Blockchain, DeFi and Evolving Regulatory Issues

Catalog description

DeFi and Evolving Regulatory Issues will meet on an accelerated timeline (8 weeks). This course provides students with foundational knowledge of the blockchain technology, its applications in decentralized finance (DeFi) and the evolution of the U.S. regulatory landscape in this space. By the end of the course, students should have a solid grasp of how proof-of-work and proof-of-stake blockchains work, along with the inner workings of the numerous well-known DeFi protocols built on the Ethereum blockchain. The course will discuss numerous case studies involving crypto payment, lending, investment and crypto exchanges. Students should also be able to independently analyze what potential regulatory issues a future blockchain product or service might face and how to address them. The course will place a heavy emphasis on crypto securities analysis and investment management-related regulatory issues. It will also introduce students to basic broker-dealer and securities exchange concepts under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.