“Code is speech. But is it also finance?”
DeFi isn't lawless. It's programmable trust.
At the recent SEC roundtable, crypto regulators entered philosophical territory. SEC Commissioner
Hester Peirce reminded everyone:
> “Code is protected speech under the First Amendment.”
Eric Voorhees doubled down:
> “Smart contracts outperform human regulators.”
Meanwhile, others pushed back — saying developers should be held accountable like financial intermediaries.
So where’s the line?
Should coders be prosecuted for writing open-source protocols that others abuse? Or should we treat them like engineers building infrastructure — not operators of financial systems?
🧠 The stakes are high. How we define “responsibility” in DeFi will shape the future of innovation.
If regulators crack down too hard, we risk stifling builders and pushing code offshore.
But without safeguards, users may face another Terra-style disaster.
This debate isn’t just legal — it’s ideological. And it’s just getting started.
👇 Who should take responsibility — the dev, the DAO, or the user?
