DeFi Innovation: Exploring Structured Investment Solutions with Arisa Toyosaki of Cega Finance

Colors of Web3 & Entrepreneurship

In this 40th episode of Colors of Web3 and Entrepreneurship, Lam sits down with Arisa Toyosaki, co-founder of Cega Finance, to explore the innovative world of DeFi and structured investment solutions. Arisa shares her journey from traditional finance to the cutting-edge realm of crypto, discussing how her experiences in options trading and product marketing at Google led to the creation of Cega Finance. Listeners will gain insights into Cega Finance's unique approach to DeFi, offering structured investment products powered by exotic options. Arisa explains their various strategies, from fixed coupon notes to dual currency products, and how they aim to provide attractive risk-adjusted returns in the crypto space. The conversation also delves into the challenges facing DeFi, the future of Web3, and Arisa's perspective on building meaningful products in the blockchain industry. ⌛ Timestamps: 00:00:00 Episode trailer 00:00:25 Show introduction and Arisa's background 00:06:13 Arisa's quick take on the tech industry (AI and Web3) in Japan 00:07:07 How Arisa discovered Bitcoin in 2013 00:09:50 Arisa's hobbies outside of Web3 - her passion for manga 00:14:29 Why Arisa recommends reading manga as a hobby 00:17:00 The origin story of Cega Finance 00:21:04 How Arisa found her co-founders 00:22:26 Why lifecycle management in traditional finance is more expensive than in crypto 00:24:41 Examples of options that users can bet on in traditional finance 00:26:20 How price of options is determined using Black-Scholes formula (this part is very technical, so feel free to skip) 00:32:40 Deep diving into Cega Finance and its products 00:35:37 Discussing about Cega Super Sonics NFT collection on Solana 00:37:41 Fixed Coupon Notes product on Cega Finance 00:39:21 Shark Fin - a 100% principal-protected product on Cega 00:42:32 Financial products (e.g., Dual Currency) for degens on Cega 00:44:46 Simple demo of how to use the product on Cega 00:47:50 The two types of returns in DeFi 00:50:23 Potentials risks in using Cega Finance 00:51:28 The team behind Cega Finance 00:55:49 Challenges in DeFi and crypto adoption 00:57:38 What Arisa thinks about ETF products 00:59:03 Arisa's take on how to onboard 1 billion people into Web3 01:01:37 Her prediction on the future of the Web3 industry 01:04:30 Advice for aspiring Web3 entrepreneurs 01:06:31 Where to follow Arisa and Cega Finance 01:07:38 Closing thoughts and next episode preview Follow Arisa and his company: Arisa's Twitter/X: https://x.com/arisatoyo Arisa's Japanese (日本語のアカウント）Twitter/X: https://x.com/arisatoyo_jp Cega Discord: https://discord.com/invite/cega Cega Finance website: https://www.cega.fi/ My social media: Twitter/X: ⁠https://www.twitter.com/LamWeb3⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/lamweb3/⁠ Website: ⁠https://lamtrinh.xyz⁠ My latest article: https://lamweb3.substack.com/p/the-importance-of-decentralized-science If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe to stay updated on our upcoming episodes with industry experts and innovators in the Web3 and Entrepreneurship spaces. Thank you for listening!