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.

Markets

Aave, Uniswap, Sky Tokens Surge Over 20% as SEC Roundtable Spurs DeFi Optimism

Market observers heralded the SEC Chair Atkins' comments as positive development for the sector, with Binance founder CZ saying that June 9th "will be remembered as DeFi day."

By Oliver Knight, Krisztian SandorJun 10, 2025

SEC Chairman Paul Atkins (Jesse Hamilton/CoinDesk)

Policy

U.S. SEC Chair Says Working on 'Innovation Exemption' for DeFi Platforms

In a final SEC crypto roundtable, the securities watchdog dug into decentralized finance, with Chairman Paul Atkins promising efforts to ease developers' path.

By Jesse HamiltonJun 9, 2025

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins (Jesse Hamilton/CoinDesk)

Finance

Crypto Lender Maple Finance Expands to Solana With Chainlink

Maple’s ecosystem has allocated $500,000 in incentives and coordinated over $30 million in liquidity.

By Ian AllisonJun 5, 2025

Finance

Core Foundation, Bitcoin Layer 1 With Over $500M Staked BTC, Adds BitGo and KODA as Validators

Core Foundation has announced BitGo and KODA as new validators, enhancing institutional adoption of Bitcoin-native DeFi.

By Omkar GodboleJun 5, 2025

Core adds BitGo and KODA to the validator set. (Yamu_Jay/Pixabay)

Finance

DeFi Platform Cork Protocol Suffers $12M Smart Contract Exploit

Cork Protocol has paused all markets as a precaution.

By Oliver KnightMay 28, 2025

Hacker working on two laptops (Azamat E/Unsplash)

Markets

Alpaca Finance, Once a DeFi Giant on BNB Chain, Will Shut Down

The leveraged yield farming pioneer cites falling revenue, failed M&A talks, and last month’s Binance delisting as reasons for shutting down after a four-year run.

By Shaurya MalwaMay 27, 2025