Filter Results
:
(30)
Show Results For
-
All HBS Web
(75)
- Faculty Publications (30)
Show Results For
-
All HBS Web
(75)
- Faculty Publications (30)
Page 1 of
30
Results
→
- February 9, 2024
- Article
The Rise of Consumer Crypto
By: Steve Kaczynski and Scott Duke Kominers
Although non-fungible tokens are often misunderstood and even derided, they remain a general and flexible solution for establishing and tracking ownership in the digital domain. As a superior solution to existing technology in many areas of the consumer economy, their...
View Details
Keywords:
Cryptocurrency;
Crypto Economy;
NFTs;
Non-fungible Tokens;
Internet Of Everything;
Market Design;
Technological Innovation;
Demand and Consumers;
Web Services Industry
Kaczynski, Steve, and Scott Duke Kominers. "The Rise of Consumer Crypto." Project Syndicate (February 9, 2024).
- November 2023
- Case
Will Fintechs and Central Banks Play in Emtech’s Sandbox?
By: Daniel Isenberg and William R. Kerr
In February 2023, Emtech’s founder Carmelle Cadet is facing a dilemma. Rapidly running out of cash, Cadet has a term sheet from a leading VC but has a choice of how to structure the investment. The decision will have significant implications for Cadet’s own stake, as...
View Details
Keywords:
Cryptocurrency
Isenberg, Daniel, and William R. Kerr. "Will Fintechs and Central Banks Play in Emtech’s Sandbox?" Harvard Business School Case 824-096, November 2023.
- November 2023 (Revised December 2023)
- Case
Celsius Network Inc.: Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt in the Brave New World of Crypto Bankruptcy
By: Stuart C. Gilson and Sarah L. Abbott
In July 2022, Celsius Network filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. CEO Alex Mashinsky acknowledged that Celsius had grown its assets “faster than the Company was prepared to deploy [them]” and as a result had made “certain poor asset deployment decisions.” Two months after...
View Details
- October 2023
- Case
Kevin O'Leary: Building a Brand in Shark-infested Waters
By: Reza Satchu and Patrick Sanguineti
For more than fifteen years, successful Canadian entrepreneur and investor Kevin O’Leary had developed his brand into a global powerhouse. Since his first appearance on the Canadian television program Dragons’ Den in 2006 and his meteoric rise to stardom through the...
View Details
Keywords:
Personal Brand;
Crisis;
Brands and Branding;
Entrepreneurship;
Crisis Management;
Social Media;
Public Opinion;
Power and Influence;
Financial Services Industry
Satchu, Reza, and Patrick Sanguineti. "Kevin O'Leary: Building a Brand in Shark-infested Waters." Harvard Business School Case 824-095, October 2023.
- September 2023
- Case
The Rise and Fall of FTX
In November 2022, Sam Bankman-Fried's multi-billion-dollar crypto exchange, FTX, collapsed, wiping out investors and throwing the crypto industry into disarray. As FTX's founder and CEO, Bankman-Fried developed a reputation for his unerring business sense and...
View Details
Keywords:
Cryptocurrency;
Crime and Corruption;
Financial Statements;
Misleading and Fraudulent Advertising;
Insolvency and Bankruptcy;
Corporate Governance;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Failure;
Restructuring;
United States;
Hong Kong;
Bahamas
Dey, Aiyesha, Jonas Heese, Joseph Pacelli, and Max Hancock. "The Rise and Fall of FTX." Harvard Business School Case 124-014, September 2023.
- September 2023
- Case
Diamond Standard
By: Lauren H. Cohen, Zhaoheng Gong and Grace Headinger
Cormac Kinney, Founder and CEO of Diamond Standard, was on a mission to transform the U.S. diamond market through unlocking the precious gems as market-traded assets. As a serial FinTech entrepreneur, he hoped to add an additional service to his vault: Carats. The...
View Details
Keywords:
Tokenization;
Fintech;
Cryptocurrency;
Liquidity;
Digital;
Rare Earth Minerals;
Decentralized;
Crypto Economy;
Financial Product;
Metals;
Diamonds;
Commodity;
Assets;
Financial Instruments;
Financial Institutions;
Financial Markets;
Investment;
Technological Innovation;
Natural Resources;
Business Startups;
Currency;
Financial Services Industry;
United States
Cohen, Lauren H., Zhaoheng Gong, and Grace Headinger. "Diamond Standard." Harvard Business School Case 224-009, September 2023.
- April 17, 2023
- Article
Crypto-Influencers Give Poor Investment Advice—and the SEC Is Taking Notice
By: Joseph Pacelli
Keywords:
Cryptocurrency;
Power and Influence;
Investment;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Investment Return;
Consumer Behavior
Pacelli, Joseph. "Crypto-Influencers Give Poor Investment Advice—and the SEC Is Taking Notice." Promarket (April 17, 2023).
