Over the past decade, decentralized finance (DeFi) has emerged as a blockchain-based alternative to traditional financial systems—promising open access, automation, and the removal of institutional middlemen. But with this shift comes a profound rethinking of what trust, security, and financial autonomy actually mean. DeFi challenges the idea that banks or regulators are the default stewards of money. In their place, users are increasingly asked to trust the code that runs decentralized protocols. (read more...)