Why Crypto’s Killer App Has Always Been Fundraising

In Episode 39 of Chain Reactions, we’re joined by Fabrizio, co-founder of Legion, to explore one of the most misunderstood truths in crypto: capital formation is the killer application for blockchain.We go deep on the broken incentives in today’s launchpad meta, how Legion is flipping the script with reputation-based fundraising, and why public token sales can, and should, outperform traditional IPOs. Fab also shares his personal story, from growing up on food stamps to working with Rolls Royce to becoming one of the most respected operators in web3 fundraising.We also dig into:How Legion is building a two-sided marketplace for reputation and allocationWhat founders get wrong when preparing for a TGEWhy attention markets, not airdrops, are the real unlockWhat it means to grow beyond CT and take on IPO-scale distributionAnd what’s coming next in Legion 2.0 (hint: it’s big)This one’s packed with insight for founders, investors, builders, and anyone who thinks crypto should aim higher.Timestamps00:00 – Intro and Fabrizio’s background: from geoscience to crypto06:00 – Falling in love with DeFi Summer08:00 – The broken incentives in launchpads and token listings11:30 – Why Legion was founded and what it solves in capital formation15:00 – What is Legion and how the reputation score works20:00 – Regulatory tailwinds and the bet on MiCA and Project Crypto24:00 – Vetting process for Legion deals and what curation looks like28:00 – Business model and why Legion only wins if the project wins30:30 – Cookie3, attention markets, and fronting capital as commitment34:00 – Deep dive into Legion Score and future roadmap40:00 – Projects launched: Pulse, Almanac, and beyond42:30 – Legion’s vision to take on IPO-level scale45:00 – Community, storytelling, and the future of tokenized fundraising48:00 – Moving beyond CT through partnership marketing49:00 – Rapid fire: underrated and overrated tactics, top projects, and lessons52:00 – Fab’s biggest founder learning and advice to others building in Web357:00 – Founders reflect: Blake and Polina’s takeaways58:30 – What’s next for Legion and key dates to watch