The hottest DeFi Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Crypto Topics

"Products" & "Protocols" are NOT the same

@MacBrennan’s Investor Updates • 58 implied HN points • 08 Aug 23
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Products are applications that define user experiences and focus on capturing markets.
  2. Protocols are infrastructure enabling specific product experiences and compete on resources and architecture.
  3. Successful products retain and grow through effective distribution, while successful protocols aggregate resources and serve multiple products.

Welcome to Ronin, Transak!

Ronin’s Newsletter • 86 implied HN points • 06 Dec 24
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Transak is now a part of Ronin, providing more ways for users to buy crypto easily. It helps people convert their regular money into digital currency like RON and USDC.
  2. You can now buy NFTs on Mavis Market using a debit or credit card. This makes it a lot simpler and faster to get NFTs.
  3. Users in many countries can buy RON, USDC, and SLP directly with their cards through Transak. KYC checks might be needed depending on where you are.

Top Reasons to Build DeFi dApps on Concordium

Concordium Monthly Updates • 39 implied HN points • 01 Jun 23
🕹 Technology DeFi
  1. Concordium offers sponsored transactions to cover transaction fees, reducing barriers for users and encouraging wider adoption.
  2. Verifiable credentials on Concordium enhance identity verification, privacy, and compliance in DeFi applications.
  3. Concordium features fast finality, shielding transactions, high throughput, low fees, and a secure platform for efficient and secure DeFi dApps.

A Beginner's Guide to Crypto: Trials and Tribulations of a Web3 Newbie

The Otonomist • 19 implied HN points • 31 Jan 24
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. The first step in the crypto world is understanding the difference between centralized and decentralized wallets.
  2. When navigating through buying and trading cryptocurrencies, it's important to be mindful of transaction fees and how they can impact your investments.
  3. Crypto offers opportunities beyond traditional payments, such as swapping coins, investing for profit, and exploring the world of decentralized finance (DeFi).
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2023 Reflections

@MacBrennan’s Investor Updates • 19 implied HN points • 24 Dec 23
🕹 Technology DeFi
  1. 2023 was about conviction, investment, and hard work to set the foundation for future growth
  2. Launches like mrgnlend, LST, and mrgn points were key accomplishments in innovation and growth
  3. Prioritizing mental and physical health, investing in knowledge, and more travel with friends are personal goals for 2024

The Weekly Trifecta #1: 7/2 - 7/8

The Average Joe’s Crypto • 19 implied HN points • 10 Jul 23
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Flashstake announced Flash 2.0 with veToken model, architecture overhaul, and governance changes
  2. nftperp paused v1 Private Beta due to vAMM issues and bad debt accumulation
  3. Camelot Exchange updated Arbitrum governance proposal to grant ARB tokens for liquidity incentives

What are Token Bound Accounts?

skry • 19 implied HN points • 20 Jun 23
🕹 Technology DeFi
  1. EIP-6551 proposes Token Bound Accounts for ERC-721 NFTs without requiring changes to existing contracts.
  2. Token Bound Accounts enable diverse functionalities like NFT composability and on-chain reputation tracking.
  3. Token Bound Accounts face challenges like gas costs, delegated permissions, front running, and malicious implementations which are being addressed.

Giá trị của tiền số

Thái | Hacker | Kỹ sư tin tặc • 99 implied HN points • 04 May 21
🕹 Technology DeFi
  1. The value of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum can be volatile, leading to potential financial risks and scams in the digital currency market.
  2. Blockchain technology, while initially designed for cryptocurrencies, has been overhyped as a solution for various issues, despite reports questioning its optimal use.
  3. Cryptocurrencies have the potential to revolutionize global financial transactions by providing programmable digital assets, offering benefits like borderless transactions and decentralized finance opportunities.

A new era for Bitcoin.

The Held Report • 37 implied HN points • 03 Jan 24
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Bitcoin DeFi is important for Bitcoin's future and adoption
  2. DeFi can lead to more speculative use cases and adoption
  3. The Held Report will focus on Bitcoin DeFi and may switch to paid in the future

Stacks gets a big upgrade: Nakamoto and sBTC

The Held Report • 11 implied HN points • 14 Dec 24
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. The Nakamoto upgrade makes the Stacks network faster and more reliable. With quicker transaction confirmations, users can expect to see their transactions completed much more quickly than before.
  2. sBTC will enable a secure way to bring Bitcoin into the Stacks ecosystem. This means Bitcoin can be used in new and exciting decentralized applications without the usual risks.
  3. The growth of Bitcoin DeFi is gaining attention thanks to upgrades like Nakamoto and sBTC. These changes will help developers create innovative applications that take advantage of Bitcoin's capabilities.

