# DeFi Related Articles

HTX News Center provides the latest articles and in-depth analysis on "DeFi", covering market trends, project updates, tech developments, and regulatory policies in the crypto industry.

North Korea steals $2.8B in 2 years – Here’s what U.S. Treasury wants to do

The U.S. Treasury is intensifying efforts to combat illicit financial activities involving digital assets, as highlighted in a report under the GENIUS Act. The study identifies significant risks, particularly with stablecoins, which accounted for 84% of illicit crypto transactions in 2025. The Treasury recommends enhanced monitoring using AI and real-time blockchain analytics, and proposes treating major stablecoin issuers like regulated financial institutions. The report also underscores growing threats from state-backed actors, notably North Korea, which stole an estimated $2.8 billion in crypto over two years to fund weapons programs. These findings support legislative push for acts like the CLARITY Act to establish clearer regulatory frameworks for digital assets.

ambcryptoYesterday 01:02

North Korea steals $2.8B in 2 years – Here’s what U.S. Treasury wants to do

ambcryptoYesterday 01:02

Solana vs Ethereum – $4.4T traded, RWA holders flipped – But who wins?

Solana's trading activity has surged over three years, accumulating $4.4 trillion in total volume. Weekly trading, once below $10 billion, grew significantly in 2024, often reaching $20–40 billion and briefly spiking to $120–130 billion during memecoin-driven speculation. It has since stabilized around $12–15 billion, reflecting sustained retail demand due to its low-fee structure. In Real World Assets (RWA), Solana surpassed Ethereum in holder count (154,942 vs. 153,592), indicating broader retail accessibility. However, Ethereum leads in RWA value ($15.45B vs. $1.79B), maintaining its role as the institutional hub. Despite high trading volume, Solana's liquidity is thinner (0.4 liquidity-to-volume ratio vs. Ethereum’s 4.57), making it efficient for small trades but challenging for large orders. It benefits from $15.4B in stablecoin supply and high throughput with minimal fees. Ethereum retains a structural advantage with deeper liquidity and institutional settlement capabilities.

ambcrypto2 days ago 10:02

Solana vs Ethereum – $4.4T traded, RWA holders flipped – But who wins?

ambcrypto2 days ago 10:02

The Most Insane Ethereum L2: An L2 Spontaneously Built by Self-Organizing AI Agents

The article explores the concept of AI agents autonomously forming and operating an Ethereum L2 chain. While currently AI agents (enabled by standards like ERC-8004) can migrate to existing L2s for better performance (lower gas, higher throughput), fully autonomous L2 creation is not yet feasible by 2026. However, as infrastructure matures (e.g., zk-rollups, modular DA like Celestia), agents could collaboratively deploy and manage L2 components. They might use on-chain economic incentives (via x402 payments) to "hire" human or AI-run services (sequencers, RPC providers, bridges) and form decentralized networks. Key challenges include infrastructure setup, consensus security, and regulatory hurdles, but multi-agent systems could eventually enable self-organizing, efficient L2s tailored for AI economies.

marsbit2 days ago 07:19

The Most Insane Ethereum L2: An L2 Spontaneously Built by Self-Organizing AI Agents

marsbit2 days ago 07:19

Pantera Capital: What Changes Have We Made as Crypto Becomes a Service?

Pantera Capital outlines the industry's evolution from "crypto as an industry" to "crypto as a service," predicting 2026 as the pivotal year. The focus shifts from blockchain-centric hype to seamless integration, where technology becomes invisible to users while solving real-world problems efficiently. Key trends include crypto's structural advantages, like 24/7 markets outperforming traditional finance during geopolitical events, and Asia's growing dominance in areas like stablecoin-based cross-border payments, tokenization, and DeFi perpetual trading. The fund’s investment strategy reflects this shift: Novig disrupts sports betting with a P2P model that drastically improves user payouts; Based offers a seamless consumer super-app abstracting complex blockchain interactions; and Doppler provides institutional-grade infrastructure for asset issuance. Other focus areas include real-world asset tokenization, AI agents leveraging blockchain for verifiable data, and agent-based payments. The advice to founders is clear: prioritize solving tangible problems over showcasing technology, as true adoption happens when the tech becomes invisible yet indispensable.

marsbit2 days ago 03:04

Pantera Capital: What Changes Have We Made as Crypto Becomes a Service?

marsbit2 days ago 03:04

Aave’s revenue surges despite DAO turmoil – Is lending DeFi’s backbone now?

