You're The Voice | by Efrat Fenigson

Venezuela, Debt & the Case for Bitcoin Loans - Mauricio Di Bartolomeo | Ep. 141

You're The Voice | by Efrat Fenigson

Show Notes

Mauricio Di Bartolomeo is the Co-founder of Ledn, the leader in Bitcoin-backed lending. He grew up in Venezuela, living through the early tremors of what would become one of the most dramatic monetary collapses in modern history, before coming to Canada in 2003. His front-row seat to hyperinflation under Chavez and Maduro shaped a deeply practical understanding of how money, debt, and institutional trust actually function, and gave him the conviction to build Ledn, which has issued over $10 billion in loans since 2018 and holds an estimated 30% market share in consumer Bitcoin-backed lending globally. We cover what hyperinflation actually feels like from the inside, why the wealthy borrow while everyone else is told to save, the philosophical debate over whether Bitcoin-backed debt is morally sound, and what the recent seismic shifts in Venezuela's political landscape mean for an oppressed country. → Please like, comment, share & follow — to help me beat the suppressing algo's. Thank you!

– SPONSORS – → Access liquidity without selling your Bitcoin with Ledn — learn more at https://ledn.io/Efrat → Get your TREZOR wallet & accessories, with a 5% discount, using my code at checkout (get my discount code from the episode - yep, you’ll have to watch it): https://affil.trezor.io/SHUn → Have you tried mining bitcoin? Stack sats directly to your wallet while saving on taxes with Abundant Mines: https://AbundantMines.com/Efrat - Claim your free month of hosting via this link

– AFFILIATES – → Join me in these upcoming events & use code EFRAT for discounted tickets: https://www.efrat.blog/p/upcoming-events → Get 10% off on Augmented NAC to detox Spike protein, with the code YCXKQDK2 via this link: https://store.augmentednac.com/?via=efrat (Note, this is not medical advice, please consult your MD) → Join me at Europe’s largest bitcoin conference - BTC Prague, June 11-13, 2026. Code EFRAT for 10% off: http://btcprg.me/EFRAT → Be good to your eyes & health, and get the Daylight tablet - a healthier, more human-friendly computer, zero blue light & flicker. Use code EFRAT for $25 off: https://bit.ly/Efrat_daylight → Get a second citizenship and a plan B to relocate to another country with Expat Money, leave your details for a follow up: https://expatmoney.com/efrat → Watch “New Totalitarian Order” conference with Prof. Mattias Desmet & Efrat - code EFRAT for 10% off: https://efenigson.gumroad.com/l/desmet_efrat

– LINKS – Mauricio on X: https://twitter.com/cryptonomista More about Ledn: https://ledn.io/Efrat Efrat’s X: https://twitter.com/efenigson Efrat’s Channels: https://linktr.ee/efenigson Watch on all platforms: https://linktr.ee/yourethevoice Support Efrat’s work: ⁠https://bit.ly/zap_efrat

– CHAPTERS – 00:00 - Coming Up... 01:24 - Introduction: Mauricio Di Bartolomeo 03:28 - The First Bitcoin Asset-backed securities (ABS) Bond 07:26 - Institutional Appetite: S&P Ratings & the ABS Market 10:25 - How Bitcoin-Backed Loans Work: Risk, Liquidation & Trust 14:15 - Ad Break: Ledn, Trezor & Abundant Mines 17:10 - Debt as a Tool: The Bitcoin-Backed Loan Philosophy 19:48 - Venezuela & Chavez: Growing Up With Inflation 21:34 - Inflation vs. Hyperinflation: Two Different Phenomena 29:20 - Surviving Hyperinflation: Your Second Job Is Converting Your Paycheck 31:29 - Shorting Fiat: How the Wealthy Use Debt to Build Wealth 39:18 - Debt and Bitcoin 43:21 - Venezuela: Frozen in Time 44:55 - Signs of Hope: What Changed on January 3rd 48:30 - Bitcoin 2026: Conference Outlook

More from You're The Voice | by Efrat Fenigson

Oct 19, 2026

Todd Weyl is a cattle rancher, direct-to-consumer beef producer and the owner of Weyl Farms Direct, a 240-acre family farm his parents bought in 1965. Taught in agricultural college that beef would follow poultry and pork into the feedlot model, Todd finally began questioning the commodity system. Since 2020 he has sold directly to families, and he is an active voice in Texas Slim's Beef Initiative, building a decentralized food network one ranch at a time. In this special episode, we dig into the quiet consolidation of farmland, the industrialization of agriculture since 1971, degradation of public health, why is fast food the human version of a feedlot, lab meat, and how he finances his farm with Ledn’s Bitcoin-backed loans for cashflow and infinite banking philosophy.

Oct 15, 2026

Lino Hermesh lost his brother Omer, who was murdered in his home on October 7, 2023. He joins me again 3 years later to look at the aftermath: how tragedy amplified untreated traumas, mental state of survivors, returned hostages and Israelis, why Lino stopped believing elections change anything, and the beauty and oneness he found in the middle of grief. He shares why he is done fighting shadows and why, for him, love and art remain the answer. The episode closes with the beautiful song "Hope Still Flickers" interpreted by Nessi Gomes, Lino’s wife, carrying Lino's own words from those first days after Oct 7.

Oct 12, 2026

I call Paul Walsh a surveillance-tech whistleblower. Professionally he’s known as an independent technical expert on online safety, privacy, fraud, espionage and phishing, with global patents and advisory to agencies, governments & corporations. An early AOL pioneer, he co-invented the content labels behind account verification and advised the UK government during its first parliamentary inquiry into online child safety. He advocates for child safety, and civil liberties while exposing surveillance, state power and AI & big tech overreach. We discuss Digital ID’s core role, "protect the children" as a wrapper for social media bans, Chat Control and device scanning, and why Paul believes Western democracies are now outbuilding Russia and China on surveillance.

Oct 6, 2026

Matan Hakimi is the creator of "Gut feeling," Israel's most-listened-to independent health podcast, author of the book "Gut Rules," and many courses and retreats.. Diagnosed with colitis in his 20’s and told it was for life, he spent eight years on daily medication. At 28, he met a special healer, and reached full remission within six months. That journey created his life’s northern star: real health starts with sovereignty over your own body. In this open conversation we discuss life in Israel, exiting the Matrix, courage to speak out, Covid and the mRNA injections, the sun paradox, and the family unit.

Sep 29, 2026

Max Hillebrand is a cypherpunk, crypto anarchist, and author of the new book “The Praxeology of Privacy”, a 587-page work bringing Austrian economics and cypherpunk engineering together. He is a contributor to White Noise, a decentralized encrypted messaging app built on Nostr and the Marmot protocol. In this episode, we dig into his new book, the gap between Austrian economics and the cypherpunk movement, state intervention, CBDC, we explore various freedom tech tools, and Max explains his optimism about a peaceful, tech-driven path to freedom.

See all episodes →