🎙️ My guest today is Francis Pouliot, long-time Bitcoin advocate, cypherpunk entrepreneur, and CEO of Bull Bitcoin, Canada’s leading Bitcoin-only exchange. Known for his uncompromising stance on self-custody, privacy, and resistance to state overreach, Francis has been a vocal defender of Bitcoin’s founding ethos for over a decade. He is also a key figure in Bitcoin Jungle, a circular economy in Costa Rica where hundreds of merchants transact daily in Bitcoin. In this episode, Francis shares how his background in Austrian economics and libertarian politics, combined with the wake-up call of COVID, led him to relocate from Canada to Costa Rica. We explore the creation and growth of Bitcoin Jungle, why farmers markets are fertile ground for adoption, and how his “scale versus compromise” framework guides strategic decisions in building Bitcoin infrastructure. Francis opens up about the tension of running a regulated exchange while opposing KYC, his mission to make self-custody as seamless as custodial services, and why Bitcoin’s payments layer is as critical as its store-of-value function. He dismantles the “Bitcoin is hijacked” myth spread by Roger Ver & others, addresses skepticism from the red-pilled community, and explains why barter and cash cannot scale for true financial freedom.
This episode is also on Twitter, Spotify, Fountain, Rumble and more.
Got value? please like, comment, share & subscribe!
We talked about:
01:18 - Intro to Francis & His Covid Wakeup Call
05:38 - Costa Rica During Covid
06:38 - Francis Interest in Austrian Economics & Libertarianism
09:08 - Francis Journey Into Bitcoin & Bull Bitcoin
13:08 - Private Property & Self-Custody
17:18 - Efrat’s Revelation of the Fiat Scam
20:58 - The Birth of Bitcoin Jungle Circular Economy
30:38 - Custodial vs. Non-Custodial Bitcoin Solutions
35:18 - The New Revolution: Build Tech That Creates New Reality
40:48 - The Circular Community in Costa Rica & Globally
45:48 - Bull Bitcoin: Freedom vs. Compliance & Regulation
53:38 - Struggle Between Scale & Compromise - Cypherpunk Values
1:00:38 - Understanding Bitcoin: Overcoming Skepticism & Claims Against It
1:04:08 - Shortcomings of Cash, Barter, Gold
1:07:48 - Roger Ver Attempt To Hijack Bitcoin and Damage to Bitcoin & Freedom Community
1:18:08 - Can Bitcoin Be Coopted By Those Who Hold The Most Bitcoin?
1:21:08 - Resist By Minimize Interface With Fiat/Matrix/Institutions
My takeaways from this episode:
Francis recounts how the COVID lockdowns became a breaking point, pushing him to leave Canada for Costa Rica, the only country at the time not requiring a PCR test, which he refused to take as a matter of principle against what he saw as a submission ritual
He shares how his journey began in Austrian economics and the libertarian movement, where he discovered Bitcoin through early cypherpunks who convinced him that political change was not possible within the fiat system and had to be rebuilt from the ground up
Francis describes his lightbulb moment realizing Bitcoin allowed individuals to enforce property rights without the state, protecting wealth through cryptography rather than government promises
He explains how his role as a public educator for the Bitcoin Embassy in Montreal evolved into running Bull Bitcoin, Canada’s leading Bitcoin-only exchange, built on non-custodial principles and cypherpunk values
Francis stresses that Bitcoin’s payments function is as important as its store-of-value role, and shares how Bitcoin Jungle in Costa Rica has built a circular economy where hundreds of merchants accept Bitcoin
He outlines the strategic choice to start adoption with farmer’s markets, low-regulation, cash-based environments where direct producer-to-consumer trade makes Bitcoin an easy fit
While Bitcoin Jungle began as a custodial wallet for ease of use, Francis sees his mission as making self-custody just as seamless, funding open-source non-custodial tools through Bull Bitcoin’s profits
He speaks candidly about the tension of running a regulated exchange while opposing KYC and state overreach, framing Bull Bitcoin as a least-worst option that fights overcompliance, protects user data, and funds resistance-oriented development
Francis introduces his scale versus compromise framework, arguing for finding the maximum adoption possible with minimal compromise on cypherpunk ethos, and rolling back compromises as technology improves
He dismantles the “Bitcoin is hijacked” narrative popular in some freedom circles, recounting how the block size wars proved Bitcoin’s resistance to corporate takeover, and warning against Roger Ver’s ongoing resentment campaign
Francis addresses skepticism from the red-pilled community, explaining why barter and cash cannot scale for sovereignty, and how Bitcoin uniquely enables censorship-resistant, borderless, self-sovereign money
He encourages skeptics to start small by downloading a wallet, receiving a payment, selling something for Bitcoin, and feeling the emotional and spiritual shift that comes from earning in sound money
For Francis, holding Bitcoin is both a boycott of fiat’s role in funding war and oppression, and a principled stand for freedom that rewards both economically and morally
The conversation closes with a vision of Bitcoiners as the immune system of a global sovereignty movement, building parallel systems for a future where property rights and free exchange are enforced by mathematics, not governments
Watch/Listen on Spotify:
Watch/Listen on Youtube:
Follow Francis Pouliot:
Twitter | Bull Bitcoin | Nostr: francis@nostrplebs.com
Sponsors:
►► 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)
Special offers:
►► 10% off on Augmented NAC: I arranged a 10% discount on the Augmented NAC from ZeroSpike, using the code: YCXKQDK2, and this link. (Please note, this is not medical advice and you should consult your MD). Watch the episode with Tina below.
►► Watch “New Totalitarian Order” conference with Prof. Mattias Desmet & Efrat - use code EFRAT for 10% off
►► 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
Follow me:
Twitter | Telegram | YouTube | Instagram | My podcast | All other links
— Support my work —
The best way to support me is by becoming a paying subscriber.
You can also “buy me a coffee” for a 1-time support, or with Bitcoin here.
Thank you!
Share this post