Abstract Decentralized finance (DeFi) is rapidly transforming financial systems, yet its environmental, social, and economic sustainability implications remain underexplored. To address this gap, we conducted a structured review of peer-reviewed literature published between 2022 and 2025, drawing on 239 records retrieved from Scopus and Web of Science and screened through the PRISMA 2020 protocol in Covidence. The review combined bibliometric analysis, thematic mapping, and a systematic review to synthesize patterns, clusters, and critical insights. Bibliometric results show a sharp post-2023 rise in outputs, with China leading in publication volume and Switzerland achieving the highest citation impact, although collaboration networks remain fragmented and weakly connected. Thematic analysis reveals three dominant clusters: blockchain-driven financial innovation, AI and fintech applications for sustainability, and green economy transitions, highlighting DeFiâs dual role as a driver of transparency and inclusion but also a source of energy inefficiency and systemic risk. The systematic review further identifies regulatory gaps, particularly around Maximal Extractable Value (MEV), and emphasizes the need for energy-efficient consensus mechanisms, standardized ESG metrics for tokenized assets, and inclusive platform designs to bridge digital divides. By aligning DeFiâs disruptive potential with sustainability objectives, the study proposes hybrid governance models and interdisciplinary collaboration to foster a resilient, equitable, and low-carbon financial ecosystem, underscoring the urgency of balancing technological innovation with planetary boundaries to realize DeFiâs promise as a catalyst for sustainable development.
Mohammad Sharif Karimi, Omar Esqueda, Naveen Mahasen Weerasinghe
This study employs a quantile-on-quantile connectedness approach to analyze the asymmetric, distribution-dependent, and time-varying spillovers between FinTech indices and traditional financial markets. The results show that spillovers are concentrated in the distribution tails, with FinTech indices exhibiting strong co-movements with equities and Bitcoin under extreme conditions, while linkages with U.S. Treasury bonds are weaker and often inverse. Net connectedness analysis reveals that the S&P 500 and Bitcoin act as the primary transmitters of shocks into FinTech indices, whereas Treasuries generally serve as receivers, except during stress episodes when safe-haven flows or heightened credit risk reverse the direction of spillovers. The dynamic âTCI (Difference between the total direct connectedness and the reverse total connectedness) further demonstrates that FinTech indices serve as net transmitters in stable markets but become receivers during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Reserveâs tightening cycle of 2022â2023, and the FTX-driven crypto collapse. Segmental heterogeneity is also evident: distributed ledger firms are highly sensitive to cryptocurrency dynamics, alternative finance providers respond strongly to both equity and bond markets, and digital payments firms are primarily influenced by equity spillovers. Overall, the findings underscore FinTechâs dual roleâtransmitting shocks during tranquil periods but amplifying systemic vulnerabilities during crises. For investors, diversification benefits are state-dependent and largely disappear under adverse conditions. For regulators and policymakers, the results highlight the systemic importance of FinTechâequity and cryptoâledger linkages and the need to integrate FinTech exposures into macroprudential surveillance to contain volatility spillovers and safeguard financial stability.
Financial innovations have emerged as one of the most influential forces shaping contemporary commerce, redefining the mechanisms through which businesses operate, transact, and compete. As global markets become increasingly interconnected and digitalized, the demand for more efficient, secure, inclusive, and scalable financial systems continues to grow. This research article investigates the multi-dimensional role of financial innovationsâspanning digital payments, block chain technologies, neobanking, artificial intelligence in finance, and alternative lending modelsâand examines how these advancements are reshaping commercial practices, market structures, and customer experiences. The study draws from established literature, recent empirical findings, and theoretical frameworks to provide a comprehensive understanding of how financial innovations contribute to transactional efficiency, risk management, cost reduction, and value creation within commerce. The article further explores how financial innovations facilitate business expansion, enhance consumer accessibility, and support regulatory compliance through technologies such as RegTech and Insur Tech. Special emphasis is placed on the convergence of financial services with digital commerce platforms, leading to embedded finance models and the democratization of financial access for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Additionally, the study highlights emerging trends including decentralized finance (DeFi), tokenization of assets, real-time data analytics, and the growth of digital currenciesâeach of which represents a new frontier in commercial transformation. The findings suggest that while financial innovations bring unprecedented opportunities for growth, they also introduce challenges related to cyber security, regulatory uncertainty, data privacy, and operational risks. The paper concludes by identifying key future prospects and research directions, emphasizing the need for stronger governance models, global regulatory harmonization, and interdisciplinary research to unlock the full potential of financial innovations in commerce. The study contributes to ongoing scholarly discourse by offering a holistic and forward-looking perspective that can guide policymakers, businesses, researchers, and financial institutions.
