<
https://bylinetimes.com/2026/02/03/in-putins-orbit-the-crypto-politics-of-jeffrey-epstein-and-peter-thiel/>
"When Sputnik was launched by the USSR as the first satellite in space in 1957,
the West was caught flat‑footed by a moment of technical and cultural
revolution which had gone largely undetected over the preceding decade.
In a 2013 email, Jeffrey Epstein used the Sputnik analogy with a senior Russian
official, saying that “the same can now happen with Russia taking the lead in
finance,” arguing that instead of merely copying Silicon Valley and chasing
Microsoft, Apple and Google, Russia could “leapfrog the global community by
reinventing the financial system of the 21st century” through a new kind of
money and securitisation.
The Russian official was Sergey Belyakov. After graduating from the FSB spy
Academy, Belyakov had been a senior advisor to one of Vladimir Putin’s most
stalwart oligarchs and international operators, Oleg Deripaska — himself a
close associate of Epstein and Labour peer Peter Mandelson. By 2013, he was
Russia’s Deputy Minister of Economic Development.
Epstein reminded Belyakov that he had helped craft the derivatives markets in
the United States in the 1970s, and that this was a prelude to a “more advanced
disruptive securitisation scheme that is now made possible by technology.”
Russia, Epstein insisted, was “unique in its capability to execute on a grand
vision” for “a new form of money, on a worldwide basis… much larger than any
single project envisioned by any govt, and at its core not really that
difficult to bring to fruition.”
He had reason to believe he would be listened to at the highest levels.
Writing on 22 May 2013, Epstein revealed: “Putin asked me to be in St
Petersburg at the same time as his economic conference. I told him no. If he
wants to meet, he will need to set aside real time and privacy.”
This wasn’t idle gossip. Epstein shared it with Ehud Barak, the former Israeli
Prime Minister, who, weeks later, would meet Putin himself and could easily
verify the claim through Kremlin channels.
That is the lens for understanding the rest of the crypto network built around
Epstein, Vladimir Putin, Peter Thiel and Steve Bannon."
Via Susan ****
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
