Video length: 34 minutes

Setting the bell-curve in Crypto with The Spartan Group's Co-Founder & Partner, Casper B. Johansen

Kay Van-Petersen
Global Macro Strategist

Summary:  Our fifth Dragon Interview finally takes us to an exciting, controversial & new asset class that is dear to KVP's heart, Crypto. The first in a series of Crypto focused content, join us as we sit down with Casper B. Johansen, Co-Founder & Partner of The Spartan Group - an advisory & digital asset pioneer in the crypto space.

We take a walk-through Casper's background, how him & his co-founders stumbled across crypto, an overview of how to potentially think about this new, dynamic & constantly evolving space, as well as the rise of The Spartan Group.

Setting the bell-curve in Crypto with The Spartan Group's Co-Founder & Partner, Casper B. Johansen 

So we covered global macro trading with the exceptional Ashvin Murphy from AVM. Proprietary trading global currencies across banks with the talented Dacky (Keith Dack). As well as family office macro trader & nature conservationist Geo Chen.

Yet you know we had to go crypto! 


For our latest Dragon Interview we had the pleasure of sitting down with an exceptional entrepreneur & ex Goldman Sachs investment banker Casper B. Johansen.

The first of a number of special series Dragon Interviews on Crypto, we cover a number of things on this first interview with Casper, including:

-Casper's come-up story career wise, from being a Dane educated as a lawyer in the US & jumping immediately to one of Wall Street's most prestigious banks, Goldman Sachs.

-To his first tech start-up in Beijing in 2008, the folding of that a few years later alongside the stripes, lessons & takeaways earned there.

-To coming across crypto in 2017 initially as a VC investor & the inception of The Spartan Group from that. We cover the set-ups, strategy & long-term vision of the group, that Casper Co-founded with Melody He & Kelvin Koh (all Goldman alumni).

-We touch on the last bull market in 2017, as well as the "punched in the face" nuclear bear market that came after, that saw Bitcoin lose more than 80% of its value from its previous peak & naturally a lot of tokens that went to zero.  

-We then delve deeper into crypto with an appreciation of decentralized vs. centralized, how to potentially look at the always evolving space, whilst also covering everything from:


Bitcoin, to Ethereum, to DeFi (Decentralized Finance), to NFTs & also touch on some of the pioneering players in the space including: Origin Protocol, Blockstack, Solana, Dapper Labs, Deribit, Blockfolio.

There is a lot here to digest & at bear minimum, likely one of two if not one of three more pieces to come from the dream team at The Spartan Group.

We hope you enjoy the interview as much as we did putting it together.

-KVP

ps. For more crypto related content one can also check out the BlockCrunch podcast, that is run by crypto analyst Jason Choi, from Spartan Capital, the asset management arm of The Spartan Group.

For more Dragon Interviews please click here

Namaste,

-KVP

Outrageous Predictions 2026

01 /

  • Switzerland's Green Revolution: CHF 30 Billion Initiative by 2050

    Outrageous Predictions

    Switzerland's Green Revolution: CHF 30 Billion Initiative by 2050

    Katrin Wagner

    Head of Investment Content Switzerland

    Switzerland launches a CHF 30 billion energy revolution by 2050, rivaling Lindt & Sprüngli's market ...
  • The Swiss Fortress – 2026

    Outrageous Predictions

    The Swiss Fortress – 2026

    Erik Schafhauser

    Senior Relationship Manager

    Swiss voters reject EU ties, boosting the Swiss Franc and sparking Switzerland's "Souveränität Zuers...
  • A Fortune 500 company names an AI model as CEO

    Outrageous Predictions

    A Fortune 500 company names an AI model as CEO

    Charu Chanana

    Chief Investment Strategist

    Can AI be trusted to take over in the boardroom? With the right algorithms and balanced human oversi...
  • Dollar dominance challenged by Beijing’s golden yuan

    Outrageous Predictions

    Dollar dominance challenged by Beijing’s golden yuan

    Charu Chanana

    Chief Investment Strategist

    Beijing does an end-run around the US dollar, setting up a framework for settling trade in a neutral...
  • Dumb AI triggers trillion-dollar clean-up