Despite internal governance turmoil, Aave has demonstrated strong and consistent revenue growth, underscoring the resilience of lending protocols as a stable revenue engine within DeFi. While speculative sectors like DEXs and NFTs experience volatility, Aave generated $1.62 million in daily fees and $82.14 million over 30 days, supported by $32.4 billion in TVL. Its stablecoin utilization rates remain near 60–70%, reflecting sustained borrowing demand rather than speculative activity. With cumulative revenue approaching $145 million over the past year and over $1 trillion in total loan volume, Aave continues to function as DeFi’s core on-chain credit infrastructure, facilitating trading, arbitrage, and treasury management activities.

ambcrypto2 days ago 03:02

Aave’s revenue surges despite DAO turmoil – Is lending DeFi’s backbone now?

ambcrypto2 days ago 03:02

$35M Diverted To Crypto: Ex-CFO Gets 2-Year Prison Term

Nevin Shetty, the former CFO of a Seattle tech startup, was sentenced to two years in federal prison for secretly transferring $35 million of company funds into a cryptocurrency platform he controlled. Without authorization, he invested the money in high-yield DeFi protocols, initially earning $133,000. However, the May 2022 collapse of the Terra ecosystem caused the investments to plummet to nearly zero. Shetty confessed only after the loss and was fired immediately. Indicted in 2023 and found guilty on four counts of wire fraud, he was also ordered to repay the stolen funds and serve three years of supervised release. The case highlights the risks of crypto misconduct and increased federal scrutiny.

bitcoinist2 days ago 23:02

$35M Diverted To Crypto: Ex-CFO Gets 2-Year Prison Term

bitcoinist2 days ago 23:02

Should PEPE traders brace for volatility as short squeeze potential builds?

The memecoin market has declined significantly, with PEPE showing particular weakness. Its price is under pressure and trading near local lows, with bearish charts and declining Open Interest. However, a potential short squeeze could occur due to high short liquidation levels overhead. PEPE's price action is heavily dependent on Bitcoin, which may drop further. Traders are advised to wait, as PEPE could either fall lower or bounce sharply, typical of memecoins. The overall outlook suggests more potential losses in the short term, but acknowledges the possibility of rapid rallies even during market stress.

ambcrypto03/07 18:02

Should PEPE traders brace for volatility as short squeeze potential builds?

ambcrypto03/07 18:02

Single Swing Vote May Determine Fate Of The CLARITY Act In Banking Committee

Despite strong White House backing, the CLARITY Act, a major crypto market structure bill, remains stalled in the Senate Banking Committee due to political divisions. A key obstacle is the ongoing dispute over stablecoin rewards, with Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) emerging as the pivotal swing vote. His proposed amendments to limit these rewards previously caused Coinbase to withdraw its support. While the bill could pass along party lines if Democrats oppose it, Tillis' support is critical for advancement. Negotiations are now focused on finding minimal acceptable language rather than a full resolution. Other contentious issues, like DeFi, have been sidelined. There is cautious optimism for progress within three weeks, potentially allowing a committee vote by late March.

bitcoinist03/07 13:02

Single Swing Vote May Determine Fate Of The CLARITY Act In Banking Committee

bitcoinist03/07 13:02

OmniPact Secures $50 Million to Advance Trust Infrastructure

OmniPact, a decentralized protocol building a trust layer for peer-to-peer transactions, has raised $50 million in a private funding round from a consortium of anonymous institutional investors and family offices. The funds will accelerate the development of its mainnet, cross-chain features, and decentralized arbitration module. A significant portion will support security audits of core contracts, the testnet launch scheduled for Q1 2026, and team expansion to integrate real-world asset (RWA) and AI agent transaction capabilities. Co-founder and CEO Alex Johnson stated that the investment validates their vision of a neutral, transparent, and trustless foundation for commerce. The protocol uses smart contracts as on-chain guarantors, combining algorithmic custody with decentralized arbitration and reputation systems to eliminate intermediaries and enable secure exchanges of both physical and digital assets. Founded in 2024, OmniPact aims to solve the "trust problem" in Web4 and traditional commerce by returning control and security to users worldwide.

TheNewsCrypto03/07 10:36

OmniPact Secures $50 Million to Advance Trust Infrastructure

TheNewsCrypto03/07 10:36

Buterin Says Ethereum Must Rethink Its Future: Here’s Why

Vitalik Buterin urges the Ethereum ecosystem to embrace bold innovation at the application layer while maintaining uncompromising core guarantees at the base layer. He emphasizes that censorship resistance, open source, privacy, and security (CROPS) are non-negotiable for Ethereum's L1. Buterin calls for a fundamental rethink of applications, wallets, and culture, suggesting AI will play a major role in next-generation wallets—though high-value transactions should still require user confirmation. He also highlights the need for privacy-first design, rethinking L2 scaling solutions, and breaking away from "respectable" cultural norms to unlock greater creativity. Buterin challenges builders to imagine Ethereum's application layer from a blank slate, free from current path dependencies.

bitcoinist03/07 09:18