DeFi Safety Debate Flares After OpenZeppelin's Manuel Aráoz Urges Retail to Exit Blue-Chips

OpenZeppelin co-founder and former CTO Manuel Aráoz said DeFi is unsafe and said he has privately advised friends and family to exit major "blue-chip" protocols. Industry figures including 0G Labs CEO Michael Heinrich and Cysic founder Leo Fan disputed the framing, citing about a 98% improvement in DeFi lending security since 2020 and daily loss rates near 0.001% on major lending protocols. They argued security is shifting toward continuous, machine-speed defenses and that regulators should prioritize operational security over a narrow focus on code.