    Outrageous Predictions

    Dumb AI triggers trillion-dollar clean-up

    Jacob Falkencrone

    Global Head of Investment Strategy

    Agentic AI systems are deployed across all sectors, and after a solid start, mistakes trigger a tril...
  • Quantum leap Q-Day arrives early, crashing crypto and destabilizing world finance

    Outrageous Predictions

    Quantum leap Q-Day arrives early, crashing crypto and destabilizing world finance

    Neil Wilson

    Investor Content Strategist

    A quantum computer cracks today’s digital security, bringing enough chaos with it that Bitcoin crash...
  • SpaceX announces an IPO, supercharging extraterrestrial markets

    Outrageous Predictions

    SpaceX announces an IPO, supercharging extraterrestrial markets

    John J. Hardy

    Global Head of Macro Strategy

    Financial markets go into orbit, to the moon and beyond as SpaceX expands rocket launches by orders-...
  • Taylor Swift-Kelce wedding spikes global growth

    Outrageous Predictions

    Taylor Swift-Kelce wedding spikes global growth

    John J. Hardy

    Global Head of Macro Strategy

    Next year’s most anticipated wedding inspires Gen Z to drop the doomscrolling and dial up the real w...
  • Despite concerns, U.S. 2026 mid-term elections proceed smoothly

    Outrageous Predictions

    Despite concerns, U.S. 2026 mid-term elections proceed smoothly

    John J. Hardy

    Global Head of Macro Strategy

    In spite of outstanding threats to the American democratic process, the US midterms come and go cord...
  • Obesity drugs for everyone – even for pets

    Outrageous Predictions

    Obesity drugs for everyone – even for pets

    Jacob Falkencrone

    Global Head of Investment Strategy

    The availability of GLP-1 drugs in pill form makes them ubiquitous, shrinking waistlines, even for p...

The information on or via the website is provided to you by Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. (“Saxo Bank”) for educational and information purposes only. The information should not be construed as an offer or recommendation to enter into any transaction or any particular service, nor should the contents be construed as advice of any other kind, for example of a tax or legal nature.

All trading carries risk. Loses can exceed deposits on margin products. You should consider whether you understand how our products work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

Saxo Bank does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information provided and shall not be responsible for any errors or omissions or for any losses or damages resulting from the use of such information.

The content of this website represents marketing material and is not the result of financial analysis or research. It has therefore not been prepared in accordance with directives designed to promote the independence of financial/investment research and is not subject to any prohibition on dealing ahead of the dissemination of financial/investment research.

Saxo Bank (Schweiz) AG
The Circle 38
CH-8058
Zürich-Flughafen
Switzerland

Contact Saxo

Select region

Switzerland
Switzerland

All trading carries risk. Losses can exceed deposits on margin products. You should consider whether you understand how our products work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. To help you understand the risks involved we have put together a general Risk Warning series of Key Information Documents (KIDs) highlighting the risks and rewards related to each product. The KIDs can be accessed within the trading platform. Please note that the full prospectus can be obtained free of charge from Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. or the issuer.

This website can be accessed worldwide however the information on the website is related to Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. All clients will directly engage with Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. and all client agreements will be entered into with Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. and thus governed by Swiss Law. 

The content of this website represents marketing material and has not been notified or submitted to any supervisory authority.

If you contact Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. or visit this website, you acknowledge and agree that any data that you transmit to Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd., either through this website, by telephone or by any other means of communication (e.g. e-mail), may be collected or recorded and transferred to other Saxo Bank Group companies or third parties in Switzerland or abroad and may be stored or otherwise processed by them or Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. You release Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. from its obligations under Swiss banking and securities dealer secrecies and, to the extent permitted by law, data protection laws as well as other laws and obligations to protect privacy. Saxo Bank (Switzerland) Ltd. has implemented appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect data from unauthorized processing and disclosure and applies appropriate safeguards to guarantee adequate protection of such data.

Apple, iPad and iPhone are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc.