Accessibility at DeFi Intel — WCAG 2.1 AA targeted compliance

DeFi Intel is a research site that exists to be read. It serves journalists, academics, regulators, founders, allocators and screen-reader users alike, and it has to work for every one of them. We target conformance to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 at level AA across all 1,099+ pages on this domain, and we aim higher than that where the technology lets us. This page documents what we have done, the gaps we know we still have, how to report a barrier you encounter, and the roadmap for closing the remaining gaps. Last reviewed 2026-05-03.

Our commitment

Accessibility is not a checklist we tick at launch and forget. It is a property of every page we ship. The accessibility statement below is honest: it includes the things we have done well, and it includes the things that are not yet at the standard we want. If you encounter a barrier — anything that prevents you from reading, navigating or using a feature on this site — we want to hear about it. Email [email protected] and we will respond within 5 working days with a fix, a workaround, or an honest timeline.

What we've done

• Semantic HTML across all 1,099+ pages. Every page uses a single <h1>, sectioned headings in order, <nav> with aria-label, <main> for primary content, and <footer> for site links. Verified across the static build.
• ARIA attributes on interactive elements. Buttons, custom toggles and disclosure widgets carry aria-expanded, aria-controls, aria-label and role as appropriate. Loading states use role="status".
• Color contrast ≥ 4.5:1. Body text against background meets the WCAG 2.1 AA threshold of 4.5:1 in both light and dark themes. Large text (18pt+) meets the relaxed 3:1 threshold. Verified with axe-core and manual sampling.
• Full keyboard navigation. Every interactive element is reachable via Tab. Focus order matches visual order. There are no keyboard traps. Custom widgets implement the WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices keyboard pattern.
• Visible focus indicators. Focus rings are not removed. Custom focus rings on interactive elements use outline:2px solid var(--accent); outline-offset:2px for a 2px high-contrast indicator.
• prefers-reduced-motion respected. All animations and transitions collapse to ~0ms when the user has set prefers-reduced-motion: reduce at the OS level.
• Screen-reader friendly. "Skip to main content" link as the first focusable element. role="status" on loading states. Decorative icons marked aria-hidden="true". Tables use <th> with scope.
• Forms labelled. Every input has an explicit <label>. autocomplete, inputmode and aria-describedby are populated where they help. Errors are announced via aria-live="polite".
• Resize-friendly. Layouts reflow at 320px viewport without loss of content or function. Text remains legible at 200% browser zoom.
• Language declared. Every page declares lang="en". Pages with non-English quotes mark them with lang on the inline element.

Known gaps — being honest

WCAG 2.1 AA conformance is a target, not a stamp. Here are the issues we know we have not yet closed:

• Some legacy SVGs lack aria-hidden or accessible <title> elements In progress Older inline SVGs from the first build pass were not annotated. A sweep is underway to either (a) mark them aria-hidden="true" when decorative, or (b) add a <title> element with descriptive text when meaningful. Target completion: Q3 2026.
• The 11k-node entity graph viewer has limited keyboard navigation Workaround in place The interactive graph visualisation at /graph is a force-directed canvas; full keyboard navigation of an 11,787-node graph is not currently practical. Workaround: the same data is available as a fully keyboard-navigable, screen-reader-friendly directory at /companies and as paginated entity pages. The directory route is the recommended access path for assistive technology users. We are scoping a list-mode toggle for the graph viewer as a longer-term fix.
• Dark-mode color combinations on some legacy components below 4.5:1 Audit ongoing A handful of legacy components — particularly secondary metadata text (--muted) on dark backgrounds — sit between 4.2:1 and 4.5:1 contrast in some viewport / monitor combinations. We are auditing the full dark palette and re-tuning. Target completion: Q3 2026.
• Charts use canvas, not SVG Tabular fallback in place Line and bar charts in research entries render to <canvas>, which is not directly accessible to screen readers. Every chart has a corresponding <table> with caption and scope'd headers immediately below it carrying the same data. We are evaluating SVG-rendered charts for the v5 build pipeline.
• Newsletter signup uses a third-party iframe Vendor pressure Our newsletter provider's embedded form does not fully meet our internal accessibility checklist. We have raised this with the vendor and provide a fully accessible plain-form alternative at [email protected].

How to report an issue

The fastest path is email:

• Email: [email protected]
• Response SLA: initial reply within 5 working days.
• Include if you can: the URL, the assistive technology and version (e.g. NVDA 2024.4 + Firefox 134), what you expected, and what happened. A screen-recording or screenshot helps.
• Anonymous reports welcome. You don't need to identify yourself or use accommodations to file a report.

We do not require you to use a specific form, install software, or accept any terms to file an accessibility report.

Compliance roadmap

Standards reference

• WCAG 2.1 — primary target standard, level AA.
• WCAG 2.2 — adoption target post-2027.
• ARIA Authoring Practices — pattern reference for custom widgets.
• EN 301 549 v3.2.1 — alignment for EU public-sector readers.
• Section 508 — U.S. federal alignment.

Who tested this site

The current site has been tested with: NVDA 2024.4 on Firefox 134 (Windows), VoiceOver on Safari 18 (macOS), JAWS 2024 on Chrome 131 (Windows), VoiceOver on Safari iOS 18 (iPhone), and TalkBack on Chrome (Android). Automated checks: axe-core 4.x and Lighthouse on representative pages from each template family (entity, guide, listing, comparison, tool). A full third-party axe-core audit by a named accessibility vendor is in procurement; the report will be linked here on completion.

Cross-links

Built by Round-9 Lane-13 (Trust pages). Last reviewed 2026-05-03. Next scheduled review: 2026-08-03.