Off-Chain Data Oracle Coercion: A Structural Failure in DeFi and Stablecoin Enforcement

Abstract

Decentralized finance and stablecoin systems rely extensively on off-chain data oracles to supply price feeds, reserve attestations, and external state signals. While often treated as neutral data providers, oracles constitute a critical enforcement surface vulnerable to coercion, capture, and strategic manipulation. This paper defines <b><i>Off-Chain Data Oracle Coercion</i></b> as a systemic risk whereby economic, governance, or infrastructural pressures distort oracle outputs without violating cryptographic correctness. We demonstrate how oracle coercion enables silent value extraction, destabilizes stablecoin pegs, and undermines regulatory compliance. A validator-enforced, logic-layer control model is proposed to restore oracle neutrality and ensure continuous, verifiable data integrity under MiCA-aligned supervision.