design gives it a real-world edge.On timelines, Diego said FCMPs are “three steps from the finish line” but still tackling technical challenges. The episode ends with a candid look at funding struggles in open-source development and a call for continued community support.

MoneroTopia EPI 237! Price, News of the week & MUCH More! | EPI 237

October 26th, 2025  |  3 hrs 23 mins

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, fungible, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, xmr

MONEROTOPIA 💃🏽🏝🕺🏼EPISODE 237 - Price with Bawdy, News of the week w/ Doug & MUCH MORE!

JP of THORChain on Becoming the Decentralized On-Ramp Monero Needs | EPI 365

October 24th, 2025  |  1 hr 8 mins

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, fungible, jp, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, thorchain, vultisigwallet, xmr

TODAY'S SHOW: In this episode of Monero Talk, Douglas Tuman talks with JP from THORChain to discuss the project’s renewed effort to integrate Monero (XMR) into its decentralized cross-chain liquidity protocol. JP explains why an earlier 2022–2023 integration attempt stalled due to limitations in Monero's old multisig system and security concerns, and reveals THORChain is now developing a new threshold signature scheme to make Monero swaps trust-minimized and scalable. He outlines an expected rollout through the Vultisig wallet, stagenet, and finally mainnet by Q1 2025.

The conversation explores the role of privacy in crypto, competition and collaboration with projects like Serai and Haven, and THORChain’s return to its core mission as a decentralized custodian network. JP emphasizes Monero's importance for financial sovereignty and future AI-driven economies, and invites the Monero community to contribute to the integration effort.

MoneroTopia Episode 236 | Price, News, and MUCH MORE!

October 19th, 2025  |  2 hrs 10 mins

Privacy, Signal, bitcoin, blockchain, cakewallet, crypto, cryptocurrency, fungible, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, thorchain, xmr

MONEROTOPIA 💃🏽🏝🕺🏼 EPISODE 236 - Price Report with Bawdy, News of the week with Tux & MUCH MORE!

Juraj Bednar on Monero & Zcash | EPI 364

October 16th, 2025  |  1 hr 45 mins

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, dex, fungible, jurajbednar, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, xmr, zcash

TODAY'S SHOW: In this episode of Monero Talk, host Douglas Tuman speaks with Juraj, a self-described “shaman” of the crypto world who bridges different blockchain communities. Together, they dive into the contrasts and common ground between Monero and Zcash, exploring both the technical and cultural dynamics of the leading privacy coins.

Juraj discusses Zcash’s growing DEX integrations through Zashi Wallet and Near Intents, while Doug shares his experience with a failed swap attempt. They compare this with Monero’s ongoing DEX efforts like Sarai and potential Thorchain integration, highlighting the shared goal of improving usability and interoperability.

The two also unpack each project’s funding models, mining approaches, and community cultures, debating decentralization, security, and the future of privacy in crypto. Juraj emphasizes that real adoption often depends more on social dynamics than technical merit, and that long-term holders give privacy coins their true value.

Selling land for Monero w/ HappyLanding25! | EPI 235

October 12th, 2025  |  2 hrs 57 mins

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocrash, cryptocrash2025, cryptocurrency, fungible, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, xmr

MONEROTOPIA 💃🏽🏝🕺🏼 EPISODE 235 - Selling land for Monero w/ HappyLanding25! + Price Report with Bawdy, News of the week with Tony & MUCH MORE!

MoneroTopia Episode 234! | Price, News & MUCH MORE!

October 5th, 2025  |  3 hrs 37 mins

Privacy, alaskanon, bitcoin, blockchain, crypto, cryptocurrency, fungible, michaelten, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, usdc, xmr, zcash

MONEROTOPIA 💃🏽🏝🕺🏼 EPISODE 234 - Price Report with Bawdy, News of the week with Tux & MUCH MORE!

Monero FCMP++ and CARROT Stressnet Goes Live Oct 3 w/ Dev Jeffro256 | EPI 363

October 3rd, 2025  |  1 hr 24 mins

Privacy, bitcoin, blockchain, carrotprotocol, crypto, cryptocurrency, fcmp++, fungible, jeffro256, monero, monerotalk, monerotopia, privacycoin, xmr

TODAY'S SHOW: In this episode of Monero Talk, host Douglas Tuman interviews Monero developer Jeffro256. They dive into Monero’s upcoming Carrot protocol upgrade and Full Chain Membership Proofs (FCMP++), two major advancements in privacy and security.

Jeff shares his path into Monero, from early mining experiments in 2017 to contributing as a developer. He explains how Carrot fixes vulnerabilities like the burning bug and Janus attack, while adding features such as outgoing view keys and offline address generation.

The conversation then shifts to FCMP++, with a stress test network launching soon. This upgrade will expand Monero’s anonymity set from 16 to around 150 million—an unprecedented leap in privacy. They also cover Monero’s response to recent Qubic mining attacks, Tevador’s “publish or perish” proposal, comparisons with other privacy coins like Zcash, and future directions including quantum resistance and confidential assets.