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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Scaling Ethereum Without Trade-Offs: Inside EIP 4488
The upgrade could help lower transaction costs for rollups while the network waits for sharding to be implemented.
(Steven Puetzer/The Image Bank/Getty Images)

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‘DeFi 2.0’ Platform JellyFi Raises $4.4M Seed Round
Over-collateralized lending reigns supreme in DeFi. JellyFi wants to change that.
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(Clément Falize/Unsplash)
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Enso Finance, a new index and “social trading” protocol, is arriving on the scene in gruesome fashion.
(Clément Falize/Unsplash)

(Nuthawut Somsuk/iStock/Getty Images Plus, modified by CoinDesk)
Is the Decentralization in DeFi an ‘Illusion’?
A look at the recent report from the Bank for International Settlements.
(Nuthawut Somsuk/iStock/Getty Images Plus, modified by CoinDesk)

The headquarters of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is seen in Basel, Switzerland, on Tuesday, June 25, 2013. Central banks can't expand loose monetary policy without exacerbating risks to world economies, the Bank for International Settlements said this week. Photographer: Gianluca Colla/Bloomberg via Getty Images
DeFi’s Decentralization Is an Illusion: BIS Quarterly Review
The BIS review dedicated a special feature to discussing decentralized finance and its implications for financial stability.
The headquarters of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is seen in Basel, Switzerland, on Tuesday, June 25, 2013. Central banks can't expand loose monetary policy without exacerbating risks to world economies, the Bank for International Settlements said this week. Photographer: Gianluca Colla/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Is DeFi’s Decentralization Just an Illusion?
Is DeFi’s Decentralization Just an Illusion?
In its latest quarterly review, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) said decentralized finance (DeFi) has a centralization problem, and policymakers should use it to...
Is DeFi’s Decentralization Just an Illusion?

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BitMart CEO Says Stolen Private Key Behind $196M Hack
The crypto exchange’s CEO said the company will compensate affected users out of its own funds.
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The Solana conference's closing gala in Lisbon's main square. (Zack Seward/CoinDesk archives)
CoinDesk 20 Update: ATOM, ICP and SOL Are In; AAVE, GRT and UNI Are Out
Web 3 is replacing DeFi among the most traded currencies in crypto.
The Solana conference's closing gala in Lisbon's main square. (Zack Seward/CoinDesk archives)

Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky (CoinDesk archives)
Crypto Lender Celsius Admits Losses in $120M BadgerDAO Hack
However, the company didn’t specify the amount it lost.
Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky (CoinDesk archives)