Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Opportunities and Risks

Instructor: Cam Harvey

Intermediate Level • 6 hours to complete Recommended experience • Flexible Schedule

What You'll Learn

  • A framework to evaluate DeFi risk; Environmental implications of cryptocurrency; and winners and losers in the future of finance.

Skills You'll Gain

Blockchain
Security Testing
Operational Risk
FinTech
Environmental Social And Corporate Governance (ESG)
Regulatory Compliance
Cyber Risk
Scalability
Governance
Risk Analysis
Transaction Processing
Risk Management
Financial Regulations

Shareable Certificate

Earn a shareable certificate to add to your LinkedIn profile

Outcomes

  • Learn new concepts from industry experts
  • Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
  • Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
  • Earn a shareable career certificate

There are 5 modules in this course

The first model explores both logic errors and economic exploits that characterize smart contract risk. We then focus on some specific exploits including the Yearn.finance exploit that utilized a massive flash loan.

The second model explores additional risks including governance attacks, DNS attacks, oracle vulnerabilities, and DEX risk. The module ends with an exploration of the different types of custodial arrangements and the risks that each approach creates.

Scaling risk is one of the biggest risks facing DeFi. Current capacity of the Ethereum blockchain is only about 15 transactions per second whereas the Visa network is 65,000. This module explores potential solutions to the scaling problem.

The final module explores the regulatory risk that the DeFi space faces from KYC/AML to the potential declaration that some DeFi tokens are securities. Central bank digital currencies are also explored. We then explore the environmental impact of Proof of Work consensus and the migration to the environmentally friendly Proof of Stake.