Ethereum Co-Founder: Wall Street’s Full-Scale DeFi Adoption Is Now ‘Inevitable’

In a June 16, 2025 post on X, Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin argued traditional finance leaders should study decentralized finance protocols as institutional crypto adoption accelerates. Wall Street firms can no longer ignore smart contract-powered lending, borrowing, and liquidity models that operate without TradFi intermediaries.

The On-Chain Evidence: Wall Street's First Steps into DeFi

Lubin's claim is supported by several recent trends where institutional players are already applying DeFi-like logic:

• Corporate Treasuries

Public companies like Strategy hold significant Bitcoin reserves (around 592,100 BTC), directly linking their corporate balance sheets to the performance of a digital asset.

• Massive ETF Demand

Spot Ethereum ETFs are attracting large capital. As of June 13, 2025, these funds saw cumulative inflows of approximately $3.85 billion, with single-day inflows for products like BlackRock's ETHA reaching $160 million.

• Institutional Pilots

Major banks are actively experimenting. JPMorgan, for example, already completed its first tokenized Treasury settlement on a public blockchain, signaling an exploration of on-chain finance.

Lubin's View: Regulatory Thaw Fuels Innovation

Wall Street figureheads need to understand yield strategies and token mechanics on Ethereum-based DeFi platforms. He noted that recent changes in enforcement attitudes reduced perceived risks for builders, encouraging further DeFi innovation.

Lubin's strategy boils down to two steps: first get Wall Street interested to normalize and grow DeFi, and then create end products for the masses

Read on: Robert Kiyosaki and the Debt-Fueled Prophecy