Routledge Digital Assets: Innovation, Risks, and Regulation

Digital assets are fundamentally transforming the global financial system, yet their mechanics and implications remain poorly understood, even among financial professionals. This book offers the first comprehensive and rigorous exploration of the digital assets landscape. The authors lay the technical foundations of digital assets by examining how blockchains such as Bitcoin and Ethereum function, how smart contracts operate, and how cross-chain mechanisms connect separate blockchains. The book categorizes major digital asset classes, including digital currencies, tokenized securities, and cryptoassets. It investigates the institutional architecture underpinning the digital asset market, from wallets to exchanges like Coinbase. Additionally, it delves into multiple layers of the digital asset ecosystem, encompassing DeFi protocols (e.g., automated market makers, decentralized lending), financial products (ETPs, derivatives), and distinctive market activities, such as economic attacks and corporate Bitcoin treasury strategies. The book also provides a critical analysis of the systemic risks associated with the digital asset market and the corresponding regulatory responses. The book is an essential reference for financial professionals, regulators, researchers, and graduate students seeking to understand the digital asset market.