The study is grounded on the significant shifts, central values, and increased influence of Blockchain Technology on the industries. It addresses Blockchain Technology starting theoretically as a cryptographic concept of the beginning through to its contribution as a primarycomponent of decentralized computing (Web3). The discussion begins as the key issues are examined, namely, decentralized agreement, cryptographic hashing, and immutability. Such subjects enable the Blockchain Technology to gain trust in cases where mediators were being used in the past. Moreover, the research considers the impacts of Blockchain Technology on such critical industries as Decentralized Finance (DeFi), supply chain management, and decentralized governance (DAOs).
Purpose: To investigate Bitcoinâs cyclic price behavior around scheduled halving events, develop a technicalâanalysisâbased active investment strategy tailored to these cycles, and rigorously assess its performance relative to a passive buyâandâhold benchmark. Design/Methodology/Approach: This research employs historical daily BTC /USD price series (June 2012âMay 2025), applies a suite of technical indicators to define systematic, halvingâanchored entry and exit rules, and then conducts rigorous statistical evaluations to test whether Bitcoinâs protocolâdriven supply cycles yield reproducible, actionable investment signals. Findings: Over thirteen overlapping sample windows, the active strategy outperforms passive BTC holding in ten, with positive âalphaâ coefficients that are statistically significant at the conventional 5% level in each of those windows (and, in most cases, with p-values below 2.5%). It captures outsized gains in post-halving bull runs (e.g. 2013, 2017, 2021) and meaningfully limits drawdowns in bear phases (e.g. 2014, 2018, 2022). Equity curve simulations demonstrate compounded account growth that markedly surpasses passive returns. Practical Implications: Crypto asset managers and individual investors can implement the halvingâcentric strategy using readily available charting tools and APIâaccessible price feeds to automate buy/sell signals, thereby enhancing return potential and mitigating drawdowns without requiring deep onâchain analytics expertise. This framework also provides a transparent riskâmanagement overlayâleveraging predefined exit rulesâthat can be calibrated to varying risk tolerances and seamlessly integrated into broader multiâasset portfolios. Originality/Value: This study is among the first to integrate Bitcoinâs protocolâdriven halving schedule with a multiâindicator technical framework and to validate its efficacy through extensive statistical tests over four market cycles (including the 2024 halving). It offers practitioners a replicable, dataâdriven strategy for navigating cryptoâs unique cyclical dynamics.
This study offers an in-depth examination of the transformative influence of cryptocurrencies on global economic and financial systems, emphasizing their interplay with financial inclusion, regulatory evolution, and decentralized economic frameworks. Employing a mixed methods design that combines quantitative regression modeling with qualitative analysis, the research uncovers new insights into cryptocurrency adoption, particularly within emerging economies and financially marginalized populations. Unlike previous studies that focus primarily on technological or speculative dimensions, this paper critically investigates cryptocurrencies as both catalysts for financial democratization and potential sources of systemic risk. It develops a balanced framework for understanding how decentralized finance (DeFi) can coexist with regulatory oversight, proposing evidence-based policy recommendations that promote innovation while safeguarding market integrity and consumer protection. Empirical findings demonstrate that cryptocurrencies facilitate broader access to financial services due to their decentralized structure and cost-efficient transactions. However, they also expose users to challenges such as extreme price volatility, cybersecurity risks, and inconsistent regulatory environments. Moreover, socio-economic analysis reveals that individuals with prior exposure to cryptocurrencies exhibit more favorable perceptions of their societal and economic impact. The research concludes that sustainable cryptocurrency integration requires adaptive regulatory models, cross-border collaboration, and continuous monitoring of technological evolution. Future studies should expand on longitudinal and comparative analyses to evaluate how evolving governance and education strategies influence adoption and trust. By situating cryptocurrencies within the broader discourse of digital transformation and economic sustainability, this paper contributes to shaping policy and industry practices that support an inclusive, resilient, and transparent financial ecosystem.
