DeFi

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DeFi, short for decentralized finance, represents a shift in the financial sector by leveraging blockchain technology, primarily Ethereum, to eliminate traditional financial intermediaries. It enables various financial applications, from simple transactions to complex contracts, through smart contracts that execute automatically under specific conditions. Key DeFi applications include decentralized exchanges (DEXs), stablecoins, lending platforms, and prediction markets. DeFi offers financial services like loans and interest-earning opportunities without traditional identity verification, relying instead on collateral, usually in cryptocurrency. This innovative sector promises increased accessibility and efficiency but comes with risks, such as market volatility and unregulated projects.

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sharding (shutterstock)
JPMorgan Says Ethereum’s DeFi Dominance at Risk Due to ‘Sharding’ Delays
Analysts from the bank said that the scaling of the network might arrive too late.
sharding (shutterstock)

Stani Kulechov, founder of Aave, speaks at Consensus 2019. (CoinDesk archive)
Fireblocks ‘Whitelists’ 30 Trading Firms for Aave’s Institutional DeFi Debut
Aave Arc could usher in a new era of bank-friendly DeFi. Here’s how.
Stani Kulechov, founder of Aave, speaks at Consensus 2019. (CoinDesk archive)

Solana (Zack Seward/CoinDesk)
Solana DeFi Protocol Exotic Markets Raises $5M Ahead of Mainnet Launch
Multicoin and Ascensive Assets co-led the private token sale.
Solana (Zack Seward/CoinDesk)

Markets Daily Podcast Cover
Crypto News Roundup for Jan. 4, 2022
With bitcoin continuing to trade mostly flat and a look at the growing independence of altcoins, CoinDesk’s Markets Daily is back with the latest news roundup.
Markets Daily Podcast Cover

(Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Fantom (FTM) Surges, NEAR Sets Highs as Major Cryptos Stagnate
A revived interest in layer 1 bets is fueling growth in some tokens even as bitcoin shows signs of weakening.
(Raymond Boyd/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

An installation by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, after whom Polkadot's canary network is named. (Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)
Polkadot Gets DeFi Building Block as DEX Aggregator Dot Finance Migrates From BSC
The project will first launch on Moonriver, Moonbeam’s canary network on Kusama, before jumping to Moonbeam proper.
An installation by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, after whom Polkadot's canary network is named. (Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)

CRV extends five-month winning trend, decoupling from the weakness in top coins
CRV Extends Rally as ‘Curve Wars’ Intensify
More and more protocols are building off of Curve, and an entire ecosystem is emerging, engaged in the so-called Curve Wars, one analyst said.
CRV extends five-month winning trend, decoupling from the weakness in top coins

Cosmos (Zetong Li/Unsplash)
Cosmos-Based Exchange Osmosis Crosses $1B in Locked Value
Trading volume crossed $95 million on the decentralized exchange while prices of its native tokens surged to all-time highs.
Cosmos (Zetong Li/Unsplash)

Binance Is Firmly in the Regulatory Crosshairs
Binance Invests $12M in Liquidity Platform WOO Network
WOO had raised $30 million in November.
Binance Is Firmly in the Regulatory Crosshairs

The Estonian and EU flags. (Getty Images)
Estonia Regulator Says No Plans to Ban Crypto
The country’s Ministry of Finance shut down claims that owning and trading cryptocurrency would be banned under the proposed anti-money laundering legislation.
The Estonian and EU flags. (Getty Images)