The total value locked across decentralized finance protocols has climbed back above the $100 billion threshold for the first time since February, reflecting a broad improvement in risk sentiment and renewed on-chain activity across Ethereum, Solana, and emerging L1 ecosystems.
Aave leads the rankings with $22 billion in TVL, followed by Lido at $18 billion, Uniswap at $8 billion, and MakerDAO at $7 billion. The recovery has been broad-based, with 18 of the top 20 protocols by TVL posting positive growth over the past 30 days.
The resurgence has been partly driven by the return of yield-seeking institutional capital. Tokenized US Treasury products — which offer risk-free rate exposure on-chain — have grown to $8 billion in assets, up 340% year-on-year. BlackRock’s BUIDL fund alone holds $3.2 billion.
“DeFi is maturing,” said Aave founder Stani Kulechov. “The user base is shifting from retail speculators to institutional treasuries and sophisticated fund managers. That’s a healthier, more durable demand base.” The number of daily active DeFi wallets on Ethereum has risen to 820,000 — a 14-month high.
Risks remain. The KelpDAO and Volo exploits this month demonstrated that smart contract vulnerabilities continue to pose existential threats to individual protocols. Security auditing firms report a 60% increase in demand for their services compared to the same period last year.
