In this episode of The Smart Economy Podcast, host Dylan Grabowski is joined by Alexis Sirkia, captain of Yellow, a decentralized clearing and settlement network designed to enable trustless trading and high-speed transactions across crypto markets. Together, they explore how Yellow lowers counterparty risk from centralized exchanges, why state channels are making a comeback, and how AI agents could drive the next major wave of blockchain adoption. Sirkia also shares insights from his early days building one of crypto’s first market-making firms and explains why institutions may finally have the infrastructure they need to participate at scale.

Alexis Sirkia is the captain of Yellow and an early builder in the crypto industry. Prior to Yellow, he co-founded GSR, one of the first market-making firms in digital assets, helping establish liquidity for early networks like Ethereum and Ripple. With a background spanning software engineering, trading systems, and financial infrastructure, Sirkia brings a rare combination of technical and market expertise. His current work at Yellow focuses on building trustless trading infrastructure, enabling AI-driven economies, and bridging the gap between crypto-native systems and institutional finance. His perspective is especially relevant as crypto shifts from speculative cycles toward real infrastructure powering AI agents, trading systems, and global financial coordination.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sPDPfULVcBI