DeFi

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.

Policy

Regulatory Battle Over Tokenized U.S. Stocks Escalates, HSBC Says

Citadel Securities has urged the SEC to treat decentralized finance trading venues like traditional exchanges, a stance facing opposition from the crypto industry.

By Will Canny, AI Boost16 hours ago

Wall street signs, traffic light, New York City

Finance

A16z-Backed Daylight Brings Electricity Markets Onchain With New DeFi Protocol

The DayFi protocol aims to turn electricity cash flows into a crypto-native yield product, bridging capital to new solar power installations.

By Krisztian Sandor17 hours ago

Daylight founder Jason Badeaux (Daylight)

Opinion

Crypto Has Reinvented and Replatformed the Middle Man

For those of us who want to use crypto to make the world better, we need to start calling out this behavior for what it is: short-sighted, selfish, unwelcome greed, says VeChain co-founder Sunny Lu.

By Sunny LuDec 7, 2025

Finance

Blockdaemon, VerifiedX Join Forces to Deliver Mass-Market, Self-Custodial DeFi

The experience, which is designed to feel like Venmo or Cash App, allows users to earn yield on bitcoin (BTC) and stablecoins and borrow against their holdings.

By Jamie Crawley, AI BoostDec 4, 2025

Blockdaemon CEO and founder Konstantin Richter (Blockdaemon, modified by CoinDesk)

Finance

Plume Brings Institutional RWA Yield to Solana With Debut of Nest Vaults

Plume is bringing real-world yield to Solana with the rollout of its Nest vaults, giving the network’s users direct access to on-chain credit, Treasuries and receivables.

By Oliver KnightDec 4, 2025

Plume co-founders Teddy Pornprinya and Chris Yin (Plume, modified by CoinDesk)

Finance

Citadel Challenges DeFi Framework in Letter to SEC, Sparking Industry Outrage

A Citadel Securities letter to the SEC argues that some DeFi systems resemble traditional exchanges and should face comparable oversight.

By Oliver KnightDec 4, 2025

Tech

Firelight Introduces XRP Staking for DeFi Insurance Layer Against Exploits

The new protocol, developed by Sentora and Flare Network, aims to combine XRP yield opportunity with offering protection against DeFi hacks.

By Krisztian Sandor, AI BoostDec 3, 2025

Markets

AAVE Rallies 14% as Bybit, Mantle Integration Connects DeFi Lender to 70M Users

The DeFi lender's native token broke above key resistance level, eyeing $190 as the next target level.

By CD Analytics, Krisztian SandorDec 2, 2025

AAVE Jumps 4.36% to $188.19 on Strategic Partnerships and Institutional Integration

Tech

Anthropic Research Shows AI Agents Are Closing In on Real DeFi Attack Capability

Models tested by MATS and the Anthropic Fellows program generated turnkey exploit scripts and identified fresh vulnerabilities, suggesting automated exploitation is becoming technically and economically viable.

By Sam ReynoldsDec 2, 2025

Artificial Intelligence (Markus Winkler/Unsplash)

Finance

Unlimit Debuts Stable.com, a Decentralized Clearing House Built for Stablecoins

The new non-custodial platform brings stablecoin swaps and global fiat off-ramps into one place, aiming to make the process more seamless for users.

By Will Canny, AI BoostDec 2, 2025

Stablecoin networks (Unsplash, modified by CoinDesk)