Georgetown Law
Technology Review

Decentralized Finance (DeFi) is an emerging and evolving area of technology, encompassing a variety of decentralized activities related to finance and financial services.1David Gogel, DeFi Beyond the Hype, WHARTON UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA 1-2 (May 2021), https://wifpr.wharton.upenn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/DeFi-Beyond-the- Hype.pdf [https://perma.cc/5XEJ-T8CZ]; CAMPBELL R. HARVEY ET AL., DEFI AND THE FUTURE OF FINANCE 6–7 (Apr. 5, 2021). This Technology Explainer provides an overview of DeFi, its underlying technology, a side-by-side comparison between DeFi and traditional finance and banking, and a brief overview of the challenges facing DeFi.