A Monetary Blockchain is Less Secure

muk’s Newsletter • 1 HN point • 21 Mar 23
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Fiat-backed stablecoins can control the fate of blockchain like Ethereum, impacting DeFi usage.
  2. Commodity blockchains derive value from internal functions which do not rely on external acceptance for utility.
  3. Blockchain's reliance on external approval for value can hinder its security and robustness as a monetary system.

Tokenized Bitcoin: Extending Bitcoin’s Utility

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 03 Jun 25
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Tokenized Bitcoin like WBTC and cbBTC makes Bitcoin useful across different blockchain networks. This helps people use Bitcoin in various ways, not just as a store of value.
  2. WBTC is the biggest wrapped Bitcoin option, but cbBTC is quickly gaining popularity, especially on platforms like Base and Solana. Together, they have significant activity in decentralized finance (DeFi).
  3. These tokenized Bitcoins allow users to engage in trading and lending without selling their actual Bitcoin. They open up new financial opportunities while also involving some risks related to how they are managed.

The After-Effects of Ethereum’s Pectra Upgrade

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 27 May 25
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. The Pectra upgrade for Ethereum increased the maximum balance a validator can hold, allowing for better rewards and encouraging the consolidation of multiple validators into one.
  2. The upgrade also doubled the available blob space, which improves how Layer-2 solutions can operate, making transactions cheaper and faster for users.
  3. Early results show that more blobs are being used, and transaction counts have significantly increased, but there's still potential for even more growth in usage.

Ronin is heading to EthCC Cannes!

Ronin’s Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 23 Jun 25
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Ronin is hosting a hackathon at EthCC Cannes from July 4th to 6th, offering a $5,000 prize pool for developers to create dApps. It's a great chance to join a fun three-day building event.
  2. They are interested in innovative dApps focusing on gamified finance, social platforms, AI, and real-world applications. Creators are encouraged to think outside the box and bring fun ideas to life.
  3. Building on Ronin provides access to a large user base of 800,000 monthly active users, mainly in Southeast Asia, the U.S., and Latin America. Developers can also get support and funding opportunities from the Ronin team.

Rethinking Yield Aggregation

Saturation • 0 implied HN points • 08 May 25
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. DeFi has lots of platforms for trading, lending, and bridging assets, making it easier for users to get the best deals. More than $300 billion was processed through aggregators in 2024, showing there's a strong demand for these services.
  2. Yield aggregation works differently than regular trading or lending. It's more about building long-term strategies and can be more complex, since interest rates can change and affect yields over time.
  3. A new approach to yield aggregation could improve how loans and yields are managed. By using advanced systems to track and compare yields across different platforms and chains, borrowers and lenders could get better deals and less risk.

The Crypto AI Bubble Burst. Its Next Run Could Get Weird.

Reverie by Daniel Cawrey • 0 implied HN points • 19 Dec 25
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. The AI-crypto hype cycle collapsed, but because both AI and crypto keep advancing, the sector is likely to come back in a new and stranger wave.
  2. Very cheap token launches and low onchain fees mean AI agents could be paid small amounts of crypto to perform tasks like trading or giving financial advice, creating real demand for tokens.
  3. Tokenization can unlock new markets (real‑world assets, ads, prediction markets), but coupling that with AI agents could lead to unpredictable, highly volatile market behavior and new systemic risks.

Tokenized Equities and the Rise of xStocks on Solana

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 09 Dec 25
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Tokenized equities are still very small today but have huge upside because even a tiny share of the ~$145T global equities market would translate to hundreds of billions or more on chain.
  2. xStocks on Solana are a working example: fully collateralized, 1:1 backed tokens that enable near‑instant settlement, fractional ownership and DeFi composability, and have grown to roughly $186M AUM.
  3. Adoption is early and concentrated in a few tickers, and major hurdles remain — inconsistent securities rules across jurisdictions, thin liquidity and off‑hours volatility, and operational risks like custody and smart‑contract reliability.

