#CryptoRoundTableRemarks
DeFi regulations cannot be equated with traditional financial systems. Smart contract developers are not criminals; they are simply writing code — just as authors create books. Code is an expression, and can even be considered a form of free speech, as Hester Peirce stated. If we start holding people accountable for how others use that code, then innovation will die before it can develop.
Decentralization does not mean lawlessness, but rather a different legal system — one that is transparent, auditable by anyone, and guided by the community. Therefore, instead of limiting, regulations should protect DeFi developers just as we protect open source developers. Because the future of finance may no longer be driven by institutions, but by lines of neutral code.
