DFG's EthCC8 Review and Insights: AI Agents, Stablecoins, and the Revival of DeFi

Original Author: James Wo, Founder & CEO, Digital Finance Group

The 8th Ethereum Community Conference (EthCC[8]) was held from June 30 to July 3 in Cannes, France, bringing together over 6,500 developers, researchers, investors, and ecosystem contributors for four days of speeches, panel discussions, and community-led activities, making it the largest event of its kind to date. As one of Europe's most developer-focused Ethereum gatherings, this year's EthCC highlighted the increasingly mature and vibrant Web3 landscape, driven by real-world integration, emerging frontier technologies like AI, and the resurgence of DeFi.

Beyond the main stage at the Palais des Festivals, Cannes became a week-long hub of activity, hosting over 300 side events covering areas such as AI and cryptocurrency, stablecoins, tokenization, DeFi, and infrastructure. DFG was honored to participate once again as an EthVC sponsor in the pitch event, and I was delighted to share insights on Chain Abstraction on the main stage.

Here are three key themes we observed during EthCC 8:

AI Agents Shift from Profit-Driven Hype to Utility

We witnessed a significant shift in AI within Web3: the initial race for token-driven enthusiasm has evolved into a focus on real-world functionality and long-term applications. Teams are no longer designing products around speculative gains but are prioritizing usability, verifiability, and monetization models that go beyond tokenomics. The dominant question is no longer 'How to profit from the hype?' but 'How to provide tools that users genuinely need?'

This evolution has given rise to a new architectural blueprint that combines LLMs for decision-making, smart contracts for execution, and verifiable systems for trust and security. For example, ecosystems like NEAR are introducing infrastructure that allows AI agents to engage in commerce through executable agreements covering milestones, terms of service, and payment conditions. This innovation transforms digital interactions from simple task execution into legally binding transactions, marking a significant step towards AI agents becoming autonomous actors in the real economy, not just bots handling isolated tasks.

To support this shift, developers are building the foundational layers of the agent economy, including tools for monetization, inter-agent communication, attribution, and performance evaluation. These components will enable agents to interact, collaborate, and compete in dynamic markets, unlocking models such as recommendation-based systems and task-specific interoperability. This infrastructure is crucial for creating a sustainable, interconnected ecosystem where AI agents can thrive beyond isolated use cases.

Stablecoins and RWAs as the Foundation of Institutional Finance

Stablecoins have quickly become an indispensable part of the global financial ecosystem. Recent regulatory measures have provided much-needed clarity, positioning stablecoins as compliant tools for mainstream applications. This shift is sparking interest among institutional investors, with major financial institutions beginning to leverage stablecoins for payments, settlements, and treasury management—for example, the integration of USDC with traditional payment networks reflects growing confidence among mature financial institutions.

Meanwhile, tokenized RWAs, from treasury management to decentralized credit systems, are rapidly expanding. These assets are reshaping capital markets by introducing programmability, transparency, and cost structures that traditional finance cannot match. This wave of applications is further amplified by tokenization tools in underserved industries, enhancing inclusivity and global liquidity.

Today, AI-driven systems can autonomously optimize cross-chain and cross-protocol stablecoin yields and RWA allocations, enhancing this landscape. Smart rebalancing mechanisms, risk mitigation engines, and cross-chain portfolio execution aim to balance performance and compliance. The integration of compliant stablecoins, tokenized RWAs, and automated intelligence is transforming Web3 from merely a financial layer into a robust, institutional-grade infrastructure for the digital economy.

DeFi's Revival: Smarter and Safer

After nearly two years of contraction, DeFi is regaining momentum with a focus on security, efficiency, and interoperability. The next wave will be shaped by cross-chain liquidity layers, institutional-grade compliance, and AI-driven automation. The emphasis has shifted from chasing short-term gains to building systems that can scale sustainably and withstand volatility—a fundamental requirement for institutional adoption.

One of the most notable discussions at EthCC 8 was AAVE v4, which introduces a unified liquidity layer enabling seamless cross-chain lending, dynamic interest rate mechanisms, and more robust risk controls. This upgrade also deepens integration with stablecoins, featuring soft liquidations and automated treasury management. These advancements reflect a broader trend towards modular, risk-aware architectures that can adapt to market conditions without sacrificing efficiency or security.

AI-driven automation is accelerating this evolution. Autonomous agents can now optimize liquidity provision, execute hedging strategies, and identify high-yield opportunities across multiple chains. Predictive analytics are helping protocols anticipate and mitigate risks before they escalate. This is a far cry from the early days of DeFi, which relied heavily on manual management and static incentives. Today, DeFi is evolving into an intelligent, self-optimizing financial layer, paving the way for broader institutional adoption, long-term sustainability, and resilient infrastructure that can compete with and complement traditional markets.

DFG's EthCC8 Review and Insights: AI Agents, Stablecoins, and DeFi's Revival

We also brought a cool breeze to EthVC: stylish handheld fans kept the entire community refreshed during the sunny week in Cannes.

It was fantastic to deliver a speech on chain abstraction at the EthCC main venue! DFG is committed to supporting outstanding founders and teams in building excellent technologies and products. We believe cryptocurrency is at a turning point, and abstraction will unlock the next wave of growth.

On July 3, Terry also participated in the investment panel discussion at the Hack Seasons conference hosted by Mpost, sharing insights on the evolution of the stablecoin landscape and long-term investments. Terry reflected on DFG's early role in supporting USDC and our ongoing mission: to bridge traditional finance with cryptocurrency while upholding censorship resistance, as it is the most important yet fragile value in the ecosystem.

DFG Research Director Geng Kai joined the judging panel at the EthCC Builders Showcase hosted by AKINDO on July 2. We are honored to support AKINDO's event and its Buildathon movement, an initiative aimed at inspiring long-term developers and fostering a hackathon culture. The future of Web3 belongs to those who aim for decades, not cycles. At DFG, we are committed to supporting long-term value, not short-term hype.

On June 30, Geng Kai also moderated a panel titled "On-Chain AI Stack: Agents, Models, and Infrastructure" at the Multichain Day event organized by Wrapped, delving into key topics such as AI infrastructure design and scalability, interoperability and cross-chain execution, agent and model reliability, privacy, data integrity, and verifiable AI, with participation from DFG's portfolio companies NEAR and ZetaChain, among other industry leaders.

On June 29, Geng Kai moderated a panel titled "AI-Driven Financial Stack: Building the Infrastructure for DeFAI" at the DeFAI breakfast event organized by Epic Web3, exploring how to define DeFAI and the new capabilities it unlocks, why adoption remains niche and how to drive growth, the future value of autonomous agents and their potential tokenization, and the ethical design considerations that will shape DeFAI over the next 5-10 years.

About DFG

Digital Finance Group (DFG) is a leading global Web3 investment and venture capital firm, established in 2015. With over $1 billion in assets under management, DFG's investments span various sectors within the blockchain ecosystem. Our portfolio includes over 100 pioneering projects such as Circle, Ledger, Coinlist, Near, Solana, Render Network, and ZetaChain.

At DFG, we are dedicated to creating value for our portfolio companies through market research, strategic consulting, and sharing our extensive resources globally. We actively collaborate with the most transformative and promising blockchain and Web 3.0 projects poised to revolutionize the industry.

DFG Website: https://dfg.group

DFG Twitter: @DFG__Official

DFG LinkedIn: DFG

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