Uniswap Flips the Fee Switch: From Governance Token to Value Accrual

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 13 Jan 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Uniswap turned on a fee switch that routes protocol fees into burning UNI, shifting the token from governance-only to one that directly accrues value through deflationary fee capture.
  2. Early data points to about $26M annualized protocol fees and roughly 4–5M UNI burned per year plus a 100M retroactive burn, which means UNI’s current market value embeds very strong growth expectations (around a ~207x revenue multiple).
  3. This change reflects a broader DeFi trend toward fee-linked token models (burns, staker payouts, vote-escrow) to better align holders with protocol economics, but ultimate value depends on fee capture, volume growth, LP incentives, and regulation.

Crypto’s Constructive Start to 2026

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 06 Jan 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. The crypto market started 2026 on a constructive note: Bitcoin rallied toward $94K and total market cap approached $3.3T, with pockets of altcoin strength showing renewed risk appetite despite geopolitical uncertainty.
  2. Institutional flows resumed—spot Bitcoin ETFs logged roughly $400M in net inflows—while whale selling cooled and retail accumulation increased, and corporate treasuries continued adding BTC and ETH.
  3. Market structure looks cautiously bullish: options and futures positioning favor upside (calls clustered near $100K BTC and $3,500 ETH), stablecoin flows have stabilized and turned positive, and on‑chain activity—especially Ethereum transactions—remains robust.

Monthly Market Update: January 2026

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 27 Jan 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Gold crossed $5,000/oz as geopolitical tensions drove a strong safe‑haven rotation, while Bitcoin ended the month roughly flat despite a mid‑month rally to about $97K.
  2. MicroStrategy accumulated roughly 37,215 BTC (~$3.5B) in January, but large late‑month ETF outflows and thinning liquidity kept Bitcoin from holding its highs.
  3. Market infrastructure continued to mature: Ethereum staking reached all‑time highs (over 30% of supply), the NYSE unveiled a tokenized securities platform, and BitGo completed a public IPO.

February 2026 Market Update: Crypto Caught Between Gold & Growth

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 24 Feb 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Crypto entered a sharp correction as fading risk appetite, thin order books, and deleveraging amplified volatility across major tokens.
  2. Institutional demand has softened — negative Coinbase premium, spot ETF outflows, and stalled stablecoin growth point to retreating flows, even as tokenization and on‑chain integration with traditional finance (like onchain perpetuals and tokenized funds) continue to deepen.
  3. Prices have reset toward a value zone with Bitcoin near its realized price and valuation metrics compressed, suggesting forced selling may be waning; a durable rebound likely needs a return of flows, stronger liquidity, and clearer regulatory signals.

Curious Case of USDC on Base

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 18 Feb 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. USDC transfer volume exploded in January 2026, driven mainly by USDC on Base and producing trillions in adjusted transfer value and very high onchain velocity.
  2. About half of Base’s USDC activity comes from DeFi plumbing — large LP rebalances on Aerodrome and flash‑loan/arbitrage activity on Morpho — driven by automated strategies that move huge sums with little net economic change.
  3. Raw transfer volume can be misleading because it mixes mechanical DeFi flows with real payments and settlement, so we need more granular classification to understand how stablecoins are actually being used.

Perpetually Open: Tokenized Gold & The Rise of 24/7 Onchain Markets

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 10 Mar 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Onchain markets run 24/7 and can price macro assets in real time when traditional exchanges are closed, providing continuous price discovery during geopolitical shocks.
  2. Tokenized gold and onchain commodity perpetuals saw big flows and trading activity as investors used them for hedging and quick exposure to metals and oil.
  3. Permissionless perpetual platforms like Hyperliquid’s HIP‑3 have become meaningful venues for metals, energy, and equity exposure with rising volume and open interest, though liquidity and regulatory constraints mean the ecosystem is still early.

Analyst Spotlight: Aave Overview

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 04 Mar 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Aave uses conservative, asset-level risk controls like collateral rules, supply and borrow caps, and kinked interest-rate curves to reduce sudden liquidations and protect users.
  2. Revenue from Aave’s lending markets and the GHO stablecoin funds protocol development, security incentives, and AAVE token buybacks.
  3. Governance is driven by AAVE tokenholders, but development influence is split between the Aave DAO and Aave Labs, which raises questions about how fully decentralized control is.

