DEFI
What is DeFi?
Decentralized Finance, DeFi as a concept is to be able to offer almost all the financial services available with legacy and centralized institutions, typically banks, but on the blockchain. Whatever traditional services financial institutions provide can be expected to be offered through DeFi. In short, Defi is blockchain-based financial services that traditional financial services map into, creating new services or derivatives stemming from blockchain's unique features. Although we have had concepts like distributed computing and decentralized computing for decades, DeFi is in fact a new concept and an expansion of the application scope of blockchain as infrastructure.
Decentralized Finance, DeFi as a concept is to be able to offer almost all the financial services available with legacy and centralized institutions, typically banks, but on the blockchain. Whatever traditional services financial institutions provide can be expected to be offered through DeFi. In short, Defi is blockchain-based financial services that traditional financial services map into, creating new services or derivatives stemming from blockchain's unique features. Although we have had concepts like distributed computing and decentralized computing for decades, DeFi is in fact a new concept and an expansion of the application scope of blockchain as infrastructure.
Polygon Labs Critiques SEC Proposed Rulemaking That Threatens Permissionless Blockchain Networks
Polygon Labs, the leading blockchain technology firm, issued a response today to a proposed rule from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that redefines the term "exchange."
Chainalysis Employs Coinbase Commerce to Facilitate Crypto Payments, Broadening Support for DeFi Sector
Chainalysis has announced the integration of Coinbase Commerce into its payment systems. This new feature enables users to settle invoices with a diverse selection of digital assets, including a variety of DeFi tokens.
Cosmos-Based Defi Protocol Nolus Raises 2.5M to Build the First Cross-Chain Defi Lease
The Nolus DeFi Lease provides up to 150% financing on the initial investment with a lowered margin call risk and access to the underlying leveraged assets.
zkLink Announces First "Dunkirk Test" to Establish New DeFi Safety Standard
zkLink, a multi-chain trading middleware utilizing zero-knowledge proofs, announces the first "Dunkirk Test", a new DeFi safety standard, on May 11-13. During this event, zkLink will shut down its servers for 72 hours, inviting users to try the emergency asset recovery feature, and earn rewards for taking part in the test.
UK Considers New DeFi Tax Regime
The UK's taxation arm of the Treasury, HM Revenue and Customs, has launched a consultation seeking input from individuals and entities engaged in DeFi activities on a possible new tax regime. Under the proposed changes, crypto used in DeFi transactions would not be treated as a disposal for tax purposes, but a Capital Gains Tax would be triggered when cryptocurrencies are disposed of in a non-DeFi transaction.
US Treasury to Increase DeFi Regulation
The US Treasury conducted a risk assessment of DeFi, finding it lacking in AML/CFT compliance, and reported money laundering, scammers, and North Korean hackers benefiting from the sector. The Treasury response to Biden's executive order suggests more regulation for DeFi, including compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act.
1inch Joins Ethereum's zkSync Era for Faster DeFi Transactions
1inch, a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, has deployed its aggregation and limit order protocols on Ethereum's zkSync Era. The move is aimed at leveraging faster and cheaper transactions on the layer-2 scaling solution.
Cryptocurrency Soars in Q1 2023
CoinGecko's Q1 2023 Crypto Industry Report shows Bitcoin as the best-performing asset, with a gain of 72.4%. DeFi and NFTs have also surged, while stablecoins saw a drop in market cap due to Binance USD shutdown and USDC depeg. The overall market capitalization reached $1.2 trillion at the end of Q1.
BlockSec Launches Phalcon Fork for Private Chain Collaborative Testing
Blockchain security firm BlockSec has launched the Phalcon Fork toolkit for collaborative testing on private chains forked from the Ethereum mainnet. The toolkit provides more control for developers over testing, analysis, and debugging of transactions, while retaining services and states from the Ethereum mainnet. It also includes an integrated faucet for free fork network Ether (ETH) and Fork RPC for integration with Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible development frameworks.
Shapella Upgrade, Privacy Concerns, Hacks, and Financial Inclusion
The DeFi space had a busy week with the successful completion of the Shapella upgrade on Ethereum, concerns over privacy related to staking, a major DeFi hack, and a partnership between Fonbnk and Tanda to increase financial inclusion in Africa. The top 100 DeFi tokens had a bullish week, and Glassnode predicted only a small percentage of staked ETH would be withdrawn.