Public companies and institutional investors that hold Bitcoin face increasing pressure to show solvency, manage risk, and satisfy regulatory expectations without exposing internal wallet structures or trading strategies. This paper introduces the Treasury Proof Ledger (TPL), a Bitcoin-anchored logging framework for multi-domain Bitcoin treasuries that treats on-chain and off-chain exposures as a conserved state machine with an explicit fee sink. A TPL instance records proof-of-reserves snapshots, proof-of-transit receipts for movements between domains, and policy metadata, and it supports restricted views based on stakeholder permissions. We define an idealised TPL model, represent Bitcoin treasuries as multi-domain exposure vectors, and give deployment-level security notions including exposure soundness, policy completeness, non-equivocation, and privacy-compatible policy views. We then outline how practical, restricted forms of these guarantees can be achieved by combining standard proof-of-reserves and proof-of-transit techniques with hash-based commitments anchored on Bitcoin. The results are existence-type statements: they show which guarantees are achievable once economic and governance assumptions are set, without claiming that any current system already provides them. A stylised corporate-treasury example illustrates how TPL could support responsible transparency policies and future cross-institution checks consistent with Bitcoin's fixed monetary supply.
A Sowmiya, Kavitha Muthukumaran, V Jhansi, Jesus Milton Rousseau S. · 6 authors
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) represents a transformative shift in the financial landscape by using blockchain technology to enable peer-to-peer services without traditional intermediaries. This study adopts a socio-cultural lens to examine the key factors that influence individualsâ intentions to adopt DeFi technologies. In particular, we explore how performance expectancy (perceived usefulness), effort expectancy (perceived ease of use), social influence, and innovativeness drive user adoption, and how these relationships are moderated by demographic factors such as age, gender, education, and income. Drawing on survey data (N = 425) collected in India (an emerging market context), the research employs Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to test the proposed framework. Results indicate that perceived usefulness and ease of use are significant positive predictors of DeFi adoption. Social influence and individual innovativeness also encourage adoption, especially among younger and more educated users. Moreover, demographic characteristics shape the strength of these effects: for instance, younger users find DeFi more useful and easier to use, women are more impacted by social recommendations, and higher-income individuals are more inclined to adopt innovative financial solutions. These findings underscore that DeFi adoption is not just a technical or economic process, but a culturally situated phenomenon influenced by social dynamics and user diversity. The paper discusses implications for improving digital financial inclusion and strategies for stakeholders to foster broader DeFi acceptance across different social groups
Crowdfunding for social goods has become a transformative force in India's development ecosystem, emerging as a crucial citizen-driven financing model for healthcare assistance, educational support, social welfare, environmental conservation, and community development projects.As India progresses toward achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the importance of innovative, decentralized, and participatory funding mechanisms has grown significantly.Traditional sources of funding-government schemes, philanthropic donations, CSR initiatives, and institutional grants-are often insufficient to meet the enormous financial needs of low-income and marginalized communities.In this context, digital crowdfunding platforms such as Ketto, Milaap, ImpactGuru, Donatekart, and GiveIndia offer flexible, inclusive, and accessible channels for mobilizing public contributions.Unlike commercial crowdfunding, donation-based crowdfunding provides no financial returns to donors.Therefore, donors' decisions are fundamentally shaped by behavioural finance factors rather than economic incentives.This research adopts a behavioural finance perspective to examine the psychological, emotional, cognitive, and social determinants that influence campaign success for SDG-aligned social crowdfunding projects in India.The study investigates how donor motivations-including altruism, empathy, moral obligation, warm-glow effect, identity-driven giving, and social influence-interact with campaign design elements, platform architecture, and trust signals to determine fundraising outcomes.Findings from prior research and platform-level data indicate that trust remains the strongest driver of donation intention.Indian donors tend to be risk-averse due to concerns about fraud, misrepresentation, and misuse of funds.As a result, trust-building mechanisms-such as verified fundraisers, authentic documentation, medical proof, transparent financial breakdowns, institutional endorsements, and frequent campaign updates-significantly increase credibility and donor confidence.Emotional storytelling is another powerful determinant; campaigns featuring identifiable beneficiaries, vivid visuals, personal narratives, and urgent medical needs evoke stronger empathy and are more likely to attract support.Social proof and herding behaviour also play a critical role.Donors frequently look to the actions of others to validate campaign legitimacy, especially when information is limited.High engagement metrics-number of donors, comments, shares, early contributions-signal popularity and urgency, triggering positive herding effects that accelerate the fundraising process.Campaigns that achieve early momentum typically experience higher visibility, stronger network effects, and higher conversion rates.In India, where community networks, family ties, religious identity, and regional affiliations are strong, such social cues significantly enhance campaign reach:
