Decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure growth fuels surge in assets for crypto lenders.

From Yahoo Finance: 2025-06-18 16:21:00

Decentralized finance (DeFi) is quietly transforming. The current growth is driven by becoming a backend financial layer for user-facing apps and institutional participation. Total value locked on DeFi lending protocols has surged past $50 billion due to institutionalization and risk management tools. User-facing applications embed DeFi infrastructure for a seamless experience.

Integration of DeFi infrastructure into user-facing apps like Coinbase and Bitget Wallet offers yield and loans. Companies like PayPal are also offering yields to users through stablecoins. Crypto-friendly fintech firms may adopt this strategy to offer services like stablecoin credit lines and asset-backed loans through DeFi markets, creating new revenue streams.

DeFi protocols now introduce tokenized versions of traditional instruments like U.S. Treasuries and credit funds. Tokenized assets can serve as collateral, earn yield, or be bundled into more complex strategies. Tokenization of investment strategies is growing popular, with Pendle managing over $4 billion in total value locked in tokenized stablecoin yield products.

Crypto-native asset managers like Gauntlet and Re7 are on the rise, allocating capital across DeFi ecosystems using professionally managed strategies. These players are deeply embedded in DeFi protocol governance and manage capital across structured yield products, tokenized real-world assets, and modular lending markets. The sector’s capital under management has grown fourfold since January, reaching over $4 billion.



Read more at Yahoo Finance: Crypto Lenders Hold Nearly $60B of Assets as New Wave of DeFi Adoption Sweeps In: Report