Hardwired by AlphaWire

The State Of Risk In DeFi | ft. Charles Holmes & Greg Bock

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 19:00:00 +0100

Hardwired: The State of Risk in DeFi | ft. Charles Holmes (Verdict) & Greg Bock (Fidesium)

In this episode, I sit down with Charles Holmes from Verdict.finance and Greg Bock from Fidesium to unpack the current state of risk in DeFi. We explore why 2026 has seen a surge in sophisticated attacks, how AI is reshaping both offensive and defensive security, and what protocols need to do to stay ahead of an evolving threat landscape.

In this episode, we cover:

The explosion of AI-generated smart contracts and why "vibe coding" is creating porous, vulnerable codebases

Why audit freshness matters more than ever — and how novel exploits are targeting old, "audited" contracts

The rise of state-sponsored actors, supply chain attacks, and OPSEC infiltration plays

Governance exploits: the BONK DAO hack and why multi-sig keys on a single laptop still happen

Verdict's new audit marketplace: rating auditors by track record, specialisation, and dependency mapping

The asymmetrical nature of cybersecurity: attackers only need to win once, defenders must win every time

Bear market vs. bull market hack patterns: bigger targets in the bear, more frequency in the bull

Quantum readiness: why entanglement improvements make this the largest attack vector in the next 24 months

Guests:

Charles Holmes — Co-founder, Verdict.finance (DeFi risk ratings, dependency graphs, audit marketplace)

You can learn more about Verdict Finance here:
https://www.verdict.finance

Greg Bok — Co-Founder, Fidesium (EVM-focused cybersecurity, smart contract audits, pen testing, OPSEC)

You can learn more about Fidesium here:
https://fidesium.xyz

Chapters:

00:00 — Intro & guest introductions
02:27 — The state of risk in DeFi: extreme, but improving
07:33 — AI coding and attack surface area
10:10 — Why human engineers are coming back
15:34 — Verdict's ratings agency and audit marketplace
19:27 — Fresh vs. stale audits, dependency mapping
23:23 — Why hacks are accelerating: tools, liquidity, and market cycles
29:34 — Governance exploits: the BONK DAO case study
34:13 — Audit marketplaces: Sherlock, RateDeFi, HackenProof
36:07 — Why Verdict's marketplace exists
41:33 — Closing thoughts: due diligence on audit firms & celebrity shills

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This episode was brought together by AlphaWire: https://alphawire.xyz

The Real Cost of Trust in DeFi - Fidesium

Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:00:00 +0100

In this episode of HardWired, Harry sits down with Abraham Polishchuk, founder and CTO of Fidesium, to explore how one of crypto’s most critical but often overlooked infrastructure layers, security auditing and developer tooling, is evolving as the industry matures. From Abraham’s early days mining Bitcoin on his laptop to building a Web3-native security firm, the conversation digs into why “code is law” no longer cuts it, and how protocols can stay safe in an era of institutional capital, AI-assisted development, and increasingly sophisticated attackers.

We discuss why manual audits alone are no longer enough, how Fidesium combines human expertise with automated tooling to help teams ship faster without sacrificing safety, and what really went wrong in high-profile exploits like Kelp DAO. Abraham breaks down the key failure modes in DeFi, from broken invariants and oracle manipulation to privileged role abuse and OPSEC lapses, and explains why defense-in-depth, surface-area mapping, and real-time monitoring are now table stakes for any serious protocol.

Some ideas explored:

Abraham’s journey from early Bitcoin miner to Web3 security founder
The origin story behind Fidesium and its mission to raise the security bar in Web3
Why institutions and mature protocols can’t rely on “no admins” idealism anymore
How Fidesium audits code, tooling, and operational processes end-to-end
The Kelp DAO exploit: malicious RPC nodes, bad data feeds, and trusted external systems
Why AI both helps and harms security — and why “vibe coding” is a terrible fit for DeFi
How protocols should think about risk registers, audit frequency, and change management
The future of DeFi security as banks, regulators, and Web2 engineers enter the space
A conversation about exploits, audits, and the infrastructure needed for crypto to stop getting hacked and start scaling safely.

You can learn more about Fidesium here: https://fidesium.xyz
This episode was brought together by AlphaWire: https://alphawire.xyz

Verdict.finance: Repricing Risk for the Next Wave of DeFi

Thu, 30 Jul 2026 13:00:00 +0100

In this episode of HardWired, Harry sits down with Charles Holmes, founder of Verdict Finance, to explore how one of crypto’s most important emerging infrastructure plays is tackling the problem of risk in DeFi. From Charles’s early experience in crypto to the origin story behind Verdict Finance, the conversation digs into why institutions still struggle to deploy capital onchain and how better risk intelligence could change that.