The rapid changes under modern technology have had a significant impact on the business and investment sector, with the emergence of new businesses and investments in these businesses beginning to be leveraged by investors and specialized companies to generate significant profits.Therefore, virtual assets have emerged and spread, representing new, modern, and highly advanced digital tools. Specialized and appropriate legislation has been developed by a number of countries, with millions of dollars allocated to them. Individuals and investors have begun trading in them through specialized digital platforms, which are characterized by high security and guarantees.Virtual assets vary in several types, including cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens, and virtual land.From the above, the emergence of virtual assets has provided a distinct qualitative leap, thus necessitating the establishment of a specialized authority to monitor virtual assets traded and invested in across various platforms. This will achieve significant security for those engaged in these activities. Furthermore, there is a clear and significant legislative deficiency in the treatment of virtual assets at the Arab level in many countries, which constitutes a significant challenge in this regard. Furthermore, there is the problem of providing guarantees for the emerging technologies in various financial and commercial transactions. It is noteworthy that the Emirate of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates was the first to do so, under the Virtual Assets Law issued in 2022, the Yemeni Virtual Assets Draft Law of 1445 AH, and the Jordanian Virtual Assets Law, which was passed in May 2025.
Decentralized finance (DeFi) represents a novel financial ecosystem built on open blockchain networks and smart contracts, enabling the provision of financial services without traditional intermediaries. This article examines the conceptual foundations of DeFi, its legal nature, associated risks, and regulatory challenges through a comparative analysis of international practice and the emerging legal framework of Uzbekistan. Particular attention is paid to the composability of DeFi protocols, the legal uncertainty surrounding smart contracts, and the difficulty of identifying responsible parties in decentralized systems. The study analyzes scholarly perspectives, including those of SchĂ€r and Zetzsche, and reviews regulatory responses in the United States and the European Union, with a focus on enforcement actions and AML/CFT concerns. It further evaluates risks such as cyberattacks, fraud, money laundering, and consumer harm, highlighting the systemic vulnerabilities of DeFi infrastructures. The article argues that while DeFi offers transparency and innovation, effective regulation requires balancing technological neutrality with robust consumer protection and compliance mechanisms. The findings suggest that Uzbekistan may adopt a cautious, technology-integrated regulatory approach to harness DeFiâs potential while mitigating legal and financial risks.
Michele Pasqua, Sofia Mari, Ferdinando Santoro, Mariano Ceccato
With Ethereumâs rise as the leading platform for decentralized applications, securing Ethereum smart contracts, very often having a financial impact, becomes paramount. Existing research lacks a comprehensive overview of Ethereum defects (and the terminology is often inconsistent), making it difficult for researchers, developers, and industry professionals to navigate this nowadays critical topic. This necessitates a unified source of information detailing defects affecting Ethereum and its smart contracts, along with their root causes, impact, and mitigation strategies. In this paper, we propose a knowledge base of defects , encompassing security vulnerabilities and code flaws found in the Ethereum blockchain and its smart contracts. We started by performing a systematic literature review to identify the currently known defects and then created a hierarchical tag system to classify them. This system was then used to build an ontology allowing users to easily search and learn about Ethereum defects. We also implemented EDOV, a tool to graphically navigate and explore the ontology, perform search queries, and visualize defect details, such as examples of defective/fixed code. As new defects may appear in the future, the ontology and the tool are built with extensibility in mind. We believe this research is a valuable contribution to helping developers and practitioners avoid common mistakes, improving the overall security and reliability of the Ethereum ecosystem.