- January 12, 2023
- Article
Progressive Decentralization: A High-level Framework
By: Jad Esber and Scott Duke Kominers
We explain a high-level framework for designing for future decentralization up front, and offer some guidance about when and how to do so. The guidelines apply to both web3 projects and more traditional organizations.
View Details
Keywords:
Crypto Economy;
Cryptocurrency;
Decentralization;
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations;
Entrepreneurial Journey;
Entrepreneurial Management;
Organization Behavior;
Organization And Management Theory;
Organization Form;
Organizational Structure
Esber, Jad, and Scott Duke Kominers. "Progressive Decentralization: A High-level Framework." a16zcrypto.com (January 12, 2023).
- December 7, 2022
- Article
Why Decentralized Crypto Platforms Are Weathering the Crash
By: Shai Bernstein and Scott Duke Kominers
In the past year, crypto markets dropped from $2.9 trillion in value to around $800 billion. In the wake of the collapse, crypto lenders and exchanges have been accused of fraud and other wrongdoing. What went wrong? One factor is competition. In theory, competition...
View Details
Keywords:
Crypto Economy;
Cryptocurrency;
Financial Complexity;
Financial Crisis;
Decentralization;
Decentralized Markets;
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations;
Finance;
Market Design;
Financial Services Industry
Bernstein, Shai, and Scott Duke Kominers. "Why Decentralized Crypto Platforms Are Weathering the Crash." Harvard Business Review Digital Articles (December 7, 2022).
- December 2022 (Revised August 2023)
- Case
Ribbit Capital and the Gauntlet Investment Opportunity
By: Shai Bernstein and Allison M. Ciechanover
Ten-year-old, Palo Alto-based Ribbit Capital is best-known for its global investments in fintech. The firm was also an early advocate of crypto and blockchain, having invested in more than two dozen startups in the space in the past decade. In the Spring of 2022,...
View Details
Keywords:
Alternative Assets;
Cryptocurrency;
Business Startups;
Investment Portfolio;
Decision Choices and Conditions;
Negotiation Deal;
Governing Rules, Regulations, and Reforms;
Venture Capital;
Financial Services Industry;
California
Bernstein, Shai, and Allison M. Ciechanover. "Ribbit Capital and the Gauntlet Investment Opportunity." Harvard Business School Case 823-038, December 2022. (Revised August 2023.)
- September 10, 2022
- Article
NFT Sales: Clearing the Market, Avoiding Gas Wars
By: Scott Duke Kominers and Tim Roughgarden
Instead of letting the market decide the price for their primary sale offerings, many NFT projects choose to initially sell their NFTs at prices below the market-clearing level. But what happens when market designers trade off efficiency for equity; or when demand far...
View Details
Kominers, Scott Duke, and Tim Roughgarden. "NFT Sales: Clearing the Market, Avoiding Gas Wars." a16zcrypto.com (September 10, 2022).
- August 2022 (Revised February 2023)
- Case
Braintrust: The Blockchain-Powered Talent Network
By: Christopher Stanton, Joseph B. Fuller and George Gonzalez
A San Francisco startup seeks to disrupt the freelancing industry through its user-owned talent network powered by the cryptocurrency, BTRST.
View Details
Keywords:
Freelancers;
Blockchain;
Cryptocurrency;
Social and Collaborative Networks;
Talent and Talent Management;
Consulting Industry;
Technology Industry;
United States
Stanton, Christopher, Joseph B. Fuller, and George Gonzalez. "Braintrust: The Blockchain-Powered Talent Network." Harvard Business School Case 823-039, August 2022. (Revised February 2023.)
- July 28, 2022
- Article
DAO Governance Attacks, and How to Avoid Them
By: Pranav Garimidi, Scott Duke Kominers and Tim Roughgarden
Many web3 projects embrace permissionless voting using a fungible and tradable native token. Permissionless voting can offer many benefits, from lowering barriers to entry to increasing competition. Token holders can use their tokens to vote on a range of issues—from...
View Details
Keywords:
Crypto Economy;
Cryptocurrency;
Governance;
Voting;
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations;
Organizational Structure;
Digital Platforms
Garimidi, Pranav, Scott Duke Kominers, and Tim Roughgarden. "DAO Governance Attacks, and How to Avoid Them." a16zcrypto.com (July 28, 2022).
- May 2022
- Case
From GOP to NFT: Anthony Scaramucci and the Launch of Flatter NFT
By: Lauren Cohen, Richard Ryffel and Grace Headinger
Anthony Scaramucci, Managing Director of SkyBridge Capital, considered whether he should officially greenlight the launch of SkyBridge’s own NFT platform — Flatter NFT. He had led the investment firm to push first into Bitcoin and then Ethereum to make SkyBridge a...