We discuss why legacy security and due diligence models fall short in a fast-moving onchain environment, how Verdict Finance is building a more transparent and commercially useful way to assess protocol risk, and why ratings, coverage, and compliance are becoming essential for the next phase of crypto adoption. Charles also explains how Verdict Finance turns risk into something measurable, tradable, and actionable, alongside the broader suite of products the company is building for protocols, investors, and institutions.

Some ideas explored:

Charles’s background and how it led him into Verdict Finance
The story behind Verdict Finance and its mission to improve DeFi risk management
Why institutions need better ratings, compliance, and coverage before deploying capital
How Verdict Finance assesses protocol, infrastructure, and dependency risk in practice
The importance of transparency and due diligence in onchain finance
How Verdict Finance is building tools for protocols, investors, and security teams
Why AI, automation, and post-quantum security may reshape the next era of crypto infrastructure
The future of DeFi risk, institutional adoption, and onchain finance at scale

A conversation about risk, trust, and building the infrastructure needed for crypto to mature.

You can learn more about Verdict Finance here: https://www.verdict.finance
This episode was brought together by AlphaWire: https://alphawire.xyz

Building Telecom for the Real World: World Mobile’s Decentralised Approach

Fri, 10 Jul 2026 09:00:00 +0100

In this episode of HardWired, Harry sits down with Andrew Soper, co-founder of World Mobile, to unpack how one of crypto’s most ambitious infrastructure projects is tackling the real-world problem of connectivity. From Andrew’s background in East Africa to the origin story behind World Mobile, the conversation explores how telecom, energy, and blockchain can work together to build a more inclusive and commercially sustainable network.

We discuss why legacy telecom models fail to serve the last mile, how World Mobile uses decentralisation to lower costs and expand access, and why real-world utility matters more than hype in Web3. Andrew also explains the role of tokenomics, validator rewards, and buybacks in aligning incentives with actual usage, alongside the broader ecosystem of services being built on top of the network.

Some ideas explored:

Andrew’s background and how it led him into World Mobile
The story behind World Mobile and its mission to connect everybody everywhere
Why decentralisation changes the economics of telecom infrastructure
How tokenomics, buybacks, and validator rewards work in practice
The importance of real-world revenue over hype-driven crypto models
How World Mobile is expanding into finance, energy, agriculture, and more
Why partnerships and local expertise are central to scaling globally
The future of World Mobile, including its stratospheric platform and new territory launches

A conversation about connectivity, infrastructure, and building technology that solves real problems at global scale.

You can learn more about World Mobile here: https://worldmobile.io
This episode was brought together by AlphaWire: https://alphawire.xyz

Inside Bloom.social: The Future of Market Intelligence

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 18:00:00 +0100

In this episode of HardWired, Harry sits down with Charlie Varley, founder of Bloom, to explore his journey into Web3, the vision behind Bloom, and how the product is rethinking market intelligence and on-chain trading.

Charlie explains how Bloom is building a social layer for investing — where traders and signal producers can share ideas, prove conviction on chain, and help users make more informed decisions. The conversation covers the evolution of crypto through different market cycles, why the space is shifting back toward fundamentals, and how Bloom aims to make trading more transparent, more accessible, and more rewarding.

They also discuss the importance of community, the changing nature of fundraising in today’s market, and why authenticity, speed, and execution matter more than ever for founders building in crypto.

A conversation about market structure, product, community, and what it takes to build something meaningful in the next wave of crypto.

Learn more about Bloom: https://www.bloom.social/
Follow Charlie Varley on X: https://x.com/c_varley
Follow Bloom.social on X: https://x.com/bloomsocial

This episode was brought together by AlphaWire: https://alphawire.xyz/

Beyond the Audit - Fidesium

Tue, 23 Jun 2026 13:00:00 +0100

In this episode of HardWired, Harry sits down with Bock from Fidesium to explore his background, the story behind the company, and why smart contract auditing has become such a critical part of crypto security.

We discuss recent hacks, the realities of manual audits, and why operational security matters not just for teams building in Web3, but for anyone responsible for protecting capital, infrastructure, and trust.

We also look at how cyber security is evolving in crypto, what auditors are actually looking for, and why the gap between “looks secure” and “is secure” is often where the biggest risks live.

Some ideas explored:

Bock’s background and what led him into crypto security
The role Fidesium plays in smart contract auditing
Why manual audits still matter in an AI-driven world
What recent hacks reveal about common weaknesses in crypto
The importance of op sec for founders and teams
Where projects often underestimate security risk
How to think about security as a long-term discipline, not a one-off task
Why trust in crypto has to be earned, not assumed

A conversation about security, vigilance, and what it really takes to build safely in crypto.

You can find out more about Fidesium here:

https://www.fidesium.xyz/

This episode was brought together by AlphaWire: https://alphawire.xyz/