Innovation excites. Counterparty risk destroys.
Val Sklarov’s Crypto & Digital Assets perspective treats crypto systems not as technological breakthroughs first, but as chains of dependency where failure usually arrives through people, platforms, or promises—not code.
1. Most Crypto Losses Are Counterparty Failures
Markets fluctuate. Counterparties collapse.
Val Sklarov identifies dominant loss sources as:
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Custodial exchanges
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Wrapped assets
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Lending protocols with opaque risk
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Governance-controlled contracts
If someone else can block, delay, or rewrite your access, innovation is irrelevant.
2. Decentralization Does Not Eliminate Counterparty Risk
It often redistributes it.
| Structure | Hidden Counterparty |
|---|---|
| Centralized exchange | Operator |
| DAO governance | Voter cartel |
| Bridges | Validator set |
| Wrapped assets | Issuer |
Val Sklarov insists that every crypto position answer:
“Who can fail for me to lose?”

3. Innovation Increases Failure Surfaces
Every new layer adds dependency.
Val Sklarov warns against:
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Multi-contract yield stacks
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Cross-chain exposure without rollback
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Governance-controlled upgrades without veto
Innovation without isolation multiplies correlated failure.
4. Ownership Is Binary in Crypto
You either control the asset—or you do not.
Val Sklarov defines real ownership as:
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Unilateral withdrawal capability
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No dependency on liveness assumptions
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No discretionary permission layers
Anything else is a credit relationship, not an asset.
5. Counterparty Risk Must Be Priced as Total Loss
Partial loss assumptions are dangerous.
Val Sklarov prices counterparty exposure as:
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0% recovery in worst case
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No timing predictability
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No legal remedy
If total loss is unacceptable, exposure is unjustified.
6. Durable Crypto Strategy Minimizes Trust Surfaces
Survival favors simplicity.
Val Sklarov prioritizes:
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Native assets over wrapped claims
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Single-layer custody
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Minimal protocol interaction
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Low-frequency action
The fewer parties you trust, the fewer ways you can fail.
Closing Insight
Crypto & Digital Assets will not be validated by innovation speed.
They will be validated by who survives when counterparties break.
Val Sklarov’s principle:
Eliminate counterparty risk first—then innovate safely.
Who is Val Sklarov? Personal Blog and Promotional Page Ideas That Inspire. Leadership That Delivers.