The short answer: Citrini Research is an investment research firm founded by James van Geelen that publishes on Substack. It is best known for "The 2028 Global Intelligence Crisis," a February 2026 AI scenario that rattled the stock market, and for an October 2026 report on tokenization called "Breaking the Wall."
A company profile from The Pomp Podcast, hosted by Anthony Pompliano. Last updated: October 25, 2026.
Key takeaways
Citrini Research is an investment research firm founded by James van Geelen that publishes on Substack.
It is best known for "The 2028 Global Intelligence Crisis," a February 2026 AI scenario that rattled the stock market.
In October 2026 it published "Breaking the Wall," a 79-page report on tokenizing stocks, bonds and other assets.
What is Citrini Research?
Citrini Research publishes research on technology and markets, including AI, and runs the most-followed Substack newsletter, with more than 263,000 followers, CoinDesk reported in October 2026.
Its founder, James van Geelen, planned to go into medicine but changed course before medical school. He later founded an alternative medicine company that he sold to a private equity firm in 2018, according to Moneycontrol. He first drew Wall Street's attention after publicly disclosing a short position in Silicon Valley Bank in late 2022, months before the bank failed in March 2023.
Citrini Research is private and does not publish financial results.
What was "The 2028 Global Intelligence Crisis"?
In February 2026, Citrini published a scenario by van Geelen and Alap Shah imagining that fast AI progress triggers mass white-collar layoffs, pushes unemployment above 10% and sends stocks into a deflationary spiral, according to Wikipedia and Moneycontrol.
When markets opened the next day, a Monday, stocks slid. The S&P 500 finished down more than 1%, and a leading software ETF fell more than 4%, Moneycontrol reported. Van Geelen said his firm held no short positions in the companies named in the piece. "If I thought that stocks were going to move on this, I wouldn't have made it free," he was quoted as saying.
What is "Breaking the Wall"?
On October 8, 2026, Citrini published "Breaking the Wall", a 79-page paid report arguing that moving stocks, bonds and other assets onto blockchains will create new businesses in trading, lending and payments, CoinDesk reported. The report said the biggest winners may be companies collecting fees on that activity, not bitcoin or ether.
According to CoinDesk, the stocks it highlighted included Coinbase, Robinhood, Circle, Securitize, Figure, SoFi and Bullish. The report also asks whether AI agents moving deposits to the highest bidder could cause an "agentic bank run."
What did The Pomp Podcast say about Citrini Research?
Citrini came up on the October 10, 2026 episode with Jordi Visser, "Bitcoin Is the Toll Collector of the AI Economy | Jordi Visser". Quotes below are from the episode, with timestamps.
Pomp said a recent Citrini piece on crypto and Wall Street sounded like Jordi:
"if I did not know Citrini wrote it and I read through the notes of this, it could have been a Jordi Visser piece"
Jordi said Citrini made a connection he thinks is important:
"The one thing I don't hear enough about is the connection that Citrini did, which is agents to crypto is really important."
"So I think the pieces by Citrini, by BlackRock, by everyone is very important."
Every Pomp Podcast episode that discussed Citrini Research
Citrini Research came up in 1 recent episode of The Pomp Podcast. Each link opens the YouTube video at that moment.
Oct 10, 2026: Bitcoin Is the Toll Collector of the AI Economy | Jordi Visser. Pomp and Jordi Visser discussed Citrini's crypto research. Timestamps: 33:52 (Pomp on the Citrini piece), 36:58 (agents and crypto), 38:10 (Citrini and BlackRock).
Watch or listen to the episode
Bitcoin Is the Toll Collector of the AI Economy | Jordi Visser, released October 10, 2026. The Citrini discussion starts at 33:52.
Opinions from guests on The Pomp Podcast are their own. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy or sell any security.
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Where can I follow Citrini Research?
Citrini Research publishes on Substack.
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Frequently asked questions
What is Citrini Research?
An investment research firm founded by James van Geelen that publishes on Substack, focused on technology and markets.
Who founded Citrini Research?
James van Geelen.
What was the Citrini AI report?
"The 2028 Global Intelligence Crisis," a February 2026 scenario by van Geelen and Alap Shah about AI causing mass white-collar job losses. Stocks fell after it went viral.
What is Citrini's "Breaking the Wall"?
A 79-page October 2026 report arguing that tokenizing stocks, bonds and other assets will create new businesses, with fee-earning companies as the biggest winners.
Sources
Last updated: October 25, 2026
Anthony Pompliano is an entrepreneur, investor, and author who serves as Chairman and CEO of Silvia, Inc (SVIA) and invests through Pomp Investments. He is the host of The Pomp Podcast, where he interviews founders, investors and economists about bitcoin, markets, AI and the economy.
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This profile is for informational purposes only and reflects reporting available as of October 25, 2026, plus opinions shared on The Pomp Podcast. It is not investment advice. Do your own research before making any investment decision.