Abstract Blockchain technology is emerging as one of the most profound and cutting-edge innovations of the twenty-first century, providing a decentralized, immutable system for recording transactions. It has enabled the tokenization of distinctive digital assets, including art, music and real estate, through non-fungible tokens (NFTs). NFTs enable asset transfers by operating on pseudonymous blockchain networks, thereby preventing the disclosure of the ownerâs real-world identity. While it enhances user privacy and innovation, it also creates significant anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing challenges. Fraudsters and other bad-faith actors can use these assets to obfuscate dirty money and illicit financial transactions, given lax or non-existent regulations on NFTs and extremely lax Know-Your-Customer compliance. In light of the above, the authors explore the nexus between NFTs and financial crime (with a particular focus on the legal frameworks of the Sultanate of Oman, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom) in this article. The paper aims to evaluate how each jurisdictionâs response to NFT-related abuse has evolved and been effective in practice. This will be done through a review of existing laws, enforcement, regulations and regulatory gaps. The article ends with specific policy recommendations to enhance regulatory certainty, enforcement effectiveness and international cooperation, supporting an innovation-first approach to the NFT space tempered by necessary measures to prevent criminal abuse.
The rapid growth of financial technology (fintech) has transformed the global economic landscape, including the Islamic finance sector, which seeks to align innovation with Shariah principles. This study aims to analyze the opportunities and challenges of applying blockchain technology and smart contracts in the Islamic fintech ecosystem, particularly in the context of strengthening Islamic financial principles in the digital era. It employs a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) approach combined with qualitative descriptive analysis of fifteen scientific articles indexed in Scopus, ScienceDirect, Garuda, and Sinta, covering the period from 2020 to 2025. The data was analyzed thematically to identify patterns of findings, research gaps, and academic and practical implications. The results indicate that blockchain technology and smart contracts have the potential to enhance transparency, efficiency, and accountability in Islamic financial transactions. Their implementation also opens opportunities for product innovation, such as smart sukuk and Islamic crowdfunding, which foster Shariah-based financial inclusion. However, challenges remain, including unclear Shariah digital regulations, technological complexity, low digital literacy, and issues of ethics and data security. The synthesis of findings highlights the need for collaboration among regulators, technology experts, and scholars to develop adaptive and Shariah-compliant fintech standards.
This study does a bibliometric analysis of financial inclusion research within the framework of a sustainable economy, utilizing papers indexed in a prominent scientific database from 2000 to 2025. The study utilizes performance analysis and scientific mapping methodologies through VOSviewer and Bibliometrix to investigate publication patterns, prominent authors, institutions, countries, and networks of keyword co-occurrence. The findings indicate that financial inclusion and sustainable development form the primary conceptual core, intricately linked to economic growth, financial development, and sustainability. Contemporary research is mostly focused on digital issues, including fintech, digital financial inclusion, and decentralized finance, which progressively associate inclusive finance with environmental performance, green innovation, and the reduction of carbon emissions. Networks of international collaboration indicate that emerging economies, notably China, India, Pakistan, and South Africa, assume a prominent role, but such collaboration is predominantly localized rather than entirely global. The study elucidates the structure and history of this interdisciplinary domain, identifies significant research clusters and deficiencies, and delineates avenues for further exploration of inclusive and sustainable financial systems.
Memecoins, emerging from internet culture and community-driven narratives, have rapidly evolved into a unique class of crypto assets. Unlike technology-driven cryptocurrencies, their market dynamics are primarily shaped by viral social media diffusion, celebrity influence, and speculative capital inflows. To capture the distinctive vulnerabilities of these ecosystems, we present the first Memecoin Ecosystem Fragility Framework (ME2F). ME2F formalizes memecoin risks in three dimensions: i) Volatility Dynamics Score capturing persistent and extreme price swings together with spillover from base chains; ii) Whale Dominance Score quantifying ownership concentration among top holders; and iii) Sentiment Amplification Score measuring the impact of attention-driven shocks on market stability. We apply ME2F to representative tokens (over 65% market share) and show that fragility is not evenly distributed across the ecosystem. Politically themed tokens such as TRUMP, MELANIA, and LIBRA concentrate the highest risks, combining volatility, ownership concentration, and sensitivity to sentiment shocks. Established memecoins such as DOGE, SHIB, and PEPE fall into an intermediate range. Benchmark tokens ETH and SOL remain consistently resilient due to deeper liquidity and institutional participation. Our findings provide the first ecosystem-level evidence of memecoin fragility and highlight governance implications for enhancing market resilience in the Web3 era.
