In this Season 2 premiere of The Get Down Beyond Bitcoin, host Ritzy P kicks off with a high-stakes look at the 2026 crypto landscape. The episode begins with a deep dive into Butterscotch Media’s second anniversary and the evolving state of digital asset regulation, followed by an interview with Malik Corbett, CEO of Hekaton, on the transition from traditional finance to decentralized innovation.

Register for TRUST MEDIA: https://tr.ee/aYftUg

All Things Butterscotch

CEO Cleve Mesidor joins the show to discuss the growth of Butterscotch Media as a premier niche platform for policy and inclusion.

• The Trust Gap: Why niche media is overtaking legacy institutions in relevance and trust.
• 2026 Policy Update: A breakdown of the Genius Act (Stablecoin Law) and the current battle in the Senate over market structure.
• The "Nerd Prom": Details on the upcoming Trust Media live journalism event in DC.
• Global Footprint: Insights from Davos 2026 and the rise of tokenization on the world stage.

Interview with Malik Corbett (CEO of Hekaton)

Malik shares his journey as an "Uber entrepreneur" and early DeFi pioneer, moving from a 15-year career at firms like Bloomberg and JP Morgan into the startup world.

• Defining DeFi: Malik provides a "one-minute definition" of DeFi as an alternative system that collapses the friction and costs of traditional intermediaries.
• The Atomic Vault System: An exclusive look at Hekaton’s new platform (launching Q2 2026) that allows users to earn yield through market-neutral strategies while maintaining self-custody.
• Founder Survival: Why "staying in the game" is the ultimate metric of success for minority founders in high-tech.
• The 2026 Forecast: A candid take on current macro forces, including persistent inflation and the urgent need for a Market Structure Bill before the 2026 midterm elections.

About Malik
Malik Corbett is the Co-founder and CEO of Hekaton, a proprietary trading company focused on digital assets. In addition to his technical duties as a quant engineer on the trading desk assisting the team in building trading infrastructure and strategies, Malik oversees the strategic and business direction of the firm. Malik’s career in finance has spanned over 15+ years, working for firms such as Bloomberg Financial, JP Morgan and MDSL.

In 2014, Malik saw an emerging opportunity in the FinTech alternative data space; he joined iSentium as the Director of Sales where he led the company’s sales efforts. After working in the alternative data industry, Malik and Tynan Overstreet teamed up to form Hekaton. Malik brings a wealth of experience and technical skills along with strong leadership skills to help usher in the next generation financial trading firm.

Links from the episode 

CONNECT WITH Malik:

X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/lionindayard

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/malik-corbett-4a83a513/

Hekaton: https://www.hekatontrading.com/

The Atomic Vault System: https://www.atomicvault.xyz/

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