Woofun AI reports that a16z published a blog post arguing traditional financial institutions are accelerating blockchain adoption for business value rather than embracing the DeFi model. The firm states that institutions prioritize cost reduction, settlement efficiency, and optimized customer relationship management over decentralized ideology, resulting in a "programmable financial infrastructure" tailored for institutional needs.

Institutions selectively absorb DeFi capabilities like atomic settlement and shared ledgers to reduce counterparty risk and reconciliation costs, while rejecting native features such as anonymity and open access due to compliance requirements. Examples include BlackRock's tokenized funds, which utilize blockchain to improve existing processes rather than entering DeFi. a16z concludes that TradFi and DeFi are developing in parallel directions, with true integration likely occurring at the underlying network level rather than through model replacement.