Transaction Priority & Block Building on Ethereum

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 24 Mar 26
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Transactions can be intercepted and reordered by searchers and builders before they are confirmed, creating MEV opportunities like sandwich attacks that can hurt regular users.
  2. Block builders gather public and private transaction flow and bid in a proposer-builder auction, so how they order transactions directly determines how much value they can capture.
  3. These incentives favor a few dominant builders and raise centralization and censorship risks, and common mitigations include private transaction submission, skipping the public mempool, and moving activity to Layer-2s.

Step 1: Intro to Impact DAOs

Crypto Good • 0 implied HN points • 05 May 23
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Impact DAOs are decentralized organizations focused on doing good for people and the planet.
  2. Core purpose is crucial and should drive all actions, not just be an afterthought.
  3. Advantages of Impact DAOs include global participation, borderless setup, and decentralized decision-making.

Episode 90: Wetter than Wet, with SuperFluid

BlockChannel • 0 implied HN points • 01 Sep 23
🕹 Technology DeFi
  1. The episode discusses Superfluid and its monetary streaming protocols for crypto native firms.
  2. Superfluid enables traditional payouts with Ethereum innovations for added advantages.
  3. The episode highlights how Superfluid is shaping the next stage in DeFi's evolution.

EulerBeats could overturn the Music Industry and birth a Record Label DAO with its DeFi economics.

Activist Futurism • 0 implied HN points • 19 Feb 21
🕹 Technology DeFi
  1. EulerBeats has the potential to disrupt the music industry by introducing a Record Label DAO with DeFi economics.
  2. EulerBeats is expected to attract interest from musicians, the music industry, NFT collectors, and DeFi speculators.
  3. The creation of EulerBeats could mark a significant shift in how music and record labels operate, embracing decentralized finance principles.

Hashmasks in the Dark Forest, or why DeFi alphas will love farming Name Changing Tokens.

Activist Futurism • 0 implied HN points • 13 Feb 21
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Hashmasks are intriguing to DeFi enthusiasts because they offer opportunities for farming Name Changing Tokens.
  2. The DeFi mindset and skills of alpha players will influence the way the Hashmasks game is approached and played.
  3. Exploring how Hashmasks intersect with the Dark Forest highlights the potential for deep engagement by DeFi enthusiasts.

Bitcoin vượt 33K USD

Thái | Hacker | Kỹ sư tin tặc • 0 implied HN points • 02 Jan 21
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Bitcoin has crossed $33K, just 17 days after passing $20K, indicating a rapid increase in value.
  2. Despite altcoins like XRP struggling, Ethereum is predicted to be accepted as digital silver by institutions, with the launch of ETH futures on CME in February.
  3. The rise of DeFi as an alternative to ICO scams allows for borrowing and lending through smart contracts, offering opportunities for yield farming and liquidity mining.

The parallels between shitcoin sniping and pre-seed VC investing (Part 1/3)

Boltzmann Soul • 0 implied HN points • 15 May 24
💰 Finance DeFi
  1. Crypto bull runs occur every four years and can mint new millionaires and billionaires.
  2. Shitcoin sniping in meme coin trading has similarities to pre-seed VC investing, including the dominance of returns by power law and the impact of FOMO on deal economics.
  3. New traders in meme coin trading should pick a blockchain ecosystem, track PnL in the network's native token, and avoid getting influenced by noise like fake influencers and copy trading.

An Overview of the Flow Blockchain

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 15 Oct 24
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Flow is a Layer-1 blockchain built for quick, consumer-friendly apps. It uses a unique system to help scale and manage tasks efficiently.
  2. The recent Crescendo upgrade allows Flow to work with Ethereum's smart contracts, letting developers use tools from both ecosystems.
  3. Flow is popular for digital collectibles like NBA Top Shot and has low transaction fees, making it great for fast and affordable transactions.

Best of State of the Network in 2024

Coin Metrics' State of the Network • 0 implied HN points • 31 Dec 24
🔮 Crypto DeFi
  1. Bitcoin saw significant changes this year, especially with the launch of spot bitcoin ETFs and a major halving event, which affected miner revenues and the overall ecosystem.
  2. Ethereum is evolving with its modular structure, increasing staking opportunities, and upgrades like Dencun, making transactions more scalable and efficient.
  3. The stablecoin market grew tremendously, with new players entering the space, while decentralized exchanges became essential for trading and providing liquidity in the crypto landscape.