Aave and Lido surpass $70b in combined net deposits, leads the DeFi ecosystem

Aave and Lido together have surpassed $70 billion in net deposits for the first time in history, as per Token Terminal. 

Aave (AAVE) is in the leading position with $34.3 billion, just ahead of Lido Finance’s (LDO) $33.4 billion. The two protocols together represent 75.25% of the $89.52 billion allocated to the top five Decentralized applications, the highest ever, in Dec 2024. The two projects together account for 45.5% of the total funds allocated among the top 20 DeFi applications, equating to $67.42 billion out of the $148 billion total net deposits across the sector. LDO has the lead in total value locked at $33.8 billion, followed by AAVE at $20.6 billion. 

Overall, the DeFi sector experienced growth, with year-to-date TVL rising 107%, and at its peak on Dec. 16, TVL reached $212 billion, representing the first time this value has ever passed over $200 billion.

The revenue performance also brings to light the strength of these protocols. AAVE made $12.5 million over the last 30 days, growing 27.5%, and LDO reached $9.6 million, thanks to platform growth of 24%. 

Beyond deposits, the DeFi ecosystem also marked a record in the trading volumes of decentralized exchanges, reaching almost $380 billion in volume throughout Nov., as per TheBlock. In fact, the share of trading volume carried out on DEXes as opposed to centralized exchanges hit 13.86% in Oct., the second highest ever recorded, closely following the 14.18% seen in May 2023.

The DeFi lending market also grew significantly, with current loans counting up to $21 billion in December. This is the largest monthly figure to date. Yield farming and staking represent one of the major tools of DeFi and form a $200 billion stablecoin market. The tools allow users to earn rewards or borrow using stablecoins. They are enhanced by DEXs and liquidity pools, allowing price slippage to be only minimal in high-activity marketplaces. Stablecoins can also traverse into different blockchain networks, furthering their versatility and ease of usage.