EY’s Paul Brody Expects Consumer DeFi Ignition in 2021

Welcome to the world of boomer DeFi.

AccessTimeIconJan 27, 2021 at 8:00 a.m. UTC
Updated May 9, 2023 at 3:15 a.m. UTC
10 Years of Decentralizing the Future
May 29-31, 2024 - Austin, TexasThe biggest and most established global hub for everything crypto, blockchain and Web3.Register Now

Chief among EY blockchain lead Paul Brody’s predictions for 2021: Financial institutions will bring decentralized finance (DeFi) to a consumer audience.

“If I had to make a bold prediction,” Brody told CoinDesk last week, “I think by the end of 2021 at least one major financial institution will up the game on everybody else by offering some form of consumer DeFi, accessible through their single transactional window to a large consumer base.”

  • How Spool Is Aiming to Help Institutions Enter DeFi
    11:05
    How Spool Is Aiming to Help Institutions Enter DeFi
  • The U.S. Is Weighing Crypto Tax Rules: What Could Happen Next?
    05:37
    The U.S. Is Weighing Crypto Tax Rules: What Could Happen Next?
  • How a New Tax Proposal From the IRS Could Impact DeFi
    00:46
    How a New Tax Proposal From the IRS Could Impact DeFi
  • DeFi's Total Value Locked Slumps to Lowest Level Since February 2021: Data
    03:20
    DeFi's Total Value Locked Slumps to Lowest Level Since February 2021: Data
  • Bold indeed. Large institutions may be warming to digital assets but DeFi, the surging bricolage of crypto lending platforms (with a total value locked of over $25 billion), is not for the uninitiated.

    EY’s blockchain team is always talking to banks and enterprise players, said Brody, and large companies are seeing things like Square’s published bitcoin numbers for its Cash App (growing at 700% per annum), and they want a piece.

    Brody has gained kudos for his close attention to privacy tech like zero-knowledge proofs, and how such techniques can help bring public blockchains within the firewalls of big businesses. Most recently, Brody teamed with ConsenSys engineer John Wolpert to create the Baseline Protocol, an Ethereum-based reconciliation system for enterprise firms.

    Asked which large companies he sees launching consumer DeFi, Brody believes this will emerge via app services: the Robinhoods, PayPals and Publics of the world. 

    “It's going to be one of the newer-generation app services that are busy integrating everything within a single transactional window, where you can buy crypto, you can have bank deposits, you can buy stocks, etc.,” Brody said.

    That said, industrializing DeFi connectivity is not going to be a free-for-all, Brody added. “It will be a very carefully curated set of offerings, and firms will have to really think through how they explain and sell these things to the general public.”

    Key ingredients

    Two major catalysts will help this DeFi conversion take place, according to Brody. Firstly, the testing, auditing and hardening of smart contracts; secondly, the inclusion of regulated stablecoins in the space. 

    “Regulated stablecoins will make it a more mature sector for institutional investors and for the big money to come in,” said Brody. “And while some traders think the volatility of crypto is a feature, not a bug, the value proposition of DeFi isn't based on the volatility of crypto. It's based on the ability to put your money to work in an automated fashion.”

    A final piece of the institutional DeFi puzzle is the introduction of real-world assets into the on-chain space.

    “It can’t just be other virtual assets,” said Brody. “It must go beyond that, whether a piece of property or a stock that can be used in an automated DeFi ecosystem.” 

    Bringing real-world assets into DeFi is an alluring idea, but there are tricky questions around how to plug the on-chain world into the real world, how to settle disputes and so on.

    “This is where I have long believed there's an enormous role for independent third parties,” said Brody. “There is no algorithm or voting process, I believe, that you can use to do dispute resolution.”

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.