Decentralised finance (DeFi) is a logical step in developing the ideas embedded in the first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin. The DeFi sector is now actively developing and has many projects to choose from. In this article, we discuss the best and most promising DeFi cryptoprojects and coins in 2022.

What are DeFi coins?

DeFi refers to various services that allow you to do the same things that you would do in a regular financial institution, such as lend or borrow money, buy insurance, deposit money, buy, pawn and trade various assets. But unlike standard financial institutions, they are based on smart contracts and blockchain technology.

A DeFi coin is a cryptocurrency token used to participate in the DeFi economy. Specifically, DeFi coins are cryptocurrencies that are used in decentralised exchanges, liquidity pools, for yield farming, lending, asset management and more.

Difference between DeFi and centralised finance

Centralised finance (CeFi) refers to centralised financial institutions that provide financial services to their customers. These types of institutions include traditional banks and centralised cryptocurrency exchanges like Binance and Coinbase. However, some experts distinguish between CeFi, centralised companies dealing predominantly with crypto assets, and traditional finance (TradFi), which combines traditional financial institutions, such as banks.

The main difference between DeFi and CeFi is that DeFi is decentralised, i.e., no single authority sets the rules and enforces them. DeFi technologies are publicly available open-source tools, usually based on smart contracts. This helps create a fully transparent financial system independent of regulators and intermediaries and accessible to everyone. 

It's worth noting that DeFi proposes the use of a non-custodial wallet. It's the responsibility of the user to keep the private keys secure.

Other important differences between DeFi and CeFi:

Best DeFi to invest in 2022

There are many DeFi crypto projects that have already gained prominence, and new ones keep springing up. It's difficult to navigate through all of them. If you're considering investing in DeFi coins, do your own research, but we'll give you a hint as to which projects might be worth looking at.

Most popular DeFi projects in 2022

Let's first look at the list of the most popular DeFi projects and their cryptocurrencies.

The most popular DeFi cryptocurrencies (as of 06/09/22)

List of top DeFi coins and projects to invest in 

"Most popular", however, doesn't mean "most promising from an investor's point of view". Below we've listed several DeFi cryptocurrencies that we believe are among the most promising investments. However, remember that investing in cryptocurrencies is highly risky, and the situation in the crypto industry can change quickly. Hence, there's no guarantee that these cryptocurrencies will bring good returns for investors.

• Avalanche (AVAX). A decentralised, open-source platform that creates an ecosystem for the DeFi industry. The platform allows DeFi apps, financial start-ups, trading and other services to be launched on it.

AVAX statistics (as of 06/09/22)

• Uniswap (UNI). One of the most popular decentralised crypto exchanges (DEX). Being based on Ethereum, it allows users to exchange ERC-20 tokens. UNI is the platform's governance token.

UNI statistics (as of 06/09/22)

• Chainlink (LINK). A decentralised oracle network that enables smart contracts to connect securely to external data sources. Users can both use existing oracles and add new ones to the network.

LINK statistics (as of 06/09/22)

• Aave (AAVE). Aave is a DeFi lending protocol that enables its users to lend and borrow crypto assets. AAVE is the platform's governance token.

AAVE statistics (as of 06/09/22)

• 1inch Network (1INCH). The platform is an aggregator of decentralised exchanges. One important advantage is its ability to split a single trade transaction across multiple DEXes, which allows users to trade with minimal price slippage and time delays.

1INCH statistics (as of 06/09/22)