Capital Allocators – Inside the Institutional Investment Industry [REPLAY] Ben Forman – Opportunities in DeFi (EP.256, Crypto for Institutions 2, EP.03)
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Apr 21, 2025 
Ben Forman, Founder and Managing Partner of ParaFi Capital, shares his journey from traditional finance to the fast-paced world of decentralized finance (DeFi). He explores the complexities of underwriting tokens as a new asset class and discusses engagement with DeFi protocols. The conversation covers risks and opportunities in DeFi, including lending, borrowing, and capital allocation strategies. Ben also touches on the role of permissioned DeFi in bridging regulatory compliance and innovation, along with valuable life lessons from chess that resonate in investing.
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Ben Forman's Crypto Journey
- Ben Forman transitioned from traditional finance to crypto after reading the Bitcoin white paper in 2014.
- He was fascinated by the concept of money as technology and later explored Ethereum and DeFi applications like MakerDAO.
DeFi Redefines Financial Systems
- DeFi transitions finance from intermediated, opaque systems into transparent software-driven global networks.
- These networks lower costs, provide instant settlement, and open access to many underserved people worldwide.
DeFi Lending Maturity Spectrum
- Secured lending in DeFi is mature with very few defaults on top platforms.
- Unsecured borrowing in Web3 is still nascent, lacking traditional credit protections and enforcement.