View Details
Keywords:
Business Startup;
Fintech;
Technology;
Cryptocurrency;
Web3;
Business Startups;
Volatility;
Decision Making;
Entertainment;
Entrepreneurship;
Investment;
Strategic Planning;
Adoption;
Competitive Advantage;
Technology Adoption;
Finance;
Currency;
Banking Industry;
Financial Services Industry;
Technology Industry;
New York (city, NY)
Cohen, Lauren, Richard Ryffel, and Grace Headinger. "From GOP to NFT: Anthony Scaramucci and the Launch of Flatter NFT." Harvard Business School Case 222-085, May 2022.
- April 2022
- Supplement
MicroStrategy: Accounting for Cryptocurrency (B)
By: Jonas Heese and Annelena Lobb
In early 2022, the technology firm MicroStrategy unveiled a series of letters with the SEC that questioned its accounting practices around its holdings of Bitcoin. Since 2020, the firm had shifted its strategy to include not just selling software but buying and holding...
View Details
Keywords:
Cryptocurrency;
Bitcoin;
Holding Structures;
SEC;
Accounting;
Finance;
Financial Strategy;
Technology Industry
Heese, Jonas, and Annelena Lobb. "MicroStrategy: Accounting for Cryptocurrency (B)." Harvard Business School Supplement 122-079, April 2022.
- March 2022 (Revised February 2024)
- Case
El Salvador: Launching Bitcoin as Legal Tender
By: Laura Alfaro, Carla Larangeira and Ruth Costas
In June 2021, Nayib Bukele, El Salvador’s president, surprised the world with the announcement that the country would adopt bitcoin as legal tender, becoming the first nation to do so. Bitcoin was mostly used for trading and had one of the most volatile track records...
View Details
Keywords:
Bitcoin;
Cryptocurrency;
Currency;
Financial Strategy;
Economic Growth;
Governance;
Macroeconomics;
Assets;
Latin America;
El Salvador
Alfaro, Laura, Carla Larangeira, and Ruth Costas. "El Salvador: Launching Bitcoin as Legal Tender." Harvard Business School Case 322-055, March 2022. (Revised February 2024.)
- March 2022 (Revised August 2022)
- Case
LooksRare: The Decentralized, Tokenized, NFT Marketplace
By: Scott Duke Kominers, Shai Bernstein and George Gonzalez
LooksRare launched a decentralized and anonymous organization to compete against NFT marketplace leader OpenSea. By launching its own cryptocurrency, LooksRare attempted to lure users with a digital rewards program. The nature of the organization and its business...
View Details
Keywords:
NFTs;
Alternative Assets;
Blockchain;
Cryptocurrency;
Customer Relationship Management;
Market Entry and Exit;
Business Model;
Marketing
Kominers, Scott Duke, Shai Bernstein, and George Gonzalez. "LooksRare: The Decentralized, Tokenized, NFT Marketplace." Harvard Business School Case 822-119, March 2022. (Revised August 2022.)
- January 2022 (Revised September 2023)
- Teaching Note
MicroStrategy: Accounting for Cryptocurrency
By: Jonas Heese
Teaching Note for HBS Case No. 121-066.
View Details
- August 2021
- Case
Mylestone: Can Multiple Pivots Preserve the Life of a Death Tech Startup?
By: Shikhar Ghosh and Marilyn Morgan Westner
Dave Balter and Jim Myers co-founded Mylestone, a death tech startup that applied technology to transform how grieving people memorialize the dead. The startup addressed a cultural problem and promised to solve a pressing need in the antiquated, multi-billion dollar...
View Details
Keywords:
Pivot;
Startup;
Business Model;
Cryptocurrency;
Ethical Decision Making;
Emotions;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Ethics;
Market Entry and Exit;
Customer Relationship Management;
Loss;
Change Management;
Relationships
Ghosh, Shikhar, and Marilyn Morgan Westner. "Mylestone: Can Multiple Pivots Preserve the Life of a Death Tech Startup?" Harvard Business School Case 822-018, August 2021.
- June 2021 (Revised February 2023)
- Case
MicroStrategy: Accounting for Cryptocurrency
By: Jonas Heese and Annelena Lobb
On February 15, 2021, Alina Moss, an analyst who covered the technology company MicroStrategy, pondered a rise in MicroStrategy’s share price. Moss had dialed into the company earnings call. When it ended, Moss had more questions than answers. MicroStrategy had...
View Details
Keywords:
Cryptocurrency;
Share Price;
Electronic Commerce;
Intangible Assets;
Assets;
Accounting;
Financial Statements;
Financial Management;
Financial Reporting;
Analytics and Data Science;
E-commerce
Heese, Jonas, and Annelena Lobb. "MicroStrategy: Accounting for Cryptocurrency." Harvard Business School Case 121-066, June 2021. (Revised February 2023.)