What if we stop fixing a broken system and just build something better? In the latest episode of Michaël van de Poppe’s podcast, Xen Baynham-Herd joins as a guest. As head of global growth at one of the fastest-growing onchain ecosystems today, his mission is to lay the foundation for a new global economy.
Cracks in the System #
Baynham-Herd doesn’t mince words: the current financial system no longer works. He points to rising living costs, failing public services, and growing distrust toward governments and banks—not just in developing countries, but also in nations like the United Kingdom. “People feel they no longer have control. And so they are looking for alternatives.”
Those alternatives are emerging rapidly on the blockchain. Think new ways of lending, investing, and even advertising—fully onchain, transparent, and without intermediaries. According to Baynham-Herd, the era of centralized power is over:
We don’t want a better version of the old. We want ownership, access, and freedom.
From App to Society #
What stands out is the scale of the picture he paints. This isn’t just about crypto or technology. It’s about building a new system—from the ground up. Think digital identities, decentralized decision-making, creators getting paid fairly, and users truly owning what they use.
Baynham-Herd says it might seem futuristic, but the building blocks are already here.
“We don’t have to reinvent the wheel. We just need to organize it differently—open, permissionless, worldwide.”
No Hype, Just Infrastructure #
The conversation makes it clear this isn’t a pipe dream. There are millions of users, hundreds of builders, and serious capital injections. Major players are moving toward onchain systems—sometimes quietly, sometimes with bold steps. And yes, a token is on the table, though Baynham-Herd stresses it must come at the right time, “not to fuel hype, but to enable real ownership.”
The Revolution Has Begun Quietly #
What you take away from the conversation: this isn’t a rebellion with torches. It’s a quiet, systematic shift. Developers, creators, and users are building an alternative together—not by protesting, but by coding. “The system is failing,” says Baynham-Herd. “So we’re rebuilding it.”