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) faces a "Capital Inefficiency Trilemma," relying on overcollateralization due to a lack of off-chain financial identity. This paper introduces Zolvency, the Zero-Knowledge Solvency Layerâa cryptographic infrastructure bridging this gap. By utilizing zkTLS for authenticated data extraction from Web2 sources (e.g., tax portals, banking apps) and zkVMs (SP1) for verifiable computation, Zolvency issues privacy-preserving Soulbound Tokens (SBTs) that attest to financial solvency. This enables under-collateralized lending for Real World Assets (RWA) in emerging markets, unlocking liquidity while preserving user privacy and data sovereignty.
This research introduces the Decentralized Finance (DeFi) TrustBoost Framework, which combines blockchain technology and Explainable AI to address challenges faced by lenders underwriting small business loan applications from low-wealth households. The framework is designed with a strong emphasis on fulfilling four crucial requirements of blockchain and AI systems: confidentiality, compliance with data protection laws, resistance to adversarial attacks, and compliance with regulatory audits. It presents a technique for tamper-proof auditing of automated AI decisions and a strategy for on-chain (inside-blockchain) and off-chain data storage to facilitate collaboration within and across financial organizations.
The evolution of the global digital financial system is generating two main forms of digital currencies: a centralized currency system, such as Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), and a decentralized cryptocurrency system, like Bitcoin and Ether. This study aims to analyze the conceptual differences between the centralized (CBDC) and decentralized (Bitcoin and Ether) models and each operating mechanism. The study also examines how both models impact the stability of the economy and adherence to Shariah principles. Using the qualitative approach and exploratory design, the study examines materials on CBDC, Bitcoin, and Ether. The study collects data from central bank reports, monetary policy documents, academic articles, and technical papers published by relevant institutions. The content analysis method should identify similarities and differences between the currencies in terms of system architecture, infrastructure, technological efficiency, energy, governance and compatibility with Shariah principles. According to the study, CBDC, Bitcoin and Ether represent three distinct paradigms: Bitcoin's decentralized system, through proof-of-work, produces rather limited functionality to emphasise individual freedom and privacy, while Ether innovates the system via a switch to proof-of-stake and smart contracts, which leads to greater functionality. CBDC, on the other hand, maintains a centralized system to ensure monetary stability, but with a compromise on users' privacy. Hence, while maintaining the value of blockchain transparency and traceability without sacrificing economic stability, the study proposes a hybrid approach in order to improve transaction efficiency. The study suggests implementing a regulatory sandbox involving authorities, economists and Shariah experts as an initial test measure of this innovation to ensure security for users and compliance with the principles of Shariah in the development of a healthier digital financial ecosystem.
The rapid expansion of Indonesiaâs digital financial ecosystem has significantly advanced financial inclusion and innovation through the growth of fintech platforms, digital payments, and crypto-asset adoption. However, this transformation introduces multifaceted risks, including cyber threats, data breaches, digital fraud, regulatory uncertainty, and money-laundering vulnerabilities associated with crypto-assets and decentralized finance. This study employs a systematic literature review to examine the challenges and innovations in digital financial risk control within Indonesiaâs fintech and digital asset sectors. Findings indicate that effective risk mitigation relies heavily on regulatory coordination, advanced supervisory technology, consumer digital literacy, and robust data protection practices. RegTech and SupTech innovations powered by artificial intelligence support real-time risk monitoring and enhance compliance with global standards such as FATF recommendations. Nevertheless, successful digital financial governance also requires algorithmic accountability and ethical technology deployment. This study underscores that safeguarding stability, trust, and consumer protection is essential to achieving a secure and inclusive digital financial system while enabling responsible innovation.
