The DeFi landscape is experiencing a seismic shift, shaping how capital flows and market power consolidate. While the total value locked remains steady at over $160 billion, it's the distribution that reveals intrigue. A large portion is concentrated in powerhouses like Aave and Lido, reflecting a consolidation in traditional lending and staking roles. But there's more than meets the eye, stablecoins such as Tether are not just dominating market share but acting as quasi-central banks within DeFi. This centralization raises a pivotal question: how will DeFi's dependency on a handful of influential protocols and issuers shape its future and can it sustain this precarious balance?
DeFi looks vast with $160B in TVL but capital concentrates in a handful of protocols
Stablecoins and perpetual markets are keeping the system liquid, even as most collateral remains concentrated in a few lending and staking layers.
5 min read
Updated: Sep. 17, 2025 at 12:42 am UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
Ethereum is an open source smart contract platform and decentralized network that underpins a large share of the global crypto economy.
Tether
$0.99932
Launched in 2014, Tether is a blockchain-enabled platform designed to facilitate the use of fiat currencies in a digital manner.
USDC
$0.99967
USDC is a fully reserved stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the US dollar, issued by Circle Internet Financial Ltd.
Solana
$126.658
Solana is a high-performance blockchain platform that utilizes a unique consensus algorithm called “Proof of History” to achieve fast transaction speeds and low fees.
Binance
Binance is one of the world’s largest centralized cryptocurrency exchanges by trading volume, offering spot, derivatives, and earning products to a global retail and institutional user base.
Featured Story
Advertise here
