Decentralized Finance: financial services such as lending, borrowing, and trading built on blockchains using smart contracts.
DeFi aims to recreate traditional financial services without banks or brokers acting as intermediaries. Instead, rules are encoded in smart contracts that run on blockchains, most commonly Ethereum and compatible networks.
Examples include decentralized exchanges where users swap tokens using liquidity pools, lending protocols where people deposit crypto to earn interest or borrow against collateral, and yield farming strategies that move funds between protocols in search of rewards. Supporters value its openness, since anyone with a crypto wallet can participate. However, DeFi carries significant risks: smart contract bugs, hacks, price manipulation, volatile collateral, and limited consumer protection. Regulators in many countries are still deciding how existing financial rules apply.
How quickly and easily an asset can be bought or sold, or converted into cash, without significantly affecting its price.
Smart ContractA program stored on a blockchain that automatically executes predefined actions when its conditions are met.
StablecoinA cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value, usually by being pegged to a fiat currency such as the US dollar.
Web3A vision of an internet built on blockchains, where users own their data, identity, and digital assets rather than relying on central platforms.
Yield FarmingA DeFi strategy in which users lend or stake crypto assets in protocols to earn rewards, often in the form of additional tokens.
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