The rapid growth of fintech start-ups has led to a drastic change in the financial ecosystem in India, but at the same time, they are under scrutiny from various regulatory bodies because of the volume of risk associated with digital finance (specifically financial fraud, data security, and transaction risk) associated with digital finance. While compliance with the various regulations has historically been a lengthy manual process that involved multiple compliance departments and therefore had a high level of inherent error risk, with the introduction of blockchain technology, there is now the potential to develop compliance systems that use automated and tamper-proof processes that allow for an increased amount of transparency, auditability, and operational efficiencies. Thus, the main focus of this research paper is to evaluate how a blockchain-based system for regulatory compliance might impact fintech start-ups. A case study was conducted on CryptoShield Solutions Pvt. Ltd., a Mumbai-based RegTech company specializing in distributed ledgerâbased compliance platforms. The data was collected during the internship through observation, workflow analysis, discussions with professionals, and review of anonymized compliance records.The findings indicate that fintech firms adopting blockchain compliance tools have observed 35â45% reduction in manual reporting hours, improved accuracy, faster audit completion cycles, and stronger trust among investors and regulators. However, awareness remains shallow due to skill gaps, cost perception, and lack of standardized guidelines. The final recommendations of the study on stronger digital adoption efforts, awareness programs, and capacity-building initiatives will significantly accelerate the pace of blockchain-enabled compliance transformation in India.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Innovations and Analysis in Business and Education
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) has emerged as a transformative force in global finance, offering trustless, blockchain-based alternatives to traditional intermediated systems. This paper examines how DeFi innovations â such as tokenized assets, decentralized exchanges (DEXs), and automated smart contracts â are reshaping corporate fundraising. It analyzes the efficiency, accessibility, and regulatory implications of using decentralized protocols for capital raising, comparing DeFi mechanisms (e.g., IDOs, security token offerings, DAOs) with traditional equity and debt issuance models. Using case studies and data from leading DeFi ecosystems (Ethereum, Polygon, Solana) and corporate blockchain pilots, we evaluate DeFiâs impact on fundraising costs, investor reach, and transparency. The findings suggest that while DeFi offers reduced friction and democratized access to capital, challenges in regulation, governance, and investor protection must be resolved before large-scale corporate adoption.
Henry Segun Uwabor, Igba Emmanuel, Onuh Matthew Ijiga
The emergence of decentralized finance (DeFi) has transformed global financial ecosystems by enabling transparent, permissionless, and automated investment systems. However, the inherent volatility, regulatory uncertainty, and data complexity within DeFi ecosystems pose significant challenges for risk modeling and compliance assurance. This review explores the integration of AI-powered predictive frameworks to enhance risk assessment, fraud detection, and regulatory compliance in decentralized finance investment systems. By leveraging machine learning (ML), deep learning (DL), and natural language processing (NLP) models, the study examines how predictive analytics can proactively identify anomalous transactions, assess smart contract vulnerabilities, and optimize portfolio risk exposure. The paper also evaluates how AI-driven systems can align DeFi operations with emerging regulatory frameworks, including KYC/AML protocols, data protection standards, and algorithmic auditing requirements. Additionally, the review highlights the role of explainable AI (XAI) in promoting transparency, interpretability, and trust among regulators and investors. Through a synthesis of existing literature and real-world applications, this paper presents a comprehensive framework illustrating how predictive AI technologies can bridge the gap between financial innovation and regulatory governance in DeFi. The findings underscore the potential of intelligent, adaptive, and compliant DeFi systems capable of ensuring sustainable growth, investor protection, and systemic stability in the evolving digital financial landscape.
Abstract We present a spatial analysis of Bitcoin-accepting merchants using BTC Map, a global crowdsourced dataset built on OpenStreetMap, to provide ground-level evidence on Bitcoinâs payment ecosystem. While prior research emphasizes macroeconomic drivers, our analysis of approximately 11,000 merchants shows that local adoption is more strongly shaped by community dynamics and sectoral niches. Acknowledging quality variance in crowdsourced data, we focus on verified regional clusters. We find a global concentration of adoption in the hospitality sector, localised clusters driven by grassroots initiatives rather than national policy and significant presence in alternative healthcare and IT services. These findings highlight the limits of top-down interventions such as El Salvadorâs legal tender law and underscore the role of social networks in sustaining adoption. By contrasting spatial micro-level evidence with national studies, this work positions merchant data as a key lens for understanding Bitcoinâs evolving role as a medium of exchange.