2025 represented the definitive professionalization of the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. Moving beyond the retail-led cycles of the past, the industry successfully integrated with global capital markets through three primary vectors: regulated investment wrappers (ETFs), on-chain credit markets (RWAs), and the standardization of stablecoins as a global settlement layer. While the year saw record-breaking growth, highlighted by a $310 billion stablecoin market cap, it was also defined by a “Stress Test of Complexity.” The violent deleveraging events of Q4 revealed that while smart contract security has ... (full story)